3 Pro Tips for Sending Your Child to Daycare

Sending your toddler off to daycare for the first time is heartwrenching. Bittersweet, too, because while it’s emotional for both of you, it also means you finally have some time to yourself.

With more than 12 million children under five in daycare, that big first day is something most parents will be experiencing. Navigating all of the emotions involved isn’t easy, but you can make the process less stressful with a few tips from the pros.

Let’s take a look at three proven daycare tips that will help.

1. Transition Week

Abruptly changing from your home schedule to the daycare schedule is hard on both of you. So before sending your kid to daycare full-time, insist on a transition week.

Using a transition week increases the amount of time in daycare as the week goes on. In addition, more and more daycares are understanding, and many are now building a transition week into their policies.

A schedule looking like this – Monday 8 – 11, Tuesday 8 – 12:30, Wednesday 8 – 1:30, Thursday 8 – 3:30, and Friday 8 – 5 – goes a long way in softening the emotional adjustments.

If you’re going back to work, doing the transition week before going back full-time lets, you adjust too – and catch up on a few things you’ve been putting off!

2. Drop and Go

The hardest thing to do on the first day – and it isn’t going to get easier for a while – is to drop your child off and leave quickly. The experienced folks managing a daycare will always tell you it’s important not to linger at drop-off, even on the first day.

Most parents’ reaction to that advice is to get angry – sort of an ‘it’s my child, and I know what’s best’ feeling. Wrong. They’re right. Lingering encourages your child to think you will stay – which you won’t unless you’re starting a daycare yourself.

So no lingering, even on day one. If you do, you’re creating a false expectation for your child. One big hug and kiss goodbye, then leave. Got it?

3. Is it Nap Time Yet?

Have an understanding that sending your kid to daycare will wreak havoc with their nap and sleep schedule for a time. Then, of course, they’ll adjust, and you will too, but it does take time.

Some kids have a schedule right off the bat, and others never do. No matter which category your child falls into, whatever you were used to pre-daycare in terms of naps and sleep is changing. One of the more common changes is a desire to do more cuddling at night.

Remember too that early on, many kids want three or four naps a day, but daycares can’t do that, so one rest period is standard. Again, patience is the key – you’ll both adjust!

Three Daycare Tips for Less Stress

As simple as they sound, following these three tips will make the stress of sending your child to daycare for the first time a lot easier. Before you know it, you’ll both be pros!

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