When I first started, for years I watched ages 6 weeks - 12 years old. But after my van, which I used to transport the school kids back and forth to school, died, I went to only ages 6 weeks - 5 years old. I really love teaching the preschoolers and having the young babies in the mix make it a lot harder to do so. So I started only watching ages 18 months - 4 years. There have been plenty of times when I just had ages 2 -4 year olds and I LOVE it!

The only real problem that I've had is that sometimes I can't fill my spots with the age group I've chosen and due to income requirements, occasionally I've had to take kids out of my desired age group.

Pros to limiting your age groups -
It is much easier to tend to kids who's abilities and interests are more alike. If you only have older kids and no infants, you can stay focused on the activity you are doing longer without a baby needing to be fed, changed, or needing you to hold them, etc.

Everyone is on the same schedule, eating and napping at the same time. And everyone does almost the same activities. I include my 18 month olds in my preschool program. They just need a little more help than the other kids.

I'm not as stressed out when I work with my desired age group. If I work with only my favorite age group, of course I'm happier. I'm not forcing myself to work with ages that tend to irritate me or cause me added stress. It's like if you take a college professor and force him/her to teach kindergarten, that professor is going to be so much more frustrated, irritated, stressed, etc. It's the same with us. If we know we work best with one age group, we will be much calmer and happier if we can work only with that age group.

The happier and less stressed you are, the more likely you will be to go that extra mile and do more for your kids and daycare. You will be more excited and proud of your daycare and yourself that you are truly doing a good job rather than feeling like you hate your day, having no desire to put any effort into your day, and just waiting for your day to be over.

Then, if you are happier and less stressed with your age group, your parents will see a happier, non-stressed daycare provider when they arrive in the mornings and evenings. So there's more of a chance that you will not lose children due to the parents feeling like their child is not in the right daycare for them. You will be happier, your children will be happier, and your parents will be happier. It's a win-win-win situation!

During nap time, YOU can actually focus on what YOU need without a baby waking up from nap needing to be fed, changed, or simply crying refusing to nap which allows you uninterrupted time to do things such as wash dishes, cook meals (I cook breakfast, lunch, and dinner for the daycare kids), make business calls, business computer work, paper work, prepare preschool activities, clean your personal area of the house, etc. Or just take a break and do nothing but sit and enjoy the silence!

Cons-
It limits your ages which limits your ability to fill your spaces which will effect your income. The more ages you take, of course the more chances you have of being able to fill your spaces. By only offering care for a select age group, there are many children who NEED childcare that you won't be willing to take. You will have to wait to get calls for just the right age group for your daycare.
So your income might be lower than you'd like it to be until you fill enough spaces.

However, that depends on the ages and amount of kids in your area. You might have PLENTY of kids in your desired age group in your area and have no problem filling up quickly even if you limit yourself to a certain age group.

Overall, I absolutely LOVE working with my desired age group and if you are able to do so, I would definitely suggest that you try it.

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