The large variety of training centers is critical for children in the early stages of education. The significant advantage of the diversity of platforms where children can learn is the difference in approach that professional educators take to teaching the learner. While at one center, for instance, a child learns about nature in an interactive and fun way, solving a large number of native tasks, at another one, the child can be in an atmosphere of strict academic discipline that encourages compliance with school rules. In sum, the preschooler receives a new, versatile experience that stimulates the child’s harmonious personal and professional development.
Reading Together
Activities: young preschool children gather in a circle and take turns reading excerpts from a pre-prepared book for this age level.
Learning objective: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.K.4 Read emergent-reader texts with purpose and understanding.
Used materials: Evidence-Based Reading by Carson-Dellosa Publishing (“Evidence-based reading, grade K,” 2020); chairs.
Manuals: the teacher offers children to sit in the center of the room, lined up with a circle shape. Then the caregiver tells the preschoolers a short story about what awaits them during the reading: thus, the children will be prepared for the story and more involved in the process. The instructor hands the book to the first child and asks them to read aloud one sentence. As soon as the child did, the book is handed over to the neighbor, who also has to read one sentence. This continues until the book returns to the teacher’s hands. In the end, there is a discussion of the material read, when children share their impressions.
Evaluation: the caregiver listens attentively to how children read the text fragments and takes notes if necessary. For some children, there may be a delay in reading, long pauses, or emotional unpreparedness. That is why the teacher documents all the features so that an individual plan can be developed later.
Important issues
What do you feel after reading?
Was it difficult for you?
How would you change the story?
Rhyming With Cards
Activities: children practice rhyming to a given word coupled with developing teamwork and reading skills aloud.
Learning objective: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.K.2.A Recognize and produce rhyming words.
Used materials: cards with prepared words (40 in total), pen, paper.
Manuals: a group of students is divided into two teams (“A” and “B”), after which each team takes its table in the room. The teacher suggests that the children come up with a name for the team and choose a leader. As soon as the organizing stage is over, the teacher gives the leaders a deck of twenty cards on which the words are written. The first team (“A”) raises the first card and reads the word aloud (for instance, “cat”): the task of the second team (“B”) is to come up with a rhyme for the word (maybe a “hat”). If the second team cannot give a proper rhyme, it does not get the point. After that, the teams change places.
Evaluation: for each rhyme, the team gets 1 point. If the rhyme was unsuccessful, the team gets 0 points. In the end, the total number of points is summed up to determine the team of winners.
Important issues
Was it difficult for you to rhyme?
Why did you decide to choose him/her as a leader?
What is the name of the occupation of people who professionally use rhymes?
Search of Word
Activities: children practice writing words from found letters using a tablet with touchscreen.
Learning objective: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.K.2.E Add or substitute individual sounds (phonemes) in simple, one-syllable words to make new words.
Used materials: tablets (by number of children), paper, pencils.
Manuals: during the lessons, each child is given a tablet with a touchscreen, which shows a white sheet. The teacher tells the students to present themselves as archaeologists making excavations. With the help of their finger, the children must “erase” some parts of the white sheet to find the hidden letters. From the letters found, the child forms a whole word. For instance: milk, mail, sale, type, bird.
Evaluation: the caregiver estimates not only the speed of the task but also the correctness of the word composition. Thus, the student who collected the wrong word first will have less advantage over those who had a delay but collected the word correctly. Moreover, the teacher makes their observations about how the child interact with the tablet and takes notes.
Important issues
What do real archaeologists find?
Were there any difficulties in compiling the word?
What are the feelings of using the tablet for educational purposes?
Research-Based Rationale
The central mission of the designed centers is to create an environment in which students are able to demonstrate maximum involvement in the educational process while simultaneously increasing general competencies and skills development. It is true that preschoolers are the whole age group vulnerable to learning, as they can perceive any information as truth. In order to model more reliable, high-quality educational practices, the activities described can be used to educate children. It must be recognized that the object of each center is linked to the official purposes of kindergarten-level children’s development (“English language arts standards,” 2020). This means that the mission of these activities has multiple confirmations and recommendations.
At the same time, it is essential to discuss the modernity and relevance of the strategies used. In Center C, it is planned to use electronic tablets to solve the task of making up a word from letters. This implementation pursues several aims: (i) to create a more modern environment at the lessons, (ii) to involve the child in the educational process, (iii) to simplify the administrative work of the teacher, (iv) to make the game format of the lessons (“The benefits of technology in the kindergarten classroom,” 2020). Although the use of digital technology is a definite advantage of the Center, education specialists need to be careful since computer equipment can cause undesirable effects in children, namely, addiction, asociality, and economic segregation. In order to inhibit these problems, limited usage of the technology is suggested: about 15 minutes for the whole day when it is needed. Thus, the teacher will be able to reduce the chances of breakage of tablets and create conditions in which children are more attentive and interested in ‘days with electronic devices.’
