Time is just racing. The world is darting towards the future each day on a fast pace leaving us with very less time to enjoy quality moments with the family. Responsibilities and commitments have glued us to such an extent that we wait for the weekends to spend time with our family who resides in the same house. It is the kids who get in that little bit of charm and add in a chirpy atmosphere to any mundane life of an adult. The naughtiness, their innocence and their cute gibberish accent brighten up the whole environment making our life complete and content. Gone are those days when children were feeling safe and secure with their grandmas and grandpas who were a part of the usual joint family setup. The houses used to be small with uncles and aunts around to take care of our needs when our parents were away. There used to be frequent family visitors who saw the kids grow up each day. Bringing up a child was not a private affair. The child grew up by itself mimicking and following the adults at home.
Lifestyle changes and changes in life
But as the times changed, changes have also affected the family structure. The grown-up children are not with their parents anymore, the families have split due to many reasons. Either settling outside for career compulsions or craving for personal space. The houses once small with more people have changed into bigger bungalows with 3 or 4 people in it. At such times children succumb to loneliness as nowadays not all mothers are housewives accompanying their kids at home. Women stand tall as an independent strong pillar of support system who equally manages the house with their spouses in all aspects – emotionally and financially. These are the times when the working couple has to literally “plan” for having a baby as having a child comes in with lots of responsibilities. Getting married takes away their singleton bliss letting them be answerable for each other. To complicate further, having a child is like an add-on responsibility of being answerable to each other and themselves about the credibility of being able to take care of their own flesh and blood in a civilized and sensible manner. This is where the “Day Care” comes into the picture.
Daycare is a place where children will be supervised and taken care of every day for a fixed time frame in a day. This is due to the absence of their parents who would be at their workplaces. Daycares are potentially considered as one of the safer and better options. The children are not just safe but also learn a lot many things by interacting with other children at the daycare. In this era where most of the parents consider a single child as their preference, daycares prove to be a silver lining where children get to mingle with many other kids of their age to loosen the burden of being a lonely child. Daycares also ensure a good disciplined, structured life for a child who learns many things inspite of their family being away from them who mostly influence the child’s behaviour.
Choosing a daycare is definitely a huge task. Not all good daycares could be considered the best and not that any daycare could be rejected based on one’s personal preference. There are various elements to be considered when choosing the right kind of daycare which matches the parents’ criteria and also provides a comfortable, homely environment for their little angels. Here are the few characteristics to be considered in a daycare that will, for sure get the best out of your tiny toddlers:
- Committed responsible adults: The ages of children at daycare ranges from as young as 6 months old to 10 years old children. The commitment given to dedicate time, energy and care to such a young bunch is not an easy task. This requires only well trained, highly skilled and reliable sane adults who consider this as their humble duty and not as a job for the money they will be getting paid for. Reliability is the prime element to be considered as this is the prime location where the preliminary stage of early learning happens.
- Security and safety: When you are checking for the location, best suited is the one which has been baby proofed. The digital era makes us think further by demanding accessibility to CCTV cameras which should be put at all places of the daycare. A vigilant security system that does not allow any suspicious people or strangers inside is also equally important.
- Interaction with children: Check for the caretakers on how they interact with the child. Do they sit down with them to talk or play with them in a comfortable manner? How do they feed them and how well can they train them? All these things have to be observed while visiting prospective daycare.
- Hygiene and sanitized: Children are so sensitive that they yield to many infections and diseases that could be transmitted easily through the air. Poor hygiene is also one of the main reasons. Make sure that the toys, chairs and the splash pools are cleaned on a timely basis. A clean, healthy and tidy dining area will help the kids to learn eating habits with the lesser worry of getting a stomach infection.
- Check out for references: Reliable sources are one of the strongest kinds of media which help us more than our personal research. Going by the gut still remains as a personal choice but going by experience is a safer bet. Talk to fellow parents nearby your area; know more about some nearby places. Suggestions by new parents always come handy than Google Reviews!
- Welcome change with open arms: Trends do change and so does the practices. They are a number of evolutions happening the way daycares are shaping up themselves. Take a deep breath and accept the change. Never be judgemental. Don’t be a nagging parent who is ready for an argument or always sees differences in the day care’s discipline. Look at your child; see whether he/she is comfortable. If yes, then there is very less of what you should be worrying about. Kid happy, you happy.
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