Day care with no fence

[rhiOrion]

I'm still struggling finding a day care for this baby. I have emailed with a lady who was recommended to me, and will probably set up a time to go visit her soon. I drove by the daycare yesterday just to see it from the outside. It's a very small house, which I have no problem with. But it's on a relatively busy road and the back yard doesn't appear to be fenced in.

Is it common for day cares to not have fences? In my head I pictured them all having fences and play equipment for kids to get some outside time.

Now, this isn't really an issue for me for a while, but I'm still curious. Would you add any questions about that to what you ask at the visit?

Thanks!

[plunky]

The daycare that my daughter attends is at an office like building that has neither a yard nor a fence. They go to a park nearby when they want to go outside.

[Elecampane]

Mine is a home based daycare in a quietish residential neighborhood and there is no fence. She does have a play structure. I honestly never thought to be concerned about the lack of a fence.

Things to ask...hmmm...I'd ask about food (does she provide meals, what are they, can you bring your own food if you want), daily structure/routine (when are naps, meals, etc.), is tv used and how much (that's a big one for me with an older child), how many kids/ratio of kids to caregivers, does she have pets, age distribution of the kids, does she do field trips with older kids, does she have other workers, does she do educational work (preschool) with older kids? for a young infant, ask about breastmilk and how she handles it, heats it, etc. (you may have to do some educating around this if she's not experienced with it). how much time do the infants get held, what happens when they're not being held (placed in saucer, swing, bouncy, etc.), are they allowed to cry?

Good luck, I know it's so hard to make this decision.

[One_Girl]

If you value outdoor play and want your child to have regular outdoor play then I think you should find a place with a fence. It is not safe to have several kids outside in an area that isn't fenced in. I have also seen teachers use a lot of excuses not to take kids outside when they have to walk them somewhere else in order to have recess.

[phathui5]

When I did childcare in my home, I had a fenced in yard. For me, it's important for kids to have a safe outdoor space to play that's on-site.

[StephandOwen]

I work in a daycare (a largish one with about 80ish kids currently enrolled). I honestly cannot imagine not having a fenced in area. Some of the kids are FAST and it is impossible to keep your eye on 4, 5, 10 kids at a time (in the 2 year old rooms I work in I can have 10 two year olds outside at the same time by myself). I would not trust a daycare without a fenced in area. I would imagine one of two things happening.... either the daycare worker just doesn't take the kids out often because it IS stressful to be responsible for that many children or she does take them outside but, like I said, it's impossible to keep an eye on that many children at one time.

I wouldn't be comfortable with it.

Questions to ask in addition to Elecampane's suggestions...

What if the daycare worker is sick? Does she have a back-up plan? What are her rules around sick kids? Kids with a runny nose allowed? Fever?

What are her discipline ways? Time out? What if the child won't go to time out?

If this is a home daycare... what does she have planned for times when she gets overwhelmed (and we all do)? What if a baby is screaming non-stop for hours and she's at the end of her rope? Does she have someone she can call to take over? (This is important for non-home daycares too but generally in centers there are other teachers around to step in if needed).

Does she wear babies/toddlers? Is she willing to learn, if that's something you are interested in?

Are there scheduled nap times? What if the child doesn't want to nap?

If they go off-site... car seat usage? Insurance? Driving record? Leave children alone in the car at any time?

Are there cameras in the daycare?

If this is a home daycare... will anybody else be around while the children are there?

I would do a search for registered sex offenders in the area.

Guns/weapons?