Communication with parents is a vital pillar of the classes at all three centers. Notes created by the teacher during the lessons can be a source of useful information for communication with the child’s parents: if a pupil does not show any progress for a long time, it is an occasion to discuss perspectives with the adults. Such partnerships positively affect a child’s development and strengthen relationships between all parties to the educational process (Sheridan, 2018). During working hours, the teacher should be available at all times so that the parent can call or text the worker to clarify how their child is doing. Meanwhile, an excellent strategy is to create family days that can be organized by a team of parents and the child together.
References
The benefits of technology in the kindergarten classroom. (2020). Web.
Evidence-based reading, grade K (applying the standards) paperback. (2020). Web.
English language arts standards, reading: Foundational skills, kindergarten. (2020). Web.
Sheridan. S. M. (2018). Establishing healthy parent-teacher relationships for early learning success. Web.
In the education and training system of preschool children, an important place is occupied by play – the leading type of activity of the preschool period, creating the most favorable conditions for the mental and personal development of the child. In the game, preschoolers, unbeknownst to themselves, acquire new knowledge, skills, and abilities, learn to carry out search actions, think and create. With the help of a didactic game, children develop speech: vocabulary is replenished and activated, correct sound pronunciation is formed, and coherent speech develops, so children learn to express their thoughts correctly.
Features of Speech Development of Preschool Children
Preschool age is a unique period of a child’s development, which has a peculiar logic and specificity; it is a unique world with its language, way of thinking, and actions. In the play, one should look for the key to the child’s cognition since this is the closest activity, organically corresponding to the child’s nature and the natural expression of their activity (Brodin & Renblad, 2019). All higher mental functions such as imagination, arbitrariness, imaginative, verbal and logical thinking, motivational and operational components, and spatial representations are formed in a child’s cognition of the surrounding world, including through play.
The children act with objects’ meanings, relying on their material substitutes – toys at the initial stages of the game, and then only on the word – name as a sign of the object, and actions become generalized actions accompanied by speech. When using speech games and exercises in the classroom, well-thought-out and properly organized work leads to the formation of correct and competent speech in preschool children (Brodin & Renblad, 2019). The play develops memory, thinking, attention, speech, independence, and the ability to acquire and apply knowledge independently, and forms curiosity, initiative, and creative imagination.
Didactic Games
Didactic play is a valuable means of educating mental activity; it activates mental processes and causes preschoolers a keen interest in the process of cognition. Many scientists note the critical role of educational games that allow the teacher to expand the practical experience of the children and consolidate his knowledge about the world around them (Gasim Qızı, 2020). Play helps to make any educational material fascinating, causes deep satisfaction in children, stimulates efficiency, and facilitates learning knowledge. Didactic games are a kind of play with rules specially created by adults to teach and educate children (Gasim Qızı, 2020). They aim to solve specific tasks in teaching children but at the same time manifest the educational and developmental influence of play activities.
The widespread use of didactic games in preschool educational institutions is explained by the fact that they must correspond to the strengths and capabilities of preschoolers. Therefore, learning in the form of a game is based on the desire of the child to enter an imaginary situation and act according to its laws. With the help of games, educational tasks are solved to form children’s mental activity skills and use the acquired knowledge in new situations (Gasim Qızı, 2020). In the play conditions, children remember cognitive material better than when they are offered simply to remember. The educational and developing value of teaching as a didactic game lies in its content and focus on solving the problems of moral education, not just speech.
Types of Children’s Games
One of the main tasks is to choose such variants of the game in order to arouse children’s interest in word games. In all classes and regime moments, the teacher must include speech games and entertaining exercises: phonetic, lexical, grammatical, word, and movement games. In order for children to show interest in a game again, it is essential to pay attention to how to finish the game. Travel games are designed to enhance the impression and draw children’s attention to what is nearby. They sharpen observation and make it easier to overcome difficulties. In these games, many ways of revealing cognitive content are combined with gaming activities: setting tasks, explaining ways to solve them, and step-by-step problem-solving.
Games are conversations where the central aspect is the immediacy of experiences, interest, and goodwill. Such a game makes demands on the activation of emotional and mental processes. It brings up the ability to listen to questions and answers, focus on the content, complement what has been said, to express judgments (Turko et al., 2022). Educational material for this type of game should be given in an optimal volume and be accessible and understandable to arouse children’s interest. The use of didactic games in the work of a teacher contributes to the development of children’s speech activity and improves the effectiveness of correctional work.
The Essence of Play
Communication of children with each other and adults during the game is one of the most critical conditions for enriching and activating preschoolers’ vocabulary. Quinn et al. (2018) article is devoted to the study of the dynamics of the development of functions and forms of speech in play activities during preschool age. The author has established that within the framework of the game as the leading activity of a preschooler. Thus, there is an intensive formation of all aspects of speech, including forms and functions of it (Quinn et al., 2018). The study recorded an increase in the speech activity of children in the role-playing game in connection with its development: the higher the level of development of the role-playing game; the more often and in more diverse forms children turn to speech means during the game.
