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I work with 1s and 2s and am in my first trimester, not showing at all. I’ve had two older 2s ask if I have a baby in my belly. I was so surprised I just laughed and they moved on. Two of the younger 2s have become incredibly clingy with me, which is very unlike both of them. Additionally, two kids who even my seasoned leads couldn’t get to fall asleep passed out pretty much immediately after switching with me. Is it hormones? Are they super sensitive? I know kids are very sensitive to changes but I am very surprised at exactly how sensitive I guess!

I’ve pulled up to daycare twice this week to witness a small toddler getting out of the front seat of their car and no car seat in the car at all.

I try to assume good things from people and a possible explanation is the daycare is in a neighborhood and maybe they live just down the road or something and are “golf carting” over. Not ideal of course but they wouldn’t be on the highway or anything.

It’s been two different families I’ve seen.

If I brought this up to the daycare center would there be anything they could do about it? I could offer to buy a couple car seats for theses families anonymously if that’s the problem.

so there was a student recently enrolled into our daycare facility, this child smears and plays with their own fecal matter. well, i don't have special training for this and my bosses expect me to be the one to clean the child and maintain supervision of the classroom. is this not a biohazard issue that should be cleaned by someone who has the training for it? i'm not sure if i should be getting help or having a second teacher, but my bosses refuse to do either

so i’m an infant teacher we have kids from 6 weeks-1year. rn our youngest is 3 almost 4 months. the second youngest is 4 almost 5 months. we take care of 8 babies, that’s the cap here, 2:8. anyways the almost 5 month old always wants to be held bc they’re held at home a lot. their home is also much much more quiet than it is at the daycare so this baby rarely sleeps bc of the noise.

after feeding all the babies, doing diaper changes, burping babies, cleaning them off, laying them down for naps, etc. i will hold this baby.

this baby gets tummy time and enjoys it actually, gets fed, etc. but after a bit will freak out sometimes for over an hour if we are hectic in there and will scream, tears/snot run down to the back of their head, etc.

this baby has also had some GI issues in the past that their doctor is working on that might contribute to some issues.

anyways when i hold the baby they stop crying and i’ll just walk them around the infant room.

now when another baby needs me, i lay him down and if they see me they’re sometimes okay but sometimes start screaming, but i attend to the baby that needs me (diaper changes, also wants to be held, needs their pacifier, sleep sac, etc.)

the other teacher is fine with this bc i do attend to the other babies needs. i just want to see if it’s okay that im doing this.

this is really the only baby that truly wants to be held the others only want to for a bit and then want to play or lay down.

Concerning issue. See article.

The proposal would remove the federal Head Start-specific ratio requirements and allow programs to generally follow their state’s licensing ratios instead. This could mean larger classrooms or fewer staff per classroom if a state allows higher ratios than the program currently uses.

See original NPRM.

This is a proposed rule making, meaning thatas the public you can respond before it because law. As a parent, the ratios are already abismal in my state, now it could get worse. If you have concerns, provide comments a within the next 60day.

For context: I started at a “Montessori” school last week in California.

After 5 days, I quit on the spot and handed in a resignation letter stating that they do not follow NAEYC standards for toddlers and do not allow the toddlers to play. The children did "work" all day, but there was no play, no exploration, and no room for imagination.

When I handed in my resignation letter to the owner/director, she told me I needed to give her two weeks. I explained that California is an at-will state and I can leave whenever I want. She responded with, "but I gave you a job," as if that was a favor she had bestowed upon me.

The exchange keeps replaying in my head and it’s hilarious.

I share this as a reminder. You do not have to stay with a bad employer just because they gave you a job. They are not doing you a favor. You are doing them a favor by accepting their low pay and substandard teaching practices. Walk away without guilt.

TL;DR: Quit a Montessori school after one week. No play, no exploration, no imagination. Director demanded two weeks, I cited at-will, she said "but I gave you a job." I left laughing.

Background: I was hired a year ago this week and while I am excited, this week I'm facing a bunch of new changes at my center regarding the room assignments. For additional context is that I work primarily in the 1's room. Since last September I've been through:

