Wondering if you kids should attend a Daycare / After School Care Programme? Puzzling about Separation Anxiety of your preschool kids?

Wondering if you kids should attend a Daycare / After School Care Programme?

Every parent wants the best for their kids.  However, living in a city could also mean that there may be substantial financial burden to bear as the kids grow.  It is not unusual that some parents are working on multiple jobs to lessen their burden.  Under such circumstances, the choice of sending their kids to any daycare programme may appear at the last of the priority list.   Another issue is Separation Anxiety.  Some parents puzzle about the fact that some children develop Separation Anxiety “symptoms” after attending a regular day care programme and wonder if they should pull their children out.  Let’s continue to explore this crucial topic.

First and foremost, all parents can rest assured that daycare / after school care programme is an essential item for their kids.  In economics term, it is a “need” rather than a “want”.  Kids take on different path of personal development by joining a daycare programme.  Multiple benefits have been seen in all areas (academic, social and economic).  Studies have shown that children as young as 3 years old, could enjoy enormous advantages from daycare / after school care environment, including social interaction with other children and learning to follow quality instruction. 

1. Awareness of structured routine and programme

Even though kids as young as 3 years old may not know how to tell time on a clock, they know certainly there is a daily routine and plan to follow in the day care / after school programme.  Their daily schedule would be occupied by a series of activities such as story telling, art and craft, music and etc.  All such daily activities are crucial to the intellectual development of the kids.  To the parents, they would not be worried if their kids are not spending time wisely elsewhere.

2. Academic Achievement Later in Life

Previous research done by U.S. National Institutes of Health found out that there was correlation between experience of childcare before age of five and academic performance and social-behavioural aspects of teenagers under research.  Basically, teenagers who enjoyed improved academic and higher cognitive skills had experienced high quality childcare centres during their young age.  The same applied to social-emotional aspects of the teenagers.  Therefore, participating in a quality day care / after school care programme is the key to success for a young soul.   

“High-quality day care” includes aspects such as facility providing extensive cognitive-boosting activities, healthy interaction with care providers and comprehensive support system.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.

3. An Unforgettable Time Spent with Peers

Kids are never bored.  There are always peers to play and interact with as compared with their time alone at home.  Time spending with peers is never a waste.  A day care / after school care programme is where kids spend time with their peers under supervision in a structured and secure environment.  Children learn to play together, communicate, share and even problem-solve.  A by product of such activities is that they are actively developing their personality and multiple intelligences.  Moments of laughter each child experiences in a day care / after school care programme with their peers may become a lifetime memory.

4. An Important Bridge to Formal School

Formal school education could be a challenge if the kid has not gone through daily day care / after school schedules while staying away from their parents.  Children attending day care / after school care programme would stand a better chance to have a smoother transition into formal school.  Analysis of 1,352 children (1 month-6 years) and parents in the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development revealed that mothers were more involved at their children's schools when children had prior histories of high-quality nonparental care. This pattern, which was fairly stable across levels of maternal education and employment, was mediated by children's academic skills and home environments.

About NICHD - NICHD was founded in 1962 to investigate human development throughout the entire life process, with a focus on understanding disabilities and important events that occur during pregnancy.  Since then, research conducted and funded by NICHD has helped save lives, improve well being, and reduce societal costs associated with illness and disability.  NICHD’s mission is to lead research and training to understand human development, improve reproductive health, enhance the lives of children and adolescents, and optimize abilities for all.  For further information, visit https://www.nichd.nih.gov/about

5. Communication and Interaction with Adults

Young children look up to adults as an example to learn.  Day care / after school programme provides a platform for children to have other adults as their mentors.  They learn to interact and seek guidance from them.  This may resolve issues relating to “over-dependence” on their parents. 

A National Institute of Child Health and Human Development study carried out in 2006 indicated that high quality day care goes hand in hand with quality care giving service. This is expected as day care / after school care providers could bring about encouragement, triggering children’s language development.  Furthermore, it motivates the development of positive attitude among all the children in the programme.

6. Developing Better Health

Some children may develop flu and colds when joining a day care / after school care programme as a start.  However, their immune systems would adjust to the new environment and they would eventually develop stronger immune systems.  A kid who does not attend day care / after school care programme regularly may be more likely to absent from formal school due to illnesses as compared to those who attend regularly. 

7. Daycare Children Are Likely to Attain Tertiary Qualifications When They Grow Up

The following is a very important study result which no one should ignore.  A three-decade study implemented by FPG Child Development Institute at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has shown that children who attended a quality daycare were four times more likely to go to college compared to those who did not.  The findings were based on a control group consisting of their peers who did not attend day care programme.

8. Emotional Intelligence Development

Emotional intelligence is developed as the children navigate the up’s and down’s of peer relationship.  They learn about emotional control and develop empathy toward other children.  They learn to deal with Separation Anxiety, which they would not be able to overcome had they never been participated in a structured and regular day care / after school care programme. 

9. Day Care Programme Contributes to Consistent Work Performance

Besides, the UNC study demonstrated that children who attended day care would have consistent career performance compared to the other group. At age 30, 75% of the kids who attended daycare had worked full-time for at least 16 out of 24 of the past months.  This result was compared with 53% from the control group who never attended day care programme having the same result.  One may deduct from the study that the improved performance could be attributed to the necessary communication and interpersonal skills acquired during the day care period in their young age.

10. Social-Economic Advantages for Parents

We understand it is not easy to leave your young children with day care teachers.  However, enrolling  your children in regular day care / after school care programme would definitely grant parents more free time to pursue their field of interest.  Some parents may pursue a full time career which could improve their social-economic status as well.    

In conclusion, it is clear that day care / after school care programme provides both short term and long term benefits.  It is an open door for all young children to develop their personal talents, interpersonal and communication skills, resilience, problem-solving skills.  This, in the long run, would strengthen their academic and career foundation.