Cindi Bear Daycare

Parent Handbook

Thank you for considering my services for your child. I have just started this business, in order to provide quality, reliable daycare for my own children. My goals are to provide a positive, safe, nurturing environment to all of the children in my care. I realize that most parents in today’s society do not have the opportunity to stay home with their children, I intend to offer the next best option.

I.        My philosophy:                                      

I will strive to provide a safe, comfortable, stimulating, fun, educational environment in my home with a semi-structured day plan. Activities will include free playtime, structured playtime, large motor skill playtime, small motor skills activities, story time and theater activities, arts and crafts, music and dance activities, nature and ecology awareness, nutrition, cultural activities, and other educational yet fun activities. I will also provide nutritious meals and snacks, and encourage good personal hygiene skills and manners.

The television will rarely be on during regular care hours, and then only to watch educational programs or activities which I have personally pre-screened to be appropriate for even the youngest viewers. An IBM-compatible computer will be available for all ages to use, but only under supervision. School-aged children may have Internet access, upon parental request, but again only while supervised.

Through a mixture of guided and undirected creative play, children in my care will have the opportunity to learn about color, shapes, textures, numbers, letters, animals, seasons, feelings, senses, nutrition, personal hygiene, manners, basic science and math concepts, and creative concepts such as "pretend" play, art, music, drama, and dance. These may sound like lofty goals for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers, but most children learn all of these things and more through creative educational play. I do not believe in pushing any child to learn at an accelerated rate, and will not make a child feel pressured to achieve developmental milestones. By providing the right kind of fun safe environment, I believe the children will learn at their own appropriate pace.

II.       Number of children in my care:

I believe that children receive the best possible care when there are six (6) or fewer children under the age of 12 per adult (including my own 2 children). When it comes to filling vacancies or increasing the number of children I care for (up to the maximum of 6) I will always give preferential consideration to the families I currently serve. I would certainly welcome the opportunity to care for new siblings.

III.       Tuition & Hours of Care:         

My services will be available Monday through Friday from 7:30am through 5:30pm. Please discuss needs for care outside these times and I will attempt to accommodate reasonable requests at a possible additional fee. (Although I will do my very best to be available every business day, it is conceivable that I may be forced to close occasionally due to vacation, illness, or other emergency.) If you cannot ever tolerate rare, but possible lapses in care, you should consider placing your child in a daycare center, or make other arrangements for backup coverage.

Unless other arrangements are made in advance, charges for the next week’s care will be due on Friday. This will enable me to purchase food and supplies on the weekend for the coming week.

Tuition rates are according to the following categories and the number of hours of care provided per week:

A late fee of $5 per day will be added to the weekly tuition charge, unless prior arrangements are made. Also, unless prior arrangements are made, there will be a late pick-up charge of $5 per hour, per child, if you arrive after regular scheduled hours.

I will attempt to be generous on this since I was recently a working parent myself, and I realize job pressures, traffic, and weather conditions can occasionally affect your ability to arrive on time. Please feel free to discuss arrival and drop-off times with me if your needs vary, such as when you or your spouse need to travel for business. I will attempt to be flexible to meet your needs for occasional early arrival and late pick-up time, but these will need to be exceptions rather than a general rule so as not do unduly impact my own family.

Your child’s tuition will include a broad range of age-appropriate intellectual activities and developmentally appropriate physical activities, as well as creative-arts and cultural projects.

Cash, checks and money orders will be accepted when drawn on a local bank. In the unlikely event of a returned check, I will require a $25 service charge in addition to the payment of any additional bank charges I may incur as a result of the inconvenience.

In order to provide my own family with a stable financial situation, I cannot offer any discounts for days your child is not in my care, such as when you are on vacation, or when your child is ill.

At the end of each year, I will provide you with a proper tax form showing the full amount of all charges for that calendar year.

IV.      Registration Requirements:        

All necessary forms must be completed and returned to me before I can assume responsibility of caring for your child. NO EXCEPTIONS! Please inform me immediately of any changes. Following you will find the list of forms that you will need to return to "Cindi Bear Daycare" before or on your child's 1st day.

·       Health Assessment Form

·       Emergency Medical Authorization (notarized)

·       Contract

·       Parental Permission Form

Before your child is admitted or to hold a future spot, a security deposit must be paid. This deposit is equal to 1 week of childcare. This deposit will be credited to your last week's fee when you decide to depart from Cindi Bear Daycare.

V.       Trial Period:              

There will be a two-week trial period for all children starting at Cindi Bear Daycare.  The contract may be terminated by either the child’s parents or myself during these two weeks if either party feels there are reasons to do so without the need for a two-week notice. 

