A Child Care Primer For Parents

Why Families Need Quality Child Care
The last 30 years have seen major changes in work and family life. The most striking trend has been the increase in the number of married mothers of young children who are working in full- or part-time jobs. According to Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data, in 1993, 63 percent of children under 18 had either both parents or an only parent in the labor force. In some two-parent families, parents arrange their work schedules so that one of them is at home while the other is working. All other families rely on relatives, friends, and child care programs to provide a safe place and a stimulating environment for their children while parents are at work or in school. Parents also enroll their children in child care programs so children can get the social skills and early childhood education they need to grow, learn, and be ready for kindergarten. One out of every three mothers of preschool age children who is not in the labor force uses center-based care.
How To Begin The Search For Child Care
Talk to relatives, friends, neighbors, and colleagues at work about their own child care arrangements and experiences. What kind of child care do they use? Who are the best providers in the community? What do they like about the choices they have made? What problems have they had and how did they solve them? You can also get information from child care resource and referral agencies (CCR&Rs) in your community. These organizations can tell you about programs located near your home or office, help you determine which type of care will best suit your needs, and tell you which centers or family child care homes have space available. To find a CCR&R in your area, call the Child Care Aware Information Line: 1-800-424-2246. This free service is sponsored by the Dayton Hudson Family of Stores (Mervyn's, Target, Dayton's, Hudson's and Marshall Field's) and four national non-profit organizations: the Child Care Action Campaign (CCAC), the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), the National Association for Family Child Care (NAFCC), and the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies (NACCRRA). It is operated by NACCRRA.
How To Choose Good Child Care
No matter what type of child care you consider, look for these three basic ingredients of quality: a safe, protective environment; the opportunity for your child to form stable relationships with caring adults and other children; and adequate stimulation that is appropriate to your child's age. Once you have identified several child care alternatives, visit each program, observe it carefully, and talk to the adults who will provide care. Do they like their work? Do they have special training that helps them understand child development? Do they plan activities every day? Is the program licensed? According to a recent study of family child care by the Families and Work Institute, providers who answer "yes" to these questions are most likely to give your child the loving attention needed to thrive. Providers you meet should invite you to drop in at the child care program at any time and encourage you to take part in activities and decisions about the program. Head Start, the nation's popular and successful early childhood program, attributes much of its success to parental involvement. Plan to visit several programs before making a choice. Quality varies greatly. When you visit each program, take enough time to observe it carefully. Take a child care checklist with you and use it to guide your observations and questions. (For a free copy of the CCAC Information Guide, Finding Good Child Care: The Essential Questions to Ask When Seeking Quality Care for Your Child, write to: CCAC, 330 Seventh Ave., New York, N.Y. 10001.)
Safety and Health Issues
Child care settings should be safe, and designed to encourage children to engage in different activities, both alone and with other children. Look for fences around outside play areas and wellconstructed playground equipment on a forgiving surface. Dangerous and toxic substances should be locked out of children's reach and electrical outlets and radiators should be covered. Hand washing is the most important line of defense against the spread of infectious disease. Children and adults should wash their hands before eating, after touching their mouths and noses and after toileting. In addition, staff should wash before feeding, handling food, diapering, and washing surfaces. The identity of the parent or guardian responsible for picking up the child should be well-established with the caregiver or provider.
Look at Child Care from a Child's Perspective
Look at the program from the perspective of your child. Is it bright and cheerful? Are there plenty of toys, games, and arts-and-crafts materials? Are they easy to see and reach? Are the children you see absorbed in what they are doing? Listen for the sounds of children talking and playing. Do they sound happy? Are adults talking to children respectfully, encouraging them to ask questions and express their thoughts and feelings? Are adults speaking to children in their native language? Are providers holding, talking, and singing to infants? Are they getting down on the floor to play with toddlers and preschoolers? Are they helping schoolage children develop skills, talents, and creativity? Avoid programs where children run to any adult who enters the room or wander aimlessly from one place to another.
Ratios and Group Size
Count the number of adults and children you observe. In general, the more adults there are, the more likely it is that your child will receive individual attention and adequate supervision at all times. For each adult there should be no more than the following number of children:
3-4 infants or toddlers
4-6 two-year-olds
7-8 three-year-olds
8-9 four-year-olds
8-10 five-year-olds
10-12 school age children
As a good rule of thumb, the best group size is no more than two times the ratio indicated above for any age group. For example, there should be no more than eight in a group of infants, and no more than 20 in a group of five-year-olds.
