For providers who do not do school aged children

[Crayola kiddies]

For those providers that do not look after school aged children or do school runs what do you do if you have siblings and the older child goes off to jk? Do you lose both children? I was just wondering how you handle that? Cause I really don't want to do before and after care as then I have to have a spot fir them during the summer and I dont want an empty spot from sept till June while the child is at school. But if the parent has another child do you just say so long? I can't imagine a parent wanting their children in different daycares.

[gcj]

Not all parents expect their daycare to also care for their school-aged kids. I guess it depends where you are and what their options are. But, I wouldn't....dependin g on your capacity, if you do before/after school, you can't take on another preschooler....??
It's all different here in QC because all schools have before/after school daycare for $7/day..so I guess I'm not the best help

[Bookworm]

I am just starting out, so I have never had this issue as of yet, however, I did just interview a couple who have a child who is starting school in september and a younger sibling. They are trying to get into after school care through the school and if that didnt work out, they said they would find someone near the school who did afterschool care, and keep the younger one with me. I'm sure that it is not too uncommon for that. I dont drive the kids and the only way I'm doing school runs is when my own daughter goes off to school next september.

[michellesmunchkins]

I don't offer before and afterschool care. Where I live the odds of a child being in the district for me to even take them to school is not likely. I don't like losing a space to a B/A school child. For me, I will keep the younger sibling if its possible. If the parent choses to move both children to another daycare then that's just a chance I take.

I can't handle the attitude and the mouth and back talk that comes with school age children. I find they influence and teach the little ones things I don't want them learning in my daycare. My patience for that age group is very very little lol.

I also can't be bothered to have to dress 5 kids up daily to do the school runs. Its way more work then its worth in my opinion. Most of my families like that we don't spend a chunk of our day doing school runs.

[Marie]

I have a brother and a sister...the brother goes to pre-school only in the mornings twice a week. On those days mom comes to pick him up and drops him off at pre-school, and then picks him up and drops him off at my house. We live in a small town where pre-school is about a 2 minute drive to/from my house and mom's work is about a 5 minute drive to/from my house. Mom never asked if I do school runs so it was never an issue, and I would have said no anyways seeing as I don't them.

[lilac]

I think if you set it out from the begining, that you dont do school care, then paretns know when the time comes that they'll have to find alternative care for the one in school. Some will be ok w having their kids at different daycares, others will not. So depending on the situation, you may very well have 2 spots to fill come Sept (the school age child and the younger sibling) but if you and parents agree upfront what is going to happen then you can plan for it....

[Mamma_Mia]

I am just starting out, so I have never had this issue as of yet, however, I did just interview a couple who have a child who is starting school in september and a younger sibling. They are trying to get into after school care through the school and if that didnt work out, they said they would find someone near the school who did afterschool care, and keep the younger one with me. I'm sure that it is not too uncommon for that. I dont drive the kids and the only way I'm doing school runs is when my own daughter goes off to school next september.

exactly to a T....lol even re: my own DD

[Crayola kiddies]

I have my own school age children and I have one that's just heading to jk in sept and all the rest are here for a few more years .....the bus comes right to my door so that's not an issue.... I have mine figured out but I have seen posts in which providers say they don't do school age so I guess it's just a chance you take if the parent pulls both kids .....then you have a spot to fill... Cause I would rather do full time then have to do a juggling act for summer.

[Inspired by Reggio]

I think depending on the area you live in it is actually the 'norm' for parents to have to juggle two different drop offs - one for full time daycare and another for 'school aged' daycare .... we cannot compete with the cost and ratios of 'before and after school only' programs run by licensed agencies cause, in Ontario anyway' they can have a ratio of 1:15 verses our 1:5 ratio and they can staff them for only the hours that they are needed aka 6-9 and 3-6 type things ... where as we sit there with an open space middle of the day and 'lost income' as a result if we were to just take a full time kid.

I have clients who've left their youngest with me and found alternate care for the older siblings and I have had people whose situation was just easier for them to move both kids because the younger sibling was going to be heading to school following year anyway so the clients found a longer term solution of someone willing to care for all three kids right away cause she was suppose to be coming back from a mat leave.

[apples and bananas]

I do take school age children along with their younger siblings. However, this fall my son will be going into all day schooling where the same age JK child I have will still be on the day on, day off schedule. So I kindly suggested to mom to look into the school program for before and after care and I am not much fun to a 5 year old boy. Especially when i'm chasing after one and 2 year olds all day. So I will stil have the younger brother and the older sibling will be in before after care at school. As for the summer... there are tons of camps and vacation time ect so I've let her know that I will fit him in during other parents vacation time and she's going to place him in daycamps the other weeks.

[Momof4]

I haven't had school aged children but I have one child going to JK in Sept. and his baby sister is going to start at the daycare in his old space. I haven't asked his Mom yet, but it's crossed my mind that they may run into a problem for PD days and I won't have the room for him.

Remember our mantra - your daycare - your rules! Do what is best for you and fill your spaces the way that works out best for you. We have all learned the hard way that the families will take care of themselves first and drop us without a thought sometimes. Other times they want to stay forever, so if the family is a great one you will work it out, but if not, you know what to do.

[playfelt]

Both situations are possible. I am losing one this summer to school but he is going to the school based daycare so his sister moving too isn't an issue.

I am not in their school zone anyways. In that case it is also very common for the mom to move both kids to a daycare in their school zone when the older one is ready to start. Also a reason I don't like taking kids back after mat leave if there is only one more year till the older one starts school.

Depending on the options for school age kids in your area will determine what happens. I would get in the habit of thinking of your daycare as a 2 and under daycare and start assuming that when mom goes on mat leave that you will lose the older child too since by the time they would be ready to come back it would make more sense for mom to take the year of mat leave and find someone in her own area that can take both of them.

Also even if the mom says oh we will leave the little one with you and just move the older one. If down the road an opening comes up in the other daycare the mom may be put under pressure by the new caregiver to transfer the sibling over too under the threat of the caregiver going to fill with a baby/sibling team. Had that happen to a friend and a month into the school year the mom moved the sibling by which point no one on the caregivers list was still looking for care and well let's just say she was not a happy caregiver. One of the reasons I am so happy the way it worked out for my sibling pair and I will have her for two more years as she is only 18 months now and she will be first on the list for the school care because her older sibling goes there so mom is very happy too. And I open at 6:30 for her so that limits my competition.

[littlebugsdaycare]

I do not offer B&A care either, I have two little girls going off to school in the fall and their little brothers will both be in my daycare. For one of the girls she is in school FT every day so mom has arranged for B&A care and will pick up the son on the way to pick up the daughter, and the other mom is going to be going on mat leave shortly after the daughter starts school so the middle child will be here, mom will have the school age child every other day at home and be home with the newborn. I have not lost any children yet when older sib goes to school.