Getting Kids Ready For Pick Up

[CraftyMom]

How do you feel about getting the kids ready to go home?

If I have time and know exactly when to expect a parent I will get their coats and boots on, IF I have time. Trouble is parents don't always show up when they say.

I personally don't feel I should be getting 6 kids' coats and boots and mittens, hats and everything on at the end of a busy day.

What are your thoughts??

[Oss_cc]

For me, it depends on the family. My three full time daycare kiddos have parents that are on the ball with pick ups and drop offs, so I'll help out with coats etc if needed, but usually don't have to.
My part time DCG is another story. Drop offs and pick ups are a nightmare because DCM lets her rule the roost. So if I know she is on her way, I will get DCG ready right before so I can hand her off quickly.

[craftymissbeth]

I get all of my kids 100% ready to go. Then again, I have specific pick up times. If a parent tells me they'll be here at a certain time then that becomes their pick up time for the day and I have them ready then. If they show up after that time I just give them a warning and let them know their child has been playing in their coat and gloves waiting for pick up. It's only happened once, though and they got my point.

I get them ready because I dislike when the parents linger, plus I have one dcg that throws herself on the ground and acts terrible when dcm tries to get her ready.

[Maria2013]

How do you feel about getting the kids ready to go home?

If I have time and know exactly when to expect a parent I will get their coats and boots on, IF I have time. Trouble is parents don't always show up when they say.

I personally don't feel I should be getting 6 kids' coats and boots and mittens, hats and everything on at the end of a busy day.

What are your thoughts??

I don't mind getting the kids ready IF I have the time.....the parents that want their kids ready, will send me a "I'm 5 minutes away" text, but they know I may or may not get them ready for them

[MommaB3]

I have all my kids have their stuff together and their shoes on. For infants I have their bags, car seats, etc. laid out and ready to go so pick up isn't a long process. I want them in and out as fast as possible.


I have 2 reasons for doing this. One, I don't want to make the parents have to wait for their kids to put away their stuff and get their shoes, coat, hat, etc on. Some of them would easily be here for 15 minutes waiting for their kids. I have never had my own personal children in a daycare setting but I don't think I would want to spend extra time waiting for my kids to get ready at pick up before being able to head home after working all day. I'd want to be in and out.

Second reason, I personally don't want the parents there that long! Kids tend to act up more and break the rules when their parent or other kids' parents are there and if it's the last parent of the day I just want to be done!

[Blackcat31]

Normally, I don't get anyone's child ready to go.

I have a half gate that separates my main daycare area and the coat/cubby room. Once a parent enters the house, the kids go out the gate and the parent takes it from there.

My pick up policy is that parents schedule a time, let's say 5:00 for pick up and that means they need to have readied their child and be out the door by 5:00.

I will on occasion have an older child head out into the coat room and start getting ready to go if a parent calls or texts and asks me to....in case they need to be somewhere quickly.

As for the younger ones that can't dress themselves, I would help them get ready before a parent arrives if they request but only if I am not in the middle of something else.

But it isn't something I do on a regular basis.

[jenn]

Mine all have set pick up times. I have them 100% ready to go out the door when the parent arrives.

I dislike parents coming in at pick up as they tend to linger and the children tend to act up. Even if a parent arrives early, I do the putting coat/hat/gloves on, because the child knows that I am not going to play any games.

I think it is just up to the provider what they want to do and how they want to spend their time. I don't think there is a good or bad, right or wrong.

[Cradle2crayons]

My parents text before they drop off and pick up so everyone is ready when they arrive. If it's after 830 pm and the kids are asleep, then they just wake them and go because everything else is ready. I don't allow diaper bags etc so it's pretty easy.

[kendallina]

I don't get anyone ready. Most of my kiddos, though leave at the same time, I run a 9-12 preschool. But even on the days where I have kids with later scheduled hours, I don't do anything to get them ready except make sure their stuff is in their cubby.