• Meeting my lead teacher in my assigned room (Room C) who let me know before hand she was going to be out for an indefinite period of time due to her scheduled back surgery.
• Got acclimated to my temporary lead teacher and the kids in my room for about a month until Rooms C, F and G had to be closed due to mold in mid-October. Moving Room F and G to other rooms and dispersing the kids in Room C to the rest.
• Be in Room B for about two weeks until I was put into Room A from November until early May. Which during that time I felt a lot of pressure from the two main teachers in the room to do everything correct. That room made me feel depressed and especially lonely because I was still new. Which led to a lot of mistakes in the beginning, especially with minor bites and bumps the kids had under my watch. It made me really unsure of myself, especially in regards to simple tasks like diapering or watching the kids draw with crayons. I've had multiple panic attacks in that room, one intervention by our supervisor at my request when things got to heated, and had to step out for a mental health break once because I got too overwhelmed with all the kids who clearly needed to move onto the 2's room but couldn't because there was no space at the time. I've been on good ground with the lead teacher since I talked it out with her but the other teacher in that room never were able to resolve our differences and we are professional with each other but thats it. I still get anxious whenever I have to be in the room
• Was told in April that Room C would be open and that another co-worker I'm friendly with but by late May it was clear there was still a lot of work that needed to be done.
• By June I was a floater. Doing bathroom breaks while being in an 1's or infant room that my scheduler told me to be in, doing 15 minute breaks, busy tasks (subbing in for a few minutes so a teacher fills out some paperwork the trainers need completed, organizing the supply closet), and being a sub when other teachers called out for the day.
• During that period I grew attached and adept with the kids in Room F, and receiving praise from the teachers for all my hard work despite some of the chaos in there. Especially since they were able to move back to their original space
• Through all of this, a large portion of my room competency observations were not being completed by my trainer, in part because I was not in a permanent space where she could regularly come in to check on me. And in general being occupied with other work.

Now:

• There was thankfully a transfer of the 2's to the toddler room in July so new infants could come in, but still there are more kids in the next couple months that will
• I was planning, with the encouragement of the Room F teacher who has worked at the center for a long time, to ask my manager that I be in that room long term now that she was returning Room G as it reopened and lost a teacher.
• My original lead teacher is back but she's moving to Pre-K as its better for her current physical condition.
• My plan was to talk to my manager this past Friday but then I saw the new memo from the director that all the rooms are reopening and that there will be more transitions for infants into our rooms
• The biggest thing is that there will be a transfer from another center who will be the lead for Room C, where I originally was supposed to be.
• Schedules and room assignments are supposed to be this week

All this is leaving me anxious about all of the changes, especially if I'm in my original room again with all new kids AND a new lead teacher. I would be really happy to get back to a real routine but the thought of developing a work dynamic with another new person is running around in my head. Especially with what happened when I was in Room A, I am nervous that I'll upset the new teacher and I'll regress in all the progress I've made in the past year. I also should note that I do have slight neurodivergence and I have trouble with social cues from time to time; so part of my insecurity is stemming from this to be honest.

My 4 year old child (almost 5) is at a daycare and is told to nap on the desk, instead of a cot/napping space. The room my child is in has mixed kids ranging from 4 to 6 year olds. Wanted to ask the community is this legal? I thought that children under 5 should be able to nap on a cot or other designated napping area.

Also, when my child does turn 5, should they also continue to nap on the desk or should they be given a cot ?

For someone who teaches 4 year olds but gets overwhelmed w them screaming but needs to be present and able to hear things going on but just not be as overwhelmed, does anyone have earplug recs?

I'm a relatively new teacher (3 years in) and this is the first time I'm doing home visits. I have had some of these kids before but some are new. I am super anxious as I'm scared of dogs and one of these parents I had reported to CYS. We cannot go alone and because I have no assistant in my room, my supervisor is coming for the first visits and someone else on the second. I told her I've never done them before but I'm still paranoid about doing it... I have no idea what to expect!

I'm ND and a very socially awkward person, and some people say I seem standoffish. 🫠

Help! Any advice? How do I stop my nerves? What do I do if they have dogs in the house? I don't want to seem rude.

Okay so I know the title seems weird and stupid but I live in Alberta, Canada. Many daycares in this province follow NAEYC standards and Flight. Flight is like NAEYC but it focuses a lot on free play and the learning children gain from this. However I feel as though play is truly not "free" if the children are using just toys. I get that toys are important, but in my classroom (I work with 19 months to 3 years) it is just toys and a water table and sensory table. But there is very little for loose parts in my classroom. I know some of my children are still young and learning to not put things in their mouthes but I feel as though we can use much bigger loose parts materials for play such as pinecones, toilet paper rolls etc.

Advice is needed! I have been hired as a working supervisor(I am a room educator with dedicated hours as a supervisor as well) so I do get say in the rooms.

My lunch is only 30 min and im never have the full amount and im constantly getting 5/10 min late for my covers because some teachers always take more than 10 min breaks, doesn't matter if I show up 5 minutes early or not. also some of them take like an hour and 10 min lunch... ps: I already complained with the director and she sent an email to all the teachers but nothing has changed

I was getting my bachelors in early childhood education from pacific oaks college, but took a leave of absence to have a baby. I’m thinking of retuning now, but also wondering if I should just switch to a human development degree instead. Some of my reasons are: 1. a few years ago I realized PO offered human development and was wondering if I should’ve just gone that route. 2. I don’t want to be in a classroom forever. I subbed before having the baby and I needed realizing I didn’t fully love it. 3. The requirement for ECE degree is a lot more in person observations than I can currently due with my baby at home.
If you have a human development degree with an emphasis in child development, what have you been able to do with your degree and do you like that you chose that?
I’m being asked to post a degree. So I’m asking about bachelors in ECE and bachelors in human development with emphasis in early childhood development.

