QUICK! Is this over ratio? Friend coming over

[Sandbox Sally]

Ok so I know the ratio rules, and I know it also pertains to playdates at my home...but I am not sure about this one...

I have three dck's here today. I also have two of my own kids here too, but I know they don't count toward my ratio.

My sister in law (and BFF...lol) is coming over with her two dck's and her own son. Does her son count toward our ratios?

Together, we have five dck's and three of our own offspring. Are we legal??

Oops sorry - Ontario!

[KingstonMom]

i would say no, its fine!!
5 dcks in your home only!

[DaycareLulu]

I agree, it's still only 5 daycare kids!

[Littledragon]

I don't know...because i know the rule is 5 kids MAX no matter how many adults you have in your home, so I don't know if her kids would count towards offspring or what. HOWEVER, it's only one day. Are you licenced? If not, I wouldn't worry about the one day.

[treeholm]

I read the rules for this when I began because I provide care for my granddaughter, and didn't know if she would "count." You are fine as long as a parent is there with her own children. You have 3 dck's and she has 2, so you are fine. Your children do not count as you are there with them, and her children don't count if she is there with you. I discovered that my granddaughter doesn't count if my daughter is there, but I need to count her as one of my 5 if my daughter leaves the premises.

[Momof4]

Yes, you are within 5 unrelated children, isn't that what the DNA states? Then the others are your own children.

I go to other daycare providers houses all the time for playdates and there will be 2 or 3 of us with 10-15 children in a nice big back yard. I can't see the difference if we are in a nice fenced yard or at a big park where it's harder to keep track of your children. But each of us are within our limit of 5 unrelated children.

[sunnydays]

This is actually illegal if anyone reports you! You cannot have a total of 5 dck's combined between all of you...no matter how many adults...and back yards count as premises of your home. I would be careful with that one!

Yes, you are within 5 unrelated children, isn't that what the DNA states? Then the others are your own children.

I go to other daycare providers houses all the time for playdates and there will be 2 or 3 of us with 10-15 children in a nice big back yard. I can't see the difference if we are in a nice fenced yard or at a big park where it's harder to keep track of your children. But each of us are within our limit of 5 unrelated children.

[Momof4]

I know it kanga, I'm just pointing out the irony that it's legal at a park but not in somebody's back yard. Believe me, I noticed that she has a tall fence. And our dckids are all very well behaved so not loud.

[playfelt]

My feeling is that it is 5 daycare kids and the son doesn't count because he is there with his mother. We can have as many kids as we want in our home if they are there with their parent. Any kids not with a parent are counted against us so her daycare kids become your daycare kids in terms of counts.

That is based on interpretations given to us here in Ottawa based on reviews following that drowning and how to interpret the laws.

[Inspired by Reggio]

Ya ~ love this 'grey' area of the DNA cause it is another illogical rule that contradicts itself

We never had an issue with play dates when I first opened and was with an agency ~ they use to promote the play dates in the community with other providers to minimize isolation ~ I used to have a peer over here to my house all the time my first year or my crew would go to her place .... it was not considered 'illegal' because we were not operating the daycare with more than 5 children per premise because we each had our own premise of operation ~ parents dropped off to the 'main premise', children ate and slept at the main premise and engaged in majority of the program at their 'own premise' .... we were just visiting for a short portion of the day a couple times a week to allow the kids more exposure to other children and ourselves someone to brainstorm and so forth.

However after that issue in Ottawa some agencies started 'restricting' play dates to only in PUBLIC venues ... so it is ok at the park, at the OEYC, at the library but NOT ok at another providers private property unless your number of children is less than 5 total cause in 'agency care' you have to count your own kids in the ratio ... so no more play dates for us except at 'public venues' ... and even that 'mandate' is not consistent across Ontario there are rural agencies and so forth that either did not GET the memo or have chosen to 'interpret' play dates differently and still allow them.

The logic of that makes absolutely no sense to me ~ I know for a fact that my backyard is safer than the PARK because I never have to pick up needles, used condoms, cigarette butts and other dangers in my yard but every time we go to the park the kiddies have to 'sit at the edge' while we do a safety inspection! Not to mention that lack of adequate supervision of children occurs in public just as much as in private ~ I have seen people loose children at the park, library, have seen kids get 'hurt' at the OEYC playgroups and so forth.

Just a silly rule that further isolates providers and results in less people in some communities wanting to enter this field and creating a lack of services for parents!