The increase in children’s speech activity is associated with the development of the game activity itself and with the improvement of their experience of speech communication. Results of the experiment conducted by Deborah et al. (2019) have revealed the existence of a two-way relationship between the level of development of play activity and the degree of mastery of children’s speech means. Moreover, a certain measure of mastering speech is necessary to start the game, and its development leads to the play’s improvement. Therefore, an increase in the level of development of gaming behavior stimulates the acquisition of new speech-communication skills (Deborah et al., 2019). It was revealed that the creation of pedagogical conditions for forming a plot-role-playing game in children contributes to the enrichment of vocabulary, the development of the semantic side of speech, and initiative in the use of speech means.
The development of children’s speech is based on their mastery of phonetics, morphology, syntax, and vocabulary in their speech practice. At the same time, the peculiarities of the course of all mental processes, together with the nature of the impact of the environment that surrounds the child, leave an imprint on the development of speech (Quinn et al., 2018). Currently, due to the orientation towards the humanization of education, including preschool, technologies closest to the age characteristics of children and their needs are in demand. According to the research of psychologists, teachers, and physiologists, games meet the biological, spiritual, and social needs of a developing child’s personality since they are a more natural form of children’s life activity (Toub et al., 2018). Purposeful teaching of dialogic speech takes place in specially organized speech situations aimed at developing the skills of composing a dialogue in a speech situation. This is the development of the skills to negotiate during communication, question the interlocutor, enter into someone’s conversation, observe the rules of speech etiquette, express sympathy, convince, and prove a point of view.
Foreign Languages
Many parents, realizing the need to speak foreign languages, instill interest in children from an early age. Responding to the demand, many preschool educational institutions and various development centers today offer their services in this area. The relevance of the problem of teaching a foreign language in a preschool institution is justified by scientific data on the need to maximize the use of the sensitive period in children (Turko et al., 2022). Unique psycholinguistic characteristics characterize the age group under consideration, and it has a good language memory. It allows expanding the active vocabulary actively, intuitively assimilating grammatical phenomena and imitative speech abilities at the phonetic, lexical, grammatical, and stylistic levels (Turko et al., 2022). Psychologists and physiologists consider it natural to introduce early learning of foreign languages, explaining this by children’s natural predisposition to languages and their emotional readiness to master them.
In order to effectively solve this problem, various forms and methods are used in practical work with children to form mental operations, speech activity, and the desire to cognize the surrounding reality. A special place is occupied by the play, which introduces adults to the world, a way of cognition. The ability to rely on gaming activity provides natural motivation for speech in a foreign language, making even the most elementary statements interesting and meaningful (Turko et al., 2022). The more the children immerse themselves in the game atmosphere, following precise rules and improvising on the go, the more successful the training is. In didactic games, children not only develop speech activity, assimilation, and consolidation of lexical and grammatical material take place but also the development of mental processes: thinking, memory, voluntary attention, as well as essential personality qualities such as purposefulness and concentration.
Grammatical Structure of Speech
With normal speech development, the child learns the grammatical structure of speech independently by imitating the speech of adults in the process of communicating with them and in various speech practices. Grammar includes three main closely interrelated and interacting components: morphology, word formation, and syntax. Mastering them occurs gradually but for each child strictly in a particular sequence. The timely formation of the grammatical structure of the child’s language is the primary condition for their full-fledged speech and general mental development. Language and speech perform a leading function in the development of thinking and speech communication, in planning and organizing the child’s activities, in self-organization of behavior, and in the formation of social ties (Toub et al., 2018). They are the primary means of manifestation of the most critical mental processes – memory, perception, and emotions. Mastering the grammatical structure of the language is based on cognitive development, in connection with the development of subject actions, games, work, and other types of children’s activities mediated by the word in communication with adults and children.
The sources and factors of the development of the child’s language and its grammatical structure are diverse, and accordingly, the pedagogical conditions, means, and forms of pedagogical influence are diverse. The didactic game differs from game exercises in that the implementation of rules or guided and controlled game actions depends on the invention of the educator. Thus, any game becomes didactic if there are its main components: a didactic task, rules, and game actions. Therefore, the compiled and balanced range of didactic games allows maximum results at each stage, including developing the child’s speech (Toub et al., 2018). Moreover, children’s vocabulary is being replenished and activated, the grammatical structure of speech is developing, correct sound pronunciation is being formed, connected speech is developing, and the ability to express their thoughts correctly.
Conclusion
For a preschooler, the game is the main activity and a way of processing impressions received from the outside world. It is worth noting that the game is a genuine social practice of children, their real life in the society of peers. Therefore, the problem of using games for the purposes of versatile education and speech development of children is so relevant for preschool pedagogy. Performing the function of learning, the game serves as one of the primary means of developing children’s speech, as it helps to assimilate and consolidate knowledge. Didactic and board-printed games are used to solve all problems of speech development. They consolidate and refine the vocabulary, develop the skills of quickly choosing the most appropriate word, changing and forming words, exercising in composing coherent utterances and developing explanatory speech. Didactic games help to develop the ability to pronounce words correctly, easily learn grammatical norms, and prepare a child for school. A feature of didactic games is mainly used to achieve a narrow specific goal.
