Title: Evaluate childcare services.
Course: GRADS: Family Focus (19905-18) > Section: Providing Childcare

Evaluation should include

- compliance with regulatory authorities and licensing
- certification, accreditation, and quality
- background check on childcare service/employees
- education and turnover of providers
- ages of children enrolled
- hours open
- cost of care, special enrollment fees
- policy regarding care of sick children
- handling of emergencies
- typical daily schedule
- open-door policy
- pickup policy
- toilet training practices
- transportation provisions
- meals and snacks served
- breastfeeding policies
- ratio of children to providers
- curriculum for children of various ages
- alternatives to childcare services.

Process/Skill Questions

Thinking

- Why is childcare a need for so many parents? For adolescent parents?
- What types of childcare are most frequently used?
- What values, goals, and beliefs do you have regarding childcare?

Communication

- What questions should a parent ask when exploring childcare options?
- What specific needs will be met by the childcare provider you select?
- What might be the short- and long-term consequences if a parent does not check the background of the childcare service and its employees?
- Why is it important to maintain ongoing communication with the childcare provider?

Leadership

- What are the characteristics of good childcare?
- What are potential emergencies in a childcare environment?
- What happens when parents fail to monitor the quality of care their child is receiving in a childcare setting?