Child Care at Home vs. in Day Care Centers

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Introduction

The aspect of taking care of the child is critical in the development of the child. At the moment, most of the children are taken care of outside their home environment. This has been attributed to the fact that parents, especially the single parents, are tied in employment. This limits the available time for parental involvement in child care. In this respect, the notion about parents’ involvement in child care has gained considerable ground. Nevertheless, only little information has been collected relating to this phenomenon (Dickey, Greenberg and Bowden, 42). How will child development improve when parents and care providers combine efforts in child care? Apart from this, other questions about parental involvement in child care both in a home or center setup remain unanswered. This paper will aspire to measure and conceptualize improvements of child care through parental involvement. This will be achieved through responses to various issues related to child care.

The benefit of childcare based on a home set up relative to the day care system

Currently, child care away from home environment is quite common. This is due to one main factor, which is finances. It is economical to have a child taken care of in a day care center than in a home setup. Only a few things are required including the child’s clothing’s and food. However, some of the facilities may offer additional services like education and child development. In most cases, these additional services are optional. However, there are many disadvantages associated with the day care system. In most instances, the child-to-care provider ratio is usually large. Therefore, the child is not given the maximum attention that is necessary (Dickey, Greenberg and Bowden 61). Furthermore, the issue of overcrowding is quite common, and the child can easily get infected. Therefore, the day care system should not be preferred for child care. Instead, the home-based child care system offers the best alternative (Lynn, 66).

Home based child care is beneficial as it provides the child with the environment that is similar to that of their real home. Usually, the environment provided by the home-based child care include a kitchen, living room, and playground amongst others. In short, it is usually a home away from home. In this respect, most of the activities are conducted in a family set up. The child-to-care provider ratio is small. Therefore, each child is awarded maximum attention and child turnover is minimized. In addition, child development is favored since the child undergoes all the initial stages without interference. Therefore, the child does not develop emotional problems when he or she grows up (Gimpel and Holland, 75). In this case, the child is left to grow up in a relatively similar environment, which is good for the child’s development. Furthermore, it is worth to mention that this arrangement allows for active involvement of parents. Additionally, the child can interact with members of the family who are not strangers (Clarke-Stewart and Allhusen, 173).

Another benefit of home based child care is that it is convenient. Furthermore, home based care is best suited for infant care. With respect to experience and training, home-based care providers are acquainted with child care knowledge and have met the state requirements especially for safety. Finally, home based child care providers have a strong connection with various institutions that offer support and training. This enables them to counter and overcome unlikely events that might occur like diseases. Children are prone to diseases due to their weak immune system (Faegre and Anderson, 72).

The intervention from the family and its influence on income

Family intervention in child care is important, and it influences the income of the child’s parents. In this case, the majority of the family member’s like the grandparents, aunts, and uncles would assist in caring for the child freely or charging little amounts, as opposed to home based or center based child care (Dickey, Greenberg and Bowden 9). When the family members are involved in child care, the child is set to benefit a great deal. The child grows within a familiar environment and close to family members. The parents also benefit due to minimal costs involved. The intervention from the family has contributed to an increase in the income. In this case, the interviewee was able to concentrate on work without having to worry about the child. This aspect also reduced the financial burden of taking the child to a center-based care (Lynn 17).

The bitter moment about child care and how to overcome it

Child care is not a smooth undertaking. There are incidences where child care presents a lot of challenges. These challenges are quite prominent in center-based care. To the interviewee, the bitter moment about child care was overcrowding of children in a center based care. This is a common problem experienced in center-based care where those in charge continue to admit children even when the capacity does not allow (Faegre and Anderson 273). This experience hindered the effective provision of child care for the child. In addition, overcrowding is not healthy for the child. In fact, the child was affected by various infections such as flu that were propagated due to overcrowding in the center-based care (Lynn 29). The solution for this problem was to transfer the child from a center-based care and take him to a home-based care. In a home-based care, the child-to-care provider ratio is small. In this case, the child is awarded maximum attention. This enables the child to avoid and overcome unlikely events that might occur like diseases (Faegre and Anderson 279).

