Drop off at 7am too early?

[Anonymous]

When our DD was a toddler, her normal wake up was at 5:45. We were up anyway, so we all got ready and she was often the first one at daycare when it opened. First, at her at-home daycare as a baby, and then at her preschool. By being at work by 7:30, I was able to pick her up by about 3:30. It worked for us because we had all afternoon to play and she was still in bed by 7pm.

If you're waking your child in order to drop them at 7, and you aren't able to get them until 5:30 or 6, that is really really hard. It's the reality for many families, though. Not ideal, but if a family needs to put food on the table it is often the case that the young kids are in care for a long time.

[Anonymous]

So your kid gets alone time with the caregiver. Sounds like a win to me.
As long as the total number of hours in care is reasonable, it's OK.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DO what you have to do, but don't let her stay there later than 4. Anything longer is not fair to your dc.

Roll your eyes all you want...it is unfair to your kid and everyone knows it.

Nope. You don’t speak for everyone. Some people have to leave their kids longer. It’s really NBD. Unless you’re a sanctimonious a$$hat, then it’s a HUGE deal.

Seriously. Who ARE these glassbowls? And where do you all work that you drop off later AND pick up early and not get canned? I have to work a minimum of 8 hours a day plus a mandatory lunch break of at least 30 minutes. So that is 8.5 hours I must be at work. Tack on a 30 minute commute which is incredibly common (if not on the low end for this area), and that's AT LEAST 9.5 hours start to finish each day. And that's the "ideal" day. So I drop my kid off at 7 then the earliest I can pick up is 4:30. And I have it easy, I very rarely have to work more than 45 hours a week which is not the norm around here.

I'm not in the eyeroll camp, but most people at my daycare seem to have one parent do drop off and one do pick up to avoid the super long days as much as possible.

Doing that, my husband drops our daughter off at about 8:30 and I pick her up at 5. He stays at work until close to 7 most nights. I go in early in the morning.

But if one of us is traveling, yep it's a long day.

We're all doing the best we can.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DO what you have to do, but don't let her stay there later than 4. Anything longer is not fair to your dc.

Roll your eyes all you want...it is unfair to your kid and everyone knows it.

Nope. You don’t speak for everyone. Some people have to leave their kids longer. It’s really NBD. Unless you’re a sanctimonious a$$hat, then it’s a HUGE deal.

Interesting perspective you have. It’s NBD really? You sound so cold.

Interesting that you think I care about your opinion. I don't.

We had it lucky in our family. Drop off at 7:30, pick up at 3. But I know plenty of kids (my best friends included) that leave their kids from 7am-6pm. Both are well adjusted awesome kids. One is in 2nd grade now and doing really well. The other is still in daycare and does not cry about his long day at daycare - in fact he loves his teachers.

If being a judgmental sanctimonious sh!t makes you feel better about yourself, have at it. You clearly need it. But make no mistake, most kids you are "heartbroken" for and labeling their parents as "cold" are doing just fine, I assure you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DO what you have to do, but don't let her stay there later than 4. Anything longer is not fair to your dc.

My kids get upset if I pick them up early. (Normal is a bit before six, but our drop off is 8/8:30.). In remotely decent weather, they are playing outside and, even inside, they are engrossed in various activities.

I wish I had a little more time in the evenings with them, but they aren't remotely suffering.

[Anonymous]

If you pick her up by 4 and she's a natural early riser then sounds okay.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DO what you have to do, but don't let her stay there later than 4. Anything longer is not fair to your dc.

My kids get upset if I pick them up early. (Normal is a bit before six, but our drop off is 8/8:30.). In remotely decent weather, they are playing outside and, even inside, they are engrossed in various activities.

I wish I had a little more time in the evenings with them, but they aren't remotely suffering.

Oh but didn’t you know? PP know what’s best for your kid, not you. Better listen to PP!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DO what you have to do, but don't let her stay there later than 4. Anything longer is not fair to your dc.

Roll your eyes all you want...it is unfair to your kid and everyone knows it.

Nope. You don’t speak for everyone. Some people have to leave their kids longer. It’s really NBD. Unless you’re a sanctimonious a$$hat, then it’s a HUGE deal.

Interesting perspective you have. It’s NBD really? You sound so cold.

Interesting that you think I care about your opinion. I don't.