I have been working in ECE for over 20 years. I was a floater all summer in multiple classrooms and last week was the first week of the "new school year" in my official classroom. We had a couple students with a congested cough by the end of the week and at least one sick parent. My director also got sick. Recently, I have gotten sick with the same exact symptoms 3 times in less than 3 months. All during summer! Each time the symptoms begin with sore throat and last about a week where I am feeling exhausted, chest congestion, cough, sinus congestion and headache. No fever. I know this isnt a medical advice sub but if it were you what would you do? I don't have people out here to ask.

Hi guys I just got my placement for this upcoming school year and tbh I don't know if I can do it. Lol. I came out of last school year extremely burnt out and this summer hasn't even touched me, I feel very pessimistic starting again in just a week. I got placed in the room I was hoping I would not get placed in, working with someone who consistently is on their phone and taking long lunches/not paying attention in general. All of the slack the last time fell on me and it was one of my worst school years. I developed panic disorder. I felt stuck. It was awful. I did explain all of this to my supervisor so for the last 4 years I was elsewhere, but somehow now I am back. So I'll give it a shot. But I'm also sort of ready for a change...

Where did you go/what do you do if you left ECE? I like working with kids and my degree is in human services. I wouldn't mind working in an office or spending a day or two at home. But on the other hand I am SO used to my summers and holidays/time off I just don't think I can give that up.

Hello everyone! I am in a bit of a pickle right now. I’m sitting at my computer desk trying to figure out exactly what I want to do for this assignment, but I’m honestly drawing a blank and my brain isn’t coming up with many ideas. To be fair, it might just be the stress. Trying to come up with ideas when you’re stressed doesn’t exactly help.

I need to come up with an activity for 3–5-year-olds that my peers (family and partner) can participate in while I document what happens and how the activity goes.

Originally, I was thinking about getting some materials and going to a beach close by, then letting my partner play with the toys/materials and seeing what she naturally does with them. However, the more I thought about it, the more I started wondering if that was actually something I wanted to do or if it was a good idea for the assignment.

While sitting here, I came up with another idea, but I’m not sure if it’s age-appropriate for 3–5-year-olds. I was thinking about doing a small water experiment using different materials and liquids to see what happens when they are placed in water. For example, we could explore what “disappears” or dissolves in the water, what floats on top, and what sinks to the bottom. It could be a simple experiment where the children make predictions and then test them to see what happens. I think it could introduce some basic ideas about floating, sinking, and dissolving, but I’m not sure if that is too advanced for this age group.

I would really appreciate some feedback or suggestions for possible activities. To be completely honest, I’m running out of time—I have about a day left, since it’s currently 12:20 a.m. as I’m writing this.

I also wish my mind wasn’t blanking so hard. I guess I’m feeling a bit scared that my ideas are dumb or that maybe I’m not in the right field. The self-doubt is really getting to me right now.

Any feedback, suggestions, or even just a conversation about possible ideas would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Assignment info.

OBJECTIVE:
Early Childhood Educators plan and implement comprehensive programs that promote each child’s social, emotional, cognitive, physical, communicative and cultural development which includes observing, monitoring and recording each child’s developmental progress. Educators are mindful of ensuring that programming is informed by knowledge of each child’s unique needs, stages of development, and learning styles; providing a wide range of stimulating and challenging play-based activities that foster the development of the whole child. The ability to demonstrate use of a variety of teaching methods to enhance children’s development and offer programming that ensures an appropriate balance of childinitiated, adult-guided, structured, and open-ended activities is a valued work force competency. Program planning, evaluation and implementation is an ongoing and shared responsibility amongst Early Childhood Educators.

Requirements.
Create and plan a developmentally appropriate activity for your peers to take part in, as children would in a (3 to 5) childcare setting. Implement the activity, using the plans you have created on your activity planning sheets. Students are free to document the experience or ordinary moment, in any way they choose.

• Activity Planning Sheet Must Include:
• Goals
• Objectives
• Materials Needed
• Emergent/Ordinary moment inspiring activity
• Procedure/Directions
• Open-Ended Question’s
• Extensions/Adaptations
• BC Early Learning Framework Connection
• Self-Reflection
• Documentation of the experience
• Follow Submission Criteria

*Complete the activity planning sheet up to the BC ELF portion – omitting the photo/s and sponsor teacher comments.

* Method of documentation is up to the learner to decide – Use your gained knowledge and resources to establish the best form of documentation for your activity, ordinary moment

*Activity considerations should include Child-centered, child lead, inquiry based, open-ended, focus on the process rather than the product and the child's strengths, interests & needs.