The disciplinary measures applied during childhood

Disciplinary measures during childhood can be unique and different from one child to another. During childhood, the interviewee was brought up in a home based care. Here, disciplinary measures were highly influenced by the home environment. Therefore, the home-based care was preferred over the center-based care where discipline is not effective. The home environment is critical in instilling discipline among small children. In this case, the interviewee was taught how to respect, obey, be responsible, caring, and relate to others among many other things (Dickey, Greenberg and Bowden 16). At times, the interviewee was beaten up whenever she did something wrong. However, most of the times she was reprimanded with a harsh tone whenever she was engaged in something wrong. Consequently, she chose to embrace these disciplinary measures and apply them to her child. Thus, she would not subject her child to the poor disciplinary measures associated with center based care.

Complexity about child care

Child care is not a smooth process. It is characterized by various complex issues. However, child development is the most complex thing about child care. Here, the child should undergo all the initial stages without interference. This will be dependent on the care that the child is exposed to and parental involvement. This requires a care provider with the necessary knowledge about child development. The care provider should understand and be supportive towards the child. Given the small ratio of child-to-care provider in the home based care, it stands out as the best option. Thus, the home based care will be a good platform for child development (Dickey, Greenberg and Bowden, 28).

Emergency issues experienced in child care, and how to manage them

As has been previously noted, child care is characterized by numerous challenges. Children are prone to diseases due to their low immunity levels. For this reason, the emergency issue that the interviewee experienced in child care was related to her child getting sick very often. When a child is taken to a care center, there is a risk of the child getting an illness from other children. In a child care center, children mingle with others from different backgrounds (Hornby 12). In this case, when one of the children is affected by a certain illness, it is possible for the other children to be infected. This is especially when the illness is highly contagious. Furthermore, the issue of contracting diseases is exacerbated by overcrowding. This is a problem that is mostly associated with center-based care. In the case of the interviewee, the issue was an infectious disease that was brought up by overcrowding of children in the child care. However, she managed this issue by transferring her child to a home based care, which is not overcrowded. This was a good option given that the child was able to receive the maximum time for care and observation (Hornby 15).

Childhood and current ties with the family

Everyone has a relationship with his or her family, whether good or bad. In some instances, an individual’s relationship with the family changes over time. It can start well and end up worse or vice versa. However, for others, the relationship remains steady from childhood to adulthood. In the case of the interviewee, she has had a good relationship with her family, and this has not changed for a while. Her childhood ties with the family were very strong and still persists up to now. This can be attributed to the fact she grew up in a home based environment where she was close to the family members. In this regard, she embraced the family set up, which has been critical in establishing a strong bond between her and the family members. This has made her a strong advocate of home-based care, which is critical in helping individuals build strong ties with their families (Hornby 27).

Her hobby

The interviewee has a passion for music, and she usually takes music lessons as her hobby. She sings karaoke, and she is involved with the church and community singing groups. Additionally, she teaches children how to sing and dance. She enjoys working with children and teaching them new things. The children’s play, runs, and jokes amuse her. She acknowledged that teaching children songs and dances is a great experience. They are quick to learn and very obedient. She usually sings on special occasions such as family gatherings. In addition, she likes dancing either alone or with partners. Indeed, she has aspirations to enter singing or dancing competitions. She is a member of a theater group that helps in enhancing her singing talent. Truly, she enjoys her hobby, and she has aspirations of advancing it to a much higher level.

