...Childcare is a Critical Choice Jeri Miller (JLynn) PS 220 Child & Adolescent Development Kaplan University Professor Christie Suggs Jeri Miller Unit 4 Assignment PS220 C. Suggs Childcare is a Critical Choice Since the creation of human life our species has endured, evolved and adapted into our forever changing environments. Through centuries of advancement we have come into our generational existence as we know it. In today’s society parents face critical choices in which they must make on behalf of their children in order to sustain their way of life. As parents, our choices are vital to the overall well-being of our children, ourselves and our family unit as a whole. In facing our responsibilities as a parent, choosing the “right” childcare is a critical choice. Choosing appropriate childcare encompasses more than just being a mere convenience or financial expenditure. Facing such a critical choice as parents we must understand and take into consideration the decisions we make today potentially affect our children positively and negatively for the rest of their lives. Conventional families must adapt to their environments; primarily both parents must work in order to maintain an appropriate manner of living even for the basic necessities of survival. If perhaps you cannot rely on local family members or friends to assist you with your childcare needs, professional daycare is the primary option for parents working outside the home. Case Study...
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...Child-care at the workplace There is an increase in the number of families where both spouses work or would like to work in full-time jobs. Traditionally, the joint family system was prevalent which ensured that the child was taken care of in the absence of its parents. However, there is an increase in the number of nuclear and mono-parental families. Additionally, more and more women are joining the workforce, to fulfil their own career aspirations as well as to meet increasing cost of living. Therefore, we would expect that the number of women holding high positions shows an increasing trend. However it is rare that women do reach executive positions in organizations [1] [2]. One of the important factors contributing to this scenario is that a majority of women leave their jobs in order to take care of their children due to lack of availability of suitable alternatives for child-care [3]. A 1998 estimate shows that about 10 million children were enrolled in private child-care facilities, and the number is likely to increase in the future [4]. In this context, we would like to discuss various options that organizations offer in order to fulfil this need. Additionally, we would also examine the effect of potential benefits of providing childcare from the point of view of employers as well as employees. Our research methodology would include collecting secondary data from company sources regarding implementation of child-care services for their employees. We would also conduct...
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...Childcare Decisions: Qualifications and Cost Physical Setting As a parent we are very protective of our children and whose care we leave them in. For instance if I were enrolling my 6-month old child into daycare for the first time I may look at certain characteristics of a daycare before deciding on a daycare. I would look at characteristics such as the physical setting, safety, personal qualifications cognitive stimulation, cost or even the proximity; all these would play a contributing factor to me deciding on a daycare facility that I am comfortable with and also meets my needs and expectations. A lot of daycare facilities have websites that allow parents to view information about their daycare facility. I would review the information and any reviews that may be available on-line and list all potential daycares; I would then contact the daycare so that I could schedule a visit. This will allow me to speak one on one with the director and to tour the daycare during operational hours. Hopefully during this time it will also allow me to speak with my child’s potential teacher and see the classroom as well. Upon my scheduled visit to the daycare facility I will make notes of things that I may want ask while I am there. Once I arrive for my visit I will look at the physical setting of the daycare facility. I will look at the building’s exterior and its landscape to see if it’s being up kept. If I am within sight of the playground, I would look to see if this area is clean...
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...schedule. There are also concerns when it comes to childcare like safety and cost. Childcare centers offer many beneficial perks for the child and also for the parent. According to Babycenter.com quality centers employ staff members who have been trained in early childhood education, so they are prepared with the right skills to know what to expect from your child developmentally. They also mention that good daycare centers will offer a variety of activities for the children to engage in such as singing, dancing and storytelling. A child interacting with other children provides a great way for them to develop social skills (Daycare Center). According to the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development’s Study of Early Child Care found that children at the age of four spending more than 30 hours a week in a daycare center became demanding and aggressive. Throughout this study as they tracked the children they found that by the time these same children reached third grade they scored higher in math and reading and the aggressive behavior had dissipated. They also mentioned that the aggressive behavior reported was still in normal range for the age of four, and it should not be cause for alarm. Sociologist at Stanford and the University of California found that cognitive skills in math and reading were strongest when a child entered a center-based program...
