Daycare / Infant Care in Keller-Area (Fort Worth, Watauga: HOA, credit, day care)

[grlpisces]

Hi Everyone -

My husband and I are expecting our first child at the end of this summer ('08) and we are thrilled beyond belief. We have moved to TX from the Northeast exactly a year ago and are not familiar with types of daycare / infant care around Keller / Watauga / Fort Worth / etc.

When I did a Google search, I have come across La Petite Academy but of course we are looking to keep options opened to see what the best programs are and what the costs associated are (other group infant care, churches that offer infant care, etc.).

I appreciate suggestions for infant daycare (beginning with either 3 or 6 months) and look forward to seeing the responses; thanks so much!

-GrlPisces

[nsumner]

ok, here are 2 daycares that I heard were really good. First one is at 820 and Beach (NW corner). I don't know what they call it now. It used to be open only for employees of Motorola but after the big telecom bust they opened it to the public. It's very close to the old Motorola building now that was sold to countrywide.

Second one is right on beach street at Silver Sage (SE corner). It is very clean, good teachers and friendly staff. I went with a client of mine about a year ago to check out neighborhood daycares and this one was the best. Again, I can't remember the name... I think it has the word leaf in it...

BTW, congrats on your pregancy.

[Guingirl]

There are quite a few churches that offer daycare services. Have you looked into Premier Academy, Primose and Kids R Kids? I know that they offer preschool type daycare, but I thought they had daily enrichments for six weeks and up. You might try the local ones to see if they can help you.

[grlpisces]

Thank you for the suggestions! I haven't heard of Kids "R" Kids nor Premier Academy; those suggestions are helpful and I am going to check out their websites.

Also -- nsumner, I found "The Children's Courtyard" is on Silver Sage. I will guess that is the day care you are talking about.

Thanks again for your help!

[hypocore]

I have been a Child Care Provider since 1990 and there are many different types of Child Care available.

First thing you want to do is decide which type you are really wanting to use. Then you need to begin your search immediately as there are typically long waiting lists for infant care.

Consider:
Are you wanting something close to home or work?
Is money a large factor in the decision?
Are hours available important?
Do you want a child care provider that can transport your child to and from school when the time comes?
Or do you want something for now and intend to make a change later-perhaps to a Preschool?
Is accreditation important to you?
Are small group settings preferable?
Do you want consistency in caregivers?

As far as Child Care Centers there are national chain centers, local chain centers, church centers, and privately owned centers.
People will tell you to ask if a center is licensed, however unless it's a church it's required to be, and they are required to post the license in a prominent place where all parents can view it. So, that's a pretty simple thing to verify.

There are also home child care providers -licensed, registered or listed.
Licensed homes must also meet state standards.
Registered homes are inspected at the opening of the business not required to meet all state standards.
Listed homes are merely listed as being operated as Child Care home providers and are neither inspected or required to meet standards. They also cannot care for as many children as registered and licensed homes.

Then of course there are nannies. Some are professionally trained, some are not. If they come into your home you must count them as household employees.

So, once you decide what are the most important factors, then start your hunt. Just understand that some centers can have a very family like atmosphere usually equated with family homes, while some home care can be handled very professionally usually found in centers. Don't rule out either type until you've checked them out. You never know until you actually visit what you will find.

Children's Courtyard focuses on professionally degreed teachers, which is not a requirement to work in child care in Texas, and on expensive furniture and equipment. Some of them are very high quality centers while others are not. It all depends on who is running that particular center and how high their turnover is. Check to see if they, and any other provider, are NAEYC accredited. If so that means they meet a higher standard than what the state requires and they work under a more age appropriate curriculum.

Primrose is more about academics and more structured atmosphere. They tend to work with a different philosphy regarding age appropriate curriculum than what NAEYC supports. I believe Premier is very similar.

I don't know anything personally about Kids R Kids.

If you go to the state's website you can find more information about all centers and homes - Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. You can search for child care options by zip code and see how many children they are licensed to carry and read their latest inspections, among other things.

