Daycare is the invention of the modern world, where working parents don’t have time to take care and time spend with their kids. They just leave the kids in daycare school for learning, eating, and playing so that kids feel happy and safe. Did you know that your child’s daycare can have a positive effect on their development? We explore some of the benefits below.
An Important Study Into the Benefits of Child Care Centers
When sending your child off to a structured child care setting, it is important to know that they benefit from this environment. Much of these benefits rely on parents choosing a quality center, one that provides kids with a daily routine of learning, play, and nutrition.
In the 1990s, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) in the United States examined the influences of child care centers on kids. The researchers specifically focused on how this early learning setting affected their academic study throughout their formal education. Below are some of the benefits and drawbacks of childcare, according to this study.
Benefits of Daycare for Your Child’s Development
Today’s early childhood teachers in daycares are more qualified for their roles than ever before. As a result, elementary school teachers notice that kids who attended child care programs are better prepared for kindergarten and subsequent years of schooling. Children from daycares are more used to routine and structure. They also learn how to socialize with their peers, showing this preparation through their positive school-age relationships.
Kindergarten teachers with child care attendees as pupils can more quickly move on to more advanced learning. With kids who stayed home during their preschool years, initial interactions must focus on more basic material and social skills. Kids from daycares already know how to share, wait in line, and put away their belongings upon arrival at school. They also know not to touch or talk over others.
In a quality child care center like 2000 Days Daycare, children learn according to lesson plans and hands-on activities. This learning typically includes the alphabet, simple reading, and simple math. Daycares also introduce kids to science and help them learn personal hygiene skills.
Overall, daycares positively affect child development in the following ways:
- Prepares them for elementary school
- Teaches them routine and structure
- Teaches them social skills
Benefits of care in a quality child care setting continue to appear throughout a child’s elementary years, according to the NICHD study. In fact, the researchers noted that fifth-graders who attended child care have better vocabularies than kids who did not have this exposure.
Drawbacks of Child Care
Along with the pros in any evaluation, there are generally also cons. For child care settings, these negative aspects start with increased illness for kids cared for outside of the home. Children inevitably pass germs onto each other, making exposure to viruses and infections higher for those attending daycares. This does not typically affect their overall development. But it does mean parents will spend more time at the doctor with their kids.
Some people argue that child care can negatively affect behavior. Children are like sponges, soaking up as much information as they can from their environment. But in a social setting with a dozen or more other children, this means they can pick up bad habits from each other. In reality, they also face exposure to bad habits through television, at-home play with others, and even their own families.
Overall, the negatives associated with child care include:
- .Greater exposure to illnesses
- .Learning bad habits from peers
Of course, no one should blame a child care center for a misbehaving child. Kids act out for a wide range of reasons. The NICHD study actually indicated that the home environment influences childhood behavior more than child care. Life at home and other family members plays a bigger role in child behavioral development than in child care settings.
