All parents’ constant worry is how would my little one manage without me; being a working mother or father is a difficult job to handle since a child right from infancy to being a toddler to growing up into a teen will always be an equal priority as providing the best to the family.
Usually infants from three months and above are sent to day care centres, and since parents have full office hours, the kids end up staying from 9 am till 6 pm. Day care centres are the stepping stones to paving a great path for a child’s future as it is there that the child has his/her first interaction with the outer world other than the family and relatives.
New-age day care centres and preschools offer creative curriculum that augment a child’s learning right from the start. Not everyone has the luxury of keeping day-long nannies and even the ones who do, are constantly anxious. Day care centres and preschools are a latest trend today and with working parents it sure has made life a lot easier and hassle-free.
In the past crèches and day care facilities have faced their share of criticism and hence the decision to send their little ones stresses all parents alike. With nuclear families on the rise, it is not easy or safe to leave the child at home with a complete stranger. In earlier times, parents left their kids with grandparents and felt at ease knowing that the child is in responsible hands. However, new day cares are nothing less of being a home away from home for tiny tots.
Gone are the days where crèches were ill-equipped and a constant worry for mothers and fathers. New age day care and preschools not only offer the safest environment, finest hygiene but also a milieu for learning, and nothing can be more satisfying for a parent that the formative years of their child is in good hands.
To support this view, here are few advantages of sending your child to a new age day-care facility, and what sets them apart from the old set-ups of crèches.
· While parents work, caregivers do all the parenting for them. Caregivers take initiative of giving a child a clean and hygienic environment. Children are well-fed, kept clean and even have beds to give them proper rest after activities that tire them out.
· The newest feature that is a bonus to a child’s overall development is that day care centres are not limited to simply taking care of the child, nowadays they are preparing special curriculum to enhance the child’s overall development and skilled educators are hired to impart knowledge to them.
· The biggest blessing of sending your child to a day care is he/she would be with children of the same age and would have social interactions from an early stage. This plays a vital role in getting accustomed to a social life where later joining a school and making friends would come naturally and would not be a hindrance in adapting to a new environment.
· Developing communication skills and learning through multiple interactive sessions — be it nursery rhymes, singing and dancing, numbers and alphabets or simply drawing and painting — will hone the skills of a child that would later help him/her while joining a nursery or pre-school. They would also know how to listen to authoritative heads other than their parents or elders at home.
· New-age day care facilities have taken it as a personal challenge to provide better services to children that ensure their nutritional gain. A dietitian on board who plans meals for children and provides a balanced diet is an essential feature since the child spends maximum time at the day care and needs special attention in terms of food and supplements.
·The message of ‘home away from home’ is fully supported as day cares have become techno-savvy and provide 24x7 view of the centre for parents through live CCTV cameras. This enables parents manage their careers and not worry about the child relentlessly since they are now aware of the fact that their child is in safe hands. In addition, mobile updates are sent to parents about the activities the child took part in and what he/she learned in the day.
· Day cares nowadays are not run by novices; staff and caregivers are educated and hold proper degrees in childcare, and it sure is a boon for the entire industry running such facilities since understanding child psychology and making sure the child gains confidence and does not shy away from any sphere is crucial.
The writer is vice-president and curriculum director, Footprints Childcare