Enrolling your little one into a childcare centre can be an exciting yet nervous moment for any parent. After all, this is when you send your child off on their own to make new friends and begin learning.
However, before they embark upon their official childcare journey, you will need to be sure that the facility they are joining is right for them.
This is not a decision you should take lightly, as you’ll need to confirm that the centre ticks several boxes, especially regarding your child’s happiness, development and safety. Subsequently, when visiting a prospective childcare centre, there are many things you should look out for.
In this post, we’ll highlight seven of the most notable of them. If you factor them into the mix, it should go a long way towards helping you make a sound decision on which preschool facility your child should attend.
1. The Staff
A childcare centre is only as good as its staff. So, you must ascertain the level of experience, qualifications, and expertise those who work at your prospective daycare facility possess.
It is worth asking about what training and ongoing professional development the staff receives. Some of the leading preschool institutions in Sydney, including Gregory Hills childcare, allocate significant resources to ensuring their employees are up-to-date with the latest trends and policies in childcare.
Aside from this, try to make a mental note of the staff-to-child ratio, whether staff members display genuine enthusiasm about working with children, and how they interact with them.
At the end of the day, your child will thrive in an environment where they feel safe, well looked after and loved. So, it is within your interests to place them somewhere that will enable them to do so.
2. Staff Specialisations
On top of this, if your little one has a condition such as ADHD, it would be good to know how qualified the staff are to look after a neurodivergent child.
Children with this condition are often restless and have trouble focusing or concentrating. Knowing how the centre copes with these behaviours and any other diverging ones is wise.
3. Safety
Even if the staff are good, it should be a red flag if the childcare centre is not as strong on safety measures as they could be. You will naturally want your child to be as safe as possible when they attend daycare, so look for secure gates, childproofed areas, and relevant first aid resources.
If your child has a food allergy, such as peanut or gluten intolerance, find out about the centre’s procedures for handling these emergencies.
It is also worth establishing how many members have first aid certifications and what the procedures are if a child suffers an injury that requires medical attention.
Once you’ve had all these questions answered positively, you should have a lot more peace of mind about sending your child to the daycare centre.
4. Educational Programs
Early childhood is a crucial time for the cognitive and social development of a child, which is why you will want to pick a childcare centre that offers a balanced program. This means a combination of structured learning with play.
Look for a facility whose curriculum promotes creativity, language development, physical activity, and social skills. In particular, try to determine the degree to which the centre tailors its programs to suit different age groups and individual needs.
If you can establish this, you will go a long way towards ensuring your child is challenged and engaged at their level if they attend the centre.
5. Outdoor Play and Physical Activities
Every child needs a healthy amount of outdoor play and physical activity to aid with their development. They should be kid-friendly activities, whether conducted outside of the centre or within its walls. Thus, the centre you choose must have a safe and spacious outdoor area where children can explore, run, and play.
Ideally, the centre has a daily schedule for outdoor activities, which you should find out about. It is also worth determining how the centre incorporates physical exercise into the day and for how long.
Regular outdoor play provides children with several benefits, including developing their motor skills, burning off energy, and building a connection with nature. It also tends to tire them out, so they will be less boisterous when you take them home.
6. Flexible Hours
When choosing your daycare centre, you should also consider practical considerations, such as whether the centre’s operating hours fit your work schedule.
It is easy to overlook, but many centres close at around 5 p.m. So, it will be problematic if you don’t finish work until 5:30 p.m.
For this reason, make a point of finding out how flexible the daycare centre is for early drop-offs or late pick-ups. If they are not, it could be a real deal-breaker.
7. Positive reviews and word-of-mouth references
Lastly, it is a good idea to search for reviews of the daycare centre on Facebook and Google to get a sense of what other parents think about the facility.
Additionally, don’t be afraid to ask for feedback from other parents you know about their experiences sending their children to a particular preschool destination.