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...Children in Non-Parental Care Rachel Metzger SOC 312 Rebekah Clark August 29, 2012 Children in Non-Parental Care Non-Parental childcare has become very important to many families and for different reasons. One of the main reasons of course, is simply because the need for two incomes is on the rise so both parents are now working. There are three main types of non-parental care that parent can chose from; a daycare setting which generally sees anywhere from 10-20 in a classroom, an “at home” daycare with a personal provider which is generally much smaller, 5-6 children or someone who comes to their home such as a relative or nanny. “In 2005, 61% of children from birth to age six spent some time in non-parental child care” (Alexander, LaRosa, Bader, & Garfield, 2010, p. 427). All three different child care services have their advantages as well as disadvantages and it is up to the parent(s) to decide what is best for their child. One of the most popular forms of non-parental care would be the traditional daycare setting. Traditional daycare would be in a center where the child (ren) is taken care of with six to twenty other children depending on their age group. Infants have a much smaller teacher to child ratio than the children in the five year old age group. Child care centers must be accredited and meet certain regulations for nutrition, staff qualifications children safety. This type of child care tends to be the most expensive, but for older children can be more...
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...were enrolled in licensed childcare in the spring of 2012. About 80 percent of these children were in child care centers and the remaining 20 percent were in licensed family homes, according to a survey done by the Washington State Department of Early Learning. Choosing a daycare center for a child can be one of the most important decisions for many parents. Parents have the option of in-home daycares or license daycares. When deciding between daycare and in-homecare these two are not always equally when it comes to cost, safety/policy and curriculum. In the first place parents are often tasked with the decision if daycare, or in-home is a prudent us of their money. As a parent having to consider is it worth it just working to pay for childcare. Each setting for childcare cost is going to vary depending on the area, age of child, and sometimes, what the childcare worker is providing. The average cost of daycare in Washington state, according to a survey done by the Washington State Department of Early Learning in 2012, for 2 children in a daycare center is $1,795 for an infant (2 months -12 months) and a preschooler (2 ½ -5 years old), while in an in-home care is $1,302 for an infant (2 months -12 months) and a Preschooler (2 ½ -5 years old). Parents can see the big differences in the numbers, but also take into account getting a discount. If enrolling more than one child, and if the parents work place offers a discount for that provider. There is also an option to qualified...
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...needs to do more to ensure that care is high-quality and affordable. (Todd, C. and Ashton, A., March 2001). It’s not easy for an individual to live comfortably on less than eight dollars an hour. For parents working in low-wage jobs, trying to arrange reliable day care for their children can add another layer of anxiety to an already precarious existence. As part of Marketplace Morning Report’s series on the world of low-wage work, reporter David Schaper looks at the paucity of safe, affordable day care for low-income families. Kharfen, M. (Dec, 2000.) Low-income working mothers with children often have a hard time finding affordable day care. Even when child-care costs are based on a sliding-scale fee, many mothers with minimum-wage jobs can’t pay all of their child-care bills and still have money for housing, food, and transportation. we, as a society, want poor parents to be productive workers, some form of appropriate child care—regardless of parents’ ability to pay—must be available. Whether such care should be provided by employers, faith-based or charitable organizations, or through governmental programs is up to the citizenry to decide. It would be a mistake, for people to think that it’s not their problem or that these families are getting what they deserve based on their “poor life choices.” After all, children don’t choose their parents. Government studies say families shouldn't spend more than 10 percent of their income on child care.( Peisner-Feinberg, et al 1999)...