References
Brodin, J., & Renblad, K. (2019). Improvement of preschool children’s speech and language skills. Early Child Development and Care, 190(14), 2205–2213.
Deborah, R., Reni, P., & Sandra, A. (2019). Importance of play in the development of language and social skills – a case study on twins. International Journal of Health Sciences & Research, 9(4), 338–342.
Gasim Qızı, A. S. (2020). The role of the didactic games in enhancing cognitive activity at preschool children. Propósitos y Representaciones, 8(2), 1–8.
Quinn, S., Donnelly, S., & Kidd, E. (2018). The relationship between symbolic play and language acquisition: A meta-analytic review. Developmental Review, 49, 121–135.
Toub, T. S., Hassinger-Das, B., Nesbitt, K. T., Ilgaz, H., Weisberg, D. S., Hirsh-Pasek, K., Golinkoff, R. M., Nicolopoulou, A., & Dickinson, D. K. (2018). The language of play: Developing preschool vocabulary through play following shared book-reading. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 45, 1–17.
Turko, O., Olender, T., Boyko, M., Petryshyna, O., & Rozhko-Pavlyshyn, T. (2022). Formation of preschoolers’ communicative competence in the conditions of inclusive education. Journal of Education Culture and Society, 13(1), 239–255.
The early childhood education (ECE) curriculum aims to theoretically and practically prepare students for careers working with young children. The educators will stay current on the many effective ECE programs for the children at a daycare facility. Teachers at the facility engage students in virtual environments to ensure they learn as much as possible. The facility is outfitted with modern furniture that is adequate for the learner and furnishings that ensure a relaxing environment suitable for young children. As a result, the facility provides a secure learning environment for all children aged three to five years.
Developing and implementing a high-quality early childhood program is critical to the daycare center’s success and the children and families who attend the facility. The quality of the facility’s early childhood education programs can be judged by how closely they adhere to established guidelines for teaching young children. These recommendations are centered on a child’s overall development, relationships, and physical and mental health. They will ensure that the learner in the program grows up in a safe, healthy environment that will prepare them for future success. Some parents may be concerned about their children’s academic, social, or emotional performance in school. Such concerns are addressed at the daycare center because the environment ensures that the learner’s interests, as well as those of their parents and caregivers, are well taken into account.
Regardless of where the daycare facility is located, the health and development of the children who attend it are of the utmost importance. The facility’s high-quality programs for children under five prioritize the learners’ development and safety. Implementing strategies that promote children’s physical well-being and mental, emotional, linguistic, and linguistic development is critical. As a result, the facility has a child-related display and plenty of space for gross motor play. The facility has prioritized motor skill development among young learners by providing toys, puzzles, manipulatives, and small building toys. As a result, the facility’s program is committed to consistent monitoring and stringent regulatory standards to improve the appropriate amount of priority given to the children.
When selecting an excellent daycare facility, it is essential to find one that supports early care and education professionals. Everyone who works with children younger than eight years regularly belongs in this category. In order to create a functional ECE curriculum, this workforce is vital (Gardner et al. 108). The facility has better early childhood education preparation programs that are well-designed and comprehensive. The learners are engaged in rigorous and relevant activities necessary for their development. The educators at the facility are provided with coaching, consultation, and mentoring as they integrate new information into their daily work. It is due to this reason that makes the facility is a better choice in comparison to other facilities that offer the same service of educating children below five years.
Finally, choosing the daycare facility guarantees sustained high-quality education to the learners. The expanded ECE system at the canter bolsters the availability of excellent childcare and preschool programs. As part of this effort, families will have better access to resources that will allow them to support better their children’s development. The success of the daycare is a result of the cooperation of its components and commitment. Parents and guardians are therefore encouraged to consider the daycare center since it aims to help children realize their most significant potential.
CareMax children’s center is a limited liability company (LLC) located in Hazel Green, Alabama, and operated by the George Williamson family. CareMax has largely concentrated its activities in the provision of daycare services for the Hazel Green community of an estimated 4,200 residents and 1,340 households as of July 2007 (City-Data.Com, 2010).
The center was carefully designed and developed after the realization that professional childcare is a necessity in every civilization, from small towns to large cities. From its inception, the center has been received warmly by the community especially due to its multifaceted nature and capacity to offer timely, flexible, and individualized day care services to the minors in different age categories.
CareMax Center officially opened for business in 2003, with a license to provide daycare services for thirty-five children. Presently, CareMax is licensed for seventy children aged six weeks to six years. 62 children are currently enrolled at the center, representing 88.6 percent enrollment level.
The center appreciates the fact that children need to be treated with warmth and respect. Its mission statement is to provide high quality childcare services with a bias on developmentally appropriate activities for the minors under our care. The key rudiments of CareMax’s business concern are as follows:
Diversified services — the center has increasingly diversified its services to maintain competitive advantage while ensuring that parents of children with specialized needs benefit from our exceptional services.
