Things To Consider When Picking A Daycare/Pre-school

My son is now in Kindergarten (which is its own figurative ballgame I’ll get into on another post) and prior to that he was at daycare full time. We spent several years at, to us, a wonderful and perfect-for-us school and now that my parent friend pool has widened and I’ve spoken to many about what their kids’ schools did similarly or differently here are things I wish someone would have told me to consider when I was putting our name on waitlists.

1) Year-round? Or summers off?

What sort of flexibility do you have? Do you work full time? Do you have older kids who might be starting “real” school in the fall? Then you might want the break schedules to sync up for holidaying purposes.

Our school (thankfully) went all-year with the exception of Spring, Fall and Christmas breaks so I didn’t have to then come up with more activities for him over the summer. Some daycares don’t even do THAT which would have been nice but having a break now and then probably was good for all of us.

2) Hours of operation

Some daycares open early and close late to allow for flexibility for parents. Ours had fixed hours and because I work for myself it was fine for us. However if you have a strict 8-5 job, ask about before and after care for your child and what drop-off/pick-up policies are. Bear in mind 8 - 5 or even 6 is a long-ass day for a small child so if you’re going that route also get clarity on what sort of activities and care the child will receive after a majority of their friends have gone home, as well as whether they provide snacks/food or if you have to pack everything.

3) Access to teachers/staff for emergencies or concerns

We were so fortunate that the teachers at our daycare provided us with their personal numbers. I tried my best not to take advantage of it but it was useful when I needed to figure things out or communicate. Not all daycares will do this but if I had to do this again knowing what I know now, I would want (at the very least) email access to the teachers and for them to be responsive.

4) Controversial take: social views

This one is a VERY personal tip and may not matter to you. My priorities for my half-Asian child include exposure to every shade of skin possible be it in the student body or the staff at the school. Even though ours is attached to a church they had LGBTQ flags, inclusion flags and signs everywhere saying All Are Welcome. We got the open-mindedness and diversity we hoped for.

So if those things matter to you then look around carefully, but most importantly ASK; your child will be spending a good portion of their days there so you want the environment to nurture how you would.

Also, do NOT be discouraged if a daycare is part of a church - take a tour, talk to people, ask them for referrals! Not everyone can swing or even get into a Montessori school or a non-parochial school so be as open as you want the facility in which you place your child to be. At the end of the day they want the same thing as you: for your child to be in the best place for them.