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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]PP and I respectfully disagree, and I’ve toured at least 20 infant programs here in DC and have a background in early childhood education. To all those disagreeing with me, go take care of 3-4 infants for 8 hours a day and report back on how it went and how much time you had to spend with each one giving them cuddles and nurturing. The ratios are the problem and the lack of government subsidies for early childhood Ed, particularly for infants and toddlers whose need for individual 1:1 relationships with a caregiver is much higher then that means need for socialization that older toddlers and preschoolers benefit from. 1:3 or 1:4 makes it very hard for caregivers to do much beyond meeting basic needs.[/quote]

Nobody is saying there aren't bad daycares. But, in answer to OP's question, what she is describing is not something many of us experienced and it's not something I or other PP's would be happy with. There are many, many daycares that can effectively keep track of feedings, diaper changes and naps. It does not sound like they are doing a good job of taking care of the children's basic needs.

As far as ratios go I agree. I don't know how one person can care for 4 babies at a time. I know that at our daycare in MD they actually do 1:2 in the 0-24 month room, which seems reasonable to me. Many people have their children at in-home daycares where in MD they can only have 2 babies, and there is one person who is assigned to them. You don't have to get a nanny or nanny share to get a good ratio.[/quote]

I don't believe the person you are responding to is talking about good daycare or bad daycare. She probably wants to emphasize how it is impossible to take care of 3-4 infants at the same time beyond just doing the basics, regardless of whether the place is good or bad. It is a ridiculously difficult thing to do and most people will agree that it is very hard it is to deal with infants due to how needy they are and the fact that they cannot verbalize their needs yet.

The infancy phase is honestly the most mentally and physically exhausting part of taking care of children. They need to be held, then fed, then burped, etc. And they may or may not nap well. It's why new mothers are always exhausted. Of course there are people with unicorn babies who are easy, but most infants require a lot of hard work. Also it is probably very common for multiple infants to start screaming at the same time for whatever reason and then whoever's taking care of them needs to attend to both.

However, the poster has unrealistic expectations if she expects that her child will do a ton of things with the caretaker. That's just not a realistic expectation when you have someone who has to divide their attention between multiple very needy babies. If you want your child to be prioritized and to do all these things beyond the basics, then you have to either pay a nanny to care for your child alone or stay home and do it yourself. There are pros and cons to all approaches but it all comes down to what you want and what you're comfortable with. 
[/quote]
+1.  Realistically, if a caregiver is responsible for 3 infants, either they can take the time to keep a detailed log of feeding, diapers and naps for each of the babies, or they can spend their time actually interacting with the babies.  But both are not happening at the same time, I assure you.[/quote]

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