I have decided that I would like to possibly try a before school only care. Is that even possible? Would people even go for that? I would only want to be legally unlicensed which would mean only a few kids BUT I'm only looking to supplement my husbands job in a small way. My thoughts would be this:

Would there even be a demand for this? I would NOT want to do after school, school days off, or summer care.

Would my school district allow for me to allow children to ride the bus from my home/pickup location if they don't normally do so?

If my young children will be home, but not in the area that I plan to provide care, AND my husband is home to care for my kids upstairs, will they count towards my numbers too? (Meaning he leaves for work at 7:30, but the bus picks up at 7:00 so the dck will be gone before he is. So he can care for my kids until the dcks are gone).

My thoughts were that if I would likely only appeal to those with grandparents/family that would be willing to watch on school days off but didn't want the daily early morning task of getting them on the bus, with parents that have shifts that would end at the same time that schools let out so they would not need after care OR set my price so low that it would benefit them to use me for before care and someone else for after care/summer care.

I even went so far as to think that I could partner up so to speak with some who would be willing to do the aftercare/summer care, but didn't want the before care part and then pay them more because I consider the after care harder. Meaning if we charge 15/day, then I would take 5 and the other provider would take 10. .??? I know I'm probably dreaming, but hey.

What are your thoughts on this?

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I would assume it just depends on where you are. When I lived in Oregon, the buses would pick up and drop off to daycare. Where I live now, this is not an option. Speaking from my own experience, I have only ever had one kiddo that needed before school care only.

Another option you might consider (if you just want to supplement income) is working part-time for the local school district. Many mom's I know work as playground supervisors in the mornings to supplement their income. Just a thought . . .

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As far as busing I am sure all areas are different, but our school allows busing to and from a "daycare address".

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Spedmommy, thanks for the morning playground supervision idea, but it's not something I can do as I have three at home with me now. I'm assuming it's not a take your kids with you kind of job.

Ideally, I'd like an early in the morning kind of job that would not involve leaving my children in the care of others. If I could work at home 1 to 2 hours before my kids get out of bed. Well that's what I'm looking for and I was hoping the before school thing would be the ticket. If I could do a work from home job that didn't involve childcare, I'd do that too (data entry/spreadsheet work) but only up to 2 hours so that when my kids get up, I'd be done. There is that kind of work out there but generally it comes in the form of being full time and then going to part time with that same business.

I worked from home for a time while I was expecting my first. It wasn't as care free as people might think. You are still tied to your task at hand, but I can see the perk of doing that in my current situation (a few hours before kids get up out of bed).

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I would send a message to the school PTA to see if they would put it out in their monthly newsletter. There are some parents who just need mornings, but can't get into the before/after care program at the school because they are full. If you offer vouchers or a slightly lower rate, you may get kids. Being legally unlicensed, you may be able to offer them breakfast as well and have that refunded. That would be a big incentive for many parents.

You may find enrollments higher in September as parents realize they need before school, but can't get into the program.

I would make it a set monthly rate just like the school programs, and make sure you have a substitute in case you get sick. You may find that you expand into a week or so of summer day camp as it would also keep your kids busy while helping you make money for your own vacation...

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P.S. I have found that offering the parents an occasional Saturday from 10-3 or 11-4 is a big incentive. It also gives my kids playmates, and can help offset those birthday/Xmas expenses.

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