LodiPreschool.com

The Information Below is from First 5 California

Use these same guidelines for preschool as you would a child care/day care facility.

What to Look For In a Child Care Center

If you decide that a Child Care Center or Family Child Care Home will best suit your needs, here are some things to consider when making your decision:

• Referrals: Get a list of other parents that use a specific type of care and call them to ask their opinion.
• Research: Ask for DMV records if they are going to be driving your children.
• Instincts: Hire someone you and your child both like.

Before making a decision, plan to visit any site while children are there. A few things to look for include:

• How does the staff interact with the children?
• Is there plenty of playtime and interesting activities for children to participate in?
• How clean and safe are the facilities?
• Does the facility have the right equipment? There should be places for your child to have quiet time, read, build with blocks, do puzzles, put on dress up clothes, play outside, etc.

When talking with the staff, you should ask these questions:

• Is the center/provider licensed by the state?
• How many children is each caregiver responsible for?
• How do they discipline the children? – Hitting, yelling or shaking babies and children is unacceptable at all times.
• Do the teachers have training in early learning or child development, including college courses or degrees?
• How do they cope with emergencies?
  • Is the staff trained in CPR?
  • How do they deal with ill children?

• How experienced is the staff?
  • How long have they been working with children?
  • Find out what they like about working with children.

• Can you visit anytime?
• Once you make a decision, communicate with your provider about your child and his or her daily activities EVERYDAY.