Default Style Register
Daycare.com Forum
Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>Different Rules for DCK
mnemom 01:05 PM 04-16-2013
I have been searching for threads on this topic but it is really hard to narrow the search down, so I apologize if this is thread #46789.

What rules do you have for your daycare kids that you don't have for your own kids? How do you allow your kids freedom in their own home? Do you make them share all their toys? or is there some you don't make them share? My house is super small, so my daycare toys are my kids' toys so I was just wondering what specifically do you do to make it easier for you kids. I sometimes feel like they are being slighted by me having a daycare in the home.
Reply
Cradle2crayons 01:12 PM 04-16-2013
Originally Posted by mnemom:
I have been searching for threads on this topic but it is really hard to narrow the search down, so I apologize if this is thread #46789.

What rules do you have for your daycare kids that you don't have for your own kids? How do you allow your kids freedom in their own home? Do you make them share all their toys? or is there some you don't make them share? My house is super small, so my daycare toys are my kids' toys so I was just wondering what specifically do you do to make it easier for you kids. I sometimes feel like they are being slighted by me having a daycare in the home.
I treat all of the kids the same. Of course they are all individuals. I try to always make extra plans outside of daycare hours and do special things... Like the carnival, bowling etc. it's important they understand that this daycare thing affords us ALL some extra luxuries (hopefully) and why we do what we do. Also important that nobody feels more or less loved and cared for. All my kids follow the same rules WHILE there are daycare kids here. Of course, on special Sundays when we do extra family things, I may let my son skip his nap etc.
Reply
SilverSabre25 01:17 PM 04-16-2013
This is a very tough situation to balance well. I still don't think I do a good enough job balancing my own kids/not my kids. My 5 yo in particular has been complaining bitterly lately about daycare.

The biggest thing I do is that both my kids have their own rooms with their own toys that are NOT shared and dcks are NEVER allowed in my own kids's rooms. That is their private space and DD values it highly and frequently retreats to her room. DS doesn't retreat yet, but gets MAD when my 11 mo dcb tries to crawl into his room (DS is 22 months), so he definitely is aware of the "special" of his room.

I let my own kids eat outside of prescribed snack and meal times--DD has pretty free reign of the kitchen and knows to keep it out of sight. My home set up allows this. She gets DS snacks sometimes, too.

I just instituted a weekly "Daddy Daughter Date" for my DH and DD, where he comes home earlier than usual and takes her out to spend some quality time together.

After all the daycare kids go home I spend time decompressing to be a better mom all evening, and my kids each get a half hour TV show. Then we launch into dinner and the rest of the evening. I feel they deserve the decompression time, too.

DS and I get cuddle time after everyone else is napping, before he falls asleep. If he wakes up early we get special time then, too.
Reply
NeedaVaca 01:25 PM 04-16-2013
I do not allow the DCK to do the same things as my DS. He has in special toys in his room, DCK do not go in his room. He also has the freedom to go anywhere in the house, my DCK are in the playroom, dining room or art room only. We also have a TV upstairs and I will let my DS watch a cartoon occasionally. My DS is also allowed to have snacks but he knows he can't eat in front of DCK. We also do special things together when the DCK's take their naps so he gets alone time with me.
Reply
crazydaycarelady 01:25 PM 04-16-2013
I had my own kids keep any special toys or toys that they did not want the dckids to have in their rooms. The dckids did not play in their rooms unless they were invited by my kids.

Also my kids could go anywhere in the house they liked, where as the dckids had to stay with me in the dcrooms.

If my kids had a snack or something the dckids were not having I made them stay in the kitchen.

I think it is okay for the providers own kids to have more leway in the home. They need to know that they are special. It is there house. The dckids get those same privileges in their own homes.
Reply
Lyss 01:44 PM 04-16-2013
Originally Posted by mnemom:
I have been searching for threads on this topic but it is really hard to narrow the search down, so I apologize if this is thread #46789.

