If you're running a day care center, you can make it more successful by involving the children's parents in the daily activities and special events, and by making an extra effort to reach out to them. The more the parents are involved and know the quality of care their children are receiving, the more likely they are to recommend your center to other families and keep their children in your care.

Daily and Weekly Activities

When running a day care, extra efforts make the biggest differences. If you want to get parents involved, let them know what's happening at your day care. The easiest way to do this is to have a theme for each month or week, such as Beach Bonanza or All About Animals, and plan activities, field trips and snacks around the theme. Give parents a newsletter each week with the theme and daily activities and field trips listed. You can keep parents in touch by sending them updates throughout the day of what you've done, with pictures of their children. For example, if you went to the zoo, send a mass email to the parents saying that you had fun at the zoo today and attach a picture of their child at the zoo for each set of parents. This is extra work but the parents will appreciate receiving daily updates.

Special Events

Ask parents to participate in special events every once in a while. You could help the children plan a talent show and ask the parents to stay an extra 20 minutes when they pick up their children to watch the show. You could plan a craft for the parents to do with their children for the holidays, such as making Christmas ornaments. Parents will want to get home most nights, so don't plan these events every week. Instead, host them monthly and give parents a week's notice.

Ideas

Ask the parents for ideas on how you can make day care a better experience for their children. You can make the experience more enjoyable for the parent and child if you listen to concerns and advice. For example, you may find out that John loves bananas and would love to have the option of bananas for snack, or that Jill has a stuffed animal that helps her calm down when she becomes overwhelmed. You could go an extra step by having parents fill out a quick questionnaire about their children that asks questions like, "What is your child's favorite food?" or "Is there anything specific your child is afraid of?" or "Does your child usually take a nap during the day?" The parents will feel like you really care about their children if you take the time to involve them.

Source:

Own a Day Care