Summer Dos and Don'ts

Summer programs in childcare should be fun for kids, doable for parents and fun for the adults who provide them. Getting through a hot summer of hours outside, gallons of sunscreen, extraordinary exercise, picnic foods, water on the go, field trips on noisy busses, etc, can really take its toll on everyone, so cooperation is the name of the summer game.

Designing a summer program for very young children should by the very nature of good childcare consist of lots of extras and lots of new things, but rest, hydration and nutrition should always be in the forefront of every good sense program.

Care is the first priority. But childcare is a two way street. With cooperation between parent and teacher, children will thrive, and without it, they will suffer and learn to hate summer, and that’s a shame.

Parents should help by making sure children who are ill and children who are tired get as much rest at home as possible if their summer school program is “on the go.” Most parents are really wonderful about this and early bedtimes help children get through a busy summer.

When parents don’t help, it’s a nightmare and amounts to poor parenting and neglect.

One child’s behavior was absolutely out of character during a very long field trip. On a trip to Spring Mill Park, two hours away, to see the restored village, the child was nearly out of his mind and slept most of the bus ride. Mom admitted that he had gotten to bed very late the night before and had to be dragged out of bed to get to school early enough to catch the bus.

One summer, a child was sent to school with a 102 fever. She went with us on one of our out of state field trips, and by the time we discovered she will really ill, we were a long way from home.

Parents should read everything connected to their children. Often parents lay important papers aside. And it’s no wonder. We live in a very demanding and busy place, and childcare is no different. But notes, parent boards, announcements placed on the doors, paperwork that is sent home, papers that are placed on individual cubbies are all aimed at distributing what parents need to know by when, so read everything.

Reading everything can have some unexpected rewards. I sent home a note, recently, about our trip to Mammoth Cave. I included three parts: Schedule for the trip with leave and return hours, sign up for a special cave tour, and an “if you read this, sign it and return it for a chance at $10.00 price off tuition.” One of five parents returned it.

Reading everything means looking at children’s work as well. One of the things teachers notice is the neglect of some parents toward children’s work. I remember one child who was thrilled he finally was able to draw a person. Mom casually looked through his papers and artwork and without a word, deposited them in the trash on the way out the door.

A trick to zeroing in on the demands of childcare is to remember the expression, “Stop, Look, and Listen” every afternoon when entering the childcare gate. Stop what you are doing, look at what is posted and intended for busy parents, and finally, listen to both the child and the teacher.

Stop, Look and Listen only takes five minutes, and it just might be the best five minutes spent during the day.