What Should a Parent Handbook Be About For Daycare Centers

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This article is mainly suited for parents who are looking for childcare and daycare owners who are constructing policies on what their daycare center rules should be.

The main objective of a parent handbook in the daycare setting is to establish rules and boundaries for the parent and daycare provider. Without boundaries and rules many issues erupt which could have been avoided in the first place. It is extremely important for you the parent to understand what your provider expects. As well as the provider, it is important for you to lay down the ground work so that no confusion lies between you and the parent.

Below will be a guideline that you may wish to follow regarding rules and standards established for your daycare center.

A parent handbook about daycare centers should have the following information:

1. Sick policy: What are the guidelines that the center will use when a child becomes ill? When will the parent be called, how high does the temperature need to be for a parent to be asked to come pick-up the child? What if the child has an unexplained rash? Loose bowel movements? Falls and hits his/her head? What is the policy for re-entering childcare after being home with illness? What contagious diseases are not allowed in your center? Will you allow sick children to be in your center? These are all very important questions that need to be addressed by the parent and the daycare provider as well.

2. Pick-Up Child Policy: Issues should be addressed on who is picking up the child, and what if someone else shows up to pick up that child and you don’t know about it. Are both parents together or divorced and what is the arrangement with custody. If there is a situation that a parent is not allowed to pick up a child it would be wise to have legal documents on file stating the arrangement by court. If a child is walking from school or being picked up by your center there should be paper work on file stating these arrangements.

3. Tuition: A contract stating price and payment should be filled out by both the parent and the daycare center. There should be a clear understanding of how many days the child will attend and what the charge will be. There should also be an understanding of what charges there will be when a child is not attending childcare.

4. Vacations and Time Off: Will the daycare provider be taking off for a vacation and will the parents still need to pay for childcare? What about emergency closings, what are the policies regarding this. What holiday’s will the center be closed and are they paid holiday’s or not.

5. Punishment and disorderly behavior: What are the rules of the daycare center regarding punishment? What ages and what ways does the center try to correct behavior? What are the daycare centers grounds for termination? What are the guidelines established when talking to parents about problems.

These are the fundamentals of a day care parent handbook. Remember that all concerns should be addressed in this handbook; it is there to help the parent and the daycare center and especially to protect the safety of the child.

Christine Groth, author and mentor of Instant Daycare Profits Home Study Course. Receive her free 6 part newsletter on how to start your own daycare at www.instantdaycareprofits.com

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Partnering With Your Daycare or Preschool

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For the most positive daycare experience for your child, partner with your childcare center and make a personal investment beyond the monthly tuition. You can build your partnership with your daycare by volunteering your time, contributing goods or services, or donating money.

If your child is in daycare full-time, he is spending 40 – 60 hours at your daycare facility with his childcare providers. You owe it to your child to help make the center the best it can be for him.

Beautification Day. Schedule a few hours on a Saturday morning for a group of parents to come into the center and give it a really thorough spring cleaning where you tackle involved chores like painting walls, repairing bookcases, decorating classrooms, scrubbing cubbies.

Fundraising. You can support your center’s fundraising efforts by asking for goods, services or monetary donations. Ask friends and family to partake in fundraising auction events with you – spirited bidding in a live auction is a lively way to spend a Saturday evening with friends while benefiting a good cause.

Participation. Spending an hour or two in the classroom a week reading stories, engaging in dramatic play or just lending a helping hand are all time well spent and greatly appreciated by the daycare center.

If your schedule is too tight to accommodate volunteering at school, think creatively about other ways you can contribute – do you have a skill, talent or connection that can potential benefit the school in some way. It may be an activity that seems inconsequential in your normal course of business but would be invaluable to your daycare center.

Here are some examples to get you started:

Investment Banking. Most centers have an emergency fund they must keep for unexpected facility maintenance or other unplanned expenses. Suggest the best short term investment vehicles for them.

Tax Accountant. Offer to review their current tax preparation forms or evaluate their tax planning process.

Medical Expertise. Conduct a 30 minute seminar or write a column in the newsletter about common childhood ailments, healthy eating or sleeping practices.

Educational Background. Suggest weekend learning activities or offer to conduct a 30 minute special event for one of the older classrooms.

Music. Entertain the kids with an impromptu concert or offer to entertain at the center’s annual fundraising event.

Legal. Offer to review contracts or agreements the school is considering. Offer to review the current application portfolio and identify policies or additional waivers or agreements that should be included.

Sales. Create a bonus plan for the teaching staff that takes into account length of employment and special recognitions.

Marketing. Review the centers brochures, ads and marketing plans. Make recommendations for how to best sell the centers services, help develop creative materials and negotiate print rates with vendors.

