Daycare expectations

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hi,

I recently put my 2 year old in a daycare. This is week 2 of his visit and already having a hard time adjusting because he was a COVID baby and not much exposed to the social life.

I feel that when I ask questions about his day during pick-up the teacher is not happy to answer questions or provide more details. She would say- He napped a little, ate a little, cried for some time, etc. Very high level information!

I want to know if I am expecting a lot out of the staff just to know how my child did specially since it's just week 2?

Do daycares provide a report of their daily routine- like the time they had a snack, napped, diaper change, etc?

I had my first child 10 years back and that daycare was very regular about providing such details and the staff was very friendly too. Here, I don't see the warm gesture from the teacher and wonder if my child is going through the same?

Please provide feedback, suggestions to help me set my expectations right.
Thank you

The daily log of sleep/eating stops at age two in Maryland. So this is fairly normal.

[Anonymous]

It depends on the daycare. That kind of information is usually limited to infants. Why do you need to know such detailed information for him?

[Anonymous]

I don't think it's okay for a teacher to brush off a parent or act cold when a parent asks about their child's day. Yes, at that age it's not realistic to expect tracking of every diaper change. But the teacher should be willing to openly discuss how a child is adjusting to a new daycare, and should be able to tell the parent if they napped even if they don't know the exact times. That being said, all this assumes the parent is speaking with someone that was with the child during the day. At our daycare our DD is with different teachers after naptime so they cannot speak to how her whole day went.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't think it's okay for a teacher to brush off a parent or act cold when a parent asks about their child's day. Yes, at that age it's not realistic to expect tracking of every diaper change. But the teacher should be willing to openly discuss how a child is adjusting to a new daycare, and should be able to tell the parent if they napped even if they don't know the exact times. That being said, all this assumes the parent is speaking with someone that was with the child during the day. At our daycare our DD is with different teachers after naptime so they cannot speak to how her whole day went.

NP. I agree that a parent should not get brushed off when asking how their child is doing, but the parent also need to choose an appropriate time and manner for asking for that conversation. At 2, many/most daycares no longer provide the kind of detailed reports that are more common for babies, so asking for specifics about your child's day is a bit of an extra request. Even pre-covid, end of day was a busy time for daycares with everyone getting picked up, and the providers are tired. This is compounded even more with the pandemic because many daycares have implemented new drop-off and pick-up procedures to move people through as quickly as possible and with minimal exposure. No one at the daycare wants an employee spending 15 minutes talking with you in person at the end of the day in case you turn out to have covid and the employee you spoke with cannot come into work until they are cleared as a close contact.

If you want a more detailed discussion, you need to pick a better time and manner. For now, it would probably be better to email the daycare with your questions and offer to have a call to discuss how your child is adjusting. You cannot do this every day, though. It should be more of a one-time thing while your child is settling in, and then later if issues come up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think it's okay for a teacher to brush off a parent or act cold when a parent asks about their child's day. Yes, at that age it's not realistic to expect tracking of every diaper change. But the teacher should be willing to openly discuss how a child is adjusting to a new daycare, and should be able to tell the parent if they napped even if they don't know the exact times. That being said, all this assumes the parent is speaking with someone that was with the child during the day. At our daycare our DD is with different teachers after naptime so they cannot speak to how her whole day went.

NP. I agree that a parent should not get brushed off when asking how their child is doing, but the parent also need to choose an appropriate time and manner for asking for that conversation. At 2, many/most daycares no longer provide the kind of detailed reports that are more common for babies, so asking for specifics about your child's day is a bit of an extra request. Even pre-covid, end of day was a busy time for daycares with everyone getting picked up, and the providers are tired. This is compounded even more with the pandemic because many daycares have implemented new drop-off and pick-up procedures to move people through as quickly as possible and with minimal exposure. No one at the daycare wants an employee spending 15 minutes talking with you in person at the end of the day in case you turn out to have covid and the employee you spoke with cannot come into work until they are cleared as a close contact.

If you want a more detailed discussion, you need to pick a better time and manner. For now, it would probably be better to email the daycare with your questions and offer to have a call to discuss how your child is adjusting. You cannot do this every day, though. It should be more of a one-time thing while your child is settling in, and then later if issues come up.

