The 12 Top Tips for How To Start Daycare
Your little one is Starting Daycare! This can bring on a lot of emotions for you and your child, as you want to ensure they are physically, emotionally and socially prepared for this big change. If you are wondering "How to start daycare?" look no further. We created a list of Daycare Tips for Parents to help ensure your child’s transition to daycare is a smooth process & stress free process.
- Choose a Daycare that matches the unique needs of your child and family. Ensure they have an approach to childcare that matches your parenting style, and plenty of experience that allows you to feel comfortable with your decision.
- Visit your new center with your child. This is great if your child is a bit anxious about daycare. Find a day where you and your child can visit the center together. This will help familiarize them with the caregivers they will interact with on a daily basis, take time to play with the toys and get familiar with the overall atmosphere.
- Ensure your child has an up to date personal immunization Record. This will vary depending on where you live, however some schools require your child to be up to date on their immunizations.
- Inform your daycare with any allergies/intolerances your little one has. If there are any existing allergies, ensure the daycare facility is prepared to administer any required medications.
- Ensure your daycare (and child) are aware of their emergency contact person, name, contact numbers and pictures of the caregivers who are allowed to pick up your child from daycare.
- Ensure you are sending your child to daycare with everything they need. For example, bottles, sippy cups, creams (diaper rash or sensitive skin), favorite blanket/ toy, diaper wipes, indoor shoes, extra clothes for indoor and outdoor, bug spray, sunscreen, hats (for outdoor).
- Ensure all your child’s belongings are labeled with good quality washable labels.
- If you are using cloth diapers, ensure your daycare facility is familiar with cloth diapering, and able to accommodate cloth diapers. This can be a learning curve for some facilities. To learn more, check out our list of tips on making cloth diapers daycare friendly.
- Potty Training! If your little one is currently potty training, it is best to discuss this with your daycare facility. Ensure that your plan for potty training aligns with your daycare providers, so there is no confusion for your little one. For more information on potty training, check out our Blog Post.
- Get to know all the teachers at the daycare facility, as they can help fill in other classrooms at times. This will help provide a level of comfort knowing all the possible caregivers that will be around your child.
- Daycare Drop off Tips! When dropping off your child at daycare, always try to make it quick. Do not linger. This provides the caregiver a chance to distract them and get them settled. If they see their parents, it may become harder to get them settled. A quick hug and kiss, love you and see you soon! Give them a quick talk before they go in – remind them that it won’t be long until mom/dad/caregiver will be there to pick them up. Give the child a certain timeframe – for example, after a nap, after a second snack, etc.
- Find out if your daycare does a daily report for pick up. This is a great way to see how your child was that day and a way for you to ask questions or address things you may be noticing.
