| 42Parenthése |

La voix des parents de Colombie-Britannique

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Parents, Get Ready,
Get Set, Go...to Child Care!

Everything's ready for your
rs child's first day at daycare:
lunch, diapers, a change of
clothes, the favourite blankie, the mil-
lions of forms detailing who, where, and
how to contact someone in an emer-
gency. The only thing left to prepare
— and it’s not on your list - is You, the
parent...

These days, a growing number of
families have two working parents. They
therefore face the major challenge of
finding quality daycare for their chil-
dren. Here, then, are a few resources
and practical tips to help make your
task easier.

Prepare yourself well in advance

The idea of arriving at your neigh-
bourhood daycare with your positive
pregnancy test in hand may seem a
bit ridiculous; but it does demonsirate
the importance of starting as soon as
possible. In fact, at many facilities, you
have to register your child on a waiting

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list many months in advance.

Before you even start your search
for childcare, it’s a good idea to ask
yourself about your parenting values.
Do you favour play-based learning or
a more structured environment? Do
you prefer a family setting or a group
environment with more children of like
age under one roof? Are you prepared
to enrol your child in childcare facility
that requires participation from par-
ents? By taking time to determine what
is important to you, you will have a bet-
ter chance of finding childcare that
suits your needs and values.

Get information!

A good place to begin your re-
search is your local branch of Child
Care Resources and Referral. — This
provincial English-language agency
is mandated to facilitate the family’s
access to childcare services and has
170 offices across the province. There,
you will find a list of childcare services
in your community. You will also find
information about the various types of
existing services and their particular af-
tributes. The FPFCB also has a directory
of French-language childcare services
across the province. For this list, visit our
website, www.fpfcb.bc.ca (Ressources
link).

You can also conduct informal re-
search by talking to other families of
young children. The arrival of a child
often pique’s the interest of people
we barely know, but who never hesi-
tate to offer a wealih of unsolicited

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to Selecting

Child Care

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advice. This is an ideal opportunity to
learn more. Don't hesitate to ask lots of
questions!

Selection

Once you are ready fo select a
service, an excellent resource is the
Parent's guide fo selecting child care,
published in English by the Ministry of
Children and Family Development at
www.gov.bc.ca/mcf/ . Among other
things, the guide lists important ques-
tions to ask during initial contact with
the service. The guide also outlines the
basic elements to look for during your
first visit to the daycare.

By taking advantage of these re-
sources and tips, you will increase your
chances of a positive first experience
with childcare. After all, when you
spend nine months dreaming about
the child that will be born, then spend-
ing countless sleepless nights and tak-
ing every opportunity fo get to know
him or her, it goes without saying that
first day of childcare, letting go for the
first time, is an important step in a par-

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