We had it lucky in our family. Drop off at 7:30, pick up at 3. But I know plenty of kids (my best friends included) that leave their kids from 7am-6pm. Both are well adjusted awesome kids. One is in 2nd grade now and doing really well. The other is still in daycare and does not cry about his long day at daycare - in fact he loves his teachers.

If being a judgmental sanctimonious sh!t makes you feel better about yourself, have at it. You clearly need it. But make no mistake, most kids you are "heartbroken" for and labeling their parents as "cold" are doing just fine, I assure you.

You still sound so cold and unpleasant.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DO what you have to do, but don't let her stay there later than 4. Anything longer is not fair to your dc.

My kids get upset if I pick them up early. (Normal is a bit before six, but our drop off is 8/8:30.). In remotely decent weather, they are playing outside and, even inside, they are engrossed in various activities.

I wish I had a little more time in the evenings with them, but they aren't remotely suffering.

Oh but didn’t you know? PP know what’s best for your kid, not you. Better listen to PP!

Well I think most people can agree that a child should not be inside in a classroom the majority of their day.

[Anonymous]

3yr old full day preschool
Total hours 7:30am-6pm
I drop him off at 8am and pick up at 5:30pm. There are usually 3-5 kids there if the 16 total in his class.

Most other families split drop-off and pick-up. I do both and have to fit a full workday in between. Also families with older kids in elementary drop off at 8:30 because Arlington schools start at 9am.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DO what you have to do, but don't let her stay there later than 4. Anything longer is not fair to your dc.

My kids get upset if I pick them up early. (Normal is a bit before six, but our drop off is 8/8:30.). In remotely decent weather, they are playing outside and, even inside, they are engrossed in various activities.

I wish I had a little more time in the evenings with them, but they aren't remotely suffering.

Oh but didn’t you know? PP know what’s best for your kid, not you. Better listen to PP!

Well I think most people can agree that a child should not be inside in a classroom the majority of their day.

Did you miss the part where it said the kids would be outside if weather allowed it, and that is why the kids wanted to stay? Fear of kids being inside hardly supports a claim that it is "unfair" to keep kids in daycare past 4. Plus, parents who pick up earlier don't necessarily take their kids outside to play.

I don't see how your comment relates to any of this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DO what you have to do, but don't let her stay there later than 4. Anything longer is not fair to your dc.

My kids get upset if I pick them up early. (Normal is a bit before six, but our drop off is 8/8:30.). In remotely decent weather, they are playing outside and, even inside, they are engrossed in various activities.

I wish I had a little more time in the evenings with them, but they aren't remotely suffering.

Oh but didn’t you know? PP know what’s best for your kid, not you. Better listen to PP!

Well I think most people can agree that a child should not be inside in a classroom the majority of their day.

Did you miss the part where it said the kids would be outside if weather allowed it, and that is why the kids wanted to stay? Fear of kids being inside hardly supports a claim that it is "unfair" to keep kids in daycare past 4. Plus, parents who pick up earlier don't necessarily take their kids outside to play.

I don't see how your comment relates to any of this.

PP also missed the part about how people work full-time. How can you work full time and not have your kid in a childcare setting for the majority of their day?

[Anonymous]

I would prioritize ensuring your DC is not one of the last ones for pick up. That is sadder than being there early I think. That was at least how I felt when My kids were in preschool.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would prioritize ensuring your DC is not one of the last ones for pick up. That is sadder than being there early I think. That was at least how I felt when My kids were in preschool.

Only sad if your kid is sad about it. If your kid is happy, why would it matter?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would prioritize ensuring your DC is not one of the last ones for pick up. That is sadder than being there early I think. That was at least how I felt when My kids were in preschool.

Only sad if your kid is sad about it. If your kid is happy, why would it matter?

Not that PP, but I would much rather my kid be the first one in than the last one out. I like to pick up before his teachers start to leave, so I prioritize picking up before 4. I believe the quality of care and interactions drops between 4-6 almost anywhere because of this. It’s an 11-hour school day with staggered shifts and you pick the time that works best for you. In the morning, fresh teachers are coming in every 15-30 minutes. In the afternoon, it’s the opposite. Tired teachers are eager to leave every 15-30 minutes. Teachers are out, classes get combined, ratios grow, parents are in & out talking with teachers, etc. If you don’t have a choice, it is what it is, but if you do have a choice, that’s my $.03.

—former director