For some families, day care is not optional, as all the adults in the home may need to work and, in turn, may need to send their child to a care facility of some sort. However, if you don't necessarily need someone to care for your child during the day, note some benefits of leaving your child at a day care facility anyway, even for just a few hours every day or every week.
Time with other children
Your child may have friends in the neighbourhood or in the family, but a day care facility will mean being exposed to even more peers and more personalities. Your child may then have an opportunity to make more friends and will also learn how to interact with children with whom they're not friends! When a child is with a friend and they have a disagreement, he or she can go home and avoid that unpleasantness, but being in a day care setting means having to learn how to settle differences and how to interact with children they don't necessarily like. This is something children will need to do when they're in school and then later as adults, so it's good to expose them to this increased interaction with other children while they're still young.
Time with other adults
As with their peers, it's good for your children to spend time with other adults; one reason for this is that children will need to do what other adult authority figures instruct them, once they reach school and of course when they're old enough to take a job. A child should also learn to be comfortable with other trusted adults, so that the transition to school, when they're in the care of a teacher for most of the day, will be easier for them.
Time for you
As much as you may love your children, spending time away from them can actually benefit you! An adult who is always with a child may miss the company of other adults, and get easily bored with games and child-related activities. In turn, they may actually become depressed and even antisocial.
Leaving your child at a day care facility for a few hours every day or every week can give parents a much-needed break to rest, catch up with friends, read or to simply have some peace and quiet in the home. Leaving your child at a day care may then allow you more energy when you do pick up your child so that you're actually a healthier and happier parent overall.
Share26 March 2018
Finding a nursery that provides a stimulating and safe environment for your child can feel like a daunting task. I've used nurseries for all four of my children, and as my husband's job requires him to move around the country frequently, I have gone through the process of selecting a suitable nursery around fifteen times. I started this blog to provide a parent's view of nursery care and share practical tips you can use when choosing a nursery for your child. My posts cover a number of topics, such as spotting red flags, working in partnership with nursery staff, preparing your child for starting nursery and asking prospective nurseries for the right information. I hope you find my blog useful and informative.