Child care is a very big decision and can vary from one family to another. As a parent, you may wish to focus more on logistics, such as how late a facility is open, in order to accommodate your school, research, or work schedules. Alternately, you may be more interested in a one-on-one situation for your child vs. a group setting. You should know that each child is different, each parent is different, and each family structure is different. The ultimate decision is very individualized.
Student Moms and Dads should try to determine what kind of style they'd like to see in a given program -- whether it has an academic bent and focuses on education basics; or is developmental with children learning through play and social settings. There are radically different philosophies among childcare professionals and only you, the parent, can determine what is best for your child overall.
As you engage in the process of making your decisions, you might find it helpful to visit some childcare sites such as
Kidsource.com or
ChildCareAware.net. These sites have a number of thoughtful articles that you might find useful when exploring your options. For example, they offer a checklist to utilize when you visit a center so that you can answer basic questions such as: What are the health and safety guidelines? and Does the center offer good working conditions and an equitable pay scale to curb teacher turnover? When looking for care, you should ask detailed questions about a provider's cost structure and do a comparative analysis as to what kinds of services are offered for what price.
