Calling all writers lol Need help writing a letter

Hey guys,

I have written a letter thanking the moms and dads for being so understanding and co-operative while my son has been ill (it turned out that i took ONE day off as vacation and the next day my son was sick ugh isnt that always the way??) I also wrote a little bit about coughs. If you read my post from this morning, you understand where I coming from. I don't want to come off as unprofessional or "anal" or whatever, but I have one family who's son is asthmatic and they are aware of the little boy who has been coming with this cough for weeks now and they're a little concerned. Also, the day my son was sick, I called all the parents and told them I suspected my son dpneumonia. All the parents opted to stay home, except for one. She dropped her daughter off and said "I have too much to do today to have her with me." ??????!!!!! My kid might have penumonia and you're worried about having too much to do? Your kid could get sick!! PS: She doesn't work, so.....
I was really worried about my son and wanted to take him to the clinic, so I ended up calling her and telling her I would reimburse her for the day. When she picked up her daughter, she'd been crying. Clearly there was more going on but she didn't tell me. As for the little boy with the cough, as I said in my other post, he tends to get dropped off no matter what which can be quite frustrating.

Anyways, so I wrote this letter. There are a few things that concern me, that I want to say but that I am not sure I SHOULD say. If anyone wants to take a look at it and let me know...I highlight what I'm not sure about. My husband says I come off as "bitchy" in my letters, so I always like to get a second opinion when I write things that need to come off as professional and respectful.

Dear Parents,

For obvious reasons, I have opted out of doing the weekly report card for this week. There were no major concerns regarding any behavioral issues or any issues with any of the kids. They were all well behaved and sweet – as usual.

I would, however, like to take this moment to thank you and offer my sincerest appreciation for the patience and understanding you have all shown me this week. The last thing I expected when I decided to take my one vacation day this summer was to come home to a sick child. It sort of came out of nowhere and I didn’t expect it. I know it can be really frustrating and scary when you find out a child in your group care is ill, and it becomes a very uncertain time. I assure you, however, that I am, and will, take the utmost care in assuring that your child is not any more exposed to the virus as they already have been and that I communicate all and any updates regarding your child’s health, as well as C***’s. Thankfully, I have a very supportive father and mother who have volunteered to help ensure that C*** is cared for while I am running the daycare. Unfortunately, however, this is just one of those things that comes along with group care, as unfair as it can be. Again, thank you very much for your cooperation and understanding.

I would also like to take this opportunity to touch on the subject of illness and coughs. As mentioned, the spread of germs is just part of group care, however, that doesn’t mean that we don’t all need to be extremely cautious when it comes to coughs especially. C*** is susceptible to coughs as he was diagnosed with bronchiolitis when he was 7 months and R*** is also susceptible to coughs, his asthma flaring when he develops one. If you have any questions about the illness policy, you can take a look at the policies package I sent you upon signing. Coughs will be dealt with seriously. If you suspect your child is developing a cough that could be contagious, it is imperative that you inform me as soon as possible and that your child is brought to the doctor as soon as possible for reassurance. If I suspect your child has a “dangerous” cough, I will inform you immediately and request a doctor’s visit. If the cough is especially bad, I will request a doctor’s note before accepting the child back into care. (This was mentioned by a previous poster, and I think it's a great idea, considering I don't always trust some of my parents')

Please remember that this is not a drop off center. It is a small in-home daycare, where the children play together closely. If a child is sick, it is best to take one or two days off rather than your child becoming ill, or getting the other children ill, and having to take even more time off away from the daycare.

Thanks again moms and dads for your understanding and co-operation. As your daycare provider, I promise to be as honest as possible in regards to illnesses as well as communicate any and all information I feel is imperative to the health and safety of your child.

Have a great weekend and enjoy the weather!


Any suggestions/advice/opnions are welcome :)

I don't have a lot of experience with writing letters but I think this is a great letter. I don't feel you are being bitchy at all. :D

I personally don't think you have to go into such detail about your closure. It happens. I would write something like,


Dear Parents,

For obvious reasons, I have opted out of doing the weekly report card for this week. There were no major concerns regarding any behavioral issues or any issues with any of the kids. They were all well behaved and sweet – as usual.

Thank you all so much for the patience and understanding you have all shown me this week with my son's illness.

