The decision to send your little one to childcare can be a difficult one, no matter their age! You may be weighing the pros and cons of whether childcare is the best fit for your family and researching different options in the area that best align with your goals and values. Here are five of the top reasons that childcare can be beneficial to your child’s emotional, social, and behavioral development.
Consistent Routine
Childcare is an excellent way to incorporate daily routines into your child’s life. Their day follows a regular schedule with structured time for snacking, napping, playing, etc. Not only does this make it easier to maintain a routine in your child’s life at home, but it can also regulate their behavior day-to-day, including when you pick them up.
Social Development
Children flourish best when they have consistent and healthy social interaction, and childcare is a wonderful place to foster this! Important skills like manners, sharing, communication, and friendship are encouraged when your child interacts with other children and childcare workers daily.
Physical Health
Believe it or not, childcare has been linked to more positive physical health for children of all ages! Not only are little ones’ immune systems strengthened by constant interaction with others, but they are also given the opportunity to engage in consistent play and outdoor activities that can be massively beneficial for building a healthy lifestyle early.
Independence
Transitioning from spending all day every day with your child to routinely dropping them off at childcare can be a difficult one, but it can also be instrumental to their development as they begin to experience independence and autonomy! Your child will learn basic skills like putting their coat on themselves, cleaning up after snack time, etc. and take over many of the daily tasks you may be used to performing as their parent. This is an important stage in their development into a self-sufficient adult.
Easing Transition to School
No matter what age your little one is, they will one day transition into some form of out-of-home program or experience. Starting your child in childcare earlier in life has been shown to ease the transition into later programs such as Kindergarten and grade school. Mastering routines and communication styles can make it much easier for your child to ease into less laid-back school settings because they’ve already developed basic skills.
Heaven’s Elect Christian Learning Center is a Non-denominational Christian childcare center fully licensed by the state of Michigan. Our Midland childcare center has been serving the community since 2000. Please contact us at heavenselect.com.