With so many households shifting to nuclear families, it is becoming more and more difficult to get the help and support a child requires to grow and thrive, especially at the age of 0-5 years.
The question is, “Is it an ideal environment for a child to spend their entire day with parents who are busy on their laptops and no other children they can interact with?”
Enter a tried-and-tested solution – daycare.
When we think of daycares, we often imagine a lady next door looking after a bunch of children in her living room. But the daycares of today have turned into state-of-the-art facilities with trained teachers and helpers.
It’s no longer about offering a solution to work-riddled parents or nuclear setup families. It’s about providing the “best solution” where a child can interact and learn in a healthy environment.
But as parents, there might be 3 important questions running around in your minds. Let’s get to it one by one.
Are daycares safe? Will they feed and look after my child as well as I do?
As a parent, this could be the most fearful question that stops you from putting your child in daycare. But it doesn’t have to be. Most daycares of today have learned teachers and helpers who are experienced in looking after children and providing them the support they need to eat, learn, or interact.
That said, here are some factors you need to check to ascertain whether your child will be given proper attention and care in your selected daycare:
- Daycare environment: Look at the classrooms, buildings, and playground areas, and see whether they are safe and clean. Check for safety hazards, if any.
- Program and activities: Find out the routine, activities, and program they follow and if they are age-appropriate for your children.
- Meals: Most centers provide hot meals for children. Take note of what is included and if they will pay attention to any allergies or specific requirements your child may have.
- Staff and materials: Look at the certification or training the teachers have. This includes their educational background, first-aid, and CPR training.
- Recommendations or testimonials: Research online and ask existing parents what they think about a particular daycare.
How expensive is a daycare? Can I afford it?
While good daycares charge a reasonable fee, you can work out different forms of payment, like encouraging your company to partner with good daycares or working on a model of financial support from employers.
You can even use the different benefits an employer generally provides for diverging some funds towards the daycare/childcare expenses.
Whichever method you choose, ensure you don’t forsake the quality of daycare because of the fees. A good daycare will provide your child with multiple benefits that are invaluable.
Will the daycare only provide a child-minding environment and no learning environment?
Here are four ways daycares help your child grow and learn:
1. Trained teachers to administer the right learning
Teachers at daycare often know the right set of activities and learnings to give to children of different ages. While you can get this information from reading many books or articles, actually imparting that education isn’t as easy. Teachers at daycare are trained to provide the right education at the right time in the right manner.
Here’s how a Reddit user describes this experience.
2. Opportunity for your child to develop socially and emotionally
Have you observed certain kids mingle with others happily while others restrain themselves? This is partly due to children growing up in nuclear family settings or with working parents who aren’t around all day. When children are put in daycare, they can interact with others and grow independent, thus building their confidence and self-esteem.
Here’s how a Reddit user describes how daycare benefits her shy son.
3. Getting used to routines and structure
The routines and structure a child follows at his/her early age can pave the path for good habits later on. Most daycares follow a fixed routine. Good daycares integrate age appropriate preschool programmes in their day plans. They usually start the day with circle time and concept development sessions before breaking for lunch.
4. Helps with cognitive development
Daycares are great at teaching children important lessons like counting numbers, learning the alphabet, or understanding different shapes and colors. The way they impart this education with stories, visuals, and games can help children learn more effectively.
Here’s how a Reddit user describes her amazing experience with daycare.
In a nutshell, the answer to the question, “Do daycares mimic home environments?” it depends on the daycare you select. The right daycare does provide a home-like environment for children where they can be safe and learn a lot of things.
Our take on this? Once you find the right daycare for your child, you will see and experience first hand just how beneficial it can be.
