Majority of people today work for a number of hours in a day and do not have a choice but to leave their children in another person’s care. Whether you are looking for a babysitter, a nanny, or a child care center to take care of your kids while you are away, you have to make sure that you choose the best child care provider around. It might seem like babysitting is such a menial job, but it’s actually an important job that has to be performed as well as, if not better than, any other job around. A child care provider, after all, is entrusted with the life of children left under his care.
Parents looking for the best child care provider cannot simply look at resumes, credentials, and experience in deciding who to hire. The first step really is to look inward before you come up with a set of criteria to measure your candidates against. You have to take your child’s needs into consideration as well as your family values and rules. This will allow you to come up with a list of requirements that your child care provider should comply with.
Generally, very young children should not be left with just anyone. There are feeding schedules and special care needs that are supposed to be followed to the letter. A nurse or someone who has received proper training in pediatric care is the best person for the job. Of course, you will have to pay more to hire these trained personnel as opposed to hiring the neighborhood babysitter.
You also have to think about whether you prefer to go for in-home care or center/school-based care services. In-home care involves leaving a complete stranger alone with your child in your own home. There are a lot of horror stories about babysitters abusing their employers’ trust. It is important to know who you are welcoming into your home and entrusting your child with. It is also important to stress the house rules that should strictly be followed especially when your child’s safety and security are concerned. With a center/school based care service, on the other hand, you have to take your child to a day care facility or a preschool. You can expect regimented and organized activities in these facilities. These activities are designed not only to keep your child preoccupied but also to address some of their developmental needs. For parents who want their children to have some interaction with other kids, a center/school based facility can be considered as the best child care provider.
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David Castillo Dominci – FreeDigitalPhotos.Net