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Hey everyone!
I was just wondering what you all do to make the transition to outdoors easier this time of year. I have 3 daycare children and a baby of my own - all under 28 months and getting dressed to go outdoors is RIDICULOUS!! It took us over half hour to get ready today and I kid you not I was sweating by the time the babies were all geared up. Any secrets to share?
Thanks!
no secrets here really...it is a ton of work no matter how you slice it...that being said, once a child nears the age of two I stress deeply with the parents and training them how to do things by themselves, bu the age of 2 a child should be able to aid in getting dressed, put on snowpants, you zip...flip coat over head, you zip...have them put on their own hat and pick out mittens attempt own boots a few times before you help. I always have the older ones get dressed and out on the front porch out of the way, them I get myslef ready. a lot of times depanding the size of the group, I will also tell the older ones to use the toilet and wash hands while I am getting the little ones ready. Always dress yourself last, that way you don't have a heat stroke before getting out the door. ha
snow pants on everyone first, then boots, coats, hats and mitts, then me. I am like a drill sargent LOL with no time to waste as the kids get warmer and warmer the longer it takes. Don't need the whining thank you :D
Same here. Getting 6 ready to go to pick my son up from school takes forever. I have tried a few different ways including all kidlove's suggestions and have come to the conclusion that it just take a long time!! Lol. But, for sure, do yourself last.
I only have 3 to get ready most days but once one is dressed s/he sits by the door and does not move til everyone is ready. The youngest is dressed last and she sits with the other 2 while I get ready! It's great when the older ones set a good example for the little ones! :)
This is me as well ~ we get ready together in stages ... I get all their stuff together during snack and than we come to the foyer and everyone gets snowpants ~ from infancy children are taught to 'find your feet' to get them to help getting them on themselves, than coats we do the flip flop over the top trick to get them on themselves and I zip up, than hats, scarves, mitts and boots get lines up against the wall and once they are 'walking' than they wiggle wiggle squish their foot in while holding the wall for balance and I do the tucking in of mitts and zippers and pants over boots for each kid in an assembly line ~ they sit on the step while I quick get dressed and we go out .... it usually takes us about 15 minutes tops to get out the door with all 5 children here ~ I get them doing most of the work themselves ~ the older ones are encouraged to help the younger ones if they are fast and they like to be the 'helper' so it works!Quote:
Originally Posted by mimi
I also have lots of chance to practice dressing skills at other times of the day ~ diapering and dress up and so forth so that the wee ones learn to 'help' do it themselves than as well in a non rushed relaxed time which makes winter dressing easier.
I teach them to dress themselves as much as possible shortly after 2, so it's not too bad. They can put on snowpants, and for jackets I lie them out and if the child stands where the head of the jacket is, they lean over, put their arms in and do "up and over". It's a game and they all love putting on their jackets.
I also see it as 15, 20 minutes....however long of time passed! It fills the morning. :D
LOL ~ yup this is what we call the 'flip flop over the top' trick here and my last one had mastered it by 14 months ~ his mom was shocked the one morning when she said it was time to go to daycare and he went and flipped his coat on with a big smile and started trying to put his boots on by lining them up at the door .... when given the resources and encouragement to succeed children are truly capable beings who 'want' to do things for themselves and be seen as big or capable.Quote:
Originally Posted by gcj
Oh-I definitely dress myself last! :) I was sweating because of all the dressing of the kiddos. Well, thanks for all the suggestions. I only have one child that is over two- so I think that it is just going to take a while for now! :blink::blink:
All my dckids are under 3 right now so I change all the diapers and we do the potty thing and then I put on all the snowpants, then I go back and put on all the coats, then we do hats and mitts last and I dress myself last as well.
It isn't fun, that's for sure! It takes a lot of time. So I encourage the parents to teach their children to put on and take off their own boots and hats and then we start working on unzipping coats. It takes months of learning for children to master these accomplishments so best to start them young. I find they aren't able to put on coats until they are over 3 unless they are gifted.
The worst is when you spend 15 minutes getting them all dressed and after 5 min. outside somebody is whining to go back in/or go pee....arrrrgggghhh
Aw man....snowsuits suck!!! I hate trying to jam kids in them, and yes, total workout, but less fun. All my kids are under 2 right now. 1 doesn't walk, 1 just started walking few steps at a time and the others are pretty good at it. I'm honest with parents right at the beginning. With a houseful of these little, little monkeys, especially non-walkers, we don't go out as much. Once they hit 2, it's way more enjoyable for everyone. Honestly, for the little ones, especially crawlers and brand new walkers, it's just a friggin' misery all the way around. And depending on how much snow is on the ground, even for the walkers, if it's deep snow, all they can really do is stand there. We had snow up to my knees the year before last. These kids would have been up to their chests...lol....I can see it now! Within 15 minutes, someone's crying. We still give it the good college try, but it's not a daily thing by any stretch.
Is it almost Spring yet?
Yep, I budget a good 20 minutes to get everyone dressed (6 kids 3 and under). I work on trying to get them to help, but it is hindered by parents often...especially after the holidays. The 2 year old I had finally taking off and putting on his boots will now just stand there looking dejected until everyone else is done...he flat out refuses to even try. Very frustrating! I find girls are much more independent and like to do things for themselves more...one reason I am hoping to find more girls for my daycare as I fill upcoming spots :laugh:
Cfred- Exactly! I am honest with parents too, as to the fact that we don't make it outdoors as much in the winter with so many kiddies under 2. The kids have so much trouble moving around in the deep snow! It is just nice to hear that other people understand the snowsuit-workout!
