***Unedited by BPO staff
Be Choosy About
Child Care
By Sally Kees-Martin
GENERAL INFORMATION:
As a parent, you know more
about your child than any other person. By carefully looking into
available care and matching up services with your child's individual
needs, you will be able to select the best situation for your
child. You will find it well worth the extra time to choose carefully
because if your child is receiving happy and secure care, you
and the rest of the family will find your lives enriched as well.
HOW TO START:
There are different kinds
of care you might choose. The two most common are child care centers
and family day care homes. For information on how to choose a
child care center, obtain a copy of *Checklist for Child Care
Centers*.
If you are interested in
a family day care home, obtain a copy of *Checklist for Family
Day Care Homes*.
WHERE TO LOOK:
For a listing of child
care centers, look in the yellow pages of the telephone directory
under Child Care or Schools - Pre-school.
The licensing bureau for
child care centers and homes in your state may be able to tell
you how to get a list of licensed child care centers and family
day care homes for your area.
Another good source of
information is other working parents. Find out where their children
stay and what they think of the care. Several churches sponsor
child care programs, which you can find out about by calling the
church office.
If you need before/after
school care, you might ask your child's teacher if she/he knows
of a classmate's parents who provide such care.
Perhaps the most difficult
kind of care to locate is a reliable sitter to come to your home.
Check the "child care" ads in the newspaper or place
a help wanted ad of your own.
INITIAL SCREENING:
As you make out a list
of child care possibilities, keep these four thoughts in mind:
You will need to find care that is affordable. Cost and quality
do not always go hand in hand. The most expensive is not necessarily
the best. On the other hand, it may be better to spend a few more
dollars to get superior care. Remember to consider hidden costs,
like extra gasoline to get to a center clear across town.
Accessibility is the second factor to keep in mind. If you have
to leave home an hour early and fight traffic to get to the center,
your emotional energy as well as your gasoline may be in short
supply. A third factor is reliability. Will the care be available
when you need it? Will you be able to trust the sitter or staff
with your child's well-being?
The fourth and last factor is consistency. It is important for
your child's sense of security to have at least one consistent
caregiver, someone that you and your child can count on. Will
this be a place where your child will receive consistent care
with a minimum of problems and a maximum of opportunities for
growth and development?
When you have narrowed
your list, be sure to visit, using the checklists in this series.
Ask questions, find out how the center or home or sitter feels
to you, and get references wherever possible.
KNOW THE REGULATIONS:
Family Day Care Homes and
Child Care Centers should be licensed. You can find out how to
get a copy of the regulations by asking the bureau in charge of
licensing child care in your state.
PREPARE FOR SEPARATION:
Once you have selected
care, begin to prepare your child for this new experience. You
might say, "Soon we will be leaving right after breakfast.
I will go to my new job, and you get to go to your new school
where there will be lots of fun things to do. You will even get
to eat lunch there. Then I will pick you up before dinner."
If possible, go with your
child to visit and meet the caregiver. Then start with an hour
or so, before you have to leave your child for all day. A skilled
staff will help your child make this transition.
Take an extra pair of underwear
and play pants in a bag marked with your child's name. Also be
sure to leave your work number and an emergency number of a friend
or relative to call in case you can't be reached.
Don't panic at the first
problem. Talk over your concerns with the caregiver, and don't
be surprised if it takes your child several weeks to get used
to the new situation.
IS YOUR CHILD HAPPY?
If your child is happy
and looks forward to going to the place of child care, you know
you've made a good choice. You can also check by asking the staff
how your child is doing, what she/he likes the most or doesn't
like, and whether there is a new friend to invite over to play
on the weekend.
You might also tell the
staff about experiences your child is having at home so that the
caregiver understands your child as an individual If, for any
reason, the situation is not working out for you or your child
after a few weeks, let the caregiver know about the problems.
Then look elsewhere for an alternative. If the problems don't
go away, and you do decide to move your child, be sure to let
the caregiver know and explain the reasons for the move.
CHILD CARE AND
INCOME TAX:
Check with the Internal
Revenue Service regarding income tax credits for child care. Considering
the tax breaks, child care may cost less than it seems at first.
Reprinted with permission from the National Network for Child
Care - NNCC. Kees-Martin, S. (1981). Be choosy about child care
(HE-3-81). Reno, NV: University of Nevada Reno, Cooperative Extension.
COPYRIGHT PERMISSION ACCESS
Sally Kees-Martin
HDFS 140
University of Nevada, Reno
Reno NV 89557
PHONE:: (702) 784-6490
FAX:: (702) 784-6493
E-MAIL:: smartin@scs.unr.edu
***Unedited by BPO staff
