Should a daycare help kids in the 3-4s room wipe?

[Anonymous]

This is sort of gross - my son is the youngest kid in the 3-4s room in his daycare. He hasn't been in diapers since age 2.5, but he is still not good at wiping thoroughly after poop, despite me working on it with him for almost a year now. He generally only poops at home, but on a few occasions when he has pooped at daycare, he comes home with stained underwear complaining that his butt is "itchy." I suggested that he ask his teacher to help him wipe, and he said the teachers didn't do that. I asked, and the school confirmed this. I can understand why the teachers don't want to wipe the kids anymore, but on the other hand, I can't imagine that most 3 year olds wipe themselves all that well. Of course I will keep working with him to get better at this, but was curious whether this was standard practice at daycares.

[Anonymous]

There was a thread on this before. I think the consensus is that the teachers can't spend all day wiping butts, or something to that effect.

But I agree with you - seems like a simple and necessary task.

[Anonymous]

It can also be a matter of insurance/regulations. I worked in a preschool (ages 3 and up, kids who were supposed to be potty trained) and we were not even allowed to enter a bathroom stall with a child. Centers have to have insurance which protects them and the employees against possible sexual abuse lawsuits, and thus there are rules the staff has to follow. The workers who deal with kids under 3 probably have different regulations.

[Anonymous]

I think the consensus is that the teachers can't spend all day wiping butts, or something to that effect.

On one level, that makes sense. I don't think it would be "all day" - there are 14 kids in the class and I doubt that every kid poops at school every day. But I do know that there are a lot of kids for the teachers to manage, and that they probably don't want to be wiping butts any more by the time that kids are 3.

[Anonymous]

Preschool teacher here: I have worked with this age groupe before, and we generally didn't wipe bottoms, however, if a child needed help we would stand outside the stall and "coach" them through the process. There is nothing grosser than having a kid sitting next to you at circle, or at the snack table stinking like a dirty butt!

[Anonymous]

I don't think my son's teacher wipes their butts but she does assist when needed and has been actively working with the entire class on proper bathroom hygiene. I appreciate her efforts and she has been telling the parents as well so that we can work together to get them more independent in the bathroom.

[Anonymous]

Our preschool got special wipes for kids to use which were easier to clean with. Parents paid for a pack a month.

[Anonymous]

I think there's a difference between daycares and preschools here, both for reasons of licensing/insurance and just culture. My son is in a 3s class at a daycare (young 3s, but all potty trained) and the teacher still wipes - if the kids let her. I think sometimes DS hops off the potty, flushes, and pulls on his clothes without mentioning he pooped as well as peed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There was a thread on this before. I think the consensus is that the teachers can't spend all day wiping butts, or something to that effect.

When I was 19, I worked part-time at a daycare doing one specific job. I was the diaper changer and butt wiper. I was the only one doing all those dirty jobs, so it's not like teachers got to get near poop. If your daycare is like mine, one person will be hired to clean butts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There was a thread on this before. I think the consensus is that the teachers can't spend all day wiping butts, or something to that effect.

When I was 19, I worked part-time at a daycare doing one specific job. I was the diaper changer and butt wiper. I was the only one doing all those dirty jobs, so it's not like teachers got to get near poop. If your daycare is like mine, one person will be hired to clean butts.

Wow! What did you put down on your résumé for that one??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There was a thread on this before. I think the consensus is that the teachers can't spend all day wiping butts, or something to that effect.

When I was 19, I worked part-time at a daycare doing one specific job. I was the diaper changer and butt wiper. I was the only one doing all those dirty jobs, so it's not like teachers got to get near poop. If your daycare is like mine, one person will be hired to clean butts.

Wow! What did you put down on your résumé for that one??

Pooper swooper? Pooper Swiper? Pooper scooper?

lol

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Preschool teacher here: I have worked with this age groupe before, and we generally didn't wipe bottoms, however, if a child needed help we would stand outside the stall and "coach" them through the process. There is nothing grosser than having a kid sitting next to you at circle, or at the snack table stinking like a dirty butt!

I agree with this process. We as teachers do not go in stalls with the children and if they do not tell us they need help, we don't automatically check their bottom to see if they wiped good. If they are "potty trained" they should ask for help when needed. Parents need to communicate this with their children.

[Anonymous]

I can’t imagine being in a class with 10 kids, doing 3 diaper changes a day. 30 diaper changes. I complain about doing one before bed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our preschool got special wipes for kids to use which were easier to clean with. Parents paid for a pack a month.

These wipes can be very helpful for bottoms, but despite being labeled as "flushable," they clog up the system. Is the school disposing of these properly?

https://www.greenamerica.org/blog/are-flushable-wipes-really-flushable

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is sort of gross - my son is the youngest kid in the 3-4s room in his daycare. He hasn't been in diapers since age 2.5, but he is still not good at wiping thoroughly after poop, despite me working on it with him for almost a year now. He generally only poops at home, but on a few occasions when he has pooped at daycare, he comes home with stained underwear complaining that his butt is "itchy." I suggested that he ask his teacher to help him wipe, and he said the teachers didn't do that. I asked, and the school confirmed this. I can understand why the teachers don't want to wipe the kids anymore, but on the other hand, I can't imagine that most 3 year olds wipe themselves all that well. Of course I will keep working with him to get better at this, but was curious whether this was standard practice at daycares.

Use wet wipes. Just make sure he drops them into the trash, NOT the toilet.