What rules do you have for your daycare kids that you don't have for your own kids? How do you allow your kids freedom in their own home? Do you make them share all their toys? or is there some you don't make them share? My house is super small, so my daycare toys are my kids' toys so I was just wondering what specifically do you do to make it easier for you kids. I sometimes feel like they are being slighted by me having a daycare in the home.
The more DC stuff I add to my home the smaller it feels DD has her own room, no one naps or plays in there (usually). I do keep some of the DC toys in her room when they are cycled out of the playroom. DD prefers to play in her room in the evenings vs the daycare toys/area. She also has special toys that stay in the closet during DC hours (she can play in her room with them during DC) and every Tuesday she gets "Daddy day" (DH has Mon/Tues off until this summer) so she gets to go out and do something special and have lunch with DH. DD also gets to play in the garage play area while daddy works in there on his days off but the DCKs don't.

All other rules are the same for her as they are for DCKs during DC hours. The only real issue I've been struggling with lately is her being in the kitchen. I allow her to help on weekends and when I make dinner at night but during the week I don't allow anyone in the kitchen, currently this is proving to be an issue as she wants to help, but if I have one I have them all and I don't need a bunch of kiddos in my tiny kitchen. Finding a balance is an ongoing challenge.
Reply
cheerfuldom 01:46 PM 04-16-2013
Originally Posted by crazydaycarelady:
I had my own kids keep any special toys or toys that they did not want the dckids to have in their rooms. The dckids did not play in their rooms unless they were invited by my kids.

Also my kids could go anywhere in the house they liked, where as the dckids had to stay with me in the dcrooms.

If my kids had a snack or something the dckids were not having I made them stay in the kitchen.

I think it is okay for the providers own kids to have more leway in the home. They need to know that they are special. It is there house. The dckids get those same privileges in their own homes.
yes, this is me too. I dont have the same rules for my kids and the daycare kids. I actually found that everyone, including the daycare kids, were unhappy with me trying to make everything equal. There is much more peace in the house now that there are boundaries. My daycare kids understand that the toys at my house are mine and I share with them. That keeps the daycare kids from getting territorially at my house, like this is THEIR house, THEIR toys, etc. and it also keeps my own kids from getting territorial over the daycare supplies. If any of the daycare kids start taking over, then they are put on some minor restrictions. They are last in line, last to eat, and I take away toy or activity privileges that are causing trouble. For instance, I have a 3 year old daycare child that has started acting like she can go in any room, that everything here is hers and that type of thing. The first thing I took away was her "dress up" privileges because she gets very territorial over those things and even pushed a toddler over in a fight over them. If anybody cant handle something, they lose privileges, even the young ones. Something else that helps is having some toys, even if your space is small, that are your kids only. Put a separate toybox in their room. If they dont want to share, they are directed to put their special toy in the toybox for now.
Reply
Play Care 01:46 PM 04-16-2013
My own kids toys and rooms were always off limits to DC kids. Once my kids were old enough, they could go play in their rooms if they chose to. My own kids are school aged now and no longer count in my ratios (even for vacations) so they are pretty much given free reign - of course with that comes responsibility - as I am working and not able to be at their beck and call.

That said, when my kids counted in my numbers and were younger, I really strived to treat my own children the same as the dc kids in a lot of respects. No special snacks, or television while dc kids were up and about - during quiet time once they had outgrown naps, sure. But they couldn't decide at 9:30 in the middle of circle/story time that they wanted to watch Dora upstairs. On the flip side, I also gave my kids the same privacy considerations that the dc kids legally get - if they were sick or an incident happened that involved them I never named names. I recall reading one time that one of the main reasons parents chose centers over in homes is due to the provider's children being shown favoritism, I tried hard to take a balanced approach.
Reply
e.j. 02:06 PM 04-16-2013
I've always treated my day care kids as though they were my own kids so I didn't have special rules that they had to follow and my own kids didn't. When my kids were very young, I wanted them within eyesight at all times so they weren't allowed to go upstairs during day care hours. They never minded because it was more fun playing with the other kids anyway.

As my own kids got older, I allowed them certain privileges that any older kid would get, like playing alone upstairs in their rooms for extended periods of time. Since I don't do school age care, the change in rules for my own kids never became an issue. The day care kids just accepted the fact that my kids were "big kids" so they got to do different things.

