Interview questions for infants?

[Nifer]

Hello,
I was wondering if anyone has any advice/questions I could use for two interviews tomorrow night and friday morning. I have a list of questions, but they applymore to older children/children that have already attended care. Both of these interviews are with moms still on mat leave.
Thank you for any help you can give.

[playfelt]

I am assuming you won't be taking the children till they are closer to age 1 so sometimes it is important to remind parents that their child will be different than they are now. Parents that come to me get concerned when they see that I don't have infant swings and things like that and I have to remind them that by the time their child starts they will be too big for those things and ready for other things that I then show them.

As far as questions ask the current routine of the child - naptimes, how long, how is the child put down - awake and laid down, held till they fall asleep, must have a bottle to settle, etc. If foods have been started how it is going and if not what plan does the parent have to start them. Ask about any issues regarding feeding, spitting up, diaper issues. Confirm that the parent will need to provide the diapers, formula, puree foods or whatever you expect from the parents.

I like to get the parents to share with me an idea of what they hope for their child as it gives me an idea of what they are really looking for in daycare. Do they stress academics, do they seem unsure of what to expect and need reassurance.

Realize that the whole daycare experience is new to the parents and take the time to go over parts of your contract and what it means.

What I look for in an interview with an infant is the connection between the parents and the child and how the mom seems to be about separating - do they put the child down to play, let me hold the child, does dad hold or always mom, does dad get to ask questions or does mom monopolize the conversation. What tone of voice do they use when they ask questions - helps to tell how I will be treated - professional vice the hired help.

Do ask if anyone else has cared for the child such as a babysitter for a night out, has child been taken to places where other people are including playgroup, church nursery, family events.

[Nifer]

One moms mat leave is up at the end of sept, I assume that the baby will be at least 11mo.

Now the other mom is quite the organizer and isn't done her mat leave until April. I said I don't know at this point if I will have an opening in April, but she is a teacher and said Sept would work too. Which then I will have a spot as a 3yo boy will be leaving for school and new sitter in his home area(I live by dads work and knew them previously). I think it's a little crazy to be looking this early-as she doesn't need care for another 8 months.

[mom-in-alberta]

"What I look for in an interview with an infant is the connection between the parents and the child and how the mom seems to be about separating - do they put the child down to play, let me hold the child, does dad hold or always mom, does dad get to ask questions or does mom monopolize the conversation. What tone of voice do they use when they ask questions - helps to tell how I will be treated - professional vice the hired help."

Bingo.... other than finding out what the daily routines are/will be for them, I more so want to know how mom and dad will be about sending their baby to a dayhome. They may need some handholding, especially the more nervous/uptight first time parents. I go through our daily routine, and I have a handout for first-time childcare parents as to what to expect and how to transition easily.
For the early-birdie (8 months in advance!) I would interview, and give the tour, etc. HOWEVER; I would not secure a spot for her this early. And I would recommend that if she does feel comfortable, come back for another interview approximately 6weeks to a month before care will be beginning. Simply explain that care provided for a 4 to 5 month old is drastically different than for an almost 1 year old. She (and you) will get a more accurate picture of whether the arrangement will be mutually agreeable at that time.
I also ask parents if anyone else has cared for thier child, and whether or not the child has had much exposure to other children (be it family or strangers). If I get the feeling that mom and dad have been the only social stimulation little one has had, I will STRONGLY recommend that they begin to take him/her to some new environments. Playgroup, indoor facilities, even the park to hang out with other munchkins. It makes it easier when they begin to come to you, I find.

[horsegirl]

I agree totally with the infant/parent connection. You will be able to tell instantly the type of parents and child that will be part of your daycare. I always let the parents know that just as they are interviewing me to see if I am the caregiver they are looking for, I am interviewing them to make sure that they will fit into my extended family.
Go with your gut feeling as to whether you are going to register the child, this is usually the right feeling.

[thu062012]

Hi,

Good ideal, pls try to keep posting. I like this topic very much and I will digged this one. Tks again.

[Errbear]

It's been awhile since I've interviewed for spots, but I like to ask the parents their philosohy and expectations of discipline. Let's face it, one year olds are starting to learn and test boundaries and how they do things at home will have an impact on your dynamic within your daycare. I've had parents tell me that they use a tone of voice as deterrence and discipline...turns out the voice was a sickly sweet, sing songy wishy washy romper room voice...not gonna fly in group care. . If little timmy is about to bowl over little emily, using a sing song voice isn't going to work when there are up to 5 other kids vying for toys and attention around you. KWIM?


Go over illness policies too. Make it abundantly clear what is and isn't acceptable in group care/your home. I've also had parents dose their fevered kid with advil before coming and not telling me about it until it had worn off and the fever had returned....Deceptio n equals immediate termination in my contract. Some, not all, parents are too selfish to want to take time off work or make suitable alternate arrangements for their sick kid.

Make sure you feel 100% comfortable with bringing the family into your care. I've had parents tell me that they were on the same page as me with how I run things and how I discipline and when their kid started biting and grabbing the other kids by the hair and dragging them around, they just ignored it and played dumb....made me realize they fed me a line to get a spot.

I don't mean to be so negative, but I've had a few reprehensible families in my 2 years, so I have lots of "what if" questions in my arsenal now.

Also, make sure the parents know to have an alternate lined up in the event you need to close. I had to close because my daughter whacked her head off a coffee table and I had to wake her every couple of hours to check for concussion. Working the next day would've been hell so I closed for the day to take care of her and to get some sleep. One of my families admitted that they didn't think about having an emergence alternate lined up for these cases. They just had an alternate for planned days off and holidays.

[thu062012]

If you want to get more materials that related to this topic, you can visit: http://interviewquestionsandanswers....s-and-answers/

Best regards.

[Momof4]

Do you have an Ontario Early Years Centre near you? In the city where I live this organization has a list of questions parents should ask potential HDCP's and if you look at the list it covers everything you should cover during an interview.

During the emailing or phone call stages I make sure parents have read my website entirely because it covers all my most important details - hours of business, fees and other important things. I ask them lots of questions at this stage to make sure I won't be wasting my time by having them come over for an interview.

I start my interviews with a tour of my daycare rooms, kitchen, dining room, toyroom, half bath for toilet training and tell parents how I have organized each room for daycare use during the day. Then I give a rundown of our daily routine and ask how they feel their child would fit in. I give out my resume and go over a few points in my contract. Then I ask them to tell me about themselves and I take notes, their jobs & locations, home location, child's behaviour and routines, and let the conversation move naturally along.

If we are in sync and conversations are moving along well I am willing to spend the time, but if someone comes in without their child or don't even take off their coat or have a clipboard and an attitude I try to move things along very quickly so I'm not wasting my time. Interviewing is a skill you learn as you practice, but you learn to spot the red flags and warning signals for families you don't want to have in your daycare.

[fruitloop]

I might be the odd man out in this but I will and do hold/secure a space that far in advance if I know I'll have an opening. They have to pay me a holding fee though as soon as that space opens up until they need it. Right now I know that I'll have 2 - 3 spaces open for July/Aug/Sept and I have actually already filled 2 of those spaes for that time. The space doesn't actually open up until July 1 so they pay me the registration fee and then a holding fee for July and Aug. Now it saves me from having to look and worry about filling spaces later.

As for interview questions...I agree with the others.