[CraftyMom]

Thanks everyone for sharing, it's a lot of help to see different points of view

[Daycaregranny]

It seems that most kids in my daycare , for whatever reason, decide one day to freak out on their parent at pick up. I really don't know what spurs it on but it happens. I started using a technique that works for us. After the first time I pull my parent aside a explain that this happens and to help them not have this a recurring issue I need them to help me out. I tell them to tell their child that if they act like that they will leave them at daycare. When it happens the next day the parents are to immediately say I told you I was going to leave and they do 1st time 15 min 2nd time 1/2 hr. The kids never do it again. My older kids crack me up when one of the little ones start to do it, they look at them and shake their heads and say yep your gonna get left behind. Works every time. At least so far. My parents always get their own children ready to go.

[Blackcat31]

It seems that most kids in my daycare , for whatever reason, decide one day to freak out on their parent at pick up. I really don't know what spurs it on but it happens. I started using a technique that works for us. After the first time I pull my parent aside a explain that this happens and to help them not have this a recurring issue I need them to help me out. I tell them to tell their child that if they act like that they will leave them at daycare. When it happens the next day the parents are to immediately say I told you I was going to leave and they do 1st time 15 min 2nd time 1/2 hr. The kids never do it again. My older kids crack me up when one of the little ones start to do it, they look at them and shake their heads and say yep your gonna get left behind. Works every time. At least so far. My parents always get their own children ready to go.

So if the child acts up, the parent is to leave them with you at daycare for another 15 minutes as a consequence?

I don't know if that would sit well with me or my DCP's.

Being in daycare all day while your parent works is stressful enough but then to have your parent "threaten" to leave you there even longer seems kind of counterproductive as well as making "daycare" be the "bad" place to be....

I also think that there are more appropriate ways to help children make the transition between daycare and home easier and less stressful. I think that asking a parent to work with you means asking them to help their child adjust and understand the change that happens when they move between one environment to another by talking with their child about this. Sometimes the repeated conversation about what's going to happen every day helps a child eventually understand that this is the daily routine and the way it is going to be.

I think for the younger kids who don't understand discussion, the drop off and pick ups could be done swiftly and quickly so the child understands through repeated consistent routines day in and day out, that getting ready to go at the end of the day IS part of the routine and expected behavior.

Kids undergo a somewhat stressful moment when their parent arrives to pick them up. It's that same euphoria we as adults feel when we've had a long day away from home and we walk in our front door and feel that wave of relief of being home. Your safe, warm, comfortable place.

Kids feel like that sometimes when their parent arrives for pick up. That wave of emotion comes out in different ways for different kids. Some instantaneously get whiney or cry. Others can get crazy and wild...their emotions running amok. While others get defiant and test boundaries since two of their day to day authority figures are now present at the same time.

Kids need assistance, reassurance, help and support understanding this change. Not a threat to leave them there longer.

[NeedaVaca]

I have not had many pick up problems and have a routine in place that is the same everyday. We drink milk at 4:30, put on shoes, sit on the couch while I read stories and sing songs. I have a big picture window so as soon as a parent pulls into the driveway I put on jackets/hats/mittens. It takes no time at all and they are ready to go when the parent walks in, then back to stories

[SilverSabre25]

Parents get their kids ready to go. I will "facilitate" with older kids somewhat when parents are not doing a good job keeping control. 'dcb, your mom said you need to get your shoes on. you need to do it.'

My 5 yo dcb who goes to preschool, I do have him put his shoes on right around the earliest end of the "window" in which he may be picked up. That's because he dawdles and takes for.freaking.EVER and the people who pick him up stand there with my door open and it's in the middle of the day and i just want him GONE so i can move on.

[BrooklynM]

I get them all ready to go, but since we are in California, the kids don't have big coats and boots, just sweatshirts and shoes.

Personally I hate it when parents threaten to leave their kids here because they actually want to stay so it makes it way worse! Plus, if they didn't want to stay, I never want my house to be looked at as a punishment.