Convenient location — the center is located at the heart of Hazel Green community, and is easily accessible from all directions. Its magnificent buildings and stupendous age-appropriate play stations reveals the center’s dedication to the wellbeing and comfort of children, and also serves to instill a permanent unique image on the mindsets of parents about the center’s capacity to offer splendid services and care to their children
Investment in employees — Given the labor-intensive nature prevalent in the industry, CareMax has invested heavily in the number and quality of its employees to keep in line with its tradition and mission of offering high quality childcare with a view of assisting the child attain the fullest potential during the formative years of development. The center has 10 full-time members of staff and 2 CPR certified supervisors. CareMax has also engaged the services of a nursing officer to cater for the health needs of children under our care. All our staff members have contributed individually and collectively to the success of CareMax.
Quality services — CareMax is extremely aware that parents are increasingly relying on independent rating services or recommendations from friends about the quality of services offered by daycare operators (Lownes-Jackson, 2004). As such, the center has invested heavily in developing superior capacity to ensure daycare services are delivered in a highly efficient environment that ensure core values and procedures are stringently followed by caregivers in the process of satisfying customers’ needs. Quality services have enabled the center to retain its competitive advantage as the preferred daycare services provider in the wider Hazel Green’s area, Alabama.
Strong financial muscle — CareMax has been able to maintain a strong financial might despite low levels in the industry occasioned by high operating costs. This has been primarily achieved by maintaining steady growth through aggressive advertisement and the admirable reputation the center has been able to create for itself. The strong financial background has enabled the center to continue offering quality services to preschoolers despite the high overhead costs.
Customers
The George Williamson family first initiated the child development center with a view of giving quality childcare to low-income families living within Hazel Green’s community, Alabama. The racial makeup within the community is predominantly white, with blacks accounting for less than 3 percent of the population in the area (City-Data.Com, 2010).
The original mission was to offer children from low-income families a stable, inspiring, and loving environment during their formative years of development. The perception that lower income parents could not afford to pay for quality childcare while they worked greatly influenced the philosophy and value system under which the center operated during its early years.
CareMax center has greatly evolved in its customer portfolio to serve all kinds of working parents with preschool children. However, the center still retains special fees structure for low-income families that may require its services. This has served to endear the center to the community, making it to become part-and-parcel of Hazel Green’s community.
Its major customers include parents working in organizations, hospitals, local and regional schools, government agencies, and other service-oriented firms. Some of the needs these customers have in requesting the services of the center include:
Need to continue working while still nurturing a preschool child — statistics reveal that 65 percent of all mothers in the US with children under the age of five years are actively engaged in the workforce. These children require specialized services and attention, and CareMax center offers both.
Security concerns — some parents are apprehensive about leaving their children under the care of nannies and relatives. At CareMax, the security of children is of paramount importance, and no incidence of inappropriate handling has been reported to the authorities for the eight years the facility has been in operation.
Individual development of children — parents need their children to encounter experiences that will advance their physical, social, emotional, spiritual and cognitive development. Not only does the environment at CareMax guarantees all the above, but it also promotes independence, enhanced self-esteem, constructive problem solving, and positive feelings of self-worth among the preschoolers.
Products
CareMax center mainly concerns itself with offering products in terms of providing daycare services for children in the wider Hazel Green’s region, Alabama. The center offers unique and diversified services to children in three broad age categories, namely 6 weeks to 1 year; 1 year to 3 years; and 3 years to 6 years.
The services offered at CareMax includes not only the particular services presented for sale to parents with preschool children, but also the reputation, image, and other innovative services offered by the institution such as puzzle and coloring areas (Lownes-Jackson, 2004).
The main services of catering for the children’s individual development are tailored to meet the specific requirements of each age category and any other specialized requirements that may be dictated by the parents or guardians of children with special needs. The center provides entertainment and quality food to the children while they are in attendance. In addition to its core function of offering quality childcare, the center offers the following services to reinforce its earnings:
Transportation services to and from the center for the children
Specialized pre-arranged elderly care
Operates an elementary school
Pre-college counseling through its College Mentorship Programme
Matching the Products with the needs of Customers
CareMax center exercises an open-door business policy whereby all parents and guardians with children at the school are invited after every two months to give their views on how childcare should be offered.
Little children have very specialized needs, and thus the center benefits immensely from the frequent interactions between the parents and the administration, not mentioning the fact that such meetings offer a platform for the parents to expressively state their needs, and for the management to act decisively in developing products that will match up to the stated needs.
Such an interaction has greatly assisted the child development center to remain ever conscious of the ever changing business environment. The center is always prepared to alter its operations and change direction when the needs of its major clients – the parents – demands so.
Product Development
The center takes cognizance of the fact that it must continually develop new products and services if it is to remain relevant in modern-day competitive environment (Lownes-Jackson, 2004).
Towards this objective, the parents are involved in the development of new services for their children, and are adequately informed about the advantages and disadvantages of the new services in terms of assisting the children to develop healthily in all critical facets of life. CareMax takes extraordinary measures to ensure that new services are safe and of relevance to the children’s learning capabilities according to regulations stated by the authorities.
