SAHM and daycare

I'm a SAHM to my boys and another on the way. Currently the boys go to a private daycare, one day a week, for 2.5 hours. I started them there so they could get out of the house and also realize that mommy always comes back type of thing. The day they go there are no other LO's besides her 4 year old son. She's pretty good w/ them and there's tons of toys for them to play w/ but I'm thinking that maybe my boys need to be in a more structured environment. I don't know that she really interacts w/ them the way a "public" (for lack of a better word) daycare would. They've been going since the early spring and I haven't really noticed that they've picked up on anything; words, actions, etc. I know they only go for a few hours so I do take that into consideration. I've been looking into another daycare that offers activities in the morning and of course, has more LO's there for the boys to interact. I guess I'm just wondering what other SAHM mom's do that also take their LO's to some sort of daycare. This other daycare would be more expensive but I'm wondering if it would be worth it. Your thoughts?

 

At the age your boys are I wouldn't worry about putting them into a more structured environment. Children that young do not need to 'interact' with many other children, they do not have the skills to do so anyway. They should be getting a lot more individual, and individually tailored, attention at this home daycare than they would at a public daycare, where there would probably be 4 or 5 children to every adult. I truly believe that is far more important at such a young age.

What sort of activities does this other daycare have? Is it just painting, play-doh, sticking and so on? Maybe you could talk to the lady who looks after them and ask her to do some age appropriate developmental activities with your boys when she has them. A good daycare provider should be happy to do that, although a lot of activities for children your boys' age are just playing with things, so she may feel she already has that covered.

 

Personally, I have found great value in my girls spending time with groups of other children. Twins are socially more advanced at an earlier age many times because they have had each other to interact with. Mine do not "parallel play" with other children, they have tried to communicate with them since they were just past a year old. And they gravitate towards slightly older children because of that in my opinion. I am currently working part time about 15 hours a week and someone comes to the house. But every other week they spend one day at a day care with 8 other children. We have been doing this since about 15 mos. Kids don't need to be pressured to learn but we forget sometimes that learning is fun for them and they are craving information for developing and practicing skills. They learn so much at these early ages even if we as adults don't see it. So IMO it is totally worth the extra if you don't think they are getting an opportunity to explore through guided activities with the provider you have now. Many providers act as babysitters, not mentors or teachers. I think you have to decide what you want out of your nanny. IMO, kids, especially at this young age, not only need some structure to feel secure, but in fact thrive in it as they start practicing what they see in the world. There should be no formal expectations of course from the adult, but think of it as building a foundation for them to learn and take controlled (and safe) risks while learning about the world, and people around them, socially and culturally.

 

I would totally do it! I'm going to be home with all 3 kids from December until the following school year when the girls start preschool. I'd LOVE to put them in a daycare but all I've found is full time around here. I don't know about a structured environment versus someone's house though. At the age of 1 or 2 I don't think that would make much of a difference but that's just my opinion.

 

I would definitely find something else. IMO the point of daycare when you're a SAHM is to learn structure from other people (even if it's just to sit around all together for snacks), and socialization. It doesn't seem that they are getting either of those there (I don't think one other kid really does much in terms of socialization), and if it's just to get a break and teach them that you come back, it would be cheaper to hire a babysitter once a week for a couple hours while you do groceries, and it would be just the same thing.

 

I'm a SAHM and do 1 day/week of daycare for my two and am REALLY happy I decided to go that route. I used to have someone come to the house and watch them 1 day/week but starting at about 12.5 mos I switched. I felt it was important for them to be around more children, all different ages too and be in a more chaotic environment because it's very calm and quiet around here! There are about 15-20 other kids there from ages 8 mos to 4 years (the older ones do preschool but do interact w/the babies some throughout the day) and i've seen my kids pick up a lot of social skills and language development from going there. My DS actually had a big problem adjusting as he didn't like all that going on around him. He had to be put in very small groups of children (or even alone at times) to start and after 8 weeks was able to join all the children and was interacting, laughing and playing around everyone. I really think he would have had HUGE problems starting preschool, etc. had he not had this early exposure to a little more hectic, social environment. I didn't even realize prior to daycare that he was so reserved. My DD absolutely LOVES it and is very social so for the opposite reason it is important for her. I think she really thrives on getting to socialize that 1 day/week and has picked up a lot of words, etc. from going. So i'd say go for it if you can afford it (luckily my FIL pays for us to do it). It will take them 3-4 weeks to adjust and they will get sick a lot more often but as annoying as that is it's probably important for their immune systems anyway . Good luck whatever you decide & just go with your gut! :good:

 

Thank you for all your responses! We decided to take them to a daycare I called and we toured it today. The boys LOVED it! They weren't shy one bit and of course, didn't want to leave when it was time to go! I really think this is going to be a good thing for them especially when the baby comes!

 

My kids are in daycare while I go to school. I can't tell you the difference it's made in their speech and personality. They love it and so do I!

 

That's great that the loved the daycare! My two just started 2 days of preschool (we don't call it daycare :FIFblush: ) a month ago and they love love love it. Even at their young age, they love to see new things, hang out with other kids, and play with different toys. It has been a great experience for them and it gives me time to work part-time.