Do you want your child to go to childcare?

[forbetoel]

I totally admit to not being forced into childcare, I ran to it! I don't understand who wouldn't :rolleyes:

And that is possible where the problem begins.

You expect people to understand that you don't enjoy raising your child, and would prefer for him to be in childcare but you cannot/willnot understand those who not only chose to stay at home and actually enjoy it.

[Dreambeliever]

i voted yes :)
atm we are lucky enough to be i a good financial position and i dont have to go back to work. however, when DS is a bit older i would like him to attend childcare for maybe 2 or 3 days a week. There are so many benifits of childcare and i think DS, who is an extreamly hyperactive and social bubba will love it. Im a qualified childcarer so i think i have enough knowledge to be able to pick a fantastic centre and know what to expect and what standard they should be up to. obviously childcare is not for everyone, but i think its great that there are some fantastic centres out there so that parents have a choice. :yes:

[JaMM]

I needed a maybe vote :laughing: As I wasnt going back to work after No3 I thought I might give CC a go for her and her only, she hated it and so I never sent her back. Im glad it came to that conclusion though as I have what will be nearly 4 amazing years with her before she finally gets sucked into the 'system' for the rest of her life :)

[Courtney83]

I have a 5 y/o daughter, Lily, who started primary school this year, and I have been fortunate enough to be a SAHM with her the entire time. When she turned three, my husband and I decided to put her in daycare for a couple of days a week and it was the best decision we could have possibly made! Being an only child to this point, Lily just flourished with the opportunity to socialise with other kids, and to engage in toddler learning activities. Her speech/vocabulary came along in leaps and bounds and she developed friendships. When she started primary school this year, the difference between kids who had been to daycare and kids who hadn't was quite apparent. It was an easy transition for Lily, as she had the comfort of familiar faces in her classroom in the form of daycare friends. We will definitely be putting our second daughter into daycare when she is around the same age :)

BUT...(this goes without saying) it has to be a GOOD daycare centre, with quality staff and a happy/comfortable atmosphere.

[mumof2fairyfans]

"the difference between kids who had been to daycare and kids who hadn't was quite apparent" - that is a very broad observation. All children are different and react to situations differently. I too, am a SAHM, and can't afford to stay home as well as have days off by sending the kids to childcard. I make sure they have interaction with other children and they are both very social little children. Definately not socially stunted as some PP have implied they must be.

[Knocked_for_six]

I have a 5 y/o daughter, Lily, who started primary school this year, and I have been fortunate enough to be a SAHM with her the entire time. When she turned three, my husband and I decided to put her in daycare for a couple of days a week and it was the best decision we could have possibly made! Being an only child to this point, Lily just flourished with the opportunity to socialise with other kids, and to engage in toddler learning activities. Her speech/vocabulary came along in leaps and bounds and she developed friendships. When she started primary school this year, the difference between kids who had been to daycare and kids who hadn't was quite apparent. It was an easy transition for Lily, as she had the comfort of familiar faces in her classroom in the form of daycare friends. We will definitely be putting our second daughter into daycare when she is around the same age :)

BUT...(this goes without saying) it has to be a GOOD daycare centre, with quality staff and a happy/comfortable atmosphere.


What a board statement to make… My DS1 started Prep is this year and had never been to childcare, but has adjusted to school very well; he is bright, well adjusted, plays well with other children, overall he is a social little butterfly. As much as many people like to argue, childcare is not the only place for a child to develop social school, my children have playgroup, Sunday School, age appropriate activities in music, art, sport etc, play dates and so forth.

[forbetoel]

I have a 5 y/o daughter, Lily, who started primary school this year, and I have been fortunate enough to be a SAHM with her the entire time. When she turned three, my husband and I decided to put her in daycare for a couple of days a week and it was the best decision we could have possibly made! Being an only child to this point, Lily just flourished with the opportunity to socialise with other kids, and to engage in toddler learning activities. Her speech/vocabulary came along in leaps and bounds and she developed friendships. When she started primary school this year, the difference between kids who had been to daycare and kids who hadn't was quite apparent. It was an easy transition for Lily, as she had the comfort of familiar faces in her classroom in the form of daycare friends. We will definitely be putting our second daughter into daycare when she is around the same age :)

BUT...(this goes without saying) it has to be a GOOD daycare centre, with quality staff and a happy/comfortable atmosphere.

I am so gald that my kids didn't need to go to daycare to be confident enough to have an easy transition to school.

I must have done something right in the 5 years that they were at home with me.:goodvibes:

I don't where people get the idea that children of sahm don't soialise enough.:confused:

[MamaLlama]

my children have playgroup, Sunday School, age appropriate activities in music, art, sport etc, play dates and so forth.

I didn't think it was a broad statement, just an observation. I've made the same one. It isn't ALWAYS true but it is definitely statistically significant. And you can't tell beforehand which group your kid will be in.

Also, the development in groups where mum is always in the background is very different (and less useful for school adjustment imho) than other environments where they don't have mum t o appeal to.

I don't think you can jump on someone for making their own observations.

[Private Universe]

I dont want my child in daycare, but she is in daycare bcause I have no other option.

[Freya]

No childcare if I can help it. I *may* have to put them in childcare maybe next year, being on my own makes it tough and PPS is not enough to live on so we will see. But to me the only benefit would be that my kids are being supervised by professionals whilst I go to work. I think children are best kept at home with a parent to teach them and guide them till they are ready for school. But obviously this isn't always doable.

[naiwen]

Just adding another 2c to the conversation, I have worked in different types of childcare:

Nanny
CCC
FDC
Babysitting
After school care
Au Pair

And a centre for abused/at risk children and their families.

The one thing I have learned is obivous but true, every child is different and has different needs.

However under 3 they all need to feel a secure connection to one or two primary caregivers.

I have had babies come who were 4-12 months old who could not cope with any separation from their mother, one baby screamed from the moment he was left with me until the moment his mother came back 90mins later.

That baby would have suffered terribly if forced into LDC.

Other babies, smile, have fun and seem completely content to me in daycare.

Children who are considered to be at risk almost always benefit from childcare.

Childcare would be utterly innapropriate for my child.

Generalising about whether children benefit form childcare is utterly pointless IMO as all children are individuals.

All we can do is what we think is best for our children and to look out for those who may be at risk.

[~Candy~]

I have no need for day care. I choose to be a SAHM and I go to work at nights so my kids don't need to be cared for by a DCC.
I'm a big believer in kindy/pre-prep education once the child is 3-4 :yes:

[xkwzit]

Temporarily closed for cleaning...

ETA: A tone of off topic posts have been deleted. This is a poll asking whether YOU want YOUR child to go to daycare. It is not a discussion thread about which is the better choice (which I think, if we were all feeling generous we could agree, is dependent on each individual case).

Any more off topic posts and this thread will be permanently closed.

Thanks to all who have contributed positively.

Cheers