CareMax center is particularly keen to involve parents in the process of concept development since they form the center’s target market. The center is always keen to incorporate productive views presented by the parents and guardians especially in the features to be incorporated in the service (Ulrich & Eppinger, 1999).
This way, the new service is able to benefit the children in a more productive manner. In equal measure, the new product or service is expected to affect the parents in terms of pricing. The child development center therefore feels obliged to consult them so that their views and worries may be taken into account.
Pricing
CareMax children’s center realizes that the prices charged to its major clients, the parents, directly affect the performance and success of the institution (Entrepreneur Media, 2010).
As such, the center is at the forefront in attempting to maintain a pricing policy that is fair and commensurate to the services offered while ensuring that major operations, processes, and profitability of the enterprise are not put into jeopardy. The center constantly reviews the prices offered, adjusting them appropriately to satisfy the target market. This equilibrium in the business context is realized through the employment of the following procedures:
Pricing Strategy
CareMax center employs penetration pricing strategy to market its services to its customers. When new services are developed at the center, the introductory prices are always offered at a lower price than what is offered by other industry players for the same or similar service to attract more customers while allowing the existing customers to enjoy the entire promotional package (Lownes-Jackson, 2004). The prices may be adjusted later to reflect actual market trends.
It is within the mandate of the management of CareMax center to determine the specific prices for each of the products and services on offer. To determine the prices, the center always employs the following principles:
All prices must have the capacity to cover costs and profits
The most efficient way to lower prices is to lower operational costs
Prices of products and services must be reviewed regularly to ensure they offer a true reflection of the dynamics of cost, competition, target market demand and profit objectives (Entrepreneur Media, 2010).
After objective considerations are made regarding the above factors, the child development center utilizes both competitive and markup pricing strategies for purposes of offering authentic pricing schedule, which is both age and needs specific. Competitive pricing is basically used to charge general accommodation charges for the children in line with the current prices at the market (Entrepreneur Media, 2010).
For example, last year, the center was charging $25 per hour for taking care of toddlers from 6 weeks old to 1 year. A market research initiated by the center for purposes of price appraisal revealed that all the other centers in Hazel Green were charging the same. As such, the center could not raise its fees.
CareMax center utilizes markup pricing strategy to price some of its value-added services. The center calculates its markup price by adding a set amount of money to the cost of the service. For example, the center offers specialized meals to children depending on the ability of parents to pay for the specialized services.
When charging for the special meals, the center adds a fixed amount of money to the actual cost of the meals to be charged to customers as the official price of the meals (Entrepreneur Media, 2010). In general, however, the center always reviews its prices:
When a new service is introduced in the market
When costs of operation changes
When competitors adjust their prices
When the state of economy experience either slump or inflation
Price position
At CareMax center, we greatly take cognizance of the fact that market demands and issues of supply and demand of our services institute real pressure on how we position our prices. As a small business, the center very much rely on issues of profitability, market value of services offered, and competitions to position prices according to the requirements of its target customers (Brand Positioning – price, 2006). Some of the objectives evaluated by the center while making decision on price position include:
CareMax center is always keen to maintain a perfect equilibrium between the price ceiling and the price floor of its major services to keep its customers under lock-and-key while at the same time guaranteeing the competitive advantage of the center. The equilibrium is achieved by undertaking extensive market research to shed light on industry patterns and current prices offered by competitors for similar services.
The center is vehemently aware that the demand of its services will decline if the price position stupendously moves towards the price ceiling (Diamantopoulos, 2003). At the same time, the center may fail to realize enough profits to boost its operations if the price balance plummets towards the price floor. As such, a perfect balance must be maintained to safeguard the interests of both the parents and the center. The figure below reveals a five-year average price position for toddlers under one year old.
Price Sensitivity
CareMax center is not often affected by issues relating to price sensitivity since its primary concern is the provision of affordable quality care to children in relatively dissimilar age categories.
The prices are flexible depending on the parent’s ability to pay, and in line with the center’s traditional philosophy of catering for low-income bracket in the community. In this perspective, while price is viewed as an important factor by parents in making decisions on whether to use its services, the center has resoundingly responded by making the prices and modes of payment as flexible as possible.
In this industry, parents have diverse reservation prices they are prepared to pay for services rendered (Diamantopoulos 2003). However, the center is purposing to standardize prices in the long-term to match particular age categories, leaving the flexibility clause to parents that are in need of services but are unable to pay using current market rates due to their social economic standing.
Place/Distribution
For a business offering childcare services such as CareMax, location is a major factor in any place considerations (Lownes-Jackson, 2004). CareMax center is located at the heart of Hazel Green Community, and is easily accessible any time of the day from all directions. Parents from the surrounding suburbs can easily access the facility for convenience, while a perimeter fence has been elected to ensure the safety of children.
