Steps to Settle Your Child into Daycare
Is it hard for babies to adjust to daycare?
Daycare is the first formal setting where children learn outside the care of their parents. For young children, a daycare setting is a wonderful place to explore and lay the foundations for learning. For many families, settling into daycare creates feelings of both joy and anxiety.
Over the last 3 years I have worked with many families to settle their children into my family daycare. There are some tips and tricks I have learned to make settling into daycare a happy one for a child. Whether you are dreading or looking forward to your child starting daycare, the settling in process needs to be thought out and carefully planned for. For a smooth transition into daycare follow the below guide.
Settling a baby or toddler into daycare
Once enrolled in a daycare service, schedule a minimum of three visits before your baby or toddler starts attending. The purpose of these visits is to familiarise your child and yourself with the environment, the educators and other children who are in care. If your child is going to be in care for a full day, I strongly recommend you schedule three visits at different times over three days. By visiting your child’s daycare centre your little one will start to gain an understanding of the different activities they will experience when they start attending.
If the childcare service can facilitate, schedule the visits in the three days prior to your little one starting at the centre. I recommend staying with your child on the first visit, stay half the time on the second visit and use the final visit as an opportunity to practice the dreaded morning drop-off. I like to do the first visit around lunch time where Mum or Dad stay the entire visit. The following day visit late in the afternoon around pick up time where Mum and Dad stay for half the visit. For the final visit, I recommend scheduling for first thing in the morning. Use this visit as an opportunity to prepare for following morning and simply drop your child off. This practice run through will make the first day slightly easier as everyone will know what to expect the following morning. Have the final drop-off visit be for about 30-60 minutes long. Regardless, of how your little one went during their visit, arrive with a huge happy smile on your face! You child will learn that ‘Mum or Dad are calm and happy in this situation so I can be too!’
Create a visual social story of your child’s daycare
During your three visits at the daycare centre take lots of photos of your child. Take photos of your little one happily playing, eating and with the other children and educators in the centre. Using these photos, create a social story for your child. Social stories are used in educational setting to help children adjust to new situations. Social stories are especially effective when a child is feeling anxious. Show these photos regularly to your child by printing them off or viewing them on your phone. Talk with your child about the various activities, including eating, sleeping, and playing and how happy they are while at daycare. Keep your conversations short, calm, and confident and review the images multiple times a day. While settling my own children into their daycare centre and the numerous children into my family daycare, one message always remains consistent which is “You are safe at daycare and Mummy or Daddy will be picking you up at the end of the day.“
How do I adjust my baby to daycare?
Every parent wants their child’s first daycare experience to be a positive one. In my time running a daycare, I have found the key to settling a child in lies in the amount of time your child spends at the centre. When your child starts attending daycare, begin with small increments of time. Starting with short amounts of time will help to alleviate your child becoming overwhelmed and overtired while at daycare. For your child’s first day, 4 hours is enough time for your child to discover and get settled into their exciting new environment. If possible, slowly increase the time your child spends at their daycare centre by an hour per day.
How long does it take a baby to adjust to daycare
For a child who attends two days a week or more, the settling in process generally takes about 4-6 weeks on average. For a child who attends only one day a week, the settling in process normally takes a bit longer. If your childcare service offers casual days, I recommend enrolling your child for a few casual days when they first start attending the centre. For a young child, spending shorter amounts of time more frequently help in the adjustment phase.
What is the best age to put a baby into daycare?
Daycare educators vary with their answer on, what is the best age to start daycare because each baby is different. Generally between 8-9 months little ones are ready and willing to engage in activities that daycare settings offer. Waiting until a child is older, around 18 months to 2 years of age, can often times be more overwhelming for the little one. Toddlers are more aware of leaving their parents then a baby under the age of one would be.
Surviving daycare drop-offs and pick ups
When dropping your child off at daycare, simply put, do not stick around. Hanging out for a few minutes to help settle your child in for the day inevitability always backfires. The built-up anticipation a child experiences knowing Mum or Dad will be leaving and they do not have control over their parent’s departure or return is what causes a child to cry. Children are masters at making their parents feel guilty when being dropped off at daycare. Most often, a child who has been crying to their Mum or Dad will turn around and start playing moments after their parents are out of their sight.
Dropping your baby off at daycare
At pick-up time, always enter with a big happy smile. You want to show your child you are relaxed, not anxious. When parents are relaxed, their children feed off their energy, stay calm and enjoy their time playing at the centre.
Picking your baby up from daycare
At pick-up time, stay for a few minutes. Encourage your little one to show you the activities they have enjoyed. Showing interest in what your child does while at daycare encourages your child to get involved, discover new things, and take risks. Remember, make drop-offs quick and calm and pick-ups exciting, relaxed, and engaging.
