What ages do you except

[Chiyo]

What's the age you start taking kids in daycare? What's the normal age children are started?

[giraffe]

I answered you in one of your other posts. But most children in Ontario start care between 10mth-14mths

[mickyc]

For myself I prefer not to take children younger than 14 months.

[bright sparks]

I have taken children as young as 3 months old and always advertise that as my starting age. It depends on your comfort level and the dynamic of your group. In England when I had my first child I only had 12 weeks maternity leave and returned to work when she was 10 weeks old leaving her in a home daycare. I qualified to be a home daycare provider in the UK where it is heavily regulated and you need specific qualifications to do the job and it was the norm for children to come between 8 and 12 weeks, so coming to Canada over 8 years ago, I had no knowledge originally of the 12 month maternity leave and advertised for teeny tiny ones. I prefer them the younger they are as I find it is so much easier getting them on my schedule and into good habits. That being said, most of my kiddies come at 10-12 months of age.

[Mike]

I don't know the normal age they start because I haven't started yet, but my advertising will also be 3 months and up, with younger being available on a case by case basis. Right now a friend of mine had her first baby Nov 4 last year so she's not 3 months yet and I love helping out when I get a chance and they let me because they know I'm going into daycare. She's so adorable. For my daycare though, under 3 months will only be if the parent has good reason because I think they should be with their mother for at least 3 months. 6 is better but sometimes they do have to go back to work.

[bright sparks]

I don't know the normal age they start because I haven't started yet, but my advertising will also be 3 months and up, with younger being available on a case by case basis. Right now a friend of mine had her first baby Nov 4 last year so she's not 3 months yet and I love helping out when I get a chance and they let me because they know I'm going into daycare. She's so adorable. For my daycare though, under 3 months will only be if the parent has good reason because I think they should be with their mother for at least 3 months. 6 is better but sometimes they do have to go back to work.

I can't imagine a parent not having a good reason for sending their child to daycare under 3 months??? Also lets remember our role in all of this. It doesn't matter whether they have a good reason or not, or whether we think they should be at home with their mother to a certain age, or not. It is irrelevant what our personal opinions are in this situation, as it is up to the parents to establish what works for their family and their needs, not us. It really doesn't matter what we think about their choices, we should just think about what we are willing to take on and what we are able to handle. Some people wont take more than 1 child under 2 years while others prefer a full house of 1 year olds. A lot of providers wont take school age kids where as others exclusively take that age group. It's really whatever your preferences are and obviously taking into account the demand in your area. Are there lots of B&A programs in your area? In schools, centres and pick up programs like karate? If so then that is probably an age group with little need in your area. Are there many daycare centres and preschools? This will effect the demand overall but also give you an idea of the availability for infant care and preschool programs( 2+).

When my kids were young it seemed to make the most sense to get kids the same age as my then 3 year old son but I quickly learned that didn't work for me. A child starting at that age has already established their ideas and understanding of rules and if they don't match my parenting style then it is a battle to have them change at that point. I had lots of trouble with power struggle, kids wanting to be the top dog and both my son and them started to act out. So after a few months of my son deteriorating and the other kids poor behaviors escalating, added to parents who didn't want to put the hard work in to correcting this, I termed them and replaced them with 1 year olds. Even though my kids are older now and in middle school and nearly high school, I still don't take children older than 18 mths. I like to get them in early and mold them myself :) By the time they get to 2 years old there are far less incidents of temper tantrums as they know I just don't put up with it and we have an amazing group of daycare friends :) As I said its personal preference and with you having a few of your own its something to consider. This is just my experience which seems to be common with other providers but I have also heard of others saying their own child has a best friend in the dck of a similar age. Its also just down to the child and their parents too.

[Mike]

The main reason my site says under 3m is case by case is because I want parents to know what I think to give them an idea about myself. I guess, again, I'm saying too much, trying too hard to sell myself.
Thanks for the advice and your opinion. I'm glad I joined this board because I think the things I've learned here will probably double my chance of succeeding.