Further, the center was purposely built in its present location, which is away from major traffic routes, to ensure the safety of children. This way, the parents, while undertaking the daily work-related activities, can be assured that their children are in one of the safest locations in Hazel Green.
The playing areas are magnificently designed, and buildings uniquely decorated with pictures of animals, plants, and maps that not only serve as major attractions for children, but also assist in the general learning process.
In addition, these designs leaves a permanent image on the minds of its target market – parents and guardians – that CareMax is indeed the place where their children can be assisted to gain maximum potential in this very critical phase of development. The location and design strategies are working perfectly well, and no major changes are intended in the near future.
Promotion
The child development center is fully aware that to break even in this industry, it has to continue persuading the parents, its target market, about existing and new services on offer for their children. Towards the realization of this noteworthy objective, CareMax utilizes both direct and indirect methods of promotion (Lownes-Jackson, 2004). In direct promotion, the center utilizes the following:
Advertising
Publicity
Special events sales in thank giving days and open days.
The company also utilizes the following strategies in its indirect promotion programs:
Public relations
Customer relations
Customer/client services
Service packaging
Advertising
The center takes cognizance of the fact that advertising is particularly important if the promotional strategies are to achieve their intended objective – that of attracting new customers while ensuring that existing clients are not poached by competitors (Lownes-Jackson, 2004). New and exiting customers must be made aware of new services whenever they hit the market. In this perspective, CareMax center utilizes the following advertising mediums:
Local newspaper
Local and regional magazines
Community radio
Fliers and brochures
Specialty items such as calendars
Market Research
From time to time, CareMax center undertakes market research with a view of evaluating and identifying key areas that need adjustments, specifically in marketing of services, target markets, and competitions (Lownes-Jackson, 2004). This information is fundamentally important as it assists the managements to identify:
Groups to be included in the target market
Demographic characteristics of new and potential clients
Customer spending habits
Presently, the center is undertaking a primary market research to ascertain the reception and viability of a service package introduced last summer. The package, known as ‘the CareMax All Rounder’ was intended to make the parents pay for all the services rendered at a premium instead of paying differently as if there are two centers offering different services under one name. The package has not been received warmly by the parents, and the telephone survey has been instituted to establish the reasons why this is so.
Conclusion
The future of CareMax looks bright if recent projections and market trends are anything to go by. The child development center has been able to create a brand name that is synonymous to the quality and flexibility of services offered.
The heavy investments made by the institution in terms of staff members, children’s learning and playing areas, diversification of services to include transportation of the minors to and from school, and assiduous and conscientious management of the center has gone a long way in winning the hearts of many parents and guardians of children within Hazel Green’s community, Alabama.
The center has remained profitable despite huge overhead costs associated with the industry. Undeniably, catering for young children is a labor-intensive undertaking; but the center has continued raking considerable profits due to sound management principles. At CareMax center, we always shine…and shine above the rest.
The purpose of this memo is to present findings related to the financial feasibility of this project based on the financial information provided by the organization. The aim of this analysis is to use Cost-Volume-Profit (CVP) tool for determining the impact of the change in the number of students on the organization’s operating profit. The analysis is also supported by a descriptive review of the information provided by the organization regarding the project. The key areas of concern that could influence the organization’ ability to achieve self-sufficiency for this project are also highlighted. Furthermore, the memo provides certain recommendations regarding the costs involved in the project and ways that could help the company to improve its break-even level.
Project Benefits
Alta Vista Day Care Center Project by Volunteers of America (VOA) has utmost significance in the community building as it adds new dimensions to the improvement of human life. It will address problems of a low-income residential community of Alta Vista Gardens. The project requires careful planning and effective strategies that could help it become self-sufficient and financially stable to continue its operations in the long run.
Project Challenges and Uncertainties
The company faces uncertainties regarding the number of students enrolling at the center and costs that it has to incur even with no registration. These uncertainties can be addressed by analyzing the financial information including forecasted revenues, variable costs, and fixed costs for different level of activity that is measured by the number of students expected by the organization to enroll at Alta Vista Day Care Center.
CVP Analysis and Assessment
It should be understood that fixed costs do not change with the variation in the number of children. Therefore, it is not possible for the organization to reduce these costs by increasing the level of activity. On the other hand, variable costs change as the number of children enrolled at the center affects them. The organization has a control over variable costs, and it can manage them to reduce the total costs of the project. However, the cost structure needs to be evaluated on the basis of the financial information provided by the organization. The proportion of fixed costs and variables costs affect the organization’s capability to reduce and manage its costs effectively.
The organization’s operating profit is calculated after deducting all costs from its revenue. The organization is seeking ways to generate sufficient revenue to cover its costs and remain profitable. Therefore, it would be useful to carry out an analysis of cost, volume, and profit of the organization. The break even level is calculated by using the following formula.
The contribution margin is calculated by deducting variable costs from the organization’s revenue. The weighted contribution margin is calculated by dividing the contribution margin by the number of children. The break-even level is determined as the number of students that the center needs to get enrolled to cover its fixed costs. The break-level approach is part of CVP analysis that has been performed to investigate the relationship between cost, volume, and profit.