VI.      Terminating childcare: 

After the trial period, a two-week notice must be given prior to terminating childcare services, or to make changes in the contract (e.g., need to change hours or days care is needed).  Parents will be responsible for paying for the two weeks after notice is given regardless of whether parents choose to keep children in care or not for those two weeks.  If I feel that the requirements of the contract are not being met or if there is a conflict in caring for a child I may choose to terminate the contract.  I will give families a minimum of a Two Week Notice and assist in any way I can to help families find new childcare.

VII.     Holidays, vacation and sick-days:  

I realize your need for reliable daycare and will attempt to give as much notice as possible whenever I must close my home to care for any reason.

In order to spend quality time with my own family, I will be closed on the following major holidays:

·       Good Friday

·       Memorial Day

·       July 4^th

·       Labor Day

·       Thanksgiving Day and the day after

·       Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

·       New Year’s Day

I will also possibly take up to a maximum of three (3) additional weeks of vacation, with at least one (1) month’s notice.  Since I realize you will have to find alternate care during this time, there is no charge for services during my vacation periods. 

Working with exposure to many families and especially children, it is expected that I will become ill occasionally. Therefore, I reserve the option to take up to five (5) paid sick-days per calendar year. I will not take these days unless I am genuinely ill, and I will always attempt to give as much notice as possible when I am forced to close my home to care due to illness. Also, in the event that one of my own family members is ill, I will also give you as much notice as possible to allow you to decide if you want to risk exposure to your child

VIII.    If your child becomes ill:               

Although I am not a trained medical professional, I have been educated in the recognition of infectious childhood diseases and I will attempt to alert you at the first sign of any illness.

In order to protect the health of all children in my care, I will call you at work and request that you pick up your child within one hour if he or she exhibits any of the following symptoms:

·       fever over 100 degrees for more than 1 hour

·       excessive diarrhea for 2 or more consecutive diapers or toileting

·       vomiting in excess of typical infant spit-ups

·       conjunctivitis ("pink eye")

·       consistent complaints of ear or stomach pain

·       bleeding other than minor cuts and scrapes

·       excessive greenish nasal discharge, indicating possible infection

·       head lice

In the event your child is sent home due to one of the above conditions, he or she will not be allowed to return until accompanied by a signed note from your child’s doctor. This is necessary to prevent the unnecessary infection of the other children in my care. Although it may seem inconvenient when your child is sent home, you will appreciate knowing your child’s exposure is minimized when other children become ill.

I will not send children home with a common cold. This sort of illness is going to occur among children, and unfortunately cannot be totally avoided. You should expect that any time a new child is introduced to the group, colds are likely to occur. I will do my best to prevent the spread of such illnesses through good hygiene and housekeeping, but total avoidance of this sort of illness is impossible.

Likewise, I will not close the daycare if I am mildly ill due to a cold. I will, however, notify you as soon as symptoms appear in myself or any of the children, so that you can decide whether or not to have your child in care that da.

IX.      Administration of Medications:

The Kansas Department of Health regulations prohibits administration any type of medication including prescription and over-the-counter medications, without a signed consent form. This form can be filled out when you drop your child off and must include:

·       the child’s name, age, and weight

·       the name and phone number of your child’s doctor

·       the name of the medication

·       the dosage amount and frequency

·       instructions for proper storage and preparation of the medication (such as should it be refrigerated, shaken, mixed with water, etc.)

·       reason for needing the medication (so parents can be alerted to contagious illnesses)

Also, the medication must be in a clearly labeled childproof container. I would prefer it if you also bring the medication in a small sack or baggie labeled with the child’s name, so as to avoid any possible confusion.

Although I am certified in Pediatric CPR, basic first aid, and recognition of communicable childhood diseases, I do not pretend to be a doctor, and will not under any circumstances provide any medications, including vitamins. You must provide any and all medications for your child.

X.       Discipline Policy:                        

I do not believe in spanking, slapping, smacking, yelling or hitting of any kind. This type of discipline will not be used in my home, regardless of your practices in your own home. Instead, I use the following discipline methods to handle any dangerous or hurtful offense:

For children under the age of about 18 months, I find it most effective to remove the child from the situation, and redirect their attention elsewhere. Tempting items will be removed so the work “no” can be used sparingly.  Fortunately, their attention span is also usually shorter than with older children, so simply showing them a different toy or activity usually does the job.

