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Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>Mean Daycare Lady at Naptime
CraftyMom 11:53 AM 07-02-2014
Anyone else??

I have my 2 school age kids and my 8 year old nephew (who is only here once a week). It is so frustrating at naptime!

The older kids just don't get it! No matter how much I explain to them beforehand that quiet time is QUIET time they are just not quiet!

The little ones have such a hard time falling asleep, the older ones are noisy. I end up sending them outside, they are too hot. They keep coming back and forth through the daycare room where the kids are (trying) to sleep. (The outside door is in the daycare room) I tell them stay outside or upstairs in the bedrooms.

I can only keep my cool for so long before I turn into the mean daycare lady!

After they get in trouble they look at me like "Geez, you don't have to get mean"! By now I'm sooo grouchy, 2 kids just fell asleep at 2:30, one hasn't slept yet at all and will be miserable.

My 6 year old will be at a theater day camp for the next 3 weeks so that will help.

Ugh I hate being grouchy with the kids but my goodness! These older kids just don't get it!!!

This is why I don't do school age kids, my own are enough!
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NoMoreJuice! 11:58 AM 07-02-2014
I hear you! This is the last year I will do SA. They are great all day long, very helpful kids, but at naptime they are heathens! They want to run and stomp around, and all the littles are trying to sleep downstairs. My assistant stays down with the littles and she says the SA kids sound like elephants from down there!! Especially when they tiptoe, lol!! I'm about to kick them all outside right now.
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Blackcat31 12:07 PM 07-02-2014
I don't have SA'ers anymore but when I did, I used a chart for them.

Each time they disturbed the nappers or did something that was against the rules during nap time they earned themselves a Big Red X on the chart.

I planned 2 activities in the afternoon. One REALLY fun and one not so fun.

Guess who gets to do the REALLY fun activity?

I "reward" those that listen and follow the rules.
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KSDC 12:44 PM 07-02-2014
My SA have sustained silent reading for 30 minutes at the beginning of naptime. Each has their own book, sitting or lying in a separate room from the nappers. Usually all my nappers are asleep well before the 30 minutes is up. Then, the SA are allowed to play with quiet toys or have a short turn playing an educational game on the daycare computer.

Any of them that can't stay quiet for the reading time are given a sleep mat just like the little munchkins.
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AmyKidsCo 01:19 PM 07-02-2014
I hear you! I've got a 12 mo old who is so sensitive he wakes up if he hears the floor creak. And if he's slept 15 min he won't go back to sleep. Monday he was here 9 hours and slept 24 min then was a complete bear at home.
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daycare 01:23 PM 07-02-2014
Originally Posted by AmyKidsCo:
I hear you! I've got a 12 mo old who is so sensitive he wakes up if he hears the floor creak. And if he's slept 15 min he won't go back to sleep. Monday he was here 9 hours and slept 24 min then was a complete bear at home.
I dont know how you ladies do such little ones. I would rip my hair out, pluck out my eyelashes and die if I had to deal with that daily.....lol
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midaycare 01:29 PM 07-02-2014
I deal with that all the time! I like the SA's but I won't take as many next year.
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TickleMonster 01:46 PM 07-02-2014
This will be our last summer taking SA kids too. What a mess! My SA girl instigates all kinds of fights between the little ones during the day and was a total bear during naptime so I placed her down for a nap just like everyone else. She will be napping every day from now until she goes back to school and then no more SA!!
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TwinKristi 01:59 PM 07-02-2014
Ha! I only have my own SA kids so can't get rid of them! LOL
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spud912 02:25 PM 07-02-2014
Originally Posted by daycare:
I dont know how you ladies do such little ones. I would rip my hair out, pluck out my eyelashes and die if I had to deal with that daily.....lol

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CraftyMom 02:29 PM 07-02-2014
Originally Posted by daycare:
I dont know how you ladies do such little ones. I would rip my hair out, pluck out my eyelashes and die if I had to deal with that daily.....lol
That's how I feel about the SAers!
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Crystal 03:24 PM 07-02-2014
I'd give them a choice.

They can choose to play quietly, or they can choose to lay down and nap like the younger children. If they don't play quietly, they go to bed.
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CraftyMom 03:30 PM 07-02-2014
Originally Posted by Crystal:
I'd give them a choice.

They can choose to play quietly, or they can choose to lay down and nap like the younger children. If they don't play quietly, they go to bed.
That's what I'm going to do from now on I think.
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midaycare 03:42 PM 07-02-2014
Originally Posted by Crystal:
I'd give them a choice.

They can choose to play quietly, or they can choose to lay down and nap like the younger children. If they don't play quietly, they go to bed.
I have done this before. Some of my SA's need a nap more than the little ones.
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CraftyMom 03:59 PM 07-02-2014
Yes, when it's just my 6yo for SA she will lay down and watch tv. Sometimes she'll fall asleep. If not she at least gets a nice rest
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Play Care 04:52 PM 07-02-2014
With my SA kids the schedule is 30-40 minutes SSR (silent sustained reading) followed by 30-40 minutes educational computer/electronics (I have an old computer we set up just for this purpose as well as some leapsters, etc. if they are not quietly reading during SSR then they get nap time. As electronics is a big deal they try hard not to. Since they can legally be outside without me they can go out after that for a bit. I give them snack and then get the littles up.
I am blessed to have an assistant so there were times I'd schedule her to overlap quiet time - then it was scheduled outdoor activity under her supervision. Oh, and they are not allowed to come inside during that time. I make sure everyone uses the bathroom before they go out, and bring drinks out as well. If they tried it was a TO - outside, on the steps...

I have two SA kids of my own, but with camps, lessons, etc. they are going to hardly be home during the day. And they have no problems being quiet anyway (girls ) I have scaled back on my SA care and am excited about not having to deal with it after next week!
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Meyou 01:13 AM 07-03-2014
I make them rest if they can't play quietly inside or stay outside in the yard. I've also been know to give out lots of chores to bored kids that can't listen.
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