Whether you live in Danville, PA or Ulan Bator, whatever your profession or walk of life, if you are working full time somebody has to look after the children. For many people childcare means leaving their children with a relative trusted friend for a few hours while their children approach kindergarten or infant school age. Once they have reached that age, this is clearly no longer an option. Then arguably the biggest decision that a parent can take as regards the well being of their child presents itself, “which childcare provider should I choose?” As with the school a child will eventually attend, the long term benefits of making the right choice for your child and your family cannot be understated.
Childcare is the first step
From about the age of 4 or 5 years old (earlier if they go to pre-school), children will be in the care of educational professionals to the age of 18, (at earliest), for approximately 6-8 hours a day, 5 days a week, for about 30 weeks a year. Therefore, it is reasonable to expect parents and guardians to take an active role in the process of obtaining the best possible education for their children. This responsibility begins the second the child walks into the day care center gates and meets his or her first teacher and classmates. For parents this means working with the person and institution which they have chosen to look after their children.
Getting Involved
This not have to mean becoming president of the PTA, that in itself is a full time position and requires a supreme commitment of time and energy. It means responding to communication with teachers and childcare professionals, whether the reason for the communication is good or bad news. Let’s be honest it’s not all sunshine and lollipops in any school community. Bad things can and do happen the trick is to stop the issue escalating and deal with it, in short work through the proper channels to nip it (whatever it is) in the proverbial bud. On a positive note it means bringing any talents you have to the end of year school play. It means fostering positive and professional relationships with the entire school community. If this occurs in the first school a child attends then these skills can be transferred throughout their educational journey.