Oh, and a couple final notes - if you find a center or home that has no waiting list for infants, ask why they don't. That can be a red flag about their program. Also, if asking for references, realize they will refer you to people who love their program. It's sometimes better to hang around at pick up time and watch what goes on or talk to people that come and go at that time. Make sure you visit you top choices several times at different times of day. Just don't expect it to be perfect all the time, because it won't be. That's just realistic. If you have kids in diapers, it's going to smell of it at some point.....as long as it's not all day long. haha

[nsumner]

Originally Posted by grlpisces

Thank you for the suggestions! I haven't heard of Kids "R" Kids nor Premier Academy; those suggestions are helpful and I am going to check out their websites.

Also -- nsumner, I found "The Children's Courtyard" is on Silver Sage. I will guess that is the day care you are talking about.

Thanks again for your help!

Yes Children's Courtyard is it!!!!! I dunno where the leaf came from

Naima

[New2Keller]

I know there aren't many choices for quality full day childcare in this area, but I have heard awful things about Children's courtyard. Being an early childhood major, I really am puzzled as to how they received accreditation from NAEYC

Check out that Texas website mentioned above and look their past inspections up. I think that website is such a great tool for parents.

[hypocore]

Originally Posted by New2Keller

I know there aren't many choices for quality full day childcare in this area, but I have heard awful things about Children's courtyard. Being an early childhood major, I really am puzzled as to how they received accreditation from NAEYC

Check out that Texas website mentioned above and look their past inspections up. I think that website is such a great tool for parents.

NAEYC accreditation is a complicated issue, but relatively easy thing to accomplish if you understand it and believe in it. Been there done that. haha

All physical things can be met if you have the money to do so - child/staff ratio, number of sinks/toilets available, amount of toys...etc. Children's Courtyard has the money to handle that part easily enough.

Following their philosophy regarding curriculum and interactions is the challenge for many people, and the most important portion of the whole process.
Here I think the biggest challenge for Children's Coutryard is retaining staff long enough to learn how to implement the philosophy and be comfortable with it. Even with their higher pay they lose people constantly to higher paying jobs. It's an ironic thing actually......they hire degreed teachers who often turn around and leave to teach in public/private schools to make more money since they have a degree. It can be more of a stepping stone for many instead of a career.

You also have to understand that it is a very in depth and lengthy evaluation and you don't have to pass everything in order to receive the accrediation. The center I was in did not meet the child/staff ratio and simply never would, yet it was only a part of the overall eval.

There are other accreditations out there as well, and they all are simply a point to consider since it means they worked for something better than just what the state requires, which really is minimal.

[New2Keller]

I guess I just worked at a school that took accreditation very seriously. We prepped for months straight before our visit from them and constantly had meetings to assure that all aspects of our center were meeting the expectations of NAEYC.

It is very true though that many preschools are just a stepping stone for their employees while finishing school to be an elementary teacher.

In general, I would see brand new/expensive equipment and facilities as a red flag. If they are spending all of their money on that... how much is left to hire high quality teachers for your children?
I hope I don't offend anyone. Being a mom and former preschool teacher, it's just a very passionate subject for me

[Soccersupporter]

Originally Posted by grlpisces

Hi Everyone -

My husband and I are expecting our first child at the end of this summer ('08) and we are thrilled beyond belief. We have moved to TX from the Northeast exactly a year ago and are not familiar with types of daycare / infant care around Keller / Watauga / Fort Worth / etc.

When I did a Google search, I have come across La Petite Academy but of course we are looking to keep options opened to see what the best programs are and what the costs associated are (other group infant care, churches that offer infant care, etc.).

I appreciate suggestions for infant daycare (beginning with either 3 or 6 months) and look forward to seeing the responses; thanks so much!

-GrlPisces

If I were you I would look for an in-home daycare provider especially for an infant. Check out your HOA's site if they have one, many people advertise through these sites. I live in Crawford Farm and I think there are a few people advertising on our HOA site.