@PandoraBoxx gave an excellent list above. I worked in an infant room at a daycare (and later in the toddler room) for about five years. The ratio there was 1 teacher for every 4 infants. The ratios vary from state to state, and I truly hope yours has a low ratio like that.
Another thing to look for is a center that will keep to your schedule for the baby, not their own. In other words, your baby should eat and sleep when you say, not when they feed all of the babies or put all of the babies down for naps. This actually makes things much easier on the cargivers because a 3 month old will not be on the same schedule as an 8 month old.
The center should have a policy against propping bottles. Babies should always be held when being given a bottle. At the center where I worked, we didn’t even have high chairs. Younger infants were fed in a bouncy seat that was only used for feeding. Older babies that could sit up well sat in little chairs at a little table. The idea was to avoid any kind of situation where a child could be restrained.
We also had a strict hand-washing policy and everything in the infant room was sanitized at the end of the day. The infant room had a head teacher to supervise everyone and make sure the policies were followed. In all the time I worked there, I never once saw anything to make me question the care the teachers gave the children. Try to forget what you’ve read about daycare. Yes, there are some crappy ones out there. They make the news because no one is interested in hearing about the excellent centers.
As for what we did with 3 month old babies, we met their needs and played with them. We had soft areas for babies who were not crawling. Lots of small toys to hold, board books to read to them, and buggies or strollers for walks. On rainy days, we’d take stroller walks up and down the halls. The playground area for infants was shared with toddlers. We had a sand box, small riding and push toys, and would take a blanket outside for the smaller babies to lay in the shade. At naptime, we followed the parents’ suggestions for getting the baby to sleep. Some babies could go into the crib and fall asleep on their own, while others would be rocked to sleep and then placed into a crib. They each had their own crib, and the sheets were washed each night. We were not allowed to let them cry themselves to sleep. As soon as they were awake, we took them out of the cribs. The cribs were never used for containing babies, only for sleeping. We kept a daily log for each child, writing down when they ate, how much they ate, when they had diaper changes, and if the diapers were wet or dirty. Bowel movements were changed immediately. Otherwise, we changed diapers every two hours. When parents brought their children in, they would write on the log sheet when the baby woke up that morning and when he or she was last fed and changed. At the bottom of the sheet we’d write something about the child’s day, like “Joey giggled a lot when we sang songs after his nap.”
When you visit centers, besides asking about turnover, ask about training for the teachers. Is it ongoing? What’s the average level of education? Does the center have a nurse, at least part-time? How many of the staff are certified in first aid and CPR? Do they have an open-door visitation policy? Parents should be allowed to stop in at any time, without calling first. What is their sick policy, hand-washing policy, and cleaning schedule? Spend as much time in the classroom with the actual teachers as you can. Do they talk to babies, play, read, and sing to them? Do they spend most of their time actually down on the floor with the children, or do they stay on their feet mainly talking to each other? Do the teachers let the older babies fingerpaint? What is their discipline policy? How do they handle biting? Biting is a very common infant and toddler behavior. Most of all, do the babies seem content with the caregivers? Do the caregivers give off the warm-fuzzies?
All of these things can also apply to a home-based daycare. In that case, I’d only suggest that you try to find a caregiver who only has one infant at a time, is licensed, and can provide excellent references.
I know it’s hard to imagine that two teachers can care for eight babies without neglecting them. It’s scary to trust your baby to someone you’ve just met and hard to let go. However, trusting the caregivers is really important. Go with your instincts when you visit daycare centers, ask a lot of questions, and take your time. It really does work out, and can even be an excellent resource for you. You end up becoming close to the caregivers, who will probably fall madly in love with your baby. I can still tell you about every child I took care of, and the caregivers who took care of my children are still friends of ours. It’s been five years since I worked at the center!
Good luck, I know you’ll do great! I could go on about this forever, but this is already really really long. PM me if you have any other daycare questions!
Composing members:
0