I did have the luxury of a separate day care room so it made it easier with respect to my kids' toys. If they didn't want to share their special toys, they needed to leave them in their rooms until after the day care closed and the kids had gone home. If they wanted to play with their toys during day care hours, they had to be prepared to share them.
Reply
mnemom 02:56 PM 04-16-2013
This is really hard because of how small my house is. My 4 and 6 year old share a room, and bc of space some of the community toys are in there. I guess I really need to work on getting my basement to where I can have just daycare stuff down there, then my kids could have their own spaces.
Reply
HomeMADE 06:48 PM 04-16-2013
I am very lucky in that I only have one bedroom downstairs and that belongs to my 11 year old son. I do use his room for toddler naps, I roll in a crib and one pack n play for 1 hour. After that he has his space back. I also do not allow anyone upstairs. Upstairs is our bonus room and the other bedrooms and it is my boys respite, age 7 and 11.

Now I also have a 3yo and 4yo that when here they are 100% part of the daycare when I am open. Everyone during childcare hours is treated the exact same. I encourage my little one's to keep their special things upstairs. But they insist on bringing them to share. And I allow that, while there are a few tiffs here and there for the most part it works out. My kids love it, they actually want to sleep in the daycare room with the daycare kids.

It's not perfect, but life isn't perfect.
Reply
AmyKidsCo 08:55 PM 04-16-2013
When my children were the same age as the DCK they followed the same rules as the CK. But now our youngest are 6 & 8, and my DCK are 4 and younger so my boys have pretty much "outgrown" the DC. They're allowed to play anywhere in the house they want, whenever they want, but if they choose to play in the DK areas they must follow the DK rules. They can't bring toys into the living room (separated from the DC space by a baby gate) and play with them in front of the DCK. They can't watch TV during DK, and if they get a snack (which is rare) they have to eat it somewhere the DCK can't see them. They're also allowed to play in the backyard or driveway by themselves when the weather is nice.
Reply
mnemom 05:19 AM 04-17-2013
This summer is going to be harder in terms of DCK. My son is 6 and has trouble dealing with the dck. He is just a really active kid who doesn't have the best social skills, so he struggles when there are more kids in the house. I am just trying to figure out how to keep it fair, without disciplining my son his entire summer. I think I am going to use the suggestions that he gets his own toys that stay in his room, that he can go play with. Also our yard is fenced in, so he can easily play outside by himself or with his 4 year old sister, while I am doing DC stuff inside. Thanks for the suggestions.
Reply
JenNJ 05:54 AM 04-17-2013
My kids are allowed to sit on the couch in the daycare room, they may leave the daycare room whenever they choose, they may get snacks whenever, eat lunch whenever. They keep special toys in their room and do not have to share anything they don't want to. When they are ready to share a toy, they donate it to the daycare. They play out in the yard as they please, alone. They can play with our dog.

This is their home. They are not in daycare.
Reply
mnemom 06:06 AM 04-17-2013
Originally Posted by JenNJ:
My kids are allowed to sit on the couch in the daycare room, they may leave the daycare room whenever they choose, they may get snacks whenever, eat lunch whenever. They keep special toys in their room and do not have to share anything they don't want to. When they are ready to share a toy, they donate it to the daycare. They play out in the yard as they please, alone. They can play with our dog.

This is their home. They are not in daycare.
Where is your daycare room located? We have a super small house. Two bedrooms, one for us and the baby, and one for my 6 and 4 year old. My dining room is the play room, and some toys are in the kids' bedroom. All the toys are my kids' toys.
Reply
JenNJ 06:21 AM 04-17-2013
My daycare room is a dedicated space. It is a 20 x 25 room that is seperate from the rest of my house with acess off the kitchen. The daycare kids only go from my foyer, into the kitchen and into the daycare room. They come through the kitchen and into the dining room to eat. Backyard acess is off the hallway that leads to the daycare room.

Our bedrooms are on the second floor. Only the babies go to the second floor to the nap room. No daycare kids are allowed in my kids bedrooms. We tried it and it didn't work. They don't respect my children's things or treat them nicely. Clean up took far too long and the space was too small.