Her favorite television show

There are many television programs that attract various audiences. However, among the numerous TV programs, individuals choose few as their most favorite. In the case of the interviewee, the favorite TV show is the American Idol. This is a reality singing competition. She enjoys this show given that amateur singers are given an opportunity to showcase their talents. This show is appealing to many individuals who may be having a talent, but they have not been discovered. Some participants in this show have grown to become great singers. This show has inspired her hobby of singing and dancing. As already mentioned, she has aspirations to enter singing or dancing competitions. Therefore, she is attracted by this program to gauge her potential and gain more skills. She hopes that one day she will participate in this show to fulfill her dreams.

Her most interesting part in working with children

According to the interviewee, she derives pleasure in working with children. She claimed that children are wonderful creatures to work with considering their innocence, unconditional love, joy and satisfaction that they bring. There are many positives that can be derived while working with children. The interviewee noted that her most interesting part was during child play. Thus, she said she derived a lot of pleasure while playing with children. She enjoys seeing children run up and down in a jovial mood while being insensible of the harsh realities of the world. She noted that each child is unique, but they all love to play provided that they are normal. It is the duty of the caregiver to identify the play that each child loves most. Understanding the child is critical to establishing a strong bond between the caregiver and the child.

How she spends her free time

Free time refers to the spare time when an individual has accomplished his or her daily duties. The interviewee has a passion for children’s literature. This is what equips her on how to strike an understanding with the children. She enjoys reading about children. Therefore, during her spare time, she reads books written by experts in child issues. In this regard, she has a collection in her home library where she has stocked it with children literature. According to her, this has equipped her with vast knowledge regarding child care and development. Therefore, she has been able to interact with the children effectively. After reading about the various issues related to child care, she does not have any problems in handling children. In this case, she is proud that she spends her free time in an appropriate and constructive manner.

The perspective of the interviewee’s closest friends about her

It is common for people to form an opinion about others. In this case, friends usually have a certain perspective on their peers. The interviewee maintains close ties with her friends who view her as a friend with benefits. They have established close ties to help one another especially in taking care of their children. This helps to incorporate parent involvement in child care especially home based care where their children would grow within a home environment (Hornby, 56). This way, they respect one another very much. This has brought them close to their children. In fact, she said that her child likes her a lot, and she enjoys spending time with children in general. As friends, she usually hangs up and discusses important things about child care with her peers. They appreciate each other and give advice and assistance to one another. This has helped in cementing their relationship.

Conclusion

For a long time, the society has perceived familial care as the primary child care. The mother is the main caregiver. In instances where the mother is held up or not present, other members of the extended family like the grandparents, aunts, and uncles took control. They would assist in caring for the child freely or charging less. Today, this has been impossible due to commitments involving work and learning. In addition, the work calendar of most mothers has many activities, and working mothers lack enough time to share with their children. Parents rush to get to work, and have little or no time to interact with caregivers about the standards and nature of care for their children. On the other hand, day care centers close at specified times. This also forces parents to rush in order to get their kids before the centers are closed. With center based child care, parent involvement is required. In this case, the care provider is handling the kid from a totally different environment that may influence them differently. Besides, care providers may forget the requirements of each and every child they are handling. Thus, parent intervention will help to highlight such issues and ensure they are handled in the right manner.

Works Cited

Clarke-Stewart, Alison, and Virginia D. Allhusen. What We Know About Childcare. Cambridge (Mass.: Harvard university press, 2005. Print.

Dickey, Susan B, C.S. Greenberg, and V. R. Bowden. Children and Their Families: The Continuum of Care. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2006. Print.

Faegre, Marion E. L, and John E. Anderson. Child Care and Training. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1928. Print.

Gimpel, Gretchen A, and Melissa L. Holland. Emotional and Behavioral Problems of Young Children: Effective Interventions in the Preschool and Kindergarten Years. New York: Guilford Press, 2003. Print.

Hornby, Garry. Improving Parental Involvement. London: Continuum, 2000. Print.

Lynn, Jacquelyn. Start Your Own Child-Care Service: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Success. Irvine, Calif.: Entrepreneur Press/Jere L. Calmes, 2011. Print.

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