Many families approach me to query the differences of Occasional Child Care to other forms of care such as long Day Care and Pre School.
The media, friends and family do not recognize the value of Occasional Child Care and to be quite honest I never considered working in Occasional Care prior to Now 'n' Then.
Families have told me they didn't realize occasional care was so professional, one family never considered using occasional care.
Others have said that their friends or family are encouraging them to use Long Day Care or Pre School as the teaching is better!!!
I wanted to clarify with families that Occasional Child Care creates a Curriculum and Program based on the childrens' development needs and interests. Each child has developmental records and summaries done regularly on their development (see staff if you wish to discuss your childs' development). This is the same as other service types.
Staff have the same training as any other service of this size.
Then what's the difference?
- In occasional child care you book for the hours you need.
- It is mostly used by families who are seeking socialization with other children, families who work or study part time or casually, education purposes, respite, families with appointments or who require quality time to themselves.
As with all Early Childhood Education settings the quality of service depends on the management and staff involved with the operations of the centre, you and your family must feel happy with the service and trust the care and education provided to your children. The varying service types all work to the same licensing guidelines, however the goals and philosophy of the service may differ. You need to decide what is best for you and your family.
Pre School for children aged 3-5 years and hours of operation ranging from 6-8 hours a day provides a more formal type of situation for children and this may suit some families. Others use a blend of service types. Some choose one only.
My aim is to inform parents that as long as you are comfortable with your childs early education service don't change it because other people advise you to do so.
Rest assured that Occasional Care provides the same opportunities as your child would receive in another care setting.
Education or fun???
Have you ever wondered how children learn at Now 'n' Then. It looks like play and fun but don't underestimate the value of play.
I have regular questions about children's education for school and how it is achieved.
Below I will outline the steps we take to ensure your child is receiving the most out of their early learning.
At Now 'n' Then all of our activities are planned to reflect the children's developmental needs and interests.
The process is carried out as follows:
- Staff observe the children in their play interactions and record their behaviour and actions, by photos and written observations. These are then used to create a child's summary.
- Staff observe the children by allocating themselves several children each week.
- Staff interpret this information and plan how we can meet their needs and interests. (Create objectives)
- We plan activities from these observations to help the child's needs and interests to be met.
- The child participates in the activities and we observe and record what happens. Evaluating the program, in this process we may keep, change or extend on what has already been done for the next cycle. This is an ongoing process constantly repeated.
In addition to this we assist the planning process by having a lot of activities already available to the children and we alter them in accordance to the children's needs as our base. The children can choose at all times of the day to do craft, building, writing skills, language/reading skills and music.
We take the approach that children are masters of their own learning and will explore and attempt to build on skills already learnt. As teachers we offer guidance, and extend their learning by offering activities to meet their needs and interests and advise children when needed.
Will my child learn what is needed for school?
The most important skills for a child to have when they go to school are appropriate social skills and they need to be ready emotionally.
Pre-reading and pre-writing skills are important however it is not advisable to have children attending school knowing too much as they soon get bored and do not enjoy their time there.
School teachers also like children to write and read in a certain way therefore if staff at day care centers teach children to read and write we may be making it harder for children as they may need to re-learn in a different way.
The teachers at Now 'n' Then contribute to school readiness by working on children's social and emotional skills and by trying to encourage name recognition and begin name writing if the child is ready.
Through everyday interactions and group times, colours and numbers are taught as well.
If as a parent you have any questions regarding your child's development, you wish to see your child's summaries or have any input or questions regarding our learning program, please do not hesitate to ask the staff.