The analysis uses CVP tool to identify and evaluate the sensitiveness of the financial performance of Alta Vista Day Care Center. The sensitivity of the projected financial performance is subject to the number of children who are expected to attend each month. CVP allows a situational analysis based on the values of determinants considered for the analysis. In this case, it is the number of children to be registered by VOA.
The financial information attached to this memo indicates four different situations that vary according to the number of children. The total number of students considered is 20, 25, 30, and 37 in different levels of activity. The information clearly indicates that the organization has a low margin of safety. The reason is that the organization may not a large number of children enrolled at the center, and a reduction in the number of children could severely affect its ability to reach the break-even level.
The analysis of costs indicates that the majority of costs are not fixed, and they do not change with changes in the level of activity. The variable costs include educational supplies, recreational supplies, housekeeping supplies, and administrative expense that vary according to the number of children.
The review highlights that there are few variables costs that are not considered in the preparation of financial projections. These may include sales and marketing expenses. The center will incur marketing expenses to promote and communicate with parents and other local bodies regarding its services.
The major concern is that Alta Vista Day Care Center will incur an operating loss if there are 20 25, or 30 students enrolled at the center. It will only generate an operating profit of $111 when there would be 35 students at the center. The results suggest that the organization will break even at the lowest level of activity with 22 students.
The break-even level increases with the increase in the number of students. At 25-students level, the break-even point is 29 students, at 30-students level, it is 33 students, and at the highest level of activity, it is 36 students. It implies that the organization needs to control its variable costs that show an increasing trend. The analysis points out that the organization will incur loss unless it reaches the highest level of activity.
Another source of concern is that the fixed costs of operations are very high, and it is not possible to cover these costs with a low number of students at the center. There are fewer opportunities for the organization to attain the break-even level. The examination of fixed costs indicates that the largest proportion of fixed costs constitutes of the salaries of administrative and operating employees. These costs cannot be avoided as the organization needs to have a minimum staff to ensure that all activities of the center can take place when they are required.
Furthermore, there are various other administrative costs that the organization will incur. The aggregate amount of these costs is significant and fixed. The objective of the organization to have financial self-sufficiency is not achievable with its fixed costs. The organization needs to obtain additional funds to cover its costs initially.
The center can access alternative sources of funds such as local businesses, grantors, financial support groups, and other community organizations to raise additional capital. The management can also request these entities to support the center on a continuous basis to meet its operational fund requirement. The role of VOA is also important in this respect. It has to ensure that the center manages the uncertainties effectively and has access to external funding whenever it is needed.
The analysis also indicates that the management expects children of age groups 2-3-year-olds and 4-5-year-olds to be largely enrolled at Alta Vista Day Care Center. The lowest number expected by the management is of children belonging to the age group of five-year-olds. Moreover, it is observed the number of five-year-olds remains constant at each level of activity. It could be drawn from the financial information that the organization could generate more revenue by targeting children of this age group. The organization should take specific measures to communicate with the parents of five-year-olds and convince them to have their children enrolled at the center. It would increase the organization’s revenue and assist it to attain break even at a low level of activity.
The management must realize that if the center has a high proportion of children from the age group of five-year-olds as compared to the other two groups, then it may not achieve the break-even level. The reason is the low-price charged to parents of 5-year-olds. The center must improve its approach to reach 2-3-year-olds and 4-5-year-olds groups to increase the number of children enrolled at the center. Moreover, the organization should work on ensuring maximum attendance of students to achieve the highest level of activity.
The analysis performed uses an alternative approach to determining the break-even level. It has been observed that administrative expenses are estimated to be 14% of the total revenue. It is a substantial amount included in the variable costs that has a direct impact on its contribution margin. However, the management needs to understand that administrative expenses can be eliminated if the VOA office offers free registration in the first year. The mission statement of VOA supports the decision as it aims to help individuals realize their potential. Therefore, it would be useful to determine the break-even level by excluding these costs. If administrative expenses are excluded from variable costs, then it could be noted that the contribution margin is higher than the previous estimation. The break-even level for each level of activity can be achieved with less number of students. The break-even level corresponds with the number of children considered at each level of activity.
Recommendations
It could be predicted that Alta Vista Day Care Center Project could play an important role in the community service. It will be a success as there is a lot of demand for human service by community members. The board of Alta Vista Day Care Center Project needs to build strategies to form close relationships with members of the Alta Vista community to ensure that it could maximize the number of children enrolled at the center. Furthermore, the center should develop strategies that would ensure attendance of students. The center has to provide high-quality services to build its reputation in the community. The management needs to understand that it can attract parents by addressing their concerns. Therefore, the center should develop strong, informative communication channels to communicate with parents. Moreover, it is noted that the center may not be able to generate an operating loss in the beginning. The center needs to establish a line of credit or funds to meet its fund requirement. It could be stated that if the center considers these recommendations and take initiatives to support high enrollment of children, then it can achieve self-sufficiency and continue to operate successfully in the long-term.