The daycare toys are all toys my children have outgrown or no longer consider special. I would never ask them to share their personal belongings for my business. They have a right to say no to sharing, but I ask that special toys be kept out of sight of the daycare kids so it isn't teasing.
Reply
JenNJ 06:24 AM 04-17-2013
mnemom -- my kids are the same ages as yours. It will not be bad, I promise. Is your son into bugs? I got all sorts of digging tool and bug kits for my son so he can explore our yard this summer. Plus, my son is old enough to be outside alone happily now. He takes his water bottle and a snack or two and stays outside as long as possible.
Reply
LittleFootMomma 06:32 AM 04-17-2013
Our own kiddos rooms are off limits to DCK, though sometimes my own kiddos will invite a DCK into their room. I do keep them separate because my daycare space is exclusive for daycare purposes. Our space in our home is "our space" that is so we can avoid having our house look like a tornado ripped through it with as many DCK we have running around. There is more time for family if I'm not spending the hours after we've closed cleaning up the messes made by multiple DCK. Our other trick for helping our own kiddos feel like they have a voice is to remind the DCK that when "so and so" has a special toy out it's only for show and tell, not for sharing. Once that toy has been "shown" it goes back to either DCK cubby or my own kiddos room. We too spend as much quality time with our own kiddos as possible. We like to invest our time in them.
Reply
Blackcat31 06:44 AM 04-17-2013
First off....I am NOT saying anyone is right or wrong....I am only giving you MY personal perspective AS A PARENT and NOT a provider.

I pulled my children from a child care in which the provider allowed her own children to pick and choose certain daycare kids to go into their rooms and play. My provider has two kids the same age/gender as my own and often times the provider's children would take one or two other daycare kids into their room and play with them. There were a couple kids (my own included) who complained about this.

I honestly felt like it was unfair treatment and I was not okay with it.

I understand that the provider's children live there but I looked at it like when daycare was open and running, they WERE daycare kids just like everyone else. (Even providers are limited to certain behavior during business hours). I didn't feel it was fair that the provider's kids could snack when they wanted and do things the daycare kids couldn't.

It caused such an upheaval in my kids' attitude about going to that child care that I eventually pulled them and enrolled them in a center.

Again, I am NOT saying what you do and don't do as a childcare provider AND parent in your own home is right or wrong, I am only giving you a different perspective.

As a parent, I was NOT ok with this.

I would NEVER have my kids attend a child care where the provider's own children got special treatment or were treated differently or better than mine.
Reply
Play Care 07:03 AM 04-17-2013
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
First off....I am NOT saying anyone is right or wrong....I am only giving you MY personal perspective AS A PARENT and NOT a provider.

I pulled my children from a child care in which the provider allowed her own children to pick and choose certain daycare kids to go into their rooms and play. My provider has two kids the same age/gender as my own and often times the provider's children would take one or two other daycare kids into their room and play with them. There were a couple kids (my own included) who complained about this.

I honestly felt like it was unfair treatment and I was not okay with it.

I understand that the provider's children live there but I looked at it like when daycare was open and running, they WERE daycare kids just like everyone else. (Even providers are limited to certain behavior during business hours). I didn't feel it was fair that the provider's kids could snack when they wanted and do things the daycare kids couldn't.

It caused such an upheaval in my kids' attitude about going to that child care that I eventually pulled them and enrolled them in a center.

Again, I am NOT saying what you do and don't do as a childcare provider AND parent in your own home is right or wrong, I am only giving you a different perspective.

As a parent, I was NOT ok with this.

I would NEVER have my kids attend a child care where the provider's own children got special treatment or were treated differently or better than mine.


I understand my kids are not dc kids and this is their home, but I feel it would be rude to have allowed them to eat whenever and whatever whenever dc kids were present. It sets them up to expect "special" during dc hours and quite frankly I was/am way to busy to accommodate that. Now were there times when my kids had an evening activity and needed early dinner? Sure. In that case I would keep the dc kids away and busy. DC kids are never allowed in my kids rooms, period. That would lead to a situation like Blackcat described. I did lose a school aged dc girl over this rule, because our kids were friends the parents expected it would be like a play date while I was working
As my kids get older/ more independent they can do more, but when they were younger and still needed me to make meals and supervise them, I wasn't going to make more work for myself.
Reply
NeedaVaca 07:15 AM 04-17-2013
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
First off....I am NOT saying anyone is right or wrong....I am only giving you MY personal perspective AS A PARENT and NOT a provider.

