Originally Posted by nannyde:
Supper at 5:30
Movie at 6
Bedtime as soon as the movie is over.
You don't have to have the kids up playing after six. Just have a movie every night and then put them to bed. Having them up from after afternoon nap unitl eight or so is what will make it not work. It's TOO LONG to have a day care kid up and playing.
I did evening shift for 14 years and this is the schedule I used. I have a large movie collection and just put a movie on every night. I didn't let them play during the movie or sleep during the movie. If they fall asleep during the movie you are getting them up too early after afternoon nap.
If the parents bring them after or during the afternoon nap you have to make sure they have had an afternoon nap. If you don't you will have them taking their afternoon nap during the movie and then be up and ready to roar at seven p.m.
If they arrive at three and you aren't convinced they have actually slept then put them down for a good hour or so right away. You have to work the schedule so they stay awake during the movie and THEN go to sleep till parents get there.
You will have some parents ask to keep them up until nine or after. Be firm that your bedtime is X time and you will not keep them up. Don't even do a half hour. Quiet time during your family time iand bedtime for day care kids on the evening shift is the secret to longevity.
You do not have to have the dck's schedule be the same as your children in the evening. If you allow alot of up and awake hours on the evening shift you will burn out very quickly. A few hours of play, meal, movie, and bedtime. If you get into five/six hours of up and awake time it will burn you out.
I did not do baths or change kids into jammies. Whatever they came in they slept in. I did not want to do clothing back and forth every day. It was up to the parents to send them in easy sweat clothing that they could sleep in here. I did allow a toothbrush but that was kept in my house.
Remember that evening kids have the BIG part of their day WITH their parents. They have their family time in the morning and afternoon. If you find out that parents are not getting UP with the kids and want them to sleep in so the parent can sleep you will have a lot of problems with the kids. The only way the evening works is if the parents do their family time during day time hours. They need to do their big family meal at lunch. They need to do baths before they come etc.
Don't get into the trap of doing the core parenting things for them and keeping the kids up so the parent can sleep in. Put the kids to bed early and wait for the parent to start complaining about how early the kid is getting up. If that happens it means they will ask you to keep the kid up later and later at night.... until they insist you keep the kid up till they get there. Put your foot down right away that you will not do this.
Be careful also with school aged kids. You will get a lot of parents wanting you to allow them to "stay up" on Fridays or during the summer. I didn't give a flip if it was Friday or not... I would NOT allow kids to stay up late because they didn't have school the next day. I wasn't going to have kids running around at my house at eight oclock at night when my first kid had come at five a.m. Doesn't matter WHAT day it is they need an early bed time.
Thanks for the tips, do you charge more or less for the kiddos that come at this time?