Ontario Early Years Centre

ONTARIO EARLY
YEARS CENTRE

FACTORS TO BR A M PTO N, O N, CA NAD A. + 1 90 5 - 45 2 - 1 97 3

CONSIDER

 Security of the
Premises

Choosing a Daycare Facility

 Qualification fo the
staff at the facility

 Security of the
premises housing
the daycare centre Presently, with the rigors of the home setup, after the birth of a Detailed herein are some of the considerations
child, many more parents opt to return to work sooner than was that parents with infants need to make, and a
 Feeding patterns or number of recommendations to aid them on
the case therebefore. The reasons for this hurry to return to the
routines at the
workplace include among others, the need for both spouses to the best parameters to consider in their search
facility
contribute to the household income, and the desire for mothers for an appropriate daycare facility.
 Health of workers to advance their careers. From this arises the issue of childcare, The ages of zero to twelve months are some of
at the facility either by licensed the most important in the
institutions or by development of a child,
individuals. regarding cognition,
Given that the costs emotion, and physique, as
incurred through Sokolowski (2016) ob-
the employment of serves, it is important for
individual babysit- children to access the
ters are high, the greatest level of love
most preferred
INSIDE THIS and care. However as
option is the use of
ISSUE: many more mothers opt
institutions (daycare
to work outside the
centers). However,
home, the responsibility
there are many
Choosing a daycare 2 of handling the develop-
considerations that
facility ment of such infants is
parents need to
therefore shared with
make in their choice of a daycare institution, especially for par-
professionals and institutions with the neces-
ents with younger children (age zero to 12 months).
Factors to consider 2

Recommendations 2 Factors to Consider in Choosing a

Daycare Facility
The ages of zero to twelve months are some of the most important in the development of a child, regarding
cognition, emotion, and physique, as Sokolowski (2016) observes, it is important for children to access the
greatest level of love and care. However as many more mothers opt to work outside the home, the responsi-
bility of handling the development of such infants is therefore shared with professionals and institutions with
the necessary competence in taking care of children. To choose the appropriate institutions, certain factors
need to be considered.
 PAGE 2

1. Security at the Facility

Children are most vulnerable during their first thirty-six months of life (Carlson,
2017). For this reason, the choice of a daycare facility should be driven by both
health and security concerns. While shopping for a daycare facility to commit their
child to, parents should ensure that thorough background checks are carried out on
all staff members, especially those directly involved in childcare and those that oper-
ate in other sectors of such facility (Chau, 2012). This would help ensure that the
staff members who interact with, or are present within the child's immediate envi-
ronment, pose no security threat to the child.
Particularly, parents should consider finding out whether an employee at the facility
they are considering, has any criminal history and whether such history involves any
child-related offenses (Chau, 2012). Through this, parents would determine how
safe their child would be when left off at such facilities. Also, parents need to exam-
ine the locale in which the facility they are considering is, and how safe it would be to drop off their child at
such a location.
These considerations would include the control of access to the kids at such a facility, the general tranquility

In the early years of 2.The Interaction between the Child Care

their lives, babies
Agents and the Child
respond a great deal to In the early years of their lives, babies respond a great deal
to touch, Sokolowski (2016) points out. As such, it is im-
touch, Sokolowski
portant for daycare centers to have enough employees to
(2016) points out. improve the ratio of children to caregivers and thus in-
crease the level and quality of child-caregiver interaction.
Lin and Dunnett (2018) advise that the choice of a daycare
facility should be driven by the warmth and responsive-
ness of the staff at such institutions. Parents need only to
consider institutions that offer individual attention to each
child, and thus improves toddler-adult interaction. This
also helps in offering specialized care to children that may
need it. The staff numbers may also speak to the amount
of care offered to infants; the best daycare facilities are
those in which round-the-clock care is offered to children

When shopping around for a daycare facility in which

to commit their infant, parents should also take into
consideration the competence of the staff at such a
facility in interacting with the children. Broadwell
(2018) advises that daycare facilities should employ
persons with adequate qualifications and experiences
in early childhood care and education. Through
proper qualification and experience, staff may gain
the competency of interacting with children in bene-
ficial ways that promote both physical and cognitive
development of such children.

ONTARIO EARLY YEARS CENTRE

 PAGE 3

3.The health of the Workers

On the health front, all workers at any daycare facility that
parents opt for, should have their medical checkups regularly
and thus address any conditions that may pose a threat to the
health of the children at the facility. Broadwell (2018) writes
that it is necessary for daycare centers to ensure that the
workers they assign to the care of children pose no health risk
to such children or to other visitors who enter the facility. In
addition to this, the facilities should take due caution to ensure
all children enrolled thereto are immunized from preventable
diseases and that all children are free from contracting com-
municable diseases at such facility.
Young children in

the first twelve

months of their

lives tend to form a

bond with their

caregivers, which
4. Commitment to the Child forms the basis of

further interactions
For young children, the most important
aspect of care is consistency. Young with other humans
children in the first twelve months of
(Lin and Dunnett,
their lives tend to form a bond with
their caregivers, which forms the basis 2018).
of further interactions with other hu-
mans (Lin and Dunnett, 2018). Resultantly,
therefore, it is necessary to ensure that the
daycare facility chosen offers consistency re-
garding the personnel attached to the care of a
child (Broadwell, 2018). In this manner, over time, children get the opportunity to form emotional bonds with their caregivers
at such institutions, thus ensuring a healthier cognitive and emotional development process.

5. Food and Hygiene Levels

Babies need to feed every so often. As such, it is important for parents to
consider the feeding routines at the daycare center they opt for. Through
this, they will be able to rate the competency of such facility in ensuring the
nourishment of their child. It is important for daycare facilities to ensure that
individualized care and attention is given to each child, especially about feed-
ing habits and patterns (Chau, 2012). Parents should also inquire whether
the facility can incorporate the feeding plan they have for their child into the
facility's feeding program. This would go a long way in helping ease the sepa-
ration of the child from the home setting (Ding, Kottelenberg and Lehrer,
2016). Additionally, it is necessary for parents to ensure that the facility to
which they commit their child is clean and free of any disease-causing agents.
 The Ontario Early Years Centre is the perfect
place to commit your infant child. We boast an
ONTARIO EARLY YEARS CENTRE excellent child-caregiver ratio which allows

Brampton, ON, Canada your baby to receive maximum care. Each of

+ 1 905- 452 -1973 our staff members are not only qualified in the
science of childcare but also have a passion for
the work they do. The level of security at each
of our facilities is top-notch, ensuring you have
the peace of mind you need to work at ensur-
Admissions in
ing a better future for your loved ones.
Progress
At Ontario Early Years Centre, our goal is to
care for your bundle of joy in the best possible
fashion while allowing you to help brighten
their futures.

Recommendations

While choosing a daycare facility for their infants, parents need to keep consider a number of factors, among them;
a. The security of the premises that house such a daycare facility, as well as the security of the surrounding area.
b. The foods and drinks served at the facility, the feeding program at the facility and how it relates to that which the parent has for their child.
c. The overall levels of hygiene at the establishment as well as the health of the workers at the facility.
d. The number of workers, and level of interaction between child and caregiver, at the daycare facility
e. The competence and qualifications of the staff members to whom the children are assigned for care. This should also include the back-
ground of such workers.
f. The commitment of workers to the facility – to minimize turnover of employees and thus interrupt the formation of bonds between the
infant and their caregiver.