Your Day Care Choice May Have an Impact on Your Child's Later Success in School

Not menaing to offend those parents who work - I do think it is more often possible for a parent to stay at home and raise a kid until it starts school if - 1) the parents PLAN and save a little BEFORE getting pregnant 2) the parents are willing to give up a few things for the sake of having one parent stay at home ( things like - a 2nd car, cable/sattelite/internet/ fancy cell phone service/eating out etc.) I know there are still families where both HAVE to work, or, in the case of single parents, there is no alternative to daycare, but OFTEN it IS possible IF the parents are willing to plan and sacrifice for a few yrs. K

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OK Fred....I work mostly for educators. I feel so lucky that my parents are team players with me because it IS a joint job. I'm glad that your children are good citizens, but I would like to point our that mine are, too. My childcare children. We do a lot for the community and we are a group of caring learners.

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It is possible to raise your kids yourself! Financially it sucks and its not fun, but it is well worth the sacrifice! I'm a single mom, I work PT and i have my son in private school. I make under 30k a year and live in California! and not in a bad part of the state or town either. I have the time to volunteer at his school and in boy scouts and in sports. I take him 2school & pick him up, no daycare. Could I live more comfortably? definitely! I live paycheck to paycheck, i have an apartment, dont own a home, dont eat out much, no pets, i dont spend much on myself, i wear nice clothes, but i take the time to go through thrift stores, hand me downs, and discount stores to find them. I shop at 99cent stores, i use coupons, i use deals/sales and freebies, im as frugal as they come! but it is well worth the sacrifice to know that im there all the time and he loves it. His smile and joy is well worth it. A couple times things got tough but i managed, i had to do Angel for food and even food banks. Go to the library a lot and maximize trips 2sae gas. He has no idea how tight things are cuz we always do things (parks and fairs are free). I know im raising a great kid and a child of God, hopefully to be a great man.

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HMMMMM looks like what Dr. Laura has been saying all these years is right.

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I am a day care provider, and day care has a HUGE impact on a childs development. And in my current studies and training in my area we are moving more from academics to more social and emotional development of children. Yes it would be nice to send your 5 year old to school who can already count to 100 in five different languages. But when that same child can't get their shovel back on the play ground, they are learning nothing developmentally!

And the comment to better test by randomly placing children in several different day cares! What are you thinking! A child needs to be in an enviroment where they can learn and trust. And to be constantly be moving them around will only cause confusion and insecurities.

In my area there are so many quality day cares to choose from. The problem I find, is finding quality parents who follow day care policies, pay tuition on time and in full, or not skipping out all togther!

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My mother always complained that they would pay anyone to watch her children EXCEPT HER.

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So, what part of this article was so "startling" as was suggested in the headline. It seems like common sense to me. All I can say to their riveting results is DUH!

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I hear a lot of "poor me's I have to work!" Then work! Don't have babies you expect someone else to raise. They won't do as good as job as a child's Mommy. How many of the people that have to work watch cable TV, talk on cell phones, eat out more than once a month, have more than one used car. It's a matter of priorities and if your child is not your number one priority don't bother and stop whining. Not everyone is entitled to have a family and society is not responsible for your children.

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As a former daycare worker, I vowed I would never put my child in a daycare center no matter what the quality. Where your heart is there will you put your time and money! I wouldn't put out more money for a daycare when I can just sacrifice a little money and stay home. My husband and I agreed before we were even married that at least one of us would stay home and raise our future children. Now we have a newborn, and I can't imagine giving up the most rewarding job of my life. I love my little boss. My heart is so into this job, so I know he will get real quality care. Is there anyone out there that really thinks sticking your child in a daycare is really best? I used to call daycare centers kiddie kennels, because of how some parents feel like their child's life is just on pause during the time spent at daycare. I always encourage friends discussing daycare or staying at home to stay at home. Why have a child just to let someone else raise them?
-Loving spending every day with my little miracle!!!

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My daughter is a pre-K teacher of 4 and 5 yr. old children in a private school. She's been teaching for 12 years now and still receives letters from parents who tell her what a wonderful impact she has had on their children's lives. Some were part-time students and some were full-time. They learned how to interact with other children and were so far advanced when they entered grammar school than those who never attended. She recognizes problem areas in a child that parents refuse to acknowledge and helps direct the parents to the specialist in that area. If you could see the letters she receives from parents, you'd not be so quick to judge daycare.

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How about this...instead of pouring money into MORE daycares, MORE....how about getting pay adjusted so only ONE parent needs to work? Liberals refuse to go that route. They want more and more kids being raised by the state. When problems occur..they NEVER think about going back to how it used to be.....having a job that pays well enough that only ONE need work. But hey...liberals need both parents working, otherwise the nanny state would fall and so would their dreams. I guarantee that fully a third of the households with both working dont need to be, while another third need only back off the fourth TV or computer, the cable/dish with HD programming and the latest cell phone that can do everything. That leaves a third that could use the help that the government could help easily. But the other 2/3 are busy dragging the system down.

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right on tadpole and willow! I'm a nurse in childcare and can't tell you how many parents dump their kids open to close to go have "me time".......esp when the poor kids are sick! then they scream and yell when I call them to come pick them up....I've even had to threaten to call CPS! too many parents nowadays were spoiled with material things by their parents and expect to have it all even at the expense of their own kids. If you can't afford to stay home for a few years then don't have kids!

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So basically this research tells us nothing, and the money they're wasting is ours, this was an NIH study.

Why do we make headlines out of poorly-done research? There are dozens of confounding factors in this study that preclude confirmation or rejection of a good hypothesis. Maybe better daycare centers are in better neighborhoods with better schools. Maybe parents who send their kids to more expensive daycare centers are the only ones who can afford it. They probably have higher incomes and higher levels of education, and will place more emphasis on their child's education during the next 20 years of their life.

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For some of you who blame the parent for puttting their children into daycare that we do not care-Shame on you!! How do expect to pay for a mortgage and food if we need to work. And where do the children go? Do they stay home alone? Of course not. If you are fortunate enough to bea stay at home parent well then good for you. HOwever, don't judge the parents that need to work and use a daycare or babysitter.

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I am a DISABLED mother who Thank G-D has daycare to help me. There are a number of reasons children attend daycare NOT only because they have to work. My son has a wonderful time there and has made friends and learned socialization skills and the time I spend with him is therefore quality time as opposed to me not being able to give him what he deserves all day long. I am not a single mother. I am a DISABLED mother. These studies are done and to make a blanket statement that my son will not do as well on tests is ludacris! I know many children who have grown up going to daycare who make wonderful contributions to our society who went to a good college. There is always a study being done about something. I am sick and tired of hearing how HORRIBLE daycare centers are. It is NOT always possible to raise your children by yourself. My daycare center is a "high quality" center but still I am appalled at some of the mother's on here with their Holier than thou attitude. Stop judging and live and let live!

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