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...Memorandum TO: Georgia Sias, Director of Class “A” Centers of Louisiana FROM: Dala S. Stansbury, Director of Kid’s Corner Christian Academy DATE: May 16, 2012 SUBJECT: Improving employee morale and productivity in childcare facilities Attached is my proposal to provide director based training on improving morale among teachers and staff. The success of our centers is based on our parent-staff relations. According to 2012 Home daycare overview, daycare centers are now rated below average among in- home centers (Baby Center Medical Advisory Board, 2012). From my experience, parents are complaining that they are not having a good experience when speaking with teachers about behavior matters or in receiving reports of their child’s day. I have investigated further by listening to parents’ constant complaints of how upon entering the center they feel unwelcomed by the tone teachers are using and the lack of concern among directors. Centers in Louisiana are having a problem keeping their staff motivated, which leads to problems that impact the center as a whole. This project will educate directors and staff about the significance of high morale in daycare facilities. When the morale is high, teachers are happy and it is reflected in the lesson plans and interaction with the children. I will discuss the benefits of having a great director, how it correlates to improving the environment of your center...
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...Proposal Idea Day Nursery Child Care Centers are a nonprofit organization that offers quality child care services for families and single parents. The organization currently has seven locations in and surrounding central Indianapolis. Day Nursery offers a curriculum that promotes cognitive growth and learning skills for children from ages 6 weeks to 6 years old (“Day nursery”, 2010). Their mission is “to assure excellent early care and education for young children in central Indiana” (“Day nursery”, 2010). Information about Day Nursery can be located on the website www.daynurseryindianapolis.org. With the number of single parent and low income families and the cost of child care as a barrier for these populations, organizations such as Day Nursery needs to increase their ability to serve these families. Day Nursery current has a scholarship program for families that can’t afford the high cost of child care but their resources are limited. In order to meet the need of single parent and low income families, there is a need to increase the number of scholarships available for these families. Through increased financial resources Day Nursery can provide quality child care and learning for even more low income and single parent families. Day Nursery currently provides families and single parents with quality child care services. Day Nursery not only provide child care and early learning services but also provides a variety of programs that support the children and parents (“Day...
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...A vision plan will also be developed to give me and my employees a look into the future. The daycares values will be discussed and decided. K & M Munchkins will be located in Somers, Connecticut in a location convenient for parents to drop their children and not go far out of their way. It will offer a full day kindergarten and a full day preschool. It will also have before and after school care as well as vacations. The daycare will be educational and have a safe atmosphere. Mission Statement At K & M Munchkins we believe a child has the right to grow to learn all there is to learn. To allow the child to become the child it can be, to have the opportunity to play and grow, to learn, and teach. K & M Munchkins will provide a safe, clean and educating environment to accommodate each individual child. At K & M Munchkins the children will be participating in an age developed activities daily. There is story time, puzzles and games, and nutritious snacks and meals. There is an age appropriate learning curriculum, and daily communication with parents about their child. Children will be cared for with kindness, love, and respect. Children are a precious gift and should be treated as such. Vision Statement My vision is to open more K & M Munchkins around the state and beyond. The children will be encouraged to grow up to be strong, creative residents of their community. In the future I would like to be able to have two or more full day kindergartens...
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...that needs to be introduced is a day care center. I will be the owner of the center and operator of the center; the décor will be kid friendly with bright clean colors. This will be a place when a family walks into the center it feels welcoming. Setting my day care center apart from the other centers in the area will be a challenge. Below is the mission and vision statement for my establishment along with the outline of how I plan to set my business on top of the other establishments. Mission Statement The child care center will provide a safe, developmental program (age appropriate) environment for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, pre-kindergarten, and school age children. The focus of the center is to provide early education, which will increase social/emotional, physical, and cognitive development. Teachers will provide a good environment to help promote good behavior and manners. Our goal is to support the willingness to learn in which is in the best interest of the children. Vision Statement The child care center will be known for superior quality education. Our center will provide a place where parents and children can interact in a safe environment and still have fun. The employees are trained and educated by the center for their appropriate age group. Teachers have an understanding of the mission and values of the center and are committed to follow these. Our center will be well known in the community for a well establish child care center that provides outstanding service...
