Choosing Quality Childcare

This is a big one. This topic is a huge passion of mine. I've decided that one of the best ways to address this topic will be to share my own story. Here it is...

As a working mother, I knew I could only return to work after my maternity leave if I felt like my daughter was being loved, well cared for, able to build an attachment with a primary caregiver and in an environment that would encourage her learning and development---this is not easy to find. Lets be honest, especially in Idaho. When I was five weeks along my husband and I toured the centers that we thought might be an option for us and we got on wait lists. We were on about five wait lists, and were only offered spots in two centers just before it was time for me to return to work. This of course was a very nerve wracking experience.

So where did we begin. First we toured all accredited centers in the area in which we live, and a few other non-accredited centers that we had heard good things about. This was easier for us because almost all the accredited centers in the Boise area are downtown. As of the last time I looked there are still no accredited centers in Meridian or Eagle. I know of one in West Boise. When I say accredited I mean that the center has voluntarily sought specialized accreditation, by holding themselves to much higher standards than the the state's. This accreditation is given though the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Please check out their website at www.naeyc.org!

Accredited centers have lower teacher to child ratios, they utilize a developmentally appropriate curriculum, and employ early childhood educators that have education in the field of early childhood (the majority of lead teachers by 2012 in accredited centers will have bachelor degrees, and at this time all lead staff must have an associates degree or a bachelor degree).

During our tours we were looking for specific things we wanted to see, such as...

Were teachers down on the floor with the children?

How were the teacher's talking to the children? Were they using positive/respectful language?

Were infants on their own routines, not forced to mold to a group routine?

Was the room set up up for open ended exploration?

Were the children assigned to a primary caregiver?

Were the children able to be with that caregiver for more than one year?

Were the children happy, content, regulated and engaged in what they were doing?

Were there any "baby containers" (you won't see any most of the time in an accredited center)?

What was the teacher's education and experience?

Did the infants gets to spend time outside each day?

Was the center and staff supportive of breastfeeding mothers?

Did the center have written policies/procedures/philosophy?

As you see there is a lot to look for in finding quality care. These are just a few of the things that were very important to me. My husband commented to me as we were in the middle of touring centers that he almost pitied those centers that had to respond to our questions. Especially those that were obviously not providing quality care, and that became evident to not only us, but them by the end of our tour. I can't even explain how frustrated I was with centers that claimed to be high quality, but apparently did not even have basic understanding of how children learn and develop.

This isn't always the fault of childcare providers. It really is a national issue. We pay people who work with young children very low pay, we set few or limited standards on how they should care for and educate the childen in their care, and we don't support or demand higher education in this field. This outrages me, and hopefully it outrages others. The more parents that speak out, that they need high quality care for their child, the more other's will hear this (the important ones being local politicians of course).

So, back to the story, finally we got that call that we had a spot in one of our top picks. We found a center that has a looping program (the same teacher remains with the same group of children for three years). My daughter's teacher is currently working on her Master's degree in Early Childhood Education, and is one of the most responsive, respectful, purposful teachers I have ever met---we lucked out!

So for all of you looking for quality childcare, here's some suggested first steps:

• Do an accredited program search on the NAEYC website
• Check out NAEYC'S and Zero to Three's information on choosing quality care at http://www.naeyc.org/academy/search/choosing.asp and http://www.zerotothree.org/site/PageServer?pagename=ter_key_childcare_selectcc&AddInterest=1152
• Set up tours at centers, and don't forget to write down the questions to ask that you don't want to forget
• Then, I'm sorry to say, but get on the waitlists and hope for the best!

Please, there is so much I could address on this topic, I'm sure there will be more questions. Feel free to post a comment, and I'll get a response back to you if I know the answer, or at least point you in the right direction on how to find your answer.

Good luck parents!

Feeding Young Children

Sorry parents, this post is way past due. I promise to try and stay on top of getting these out more frequently, but at times being a mom, a wife and a child development specialist just takes ALL my time!

Ahh mealtimes, are many of you struggling right now??

I don't know of any parent who hasn't struggled with some aspect of feeding their young child. As a parent myself now, I've felt that personal fear and anxiety over my daughter's feeding, especially because she suffers from a milk protein/soy allergy. I've continually referred back to the six principals for feeding young children that were developed by some of my professors at the University of Idaho who have done a lot of research and training on feeding young children (Janice Fletcher and Laurel Branen).

Here are the six principals for feeding young children:

1. Adults should eat with children
2. Adults choose what is served and how it is served.
3. Children choose how much to eat
4. Children need a variety of foods.
5. Children should serve themselves
6. Adults set the feeding environment.

Some basic things to remember, besides these principals, is that babies are born with internal cues of hunger and satiety, and it's important for us to read these cues and respond accordingly--they know their bodies best. Also "variety increases intake". Children have to be offered a food multiple times; an occupational therapist I work with who does a lot of work with children with feeding challenges told me that it now takes around 18 times of introducing a food to get a child to eat it. Remember that children want to feed themselves--let them. This validates that you respect their independence and their need to learn a new skill. Yes, it's messy, but learning something new often is.

Remember to have fun as a family and enjoy mealtimes. It's a wonderful opportunity for families to come together. There is so much learning that can occur during mealtimes I couldn't write a post long enough to address it all!

For more information about feeding your young child I would encourage you to check out Ellyn Satter’s book, How to Get Your Kid to Eat, But Not Too Much.