Dreemaalittledream- Yesterday it took 35 minutes to get all the kids geared up and we were outside for 20 minutes...brutal.
Empathize with those who have parents who undo all your hard work with self help skills cause that is truly frustrating and it can have a negative snowball effect cause if one child sees that if Johnny refuses to get dressed someone will do it for him and they think "hey look at all the attention Johnny is getting by doing that" and they start refusing to :(
I do not want that happening in my program cause mutiny of the minors is no fun at all :no:
While I hate conflict I personally have no trouble letting my clients know, in a friendly manner, what I need from them at home in order for their child to thrive here. So when we are working on mastering a skill 'here' I inform the parent that 'hey just so you know this is the goal we are trying to achieve in daycare at the moment' and I expect parents to be following through and working on it at home as well ... upon enrollment when we are signing our contract together we agree we share the value that children thrive best with consistency between home and program and therefore we need to be working together on developmental milestones and goals to support the child ~ when I see a client doing something for a child they are capable of doing I will remind the child 'Hey Johnny you need to let mom/dad know that you can put your coat on all by yourself now ~ show them your flip flop trick' .... in fact I have one little now 18 month old boy who at 14 months would often throw a little fit at pick up time and squirm and fight his dad and throw himself on the floor because his dad is trying to 'do it for him' and he wanted to do it himself but his words were not there yet to tell him ~ once I interjected 'are you trying to let daddy know you want to do that yourself?' the child would nod his head at his dad and grab the coat from him lay it on the floor and do his flip flop trick happily and than stand nicely for the dad to zip it up.
This is where I truly :wub: my spouse support of my business cause he goes out into the backyard after any big snowfall and will shovel the sidewalk back there, a pathway to the House area and than do maze for them and the snow from that gets tossed into a 'hill' and than I shovel off our large deck that has the sit and rock toys, sensory bins and so forth ... so there is lots of space and place for them to move around and explore based on their age ~ babes I can put on the deck so they are not 'sitting' in the cold snow and they can crawl around unimpeded, stand up at the table up there and explore snow and toys, toddlers tend to head for the house area and make food with snow and play and my older ones grab sleds and head to the little hill or play hide and seek in the maze cause they are skilled enough with walking to handle the uneven ground of the hill and so forth.Quote:
Originally Posted by cfred
I need changes of scenery with the kiddies cause I do not like feeling 'stuck' inside the house ~ we go outside daily at least once all winter long, twice if we do not get too wet the first time, unless the temperature drops below -10 or it is storming snow / wind out there ... IME my crew learns to love outside because I love to be outside!
My favorite is when you have one of those sticker type 1 year olds that will completely undress themselves by the time you get the last one ready to go, then have to redress that little stinker for the second time. I always laugh. These are the times I realize how hard I work for my money, always chuckle at the thought of all those people who make the "must be nice to stay home" comments.....times like those I wish I could give them a quick invite to come over and do my job for the day!
LOL Kidlove ~ we called that kid the 'duct tape kid' when I worked in centre care ... they are the kid that you cover their zipper with duct tape and secure their mitts and boots too if need be :o ~ with parental permission of course cause until they will voluntarily keep them on we need them to stay on so they are warm and dry and as Red Green says duct tape works on everything ;)
I get what you mean Reggio by needing a change of scenery! In the spring, summer and fall (weather permitting) we're out all day, every day. If I had a husband to dig out the yard, I'd be on that like a dirty shirt. But, it's just me and my back can't take it, nor do I have that kind of time with the 10, 000 000 other things I have to do. We do other stuff for the change of scenery, such as pile in the van and go to a play centre or out for lunch (doing that tomorrow). But today, oh YEAH, the snow has melted enough that I can pull a wagon out and take the kiddies for a nice long walk. I'm very excited! It's not melted enough that I can tootle around with my 6 seat stroller, but I've only got three today and the wagon has unfrozen from the deck. We're outta here!
Haha its really funny to read your stories, how we are all in the same boat. Luckily I dont have anyone who gets undressed, I think I would flip out and just won't go out. My problem is, my 4 girls (I dont have boys) dont like playing in the snow :O So we go out and they just stand there. Oh well I hate winter anyhow.
I drill sergent to get them all dress super fast, then me last... and every second of this, PRAY FOR SUMMER TO ARRIVE FAST. LOL ;)
Haha! Every time I'm getting the little ones into their snowsuits, I'm think of Robert Munsch's 'Thomas' Snowsuit'!
OMG! I love that book! Yeah, that about sums it up. Really, my kids are good about getting into their suits and staying in them. It's just the physical exertion of actually getting it done. And the mittens....OH the mittens! I hate the little things. Gloves for toddlers are worse though....a torture method devised by Lucifer himself. Gawd!
When I'm getting them ready, I've got my mind set on my hammock on Playa Flamenco, where I'll be in 3 months......no mittens there!
I shovel the yard too...make trails for the sled, hills for climbing and a clear area for the youngest to walk in. It is a lot of work, but the only thing that makes it possible to go out in winter...especially this year as we literally have mountains of snow in our yard! I am laughing at the duct tape idea...last year my daughter and a dcg were both stripping clothing all the time and I dreamed of warpping them both in duct tape from head to toe LOL. I learned a trick with jackets from a fellow provider...i started putting their jackets on backwards so they couldn't take them off...the hoods hung under their chins and it looked funny, but it worked :laugh:
too cute sunny days, bet it works well. plus a little extra pocket for toys and such!:laugh: