Home Hot Topics Articles Directors' Choice Awards About Us / Contact Us Activities & Curriculum Activities for Outcome-Based Learning Arts & Crafts Music for Learning Recommended Reading Sharing Boards: What Do YOU Think? NEWSlink Current National News Conference Calendar Topics In Early Childhood Education Art and Creativity in Early Childhood Education Job Sharing Board State Licensing Requirements Stay Connected! Each month we'll send you an email filled with articles and ideas for your classroom. Subscribe Now Date: 8/28/2007 11:32:00 AM Author: WB (esl.2007@hotmail.com ) Subject: Corporate childcare centers I have worked in childcare centers in different parts of the country for 10 years, and I have to agree that the larger the center, in general, the less emphasis on the education of each child. The smaller, private schools that I have worked at have been tremendously better at nurturing children and supporting families. However, I did once work for a small, private school that was owned by a family that only cared about profits. My advice to parents is to ask a lot of questions before enrolling your child. Especially ask about staff turnover. Never enroll your child in a school that discourages parent visits or parent involvement. Visit the school and see if the children and staff seem to be happy. A lot of crying children (no matter what excuse is given) is never good. And never trust a school that allows you to enroll your child without a site visit and an interview. Quality schools have thoughtful, firm guidelines and specific curricula. They want to have parents who will be a good match with the school's philosophy and the other families. If the school cannot articulate its educational philosophy, that's a bad sign. It means that the school or classroom environment will change drastically depending on which teacher is working there. Name: Email: Subject

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