I would also like to take this opportunity to touch on the subject of illness and coughs. As mentioned, the spread of germs is just part of group care, however, that doesn’t mean that we don’t all need to be extremely cautious when it comes to coughs especially. If you have any questions about the illness policy, you can take a look at the policies package I sent you upon signing. Coughs will be dealt with seriously. If you suspect your child is developing a cough that could be contagious, it is imperative that you inform me as soon as possible and that your child is brought to the doctor as soon as possible for reassurance. If I suspect your child has a “dangerous” cough, I will inform you immediately and request a doctor’s note before accepting the child back into care. This is to protect the other children in my care.

Thanks again moms and dads for your understanding and co-operation. As your daycare provider, I promise to communicate any and all information I feel is imperative to the health and safety of your child.

Have a great weekend and enjoy the weather!

It looks like a great letter and a great way to revisit the policy you have in your daycare. I aggree with alpha... keep it to the point. It's a great letter, but a long one. :)

I completely agree that the shorter version, such as presented by Alphagetti is better as it is clear and concise and the parents more quickly get to the important parts of the letter and how it applies to them.
I would personally either omit the first paragraph or shift it to the last as it is not the main reason for the letter, so I find it shifts the focus of the letter.

Other suggestions include the following:
- adding that a copy of the illness policy will be posted at the entrance for anyone to review
- change this "Coughs will be dealt with seriously" to "The policy is in place to protect all our children and minimize the risk of spreading important illnesses. Although coughing often seems to be a less important symptom, it could be a sign of important illnesses, which you know xxxx and xxx are more succeptible too because of their condition. Thus, coughing will also have to be addressed in a serious manner" I fear that the previous way in which this was presented could be interpreted that other illnesses are not as important and could slip by...
- I would finish the letter saying that you are available should anyone have any questions or concerns regarding the points addressed above
- I would change this sentence "This is to protect all the children in my care."

I hope this helps. I worked as senior occupational therapist in a medico-legal environment before becoming a caregiver... which may help explain my "anal" approach to reading and writting a letter!! ;)

It is always hard to auto-correct, especially when it is something very personal!

Good letter, but a little wordy, I agree. But I like your spelling, I'd give you an A!

I'm really glad your dcparents were kind to you and understanding.

I have a degree in Professional Writing so EVERYTHING I write tends to be a little wordy haha

What about the drop-in center paragraph? I know this may upset some of my parents, but I am just appalled that people think they can just drop their kids off because they don't feel like dealing with their kids. ??

If you add this paragraph to Alpha's suggested letter I would change that paragraph to something like this:

Please remember that this is a small in-home daycare where the children play together closely. If your child is sick please keep them at home and take one or two days off work to care for them so that all of the children in the daycare are not infected. It is my job to protect all of the children and you would not want me to allow a sick child into care who could infect your child.

I think with all the tips mentioned above it's a great letter!

Thanks! The reason I wanted to add the drop in center thing is because I texted all the parents bc MY son possibily had pneumonia. All the parents decided to keep their kids home, obviously. Except one. She doesn't have a job and she said, "I'm sorry, I have too much to do today to have her with me." Meanwhile, my son is having trouble breathing and I want to take him to the clinic. I ended up calling her and telling her she had to come pick up her daughter and I would reimburse her for the day. She was furious when she picked up her daughter, was even crying. She doesn't work! Can one day with her daughter be that terrible?! Like, it's as if she wasn't even concerned that her daughter could contract a serious illness.
Luckily, my son didn't have pneumonia, but he had croup, which can be just as serious.

Then again this morning, one of the other parents asked if they had to pay for the day that my son was sick. I said yes. They didn't like that answer. I said, I was open and everyone CHOSE to keep their kids at home. If I had closed it would be a different story, but I was open and you chose to keep your son at home.

I am really struggling with this type of thing. I mean, it's one thing is their kid is sick, and I ask them to stay home, but it's another thing if it's my son who is sick. Now, I'm afraid he's going to get the other kids sick and they're going to be upset bc they still have to pay for care.

Two of my families are first time daycare families, so they don't really understand or appreciate the rules. Now I'm wondering if I should add the closure thing to the letter too. I don't want to, but I always feel these issues need to be addressed so that I don't have to be unexpectedly contronted about them at 7:30 in the morning.

I don't like daycare politics. Can't we just take care of the kids and they just leave us alone?? lol