I pulled my children from a child care in which the provider allowed her own children to pick and choose certain daycare kids to go into their rooms and play. My provider has two kids the same age/gender as my own and often times the provider's children would take one or two other daycare kids into their room and play with them. There were a couple kids (my own included) who complained about this.

I honestly felt like it was unfair treatment and I was not okay with it.

I understand that the provider's children live there but I looked at it like when daycare was open and running, they WERE daycare kids just like everyone else. (Even providers are limited to certain behavior during business hours). I didn't feel it was fair that the provider's kids could snack when they wanted and do things the daycare kids couldn't.

It caused such an upheaval in my kids' attitude about going to that child care that I eventually pulled them and enrolled them in a center.

Again, I am NOT saying what you do and don't do as a childcare provider AND parent in your own home is right or wrong, I am only giving you a different perspective.

As a parent, I was NOT ok with this.

I would NEVER have my kids attend a child care where the provider's own children got special treatment or were treated differently or better than mine.
I totally get what you are saying. In my case my children are much older than the DCK's so I think that makes a difference.
Reply
JenNJ 07:25 AM 04-17-2013
My kids are older now. When they were younger, they were on the same schedule as the dc kids. Sorry if I wasn't clear.

Yes, they snack as they please, but the dc kids don't know. In fact, if my kids ask out loud, they get no snack. They know they need to whisper to me or call me aside to ask for things like that.

An no, the inviting people ot the room thing was causing drama so it stopped. My dd has 2 girls here her age and one has a younger sister by 2 years. Once the younger girl got mad about the "big girls" going away to play, I shut it down. Becuase you are right BC, it isn't fair or right to cause hurt feelings.

Everything else I feel is pretty logical. My kids can go outside alone bc I am their mom. The other kids moms say that they need an adult with them. My kids roomsa re here so they can go there just ike the dc kids go in their rooms at home, etc. I haven't seen hurt feelings about these things yet and hopefully I won't!
Reply
Blackcat31 07:34 AM 04-17-2013
Originally Posted by JenNJ:
My kids are older now. When they were younger, they were on the same schedule as the dc kids. Sorry if I wasn't clear.

Yes, they snack as they please, but the dc kids don't know. In fact, if my kids ask out loud, they get no snack. They know they need to whisper to me or call me aside to ask for things like that.

An no, the inviting people ot the room thing was causing drama so it stopped. My dd has 2 girls here her age and one has a younger sister by 2 years. Once the younger girl got mad about the "big girls" going away to play, I shut it down. Becuase you are right BC, it isn't fair or right to cause hurt feelings.

Everything else I feel is pretty logical. My kids can go outside alone bc I am their mom. The other kids moms say that they need an adult with them. My kids roomsa re here so they can go there just ike the dc kids go in their rooms at home, etc. I haven't seen hurt feelings about these things yet and hopefully I won't!


When your own kids are much older than the DCK's it DOES make a huge difference and the rules DO have to be changed/modified a bit.

My own kids were allowed to go to the park and play outside whenever they wanted to also when they got older. Some things are just what they are but mixing daycare kids with your own kids is a tough thing to balance fairly so that everyone is happy.

I know I had some deep thoughts about the whole subject simply based on what I wrote in another thread about my DH's experiences growing up in his mother's daycare that I tried really hard to make things fair. Not necessarily fair but certainly balanced.

LOVE your rule about asking outloud...... I always told my kids that if they asked me something on the spot or in front of their friends the answer would always be no.

I also tell the DCK's when it comes to treats "If you ask, the answer is no".
Reply
rmc20021 07:36 AM 04-17-2013
When I had daycare way back when my kids were little I would 'buy' them nice gifts for birthdays, Christmas etc...but it was actually for daycare for which everyone shared.

I also bought my own kids toys that were just for them. They had to keep those toys in their rooms which was off limits to daycare kids. They were not allowed to go into their room during daycare hours to play with those items.

If they insisted on bringing their 'special' toys out of their rooms, then they understood the toy would be used just the same as any other toy in the daycare area. It would be for anyone and would no longer be just their special toy.

They knew which toys they were willing to share like this, and which ones they weren't. Once they came out of their rooms, they couldn't just take it back to the room because they decided they no longer wanted dck's to play with it...it was out for good.