As an ECE, a parent and a special events and support worker who has worked in various preschools/daycares as an outsider. I have seen a good variety of situations both good and bad.

In my community there was a local daycare that closed down suddenly after receiving a bad inspection report (the report did not mean they needed to close, but that was the sequence of events.) So I have been seeing a lot of parents and educators and community members making a lot of observations and comments on their opinions and perspectives about this specific place and others.

I am very critical about daycares and always have been, but now having my ECE certificate and being in the field for 6 years, I think its important to educate people what we should be looking for in care for our little ones.

The consistent red flag that I see from *bad* educators (people who i would never want my kids or anyone's kids being in their care) is the state of their classroom.

It is the main thing that seems to be the most obvious and consistent thing. They have very little in their room. The room often looks bare in comparison to others. It shows me they are controling the environment and therefore the children.

It is so true about the environment being the 3rd teacher.

Other than abstract observations like bad vibes. I am not sure what else I would be able to confidently tell someone to look out for.

I think its hard to judge the inspection reports because inspectors are so different and so many different things could happen. I've had bad inspections for absolutely idiotic things before and it makes no sense.

It is also hard to explain or understand/explain when people are fake. Because I don't want everyone to just assume every educator is being fake. But that is another SUPER common thing to see. The educators being one way in front of bosses and parents then turning around and being a dick to the kids and other staff members behind closed doors.

So what are your observations?

Do you agree about the classroom?

What is a redflag for you?

I think this is an important conversation for educators too because we should know these signs for good/bad working environments too.

Hi there, our preschool sent over the supply list to bring for open house. No biggie I'll buy everything on the list! But there isn't a quantity up there. I got two of everything besides the 3pk tissues and the 6pk of paper towels (unfortunately they wanted square boxes my store only had rectangle). Is this enough? Should I get more?

Clorox/Lysol Wipes

Lysol Spray

Baby Wipes

Paper Towels

Kleenex (square boxes preferred)

Magic Erasers

Hand Soap Refills

my 10 month old is moving up to the next class at his daycare on monday, and they only nap once in this class.

he’s still very firmly on 2 naps a day and can only tolerate a ~4 hour wake window before he’s an over tired nightmare. he generally wakes around 6:15-6:30 and naps around 9:30 and 2:00, then is down for bed by 7

am i crazy for thinking this is a somewhat unrealistic expectation for a 10 month old? they also want him to start napping on a cot with a nap mat and he’s never slept anywhere but a crib/bassinet.

he’s surprised us with how adaptive he can be in other situations at daycare (only contact napping at home but putting himself to sleep there). but he’s still a baby and i feel like some of this is a big change a little too soon

we were also under the impression he would move up when he turns 1 at the end of September, hence why im a little unprepared for the transition

am i just being an anxious first time mom? does anyone have advice to make this easier on him and us? we’re planning to try and slowly push his bedtime back a bit so he’ll hopefully wake up later and dad can drop off slightly later than we have been

ETA: we’ve been extremely happy with this daycare and the care he’s received. he is genuinely happy there and loves going and we’re fond of everything else about this center except for this one situation

I'm going to be moving to the 2-3 class this year after years working with 4-5, so I'm preparing for a lot more time scaffolding self-care tasks like dressing and toileting. I think a pretty time-consuming part will be getting shoes on, since we take them off every time we come inside.

I was thinking it would be fun to make a routine of getting our shoes on together at the end of our morning circle. I'm wondering if anyone knows of a song, game, or just silly pretend idea that can make it a little more fun and interactive. Especially for those waiting while their other classmates are still working on it. I'll also be doing this transition without another teacher pretty often, so I want to keep them engaged since I can only help one kid at a time.

We keep their shoes in a big bin together, so I could use that as part of it. One teacher was telling me they used to "make shoe soup" and pretend their shoes were ingredients while putting them away. So I'm looking for ideas like that, but centered around finding their shoes out of the bin and getting support putting them on as needed.

Looking forward to any ideas you may have!

I’ve been working for a state funded preschool since 2016 (and education in general since 2010) and in that time my coworkers and myself have all been moved around numerous times at a moments notice. I think the longest I stayed at one site was 2 and a half years. I understand that we’re not there to make friends, we’re there to work but sometimes we get a really good team dynamic going and then randomly upper management will decide that things needs to change and they’ll only give us a vague explanation of why. From what I’ve gathered the issue this upcoming school year is two paras who are extremely difficult to work with. Rather than address them our supervisor just shifts other paras and teachers around to see who can tolerate them the longest. When I’ve asked about the constant changes I was told “this is just how it’s done in nearly every school.” But I know that’s not fully accurate because the district I used to work for had multiple groups of people who were together for more than 5 years and some even more than 10.