What is the Transition Process/Phase-in Philosophy?

At West Side Daycare, we sure your child's transition is as smooth and comfortable as possible. We work together with  parents to ensure a the exposure to daycare begins limited and does not feel overwhelming for a child. We begin by limiting the amount of time exposed to daycare, with a daily increase until your child has fully adjusted to our daycare setting. Here at West Side Daycare, we understand all children are adjust differently and will do our best to assist that process.

Day 1, your child will stay half day and must be picked up by 10:00 am.

Day 2, we extend hours and your child must be picked up by 11:30 am.

Day 3, we transition into a full day.

How much time may parents spend at the daycare?
Here at West Side Daycare we would appreciate if drop off is as quick and easy as possible. We understand there may come days where the drop off process does not go as planned. We do ask that you do your best to expedite dropping off your child. The morning can get hectic with the foot traffic from parents dropping off children and strollers. The drop off area tends get a little tight to move around.

Why is the cut off 9:30 am for arriving children?

Routine amongst children & staff is THE KEY to a smooth and successful day. Children in our care pay close attention to our everyday routines & daily activities. We begin serving breakfast at 9:00am sharp. If you want your child to recieve breakfast, He/She must arrive by 9:00 am. We clean up breakfast promptly at 9:30 am and flow into our day. When a parent drops off a child after 9:30 am, in the middle of our morning activity, it distracts the children already engaged and throws off their focus. We feel it is unfair to the children and our staff. The teacher now has to stop the activity with the children to settle in the late child. It takes up educational time getting all of our children to focus back on the activity at hand. Our children enjoy participating in every morning song and activity. We want our children to get the full experience each and every day. We do not want our time cut short or borrow time from the next planned activity.

This is the reason our cut off for arrival is 9:30AM

Do you provide meals and snacks?
Yes, after the age of 1, breakfast, lunch, and snack, are all included in the tuition. For children under the age of 1, we ask that parents provide food for the day. We follow guidelines set by Community Life Food Program to meet all children's daily nutritional needs. Once or twice a year a representative will randomly check in during normal business hours to ensure we are up to par in following the guidelines they have implemented.