Originally Posted by MrsC:
I am a teacher. The reason I became a teacher is to spend time with my family and make a difference in the lives of children. I went to college for years and have the same amount of student loans as most other college grads but make less annually. I also pay out a lot of my income to better the lives of children who are not mine. Here is the question I have for you... do you not have more students over the summer whose parents are not teachers and who need summer care? Our daycare does not make teachers pay during the summer, but they have a set monthly rate during the school year ( IE no discounts for Christmas break or spring break.) In doing this they receive a lot of business from teachers. During the summer they fill up with school age children and still make a good salary. (Some teachers even leave their children in for some of the summer.) They have not lost money. The difference is our daycare is ran by former teachers who understand that money is tight and teachers want to spend time with their children... they are also required to pay out hundreds of dollars during the summer for school supplies and professional development. Just my thoughts.
I agree with PP, that many childcare providers are in your same situation. It isn't always just easy to find a temporary child to fill a spot though. Most parents will want to keep that spot once school starts. I don't have teachers, but if I did I would let you quit coming and quit paying, but I would will the spot and you may not have it when school starts. I need my income, or I wouldn't work! And I don't make that much doing daycare, I need to stay full if at all possible. Summer care costs me a lot more to provide than school year care does.