challenges
The average preschooler spends 33 hours per week in child care. Research shows that young children’s healthy development depends on safe and positive experiences during the first five years of life. Choosing child care is an important decision that requires balancing parental needs and the developmental requirements and personality of a child. The child care system is surprisingly complex; Child Care Resource and Referral provides a variety of resources to help parents navigate it.
What are some of the indicators of high quality child care?
- low child/teacher ratios
- small group size
- staff with higher education and on-going training
- prior experience and education of the director
- low teacher turnover
- positive teacher/child interactions
- accreditation or higher than minimum licensing standards
- age appropriate activities
- good health and safety practices
Over 90% of brain growth occurs during the early years, between ages 0-5. The people who help care for your child are also those who help shape your child’s mind.
Investments
Child Care Resource and Referral, in partnership with the State of Colorado Office of Early Childhood, maintains a database of all licensed home and center providers in Colorado.
A trained referral specialist is available to help parents find local child care services that meet their child’s needs. For each family, the specialist provides at least four matching child care providers.
United Way of Weld County connects with every Weld County child care provider annually to update contact information, number of child care openings available, and other items. These updates are included in the Child Care Resource and Referral database.
Additionally, the database is available for use as a statistical analysis tool as it includes information about program type, capacity, services, wages, and benefits.
“When I called Child Care Resource and Referral, I was in distress. The person was patient, knowledgeable, and I had hope for a positive outcome from my search. Many thanks.”
Anonymous Caller