It forced my kids to decide which toys they really wanted to keep as their own.

Now that I have custody of my grandkids, I do the same with them (one is almost 17 so that's not even an issue with him) but my granddaughter does not bring anything out she's not willing to give up permanently.

It may not sound fair to them, but it's how I've been able to get the kids to understand the difference between their personal toys, and shared toys.
Reply
KDC 07:42 AM 04-17-2013
This is difficult for me too. I have kids ages 4, 6 &8. My DCK's are all age 3 and under with the exception of 2 DCK's that grew up with my children ages 4&6. The 6 yr. old really looks up to my 8 yr. old... The 6 yr. olds are in Kindergarten and have 1/2 days. My ds is in school full time. The issue is the hour between 4-5. DCB age 6 loves my ds and can't wait until my son comes home to play. But, his Mom is very anti electronics... Which I understand and respect, but it doesn't feel right making my 8yr. old son play with this DCB when he gets home. His parents used to come pick up their kids at 4:30, but would cry at pick up so now they're home at 4:30(they live across the street), but leave him there an extra 1/2 hour to 'play'. My 8 yr. old loves to unwind after school with a snack and do his homework so he can earn his electronic time. There is a short window of dinner, homework, shower and bed). If he is forced to play with this DCB, then he loses his electronic time... He chooses homework instead of play time to earn electronic time. This has started causing a rift, but feel my son is old enough this should be his choice. And, I'm willing to stand by my decision.

I treat all the younger ones like my kids, no special treatment, however all the kids are allowed different things based on age. Entrance into the other half of the room is age based... 100+ piece puzzles and board games are only for the 4 and up crowd or they'll be trashed.
Reply
clep 07:45 AM 04-17-2013
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
First off....I am NOT saying anyone is right or wrong....I am only giving you MY personal perspective AS A PARENT and NOT a provider.

I pulled my children from a child care in which the provider allowed her own children to pick and choose certain daycare kids to go into their rooms and play. My provider has two kids the same age/gender as my own and often times the provider's children would take one or two other daycare kids into their room and play with them. There were a couple kids (my own included) who complained about this.

I honestly felt like it was unfair treatment and I was not okay with it.

I understand that the provider's children live there but I looked at it like when daycare was open and running, they WERE daycare kids just like everyone else. (Even providers are limited to certain behavior during business hours). I didn't feel it was fair that the provider's kids could snack when they wanted and do things the daycare kids couldn't.

It caused such an upheaval in my kids' attitude about going to that child care that I eventually pulled them and enrolled them in a center.

Again, I am NOT saying what you do and don't do as a childcare provider AND parent in your own home is right or wrong, I am only giving you a different perspective.

As a parent, I was NOT ok with this.

I would NEVER have my kids attend a child care where the provider's own children got special treatment or were treated differently or better than mine.
This is how I feel. I have never treated my son special or given him any sort of different treatment. When he became old enough to start resenting the day home space and being in it, I hired someone part time so he and I could spend more time away from the day home space.

Now I work in the day home for two hours and then go upstairs. I have a full time employee. My day home is completely self contained with the whole basement with a bathroom and kitchen area.

My son is with me upstairs during the rest of the day where he does his school work and I work my other home based business....the one that actually pays well.

I would not put my child in care where there were different rules for the providers children. I would not want my child to see that and feel upset about that all the time or feel like less than the providers child.
Reply
Play Care 07:52 AM 04-17-2013
Originally Posted by KDC:
This is difficult for me too. I have kids ages 4, 6 &8. My DCK's are all age 3 and under with the exception of 2 DCK's that grew up with my children ages 4&6. The 6 yr. old really looks up to my 8 yr. old... The 6 yr. olds are in Kindergarten and have 1/2 days. My ds is in school full time. The issue is the hour between 4-5. DCB age 6 loves my ds and can't wait until my son comes home to play. But, his Mom is very anti electronics... Which I understand and respect, but it doesn't feel right making my 8yr. old son play with this DCB when he gets home. His parents used to come pick up their kids at 4:30, but would cry at pick up so now they're home at 4:30(they live across the street), but leave him there an extra 1/2 hour to 'play'. My 8 yr. old loves to unwind after school with a snack and do his homework so he can earn his electronic time. There is a short window of dinner, homework, shower and bed). If he is forced to play with this DCB, then he loses his electronic time... He chooses homework instead of play time to earn electronic time. This has started causing a rift, but feel my son is old enough this should be his choice. And, I'm willing to stand by my decision.

