Originally Posted by
suemaria
in response to preparing hot lunches 90% of the time... i do this as well but what helps is having much of it precut/prepared in advance... and i understand the need to have children follow your program but this is where i always have a hard time... and i am not a parent so no bias for parenting interests... you are taking a real child/infant from their mother/father/home, no real transition, no opportunity to get use to new environenment, new people comfortably, you are asking a one year old to get with the program. do you get what you are asking??? there is a way to get them there without expecting them to just follow suit. this is the most important time for children as it will affect them later in life. you need as a caregiver to understand children better, be better educated. they require nurturing, understanding, patience. this does not mean catering to them either. there is a balance that can take place but you have to be open to it. i work closely with the parents to understand their lives thus far, ie, the people around them, sleeping, eating patterns. then i work with gentle transition as this leaves way less stress on the children, then on me. within days, the children start to become accustomed to what i do otherwise in the program. the important part in the beginning is making a smooth transition, then adjusting them to your program to suit your schedule which should be realistic as well. it works and unless you try this, you cant really knock it. i have transitioned the most complicated situations, with patience, without issue following this. and to me, it makes sense. know your child before you decide what you are doing for them. way too many times, home programs follow regime that is so structured that an adult wouldn't be able to follow or keep up with expectations and people ask that of an infant etc. i would be unsettled if when starting my exploration in learning and growing and developing, you plopped me in a highchair for half hour to an hour with a basket of toys too. do you have somewhere else for her to sit? be? where are the other children at this time? do you have options for other activities? i do art, books, games, songs... it all depends on your set up. then again, i am use to running programs with 60 children and ten staff, so transitioning to 5 children at home is a heck of a lot simpler... i am not trying to be offensive, i just know that what i do works. i do as much as possible to prepare them for real life. not just my own schedule and needs.
