Dirty Pre-School

[Anonymous]

Just wondering how you go about telling the pre-school or asking the pre-school if they have a cleaning service, what their maintenance schedule is, etc.? We toured a popular Montessori School on Mass Ave. and we're shocked to see the dustbunnies and grime.
Thinking of putting a deposit there for next fall, but we'll have to discuss the maintenance schedule at some point. Has anyone dealt with this issue directly with a school before?

[Anonymous]

Honestly, I wouldn't even attempt this conversation.

Either the school is clean enough for you, or its not. But asking about their cleaning habits seems to be micromanaging, and I suspect will not be well-received by the administration.


I was at an open house last week where a parent asked one of the staff if they wash down all the toys with bleach/solvent EVERY night. To her credit, the teacher didn't bat an eye, but just gently said "no", they didn't think they could realistically do that.

[Anonymous]

Just my two cents, I actually agree with the previous post, if it is not clean enough for you, it is unlikely that it is going to change because you said something. But as a former preschool teacher in MD, all toys are required by the state to be cleaned with a bleach solution every day.

[Anonymous]

ummm i really have'nt thought about that question, after attending 3 open houses! well that is really important, so i know what to ask now on my next open house visit

[Anonymous]

Agreed - they need to wash the toys especially in areas with very young children. We went to tour one facility and I was not able to get overr the run down, dirty environment even though I liked thier philosophy best. My background in in Public Health so perhaps I am a bit more squeemish that others but taking care of the environment children are in is an important consideration.

[Anonymous]

I once observed a process at a school that was down right unsanitary. I called the health department and let them deal with it.

[Anonymous]

For the PP preschool teacher in Md., re: Md. law -- How on Earth do a few teachers clean everything that was touched/used in a classroom with solution every day? Is there some age cut-off for this requirement?

Here's why I ask -- I cannot imagine having to clean and dry and put away *every* manipulative used in DS's classroom, every single day. You know, those little 1x1 inch tiles, where there's 100 tiles in the box. And there's 6 such boxes in use per day. Then there's the 100+ box of MagnaTiles, the Bingo box with 75 tiny bingo chips, the LEGOS (oh God, the Legos).

And this is just a fraction of what gets used in DS's classroom each day -- there's also the dress up stuff, the kitchen, the pegs, the markers, and on and on and on.

In fact, if someone told me that they were cleaning all these things EVERY day with bleach solution, letting them air dry, and putting each piece back in the boxes ... I would know they were not telling the truth, bc it's simply impossible. Unless a crew of elves came in at midnight and worked until 4 a.m.

So what gives in Md.? Up to what age classroom must this daily cleaning take place?

[Anonymous]

I guess to clarify, the teachers do not have to "wash" each toy by hand. They have to spray every toy in the room (including all of the little pieces in the buckets ), all hard and soft surfaces, etc. every night with a bleach solution. The solution strength is determined by the county, I can not remember what it is now, but it is the same solution they use to clean the tables, chairs, changing table, etc after each use. The solution is suppossed to air dry over night. When I was a teacher whoever was responsible for closing the classroom did it each night and it took about 15 min. and the opening person put the room back together in the morning. All toys that have been "mouthed" have to actually be cleaned via hand wash (soap and water and then placed in the sanitizer). These policies were in place throughout the whole center (children under 6 years).

[Anonymous]

I'm guessing that some posters here are talking about day care (referring to the little ones) and some preschool. It isn't reasonable to expect daily cleaning of every toy in a preschool (we're talking 2.5 to 3 years of age, not infants).

[Anonymous]

If it is licensed by the state of Maryland it is. The Department of Education in Maryland is responsible for all daycare centers, just as they are for "Preschools" and all the regulations are the same for children under 5 no matter if they are in a "daycare" or a "preschool". You should not expect it to be less clean because you call it a preschool.

[Anonymous]

To the extent that MD "requires" each toy to be sprayed with bleach solution... I think that's just ridiculous.

At my son's pre-school (in Virginia), they have play-doh, a "bean bin", soft toys, books, and tons and tons of other toys. I imagine that MD has similar toys? To the extent we are forcing preschool teachers to spread a mist of bleach over everything that is the most ridiculous waste of time I've ever heard of. Not only am I of the mind-set that kids have germs and they're going to share them... but even if you're shooting for a germ-free environment, it seems like this practice would be woefully ineffective. Perhaps we should bathe the children in bleach solution every morning?

[Anonymous]

PP - there are many ways to look at the situation but there are many reasons to promote a relatively germ free environment for small children. They collect and spread germs easily and are, at young ages, very suseptible to the worst side effects. One may consider it ridiculous.....until there is an outbreak of some sort and the precuations were not in place... just ask parents in Bedford County, Virgina. While we can't and shouldn't try to minimize all risk, we can take simple steps to minimize some risks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If it is licensed by the state of Maryland it is. The Department of Education in Maryland is responsible for all daycare centers, just as they are for "Preschools" and all the regulations are the same for children under 5 no matter if they are in a "daycare" or a "preschool". You should not expect it to be less clean because you call it a preschool.

Yes, but do the MD regulations require that each toy be sprayed, daily?