Facilities. Offer to inspect the daycare facilities and make maintenance repairs or negotiate with preferred vendors for discounted rates.

About the Author

For more great information about expecting and parenting, visit MomRecommended.com, a site for moms by moms. Annie Valle is a freelance writer, web designer and a mom. You'll find product reviews, recipes, baby names, free projects and more, when you visit http://www.momrecommended.com.

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How To Start A DayCare Business

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So you have decided that your town or community could do with a good daycare center and now you are wondering how to get started. There are several important things to think about before you should start doing anything:

1. Setting

Is this going to be a home-based business or will it be a daycare center with its own discrete location? If you plan on running your operation at home, consider the expenses: will you need to do any remodeling to make managing an orderly and safe daycare feasible? Is there anything in the house that could be damaged or that could be harmful? If you want to go the other route and have your own separate daycare center, the best option here is to find a small building somewhere near a residential area and rent it out. If you become very successful and anticipate further growth of your business, you may want to invest in buying the property.

2. Certifications and Licenses

This is very important as you do not want any starting investment to be ruined because you violated a law. This can be very area-specific so it is recommended that you sit with an attorney to discuss legal matters, but generally you will need a business license as well as some kind of certification that recognizes your institution as a legitimate daycare center or home-based business.

3. Management

Who will be running the center? Will you need to hire helpers or will this be a family-oriented advent? Be sure to keep on top of this form the start because you can easily find yourself in over your head if you do not have enough help and keep track of expenses very well and how they are distributed to your employees if you have any.

It may seem intimidating, but starting a daycare business can be extremely rewarding both monetarily and emotionally, and if you do your research before diving in, you will be on your way to opening sooner than you think.

Isaac Phillipson has assisted in the opening of two daycare businesses within his own community. To view the very guide he used to do this, visit http://www.review-source.com/startadaycare.php

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Starting A Home Daycare Business

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The childcare or daycare business has become a valuable part of modern society. Parents want a place they can leave their children while they are at work and be assured that their kids are in good hands. With this said, it is apparent that for anybody interested in running a home based daycare business or daycare center, the first priority must be the love of children. Their safety and well being must come before financial gains on your priority list. Starting a daycare center could be the best way to positively impact on the lives of the children and parents in your community. Obviously, in the long run, if properly planned, a daycare business is bound to be lucrative, but you are sure to enjoy the bond created between you, the children and their parents in decades to come, more than any financial again.

However, the love of kids cannot be the only requirement for starting a daycare business. As with any other business, especially small and home based business, several other factors must be put into consideration before jumping into the business. Let's take a look at some of these vital requirements.

For a start, you really have to do thorough research. You have to know what you are getting yourself into, the pros, the cons and the prospects. Does your locality need another daycare operator? Will it be profitable in your area? Are those running the existing centers enjoying the experience? These are some of the numerous questions you need to get answers to. It would be a great idea to visit existing daycare centers; you could interview parents about what they think of the services they are getting, what they expected and also the operators about how well the business is thriving.

You will also want to learn about licensing and certifications required for running a daycare business. Some states will require that you get licensed while some others may not. You may also want to get First Aid, CPR or other kind of certifications. Even if these were not pre-requisites, they would come handy when the business gets into full swing. You never can tell what events could occur, it is always better to be prepared for accidents and eventualities.

There is also the personal side of the story. You need to consider if you want to run a home based daycare business or a daycare center. If it is going to be home based, do you need to modify or change your house to be make it child friendly, do you own a building or will you have to rent the required space. You should also consider what impact being with children all day long would have on you and your family. If you are not a natural child lover, a daycare business may be very demanding, as tending children requires a lot of love, understanding and patience. If you have growing kids yourself, the task may be more demanding, as you never can tell what impact the kids you are tending will have on your own children. However, if handling such things is not stressful for you or if you are stay at home mom that is seeking to supplement her income with the venture, then a home based daycare business might just the right thing for you.

As with any other business venture, a clear business plan would definitely impact positively on its success. You need a business plan to map out the viability or otherwise of the venture. You need to consider the initial capital and expense you will incur setting up the business, where these monies will come from and how you are going to recoup your initial capital plus profit. Your business plan will also take care of all necessary accounting and tax expenses, and even create back ups in case of accidents or other eventualities.

In all, the success of your business venture will be directly proportional to how well prepared you were before you jumped into it. Do as much research as you can, learn all you can find about children and their needs, what parents wish for their children and especially, a good business plan. It is never wrong to be well prepared, you will be better for it.

Michael Russell

Your Independent guide to Child Care

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