Children's crib: checklist for parents | BRIGITTE.de

How do you recognize a good nursery? Quality is extremely important, especially for children under three years of age. This checklist can help.

Finding the right daycare center – it's not that easy. Since there are only a few controls and quality standards for daycare centers, the only thing left for parents to do so far is to be vigilant – and to try to assess whether the work in the daycare center is being done well.

In addition to gut instinct, this checklist, which the Bertelsmann Foundation created together with the educationalist Wiebke Wüstenberg, can help. You can clarify the questions, for example, when visiting the daycare center or in a preliminary talk. Of course, this will not be possible for all questions – you may need to contact other parents who already have children in the facility.

Good or Bad Crib? Parents should consider these questions

  1. Does the daycare group consist of a maximum of 15 children, including no more than five one to two year olds? Are there always at least two teachers present for this group size?
  2. Is there a balanced composition of the children's group according to age and gender?
  3. Is there a time to get used to it? Does every child have the opportunity, accompanied by their parents, to get used to the teacher and the new environment at their own pace?
  4. Does the day care center ensure that every child can spend the whole day with trusted teachers?
  5. Are the smaller children together with trusted play partners in the mornings and afternoons?
  6. Does the day care center take into account the individual daily rhythm of each child, e.g. Eating and sleeping times as well as needs and preferences?
  7. Are there clear structures and rituals in the daily routine that the child can use for orientation?
  8. Is there enough space (at least two rooms per group)? Are there protected areas for crawlers, "racetracks" for beginners, opportunities to jump and climb, space for individual and group games? Has the daycare center set up various functional areas, e.g. for eating, for care, relaxation and retreat, experiences with water and sand, for playing, experimenting and constructing, for extensive movement and meeting as a whole group?
  9. Are the functional areas clearly laid out for all children and also easy to understand for one to two year old children?
  10. Are the game materials tailored to the needs of the different age groups? Is there e.g. simple everyday objects for younger children, disguise utensils for role-playing games, tools, building and experiment materials for older children?
  11. Are there a variety of materials available for sensual perception, e.g. colored pillows filled with different materials, sound boxes, pictures and mirrors at the child's eye level? Are rooms or materials that can be dangerous for one to two year olds inaccessible to these children? Are there retreat corners and undisturbed sleeping facilities (extra bedroom) for the youngest?
  12. Are parents accepted by the day care center as educational partners?
  13. Will a social network be created for children, parents and institution?
  14. Do the teachers consciously take a lot of time to change and dress? Do they react to the child's signals and do they speak to them in the process? Do you behave empathetically?
  15. Are there regular suggestions for linguistic development, e.g. with picture books, stories, rhymes and songs?

The Bertelsmann Foundation's "Promoting Children Earlier" project provides even more information and brochures: www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de

Have you had bad experiences with daycare centers?

The "Family Unplugged" project collects stories under the hashtag #Kinderinderkita. You can read more about this here.

miro