Children of about age 2 and over need to learn to make acceptable choices and the natural consequence of the decision (as long as the consequence is not dangerous).  Suggestions may be made and the child will have the opportunity to solve their own problems if no one is in any danger.  Time out will be used only when all else fails.  Overuse of “time-out” or any other guidance method causes it to become “old hat” and no longer effective.

Dangerous and hurtful offenses include hitting, biting, kicking, pushing, hair pulling, throwing objects at someone, climbing on an inappropriate structure, willful destruction of property, tantrum throwing, and not following reasonable requests. These relatively minor offenses will be handled as described above, depending upon the child’s age and developmental stage.

To a point, kids will be kids - but only as long as the emotional and physical safety of all of the children in my care is protected. In the rare instance that I feel any child in my care has a serious discipline problem, I will request a conference with the parent(s). If an understanding cannot be reached, I reserve the right to terminate our contract with as much notice as possible in order to guarantee the comfort and safety of the other children in my care.

XI.      Naps:                                                  

I will offer infants and young children a morning nap, generally between the hours of 10:00am and noon, or as needed. Older children will be offered an afternoon nap after lunch, generally between the hours of 12:30pm and 2:00pm. All children will be expected to at least rest quietly during this time, so that the children who need to sleep can do so. Nap times will start with a story time to encourage children to fall asleep.

All bedding and linens will be provided. However, if your child has a favorite blankie or other comfort object, you are certainly welcome to bring these. Each child will have their own regular sleeping space such as a crib or bed, and each child’s linens will be washed each weekend, or more often if needed.

XII.     Toilet Training:

When a parent feels a child is ready and a child shows readiness, I will assist parents in the toilet training of their child.  Parents will need to bring extra clothing and the type of toileting products they prefer (such as Pull Ups).  I will not force children to sit on the potty and will use only positive encouragement in order to promote using the potty.  I believe a child will start using the potty or trying to use the potty when he or she feels they are ready.  This is often a frustrating time for everyone.  Remember…every child will learn it eventually.

XIII.    Meals and Snacks:           

I will provide all meals and snacks, with the exception of infant formula or breast milk.

I will provide breakfast for all children arriving before 9:00am, if needed. This will typically consist of milk or 100% juice, whole-grain cereal, toast, or muffin, and fruit. Snack times will be at approximately 10:00am and 3:00pm. Snacks will typically consist of milk or 100% juice, whole-grain crackers and cheese, or fruit.

Lunches will typically consist of a balanced meal such as:

·       a serving of milk or 100% juice

·       a main course such as a healthy sandwich on whole-wheat bread (including peanut butter and jam sandwiches, grilled cheese, bean burritos, etc.) or real macaroni and cheese with vegetables, whole grain pastas with spaghetti-style sauces, nachos with real cheese, beans and vegetables, vegetable lasagna, and home-made soups, etc.

·       a vegetable side dish such as veggie sticks and dip, or other simple steamed vegetables, or a salad

·       a fruit serving (fresh whenever possible) such as apples, grapes, bananas, kiwi, mandarin oranges, raisins, strawberries, melon balls, etc.

Also, to avoid triggering any allergic reactions, I will not serve the following foods to children less than 12 months of age, unless you specifically request them for your child:

·       citrus fruits and juices

·       tomato products

·       nuts, including peanut butter

·       soy products, including tofu

·       eggs

·       honey

All foods will be cut into safe-size pieces and served in child-sized portions. Children may always have seconds upon request, and no child will be forced to eat anything. It is my experience that children will eat when they are hungry, and will get all of the nutrients they need when consistently presented with a variety of healthy choices.

XIV.   Supplies: 

Each child will have a designated space for their personal items.  Please mark names on your child’s things.  Please bring the following things for children to have available:

 1. Toothbrush
 2. A complete change of extra clothing
 3. Paint shirt – (an old shirt from Mom or Dad)
 4. Diapers, baby wipes, pacifiers
 5. Special blanket or toy for resting

 *Please note.... We go outside every day – children need to be dressed accordingly.  Also we often do messy activities and clothes can get dirty.

XV.    Communication:         

The purpose of these policies is to keep misunderstandings from happening.  I hope it provides parents with a clear picture of the expectations I have for them and that they may have for me.  If at any time a parent has a question concerning any policy or practice, I urge them to talk to me about it immediately.  I often write notes to keep parents informed on what is going on with their child.  If there is something I believe we need to discuss I may give a parent a note asking them to call me.  It is much easier to discuss things after Daycare hours.  Communication between parents and providers I think is the key to each child getting the best care possible.  The care your child deserves!

**These policies are subject to change! A two-week notice will be given when a policy is changed, added or revised.

Thank you for taking the time to find out about:

       Cindi Bear Daycare

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