Daycare Concern - Arlington,TX

Hi Jessica,

You are definitely right to be concerned. I ran a large daycare in the Keller area as an asst director so I know all the procedures.

You are completely right as to the fact of when the daycare is open your children should be "cared" for. If they open at 6:30 am then a classroom need to be ready with a teacher in it watching the children (at 6:30 mixed ages can be together. Infant-2yrs. 3yrs and up till 7:00am)

You need to address this directly with the director. 1 of those teachers needs to have the children in the classroom. If they aren't ready then the director needs to have a teacher come in at 6 am to prepare the classroom. If the director does not fix this or seemed concerned contact licensing.

HTH

E.

I would say it depends on the age of the child...ours is montessori and the classroom belongs to the children and they help care for it and love helping....younger than two maybe not so much....as long as they can be seen and heard I think they are okay as far as licensing...before and after care is not the formal education part of the day but your child is most likely benefitting from the time spent helping get ready....not only teaches responsibility but gives them time with the teacher before everyone is there and they can see what activities they have to look forward to doing that day...if you like everything else and they are not being left alone but included in the morning rountine I would count my blessings that you can drop off that early.

You have a right to be concerned. If they cannot have someone available, I would move your son. If it starts at 6:30am, then it starts at 6:30am.

Hey Jessica,

Checkout Daycare PI (www.daycarepi.com). You can go to the site, look up any daycare and order a public investigation report on it. It's pretty affordable and a great way to find out the scope of a particular center. Hope this helps!

I would talk to them and let them know your concerns. Maybe they will "fix it." But be nice. If you feel your child IS being properly supervised it may not be worth making a big deal.

Also, can you get to work 20 minutes later and work 20 minutes later? Or cut the time off of a lunch hour. Talk to your boss. Maybe he/she isn't worried about 20 minutes on the days your husband is out of town, or maybe you can make the time up when he IS in town.

This is how it is. Although they open at 6, they SHOULD be ready but I found the same situation at a day care where I live (Primrose, $10,000 a year).
I had to leave my DD one day at 6:30 with the cook. It is now 8 years later and I will NEVER lose that memory. I felt like the worst Mom in the world. I feel your pain.
Can anyone help you on those early mornings so you don't have to take your children in so early? A relative, a neighbor you could pay?
Could you find a day care closer to your work so they wouldn't be dropped off until closer to when you start your work day (8AM?).

Sounds like you may be taking him to Primrose? When I worked for them years ago this was normal. I don't agree with it, but it is a way for the business to get the kids in and have the workers work without paying out that extra money to be ready when the doors open. Every business just looks at the bottom line. It always bothered me because with the kids following the teacher or cook around they could easily slip out the door or get hurt! If you are in the North Richland Hills area I would like to talk with you more so you can give him a better opportunity and know that he is being taken care of as soon as he walks through the door.