A Parent's Guide To Navigating Child Care

By Deana Charcalla

This book was written to help anyone and everyone with young children learn about the many child care programs that are available. In this book you will find almost everything you need to know and ask about when researching different programs. It will assist you with many topics. Chapters include, what to physically look for in different buildings, how to manage cost, the necessary safety training required of teachers, how to potty train your child and so much more. This information will help you to navigate through the stresses of choosing the best child care to fit the needs of your unique family.

• Language: English
• Publisher: DeanaBean LLC
• Release date: May 17, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201909604

Book preview

While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions, or for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein.

A PARENT'S GUIDE TO NAVIGATING CHILD CARE

First edition. May 17, 2021.

Copyright © 2021 Deana Charcalla.

Written by Deana Charcalla.

Disclaimer/Copyright

This is a book of Nonfiction. I wrote this book with no names invented, no events have been fabricated. Anything you read in this book has come from my own experiences and what I have learned from them. Please use it as a guide only to help with your decisions about what is best for your child. You may have to do some research for yourself. Things may be a little different where you live. Using this book implies acceptance of the disclaimer. I have tried to be accurate and take no responsibility for any errors.

© Copyright 2020 by Deana Charcalla

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This book is dedicated to my husband,

Jason Charcalla, for giving me the time to really express myself, to my family and friends for always believing in me and to all the children out there I have helped guide over the years.

Contents

Page

About the Author 7

Introduction 13

Chapter 1 16

You Do Have Options

This chapter has all the different types of early childcare options listed that you need to know about.

Chapter 2 28

What to Look for in a Center

This chapter contains what it should look like walking into a childcare center and what you need to look for.

Chapter 3 34

Where to Find Assistance

This chapter will tell you how to find help with cost and where you can get help finding the type of center that works best for your needs.

Chapter 4 38

Security

This chapter tells you how to look and see what makes one center safer than another.

Chapter 5 42

Teachers

This chapter tells you what to look for in a great teacher!

Chapter 6 48

Required Trainings

This chapter will give you a look at what your teachers must do to work with your children.

Chapter 7 53

Classrooms

This chapter talks about the setup of the rooms your child will be in and why they are set up this way.

Chapter 8 59

Speech and Language

This chapter talks about baby sign language and how it can help you and also talks about what to expect when your littles ones start talking.

Chapter 9 62

Drop and Go

In this chapter you will learn the best ways to drop your kids off for the day.

Chapter 10 65

Picking Up Your Child

In this chapter you will learn the best ways to pick up your child at the end of the day.

Chapter 11 70

Get Ready, They Will Get Sick

This chapter explains why your child is sick all the time and the best way to deal with it.

Chapter 12 74

Schedule is Necessary

This chapter will go over some schedules you need to get your child on.

Chapter 13 78

Playgrounds

This chapter explains what makes one playground better than another.

Chapter 14 82

Potty Training

This chapter talks about when you should start potty training and some tricks to get it done.

Chapter 15 88

Milk and Food

This chapter will talk about safe handling of food and how we work with all types of milk.

Chapter 16 93

Vacations and Holidays

This chapter explains policies and talks about why you still have to pay for childcare when your child is out on vacation or holidays.

Chapter 17 95

Emergency Plans

This chapter talks about all kinds of emergency plans and the questions you should ask about them.

Acknowledgments 99

About the Author

My name is Deana Charcalla, I'm the oldest of four children. I also have an adopted sister and a step brother from my father's second marriage. Can we say I come from a large family? Definitely.

I grew up in Southern West Virginia in the ‘80s. It was a small town, but we had everything there from restaurants to shopping malls, just on a smaller scale than the bigger cities. In the ‘80s it was a really nice place to grow up.

As I mentioned at the beginning I come from a large family. Being the oldest, I had a lot of responsibility at a young age. I was fine with that, I would always take care of my little sister. She is four years younger than I am. We did everything together. She wanted to be with me all the time. Most of the kids we played with in the neighborhood were closer to my age, so to them she was a tagalong, but I would always have her with me and to this day, we are very close. We are as different as night and day, but think the same on most things.

I remember when my sister was a baby, my mother worked every other weekend at the hospital. That meant Dad had us by himself. He was so fun back then. My parents had me at 19 and had to grow up very quickly. So Dad would pay me to change my sister’s diapers and I would do it to fill my piggy bank. He was like most young men in their early 20s who wanted to sleep in a little and I was one of those kids that got up with the sun and I’m still like that. As we got a little older, when I was around 7 years old, I would make cereal for my sister and I while watching cartoons on the weekends. As I got older, I would stand on a chair to make eggs, oatmeal, and other simple meals. He would eventually get up, not much later though, because we would just jump on him. He would crawl down the hall with a blanket on him. We would take turns jumping on the monster until we got pulled under and tickled until we couldn’t breathe. He loved playing with us. We were Daddy's girls most of the time.

It was also around this age when I wanted my own alarm clock so I could wake myself up for school. I was a very independent child. I would always play school and house like little girls do at this age. I always had my dolls with me, and loved my babies; they were as real to me as any baby.

Another two or three years went by and my parents gave birth to my first brother. I was in heaven, I loved this little baby, he was so beautiful and people would say he looked angelic. He had everyone charmed with those big blue eyes and white hair. Everyone wanted to hold and love this kid, but he was mine. I was 9, and he was my baby, I was Mom number two to him. I took him everywhere.

Before my first brother turned two my parents had the best kind of oops, my second little brother and our little sweetheart. I was 11 now and once again I had a new baby to nurture. He was something of an escape artist and climbed on everything. One time I remember he had too much sugar and was bouncing off the walls. I took the little snack cakes from him and placed them on top of the refrigerator. I was the one that was