When choosing a day care center for your child, look for the following things:
- The right care-giver child ratio – when it’s newborns up to one year of age, the ratio should ideally be 3:1 with a maximum group size of 6. And up to age three, this ratio should not exceed 5:1.
- Look for a center with a good reputation. If required speak to other parents to get an idea.
- Hygiene is something that is very important when a bunch of young children are going to be in the same place for hours on end. So look properly and ask plenty of questions.
- Safety features are another important thing to look for. Proper ventilation, requisite childproofing, emergency plan and first aid are issues that are very important to ask about.
- Appropriate licenses and insurances should all be current.
- Look at the list of activities and schedules to see any educative or developmental value of it.
- Rules and regulations of the establishment are also worth scrutiny – how for instance does they deal with issues relating to discipline? What is their policy regarding sick kids? How much if any TV will be allowed?