Why should the parent have to guess this? The teacher can say, "Unfortunately due to Covid protocols I have to keep the pickup line moving, how about we chat on the phone tomorrow?". People aren't mindreaders.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think it's okay for a teacher to brush off a parent or act cold when a parent asks about their child's day. Yes, at that age it's not realistic to expect tracking of every diaper change. But the teacher should be willing to openly discuss how a child is adjusting to a new daycare, and should be able to tell the parent if they napped even if they don't know the exact times. That being said, all this assumes the parent is speaking with someone that was with the child during the day. At our daycare our DD is with different teachers after naptime so they cannot speak to how her whole day went.

NP. I agree that a parent should not get brushed off when asking how their child is doing, but the parent also need to choose an appropriate time and manner for asking for that conversation. At 2, many/most daycares no longer provide the kind of detailed reports that are more common for babies, so asking for specifics about your child's day is a bit of an extra request. Even pre-covid, end of day was a busy time for daycares with everyone getting picked up, and the providers are tired. This is compounded even more with the pandemic because many daycares have implemented new drop-off and pick-up procedures to move people through as quickly as possible and with minimal exposure. No one at the daycare wants an employee spending 15 minutes talking with you in person at the end of the day in case you turn out to have covid and the employee you spoke with cannot come into work until they are cleared as a close contact.

If you want a more detailed discussion, you need to pick a better time and manner. For now, it would probably be better to email the daycare with your questions and offer to have a call to discuss how your child is adjusting. You cannot do this every day, though. It should be more of a one-time thing while your child is settling in, and then later if issues come up.

Why should the parent have to guess this? The teacher can say, "Unfortunately due to Covid protocols I have to keep the pickup line moving, how about we chat on the phone tomorrow?". People aren't mindreaders.

Because the teacher can’t suggest her own overtime, probably. She can respond to a request from a parent and bill that time, but not initiate. Just a guess based on my workplace.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think it's okay for a teacher to brush off a parent or act cold when a parent asks about their child's day. Yes, at that age it's not realistic to expect tracking of every diaper change. But the teacher should be willing to openly discuss how a child is adjusting to a new daycare, and should be able to tell the parent if they napped even if they don't know the exact times. That being said, all this assumes the parent is speaking with someone that was with the child during the day. At our daycare our DD is with different teachers after naptime so they cannot speak to how her whole day went.

NP. I agree that a parent should not get brushed off when asking how their child is doing, but the parent also need to choose an appropriate time and manner for asking for that conversation. At 2, many/most daycares no longer provide the kind of detailed reports that are more common for babies, so asking for specifics about your child's day is a bit of an extra request. Even pre-covid, end of day was a busy time for daycares with everyone getting picked up, and the providers are tired. This is compounded even more with the pandemic because many daycares have implemented new drop-off and pick-up procedures to move people through as quickly as possible and with minimal exposure. No one at the daycare wants an employee spending 15 minutes talking with you in person at the end of the day in case you turn out to have covid and the employee you spoke with cannot come into work until they are cleared as a close contact.

If you want a more detailed discussion, you need to pick a better time and manner. For now, it would probably be better to email the daycare with your questions and offer to have a call to discuss how your child is adjusting. You cannot do this every day, though. It should be more of a one-time thing while your child is settling in, and then later if issues come up.

Why should the parent have to guess this? The teacher can say, "Unfortunately due to Covid protocols I have to keep the pickup line moving, how about we chat on the phone tomorrow?". People aren't mindreaders.

Isn’t it common sense?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hi,

I recently put my 2 year old in a daycare. This is week 2 of his visit and already having a hard time adjusting because he was a COVID baby and not much exposed to the social life.

I feel that when I ask questions about his day during pick-up the teacher is not happy to answer questions or provide more details. She would say- He napped a little, ate a little, cried for some time, etc. Very high level information!

I want to know if I am expecting a lot out of the staff just to know how my child did specially since it's just week 2?

Do daycares provide a report of their daily routine- like the time they had a snack, napped, diaper change, etc?

I had my first child 10 years back and that daycare was very regular about providing such details and the staff was very friendly too. Here, I don't see the warm gesture from the teacher and wonder if my child is going through the same?

Please provide feedback, suggestions to help me set my expectations right.
Thank you

The daily log of sleep/eating stops at age two in Maryland. So this is fairly normal.

Depends on the daycare. We got it until DD was 3.5 and moved to a preschool room.

Agree with PPs about asking how best to communicate with teachers and learn how DC is doing. With new Covid procedures, casual chat at pickup is no longer easy at ours but they are very willing to arrange a time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think it's okay for a teacher to brush off a parent or act cold when a parent asks about their child's day. Yes, at that age it's not realistic to expect tracking of every diaper change. But the teacher should be willing to openly discuss how a child is adjusting to a new daycare, and should be able to tell the parent if they napped even if they don't know the exact times. That being said, all this assumes the parent is speaking with someone that was with the child during the day. At our daycare our DD is with different teachers after naptime so they cannot speak to how her whole day went.