Training
Training is as important for child care providers as for public school teachers to give them skills to help your child grow and develop. However, there are no consistent standards for training, and child care workers' experience and education vary widely. Qualified staff may have college degrees in early childhood education or a Child Development Associate credential. The child care center may provide inservice education to staff. Family child care providers may be active in a local association that provides continuing education. Confirm what you learn about the training of providers by observation. Watch staff interact with children in their care. Look for evidence of caring, responsiveness, and good planning.
Licensing and Accreditation
Licensing requirements vary widely across the country. In fact, states often use "licensing," "registration," and "certification" interchangeably. Each state sets its own standards, both for family child care and for child care centers. The program you choose should comply with your state rules. Contact your state day care licensing office for a copy of its regulations. The most important thing to know is that licensing is no guarantee of quality. You as a parent must be a vigilant consumer. In addition, some professional organizations, notably NAEYC and NAFCC, accredit programs that meet high standards of quality. Lists of accredited child care providers are available from these two organizations.
Communicating with your Child Care Provider
After you have selected a child care program, your job is not over. A key component of quality is good communication between parent and provider, so you need to remain involved. Talk regularly with your provider about activities, your child's development and behavior, and any concerns either you or your provider may have. Drop in on the program at different times during the day to assess how things are going.
Paying for Child Care
One great paradox of child care is that the majority of parents find fees high but child care workers are among the lowest paid professionals in the country. Parents pay an average of $63 per week (National Child Care Survey, 1990) and child care payments typically are the third highest household expenditure. Child care workers earn an average of $5.08 an hour (National Child Care Staffing Study Revisited, 1993). Several types of programs exist to assist parents in paying for child care:
Employer Programs and Benefits
More and more employers are helping their employees find and pay for child care. They do this by:
Instituting flexible work schedules and personnel policies;
Providing vouchers or setting up dependent care assistance plans (DCAP):
Offering CCR&R services;
Providing access to drop-in emergency centers; and
Providing onsite (or near-site) child care.
Check with your employer's personnel office or human resources department to see what your employer may offer. Both small and large employers may provide these benefits. To learn more about the kinds of assistance employers can offer, CCAC has materials available free of charge or at a nominal fee. CCAC's publication Not Too Small to Care: Small Businesses and Child Care, describes child care offered by a sample of small employers. Four CCAC Information Guides are also useful: Speaking with Your Employer About Child Care Assistance; Employer Supported Child Care: Current Options and Trends; Examples of Corporate Involvement; and Examples of Union Involvement. Call CCAC Publications to order at 212-239-0138.
Child Care Subsidies
There are various sources of federal and state subsidies to help parents pay part of the cost of child care. Eligibility is based on family income, reasons for needing child care, and your child's age (generally under age 13). The local CCR&R should know whom to call to learn if assistance is available to you.
Tax Credits and Refunds
You can obtain a credit for a portion of your child care expenses by using the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit (CDCTC). The credit can reduce your federal, and in some cases state, income taxes and you are eligible for it regardless of your income level. For some low-income families, the Earned Income Credit (EIC) is also available and may involve a refund, even if you don't owe taxes. You must file a tax return in order to get the credit. If you have questions about the EIC, call either the National Women's Law Center at 202-328-5160 or the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities at 202-408-1080. You can also contact the Internal Revenue Service using the toll-free number: 1-800-829-3676.
What Families Can Do to Make Quality Child Care a Reality for All American Families?
Parents often report that the child care choices available are inadequate. Twenty-six percent of all parents would choose another form of child care if it were available to them, according to the National Child Care Survey of 1990. Because so many parents face the same problems, child care is no longer a strictly private matter; it is an urgent public concern. Parents, therefore, have a special role to play in ensuring that early care and education become a high priority on the national agenda. You can make your voice heard in the emerging national debates over policies that will strengthen families and enable children to grow and thrive.

Building a solid early childhood foundation is critical to achieve four of America's most pressing domestic goals:
School readiness and healthy child development
Workforce competitiveness and productivity
Ending welfare as we know it
Eliminating child poverty