How do I know my baby is happy at daycare?
In Australia, daycare centres are tightly regulated by the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority. Any educator who works with children in Australia must abide by what is known as ‘duty of care’. Duty of care refers to the obligation anyone working with children have with keeping children safe. These regulations ensure that if a child is not coping, it is the educator’s duty of care to help the child calm down, relax and feel safe. If a child is not coping and the experience of being at the centre is becoming more harmful then helpful to the child, the centre will call the parents and let them know. Oftentimes, a plan is created between the parents and the educators to help make the child feel more comfortable in the childcare setting. One thing is for certain, early childhood educators are brilliant at distracting children and making them feel welcome and happy after Mum or Dad leave for the day.
Build trust with your child while at daycare
To cope with the guilt of leaving their child behind, many parents tell their little one…”I will be picking you up early today!” Most often parents use this line as a negotiation tactic to calm their child at drop-off times rather than ever intending on following through. When parents use this line, they fail to realise that children are incredibly scheduled and can tell when their normal pick up time is approaching. Every childcare setting has an established routine followed each day. This routine allows children to know what comes next in their day. A 2-year-old would know they get picked up once afternoon tea is finished or while they are playing outside at the end of the day. When a child has been promised an early pick-up, they will be anticipating the early departure all day so be sure to pick them up early. When you follow through on your word of an early pick-up you build trust in your child and lessen any anxious feelings they may have about their day.
Sleep while at daycare
The most frequent comment parents make to educators during drop-offs is “I hope my child sleeps for you!” followed by “how did my child sleep?” at pick-up time. Parents stress and rightly so, sleep is important to a child’s development and dealing with an overtired child is not fun. As a baby sleep consultant and an early childhood educator the best daycare sleep tip I have is, pack a suitable sleep bag and your child’s favourite toy and leave the rest up to the educators!
How do daycares put kids to sleep?
Educators plan your child’s day to create an engaging environment while knowing exactly when to introduce calming activities which lead into a relaxing sleep time. Educators want children to sleep so the sleep needs of babies and toddlers are carefully considered in the planning process. Educators aim to create a soothing environment in the lead up to sleep time. Using such products as the Aroma Snooze Sleep Vaporiser helps to relax the children, clean the air and turning on the machine acts as a cue that sleep time is approaching. Dealing with a room full of overtired children is not pleasant and educators do what they can to avoid children becoming overtired throughout the day.
The National Quality Standards and National Law and Regulations set for the Early Childhood Education and Care sector is governed by the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority. Children’s health and safety is important to the outcomes for children and is one of the seven areas listed in the National Quality Standards. Sleep and rest are included within the standards. All childcare services have a duty of care to ensure children are provided with a high level of safety when sleeping and resting.
Does daycare affect sleep?
Many parents fear that because their child may not nap well for them, that their child will not nap well at daycare. In my time working in education, I have never known this to be true. Children are far more adaptable and resilient then we give them credit for and when it comes to nap time many children enjoy the experience of having a nap beside their friend. After a full day of playing and exploring most children willingly want to join in on an activity everyone is doing, even if that activity means lying down and resting.
How do daycares handle naps?
In the time I have spent operating my family daycare, I have found children who have undesirable sleep habits at home, are resilient and adaptable when it comes to sleeping at daycare. In speaking with numerous educators, the same can be said for children and sleeping in large childcare settings. Different environments evoke different behaviours and young children will look to see what their peers are doing and will be guided by their friend’s behaviour when it comes to sleep and eating while at daycare. For tips on improving sleep habits, consider downloading the Baby Sleep Guide.
Create a plan for a smooth transition into daycare
Regardless of your child’s age, being at daycare is a stimulating exhausting experience. Once home for the evening, let your child have a few minutes to unwind and relax. Careful to not let your child have too much television at this time of the day as a tired child will start to dose in front of the screen and this will impact their bedtime later. Plan an easy dinner and if need be, offer your child an early bedtime.
A great dinner time activity after a day at daycare is to ask your child to retell their day. This is a great way to build your child’s vocabulary and retelling skills. Ask lots of questions like who they played with what activities they enjoyed. One question I like to ask is, what toy, activity or person are they looking forward to playing with next time? This question leads to positive thoughts and something for your child to look forward to when they are at daycare next.
For more information and help settling your child into daycare contact The Baby Sleep Teacher. Book a 45-minute consultation to discuss your unique concerns and develop a plan so your little one’s transition into daycare is a happy one.