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...Overview of Organization The organization that I am proposing for the basis of my research paper is Brownstone Day School. Brownstone is a for profit organization that has been in business and family owned in Lakewood, Ohio since 1989. We are a full time daycare center that accepts age range of infant, toddler, preschool and school age. Brownstone participates in two different programs that include the subsidized child care program which is sponsored through Ohio Department of Job and Family Services and Child & Adult Food Care Program. When the director changed in 2010 after replacing the original director of 20 years management took a different turn. Employees that remained on with new director organization and morale decreased. Brownstone no longer felt like a “family” run business even though it was the 2nd generation of the Rafferty family that had taken over. With the change of directors many teachers began to resign and the turn over rate of new teachers reached record numbers. Brownstone is always looking for teachers with any form of a degree to be in compliance with the state. They don't offer a benefits package, 401k plan, sick time and aren't willing to offer a negotiable salary. Brownstone was a top daycare in it's prime but currently struggles to keep in stride with newer and more up to date facilities. I am an infant/toddler teacher and administrative assistant. I started at Tots R Us in October of 2010. I joined Tots R Usat the same time the new director...
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...Non-parental Child Care SOC 312 Lisa Tobler October, 8th, 2012 Non-parental Child Care There are three types of non-parental child care. These are child care centers, care inside or outside the home by someone who is a relative or non-relative, and daycare in a home (Hagy, 1998). Centers or preschools are usually regulated while care inside or outside of the home are usually non-regulated. Each type of child care has different effects on psychological, social, and cognitive development for children. A child care center may be a place like Head Start or a preschool that has certain criteria that is regulated by the government (Hagy, 1998). In a center staff the teachers are required to have some form of education; many require at least 12 credit hours in early childhood education. The teachers have to follow lesson plans that meet standards of the center and the government. Many child care centers are large, have more than one location, and accept government assistance or go by income of the family to adjust payment accordingly. Care inside the home or outside the home is by a relative, at the child’s home or in the relative’s home. It can also be a non-relative in the child’s home or in the non-relatives home. A relative may be a cousin, aunt, uncle, or grandparent. A non-relative can be a regular babysitter, a nanny, or come from a nanny, au pair, babysitting service. A nanny or service providing care for a child can be expensive, but convenient...
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...participating in it), what materials would be necessary and why you chose the particular activity (how would it support your goals; is it something parents can relate to and easily learn from, etc.). Do this for each time-slot. You can combine up to two time slots per topic if you have an idea that needs more than an hour. Remember also that participants need a brief break in the morning and afternoon and lunch! ( Before beginning this assignment, here are some important things to consider. This workshop is for PARENTS of infants and toddlers. It is not a workshop for children and they do not participate. The workshop is not in conjunction with any day care or child care facility. While one of your workshop outline sessions may focus on what to look for in quality child care, the workshop should not include a tour of a care facility. This assignment comprises 30% of your final grade. Your workshop must be substantive, have depth and contain detail. Your goals should be written in concrete and behavioral terms. What specific materials are appropriate for each scheduled workshop session? The must be described with adequate detail rather than simply stating, “I will use a handout.” If you use one, and it should not be listed as a material for every session on the outline, you must say what it contains and why you are using it. If you have a guest speaker, and again, you cannot use one for every session scheduled on the outline, you must...
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...Depp family is seeking child care for their 2 year old son Jack. The family needs care for approximately 42-50 hours per week. They have interviewed several care providers and have selected two providers in the vicinity of their employers and now need to decide between: one is family day care home that charges $5 per hour per child and the other is a child care center that charges $200 per week for 40 hours with an additional $10 per hour over 40 hours. Additional factors considered are that both facilities provide lunch and snacks, other facilities did not; as well the center will provide a 25% discount on a second child. Although the Depps have only one child however will be adding to their young family. 1.) Rates: i. Daycare rates: Home care $5/hour ii. Center $200/week for 40 hours + $10/hour over 40 hours 2.) Other expenses iii. Meals included with both facilities iv. Both located within 10 blocks of employer, transportation costs are negligible 3.) Other considerations v. Parents are state employees 37.5 hours per week + 1 hour lunch = 42.5 hours @ employer per week minimum vi. Currently have one child in need of care, but is considering another child in the next 1-2 years vii. Family day care home is 1 employee, no coverage for sick days/vacation; center has multiple staff members to cover staffing viii. Center offers a 25% discount for child #2; not relevant now...
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