I treat all the younger ones like my kids, no special treatment, however all the kids are allowed different things based on age. Entrance into the other half of the room is age based... 100+ piece puzzles and board games are only for the 4 and up crowd or they'll be trashed.
I will say that although I strived to be fair, I have maintained that my kids are not here for dc kids amusement. I don't force the dc kids to play with each other - they usually do but if someone doesn't mesh or want to play I'm not making them and I afford my own kids the same respect. My kids chose to come home from school and play on their iPods. I usually take the dc kids outside at this point.
After an experience where a dc family thought they were doing me a "favor" by sending their dd to me so my kids could have a play date, I try to make it clear to parents that my own kids are enrolled in lessons, clubs, etc. and are often not here. In addition since DH is a teacher they often go places together during the day (mostly to get a break from DC but I don't say that ) on school vacations. It seems to help take away the awkward/hurt feelings if they know the deal from the get go.
Reply
Unregistered 08:06 AM 04-17-2013
My daycare is in the basement and separate from the rest of the house. My daycare children are all under 26 months, and the daycare is set up for this age group. My child is 7, and has free run off the house and is not expected to be in the daycare. She is able to get her own snacks as she wishes.
Reply
mema 08:14 AM 04-17-2013
I let my kids go outside, to their rooms, or to a neighbors house to "hang out" (you don't play after a certain age I guess). They are in upper elementary and middle school tho. If I didn't have dc, they wouldn't be in it. When they were younger and I had kids closer to their age, they were not allowed to take them in their rooms. If they wanted to go their room, it was alone or with each other, but not dcks. I do let them play video games/watch tv, but it is out of sight and sound of dcks and only for their allotted daily time. The things they don't want to share, they keep in their rooms or our family room. As they outgrow their toys, they migrate to the dc area.
Reply
busymommy0420 11:25 AM 04-17-2013
For me and the wide range of ages of my six children I have different ways for each "age" group. My sons are 18, 17 and 12 and come and go as they please (well in the home anyways). They also eat on their own too. The 12 year old is considered a daycare child for the food program but he does not count in my attendance. Out of the three boys he is involved in the daycare the most. He helps here and there and has snack with the kids too. My daughters are 3, 3 and six months and they are 100% apart of my daycare occupying 50% of my pre-school capacity. I feed them the same foods and they are to follow the same rules as the daycare children. There are a few exceptions...

Their outside bikes are just for them. (DCP were asked to supply bikes and helmets for their children)

Their room is just for them. (It is rare that we are up there so it doesn't really apply)

My one daughter gets OJ at snack while the others have water including my other daughter. (This is for her miralax and the parents are aware of this)

My daughters get vitamins with breakfast, I do not supply vitamins for the other children.

My exceptions have never been an issue. It will be interesting once my daughters are older and may want time alone in their rooms. Right now I can't imagine not having them in eyesight. I feel all the children should be treated the same. I do sneak in extra cuddles, snuggles and I Love you's to my daughters but...I can't help that!
Reply
EntropyControlSpecialist 11:48 AM 04-17-2013
If your child is older and not really participating in the daycare, I think it's fair that they can go into their own bedroom.
Reply
EntropyControlSpecialist 11:49 AM 04-17-2013
Originally Posted by mema:
I let my kids go outside, to their rooms, or to a neighbors house to "hang out" (you don't play after a certain age I guess). They are in upper elementary and middle school tho. If I didn't have dc, they wouldn't be in it. When they were younger and I had kids closer to their age, they were not allowed to take them in their rooms. If they wanted to go their room, it was alone or with each other, but not dcks. I do let them play video games/watch tv, but it is out of sight and sound of dcks and only for their allotted daily time. The things they don't want to share, they keep in their rooms or our family room. As they outgrow their toys, they migrate to the dc area.
This sounds like me.
Reply
Reply Up