Child Care Options

When it comes to child care, there’s no one perfect choice, and it’s a decision many parents dread having to make. But while it would be great if one parent could stay home with the kids full time, that’s often not an option in the reality of today’s two-income households.

The best decision is one that works for you and your family. For some, a nanny that looks after the child in the home may be a viable option. For others, dropping off their son or daughter at a day care may be the best—and most affordable—solution to the “Who will watch our child while we’re at work” quandary.

The most important thing is that your child is in a safe, happy, educational and nurturing environment. You want the person who looks after your child to have:

• Knowledge of how young children learn and grow
• Positive, consistent discipline
• Awareness of the signs that a child is sick
• Cleanliness and safety practices to help keep kids from getting hurt or sick (these include child-proofing, wearing disposable gloves for diaper changes, disinfecting toys regularly and frequent hand-washing)
• Basic first aid (including CPR)

Now, consider your childcare options to fulfill these needs:

• Nanny or au pair. A nanny looks after your child in your home and may live with you or in her own home. An au pair lives with the family and provides child care under direct supervision of the parents. Experience working with children can vary, and background and reference checks are strongly encouraged. Find out more at www.nanny.org (International Nanny Association) or www.iapa.org (International Au Pair Association).



• Day care centers and family child care. Daycares may be linked to a religious organization, corporation or community center and have several adults who care for larger groups of children. In family child care, there is often one adult supervising children in his or her own home. Look for voluntary accreditations for these facilities—which can be a heads-up that they are committed to quality care and child development programs—through the National Association for the Education of Young Children (www.naeyc.org) and the National Association for Family Child Care (www.nafcc.org). Pay a visit to several different programs, staying at least an hour, to see how things are run. Print out a checklist of what to look for via the National Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies’ Web site, www.childcareaware.org/en/child_care_101/choosing_child_care.php.
• Preschool. These programs give kids a taste of educational programming before they start elementary school. Preschool is often part of day care centers’ programs. Some signs of a good preschool include having access to various activities throughout the day, being able to play and explore for long periods of time, and having teachers who work one-on-one, in small groups and with the entire group during the day.

Remember, Just because you had to place your child in daycare doesn’t mean you’re a bad parent. In fact, many children thrive under the care of others and learn to build healthy relationships with their peers. However, if your child doesn’t seem to be doing well in a particular daycare situation, you may want to consider finding another provider. Your child’s emotional and physical health is the most important.