NP. I agree that a parent should not get brushed off when asking how their child is doing, but the parent also need to choose an appropriate time and manner for asking for that conversation. At 2, many/most daycares no longer provide the kind of detailed reports that are more common for babies, so asking for specifics about your child's day is a bit of an extra request. Even pre-covid, end of day was a busy time for daycares with everyone getting picked up, and the providers are tired. This is compounded even more with the pandemic because many daycares have implemented new drop-off and pick-up procedures to move people through as quickly as possible and with minimal exposure. No one at the daycare wants an employee spending 15 minutes talking with you in person at the end of the day in case you turn out to have covid and the employee you spoke with cannot come into work until they are cleared as a close contact.

If you want a more detailed discussion, you need to pick a better time and manner. For now, it would probably be better to email the daycare with your questions and offer to have a call to discuss how your child is adjusting. You cannot do this every day, though. It should be more of a one-time thing while your child is settling in, and then later if issues come up.

Why should the parent have to guess this? The teacher can say, "Unfortunately due to Covid protocols I have to keep the pickup line moving, how about we chat on the phone tomorrow?". People aren't mindreaders.

Isn’t it common sense?

Obviously, it isn't for everyone. One of the reasons I love my daycare is they tell it like it is and don't assume I know everything.

[Anonymous]

Pick up is the worst time to start asking a ton of questions, OP. The daycare employees are very busy at drop off and pick up times. If it's a preschool, then it should be doing parent-teacher conferences where you have the time to get more information alone with the teacher. It sounds like you might want to look for a preschool instead.

[Anonymous]

Because of Covid precautions, only one parent at a time can enter the front lobby at DC's school. This causes a log-jam outside and teachers and parents are cognizant that they are holding up the line.

I can tell the teachers at DC's school are eager to share information but they just don't have time to do so at drop off and pick up times. I haven't really gotten to know the other parents either. This is completely unlike my experience with preschool in pre-Covid days. We get email updates about twice a week now about what is covered in class along with photos of our DC doing various activities.

[Anonymous]

Normal for > 2 year olds, but there are some daycares that will provide more information (often via an app) if that is a priority. You should ask for a brief phone call or conference if you have specific concerns.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think it's okay for a teacher to brush off a parent or act cold when a parent asks about their child's day. Yes, at that age it's not realistic to expect tracking of every diaper change. But the teacher should be willing to openly discuss how a child is adjusting to a new daycare, and should be able to tell the parent if they napped even if they don't know the exact times. That being said, all this assumes the parent is speaking with someone that was with the child during the day. At our daycare our DD is with different teachers after naptime so they cannot speak to how her whole day went.

NP. I agree that a parent should not get brushed off when asking how their child is doing, but the parent also need to choose an appropriate time and manner for asking for that conversation. At 2, many/most daycares no longer provide the kind of detailed reports that are more common for babies, so asking for specifics about your child's day is a bit of an extra request. Even pre-covid, end of day was a busy time for daycares with everyone getting picked up, and the providers are tired. This is compounded even more with the pandemic because many daycares have implemented new drop-off and pick-up procedures to move people through as quickly as possible and with minimal exposure. No one at the daycare wants an employee spending 15 minutes talking with you in person at the end of the day in case you turn out to have covid and the employee you spoke with cannot come into work until they are cleared as a close contact.

If you want a more detailed discussion, you need to pick a better time and manner. For now, it would probably be better to email the daycare with your questions and offer to have a call to discuss how your child is adjusting. You cannot do this every day, though. It should be more of a one-time thing while your child is settling in, and then later if issues come up.

Why should the parent have to guess this? The teacher can say, "Unfortunately due to Covid protocols I have to keep the pickup line moving, how about we chat on the phone tomorrow?". People aren't mindreaders.

Isn’t it common sense?

DP. You would think, but apparently not for some people.

[Anonymous]

Does the school have a schedule?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Does the school have a schedule?

I was wondering that. As my kids got older, certain things weren't covered because there was just a routine -- kids get changed/use the potty at times A,B,C; meals and snacks are listed and times are consistent. If there was something I was concerned about (is he settling down at naps? is he playing well with other kids? are he and X getting on each other's nerves still?), I could ask about that, but detailed, personalized communication didn't happen as much as when they were younger, and pick-up was not the best time.