Making the transition from staying at home with the baby to an infant child day care in Pittsburgh can be tough even on the strongest mother. Part of making the transition easier on the mother is in making informed decisions regarding the baby’s care. Not only will the mother be in a better place emotionally, the baby will thrive as well. Here are some tips to make the transition easier on everyone involved.
The first tip for an easier transition is doing plenty of research and checking out multiple facilities. Things to keep an eye on are the overall cleanliness of the areas and how many people are in the room with the children. It is recommended that there be at one adult for every three babies under the age of two years old. In addition to how many adults will be there, look to see how the adults are interacting with the children and babies. A good sign is seeing the caregivers actively on the floor with the children, playing and fostering their imaginations.
The second tip is to ask questions, no matter how insignificant it may seem at the time. Good questions to ask are how discipline is handled, what is the policy for sick babies, how do they handle feeding and food issues? All these things may seem like common sense things, but each facility is different and when parents ask all the questions, they won’t be surprised later on.
The third tip is to make surprise visits before enrolling a child in the program. Surprise visits are great ways to really see what a typical day looks like and it’s also a good time to see the caregivers in their element. During these visits, parents will also get to see how the other children interact with each other. Don’t be surprised if the visits lead to more questions. As mentioned previously, ask any questions that come up right away.
Finally, it is important to remember that no matter how much parents prepare for infant child day care in Pittsburgh, the transition can still be hard. While the transition can be tough, parents should never ignore their gut instincts. If something doesn’t feel right, keep searching until the right facility is found.
