5 Benefits Of Summer Camp

SCHOOLS OUT FOR THE SUMMER! (Well almost)

While these words are music to your kid’s ears, it can become a stressful time for parents as they look for a place for their kids to go or for activities to keep them busy and engaged.

Our Cornerstone Academy Summer Camp is getting ready to kick off and we know a lot of parents are trying to figure out what the benefits of sending their kids to a summer camp are vs a lot of other options out there.

The truth is that summer camps have a crazy amount of benefits for childhood development and education while solving your out-of-school problem! Here are just a few!  

Keeps the structure, but with less structure

The school day is the ultimate form of structure to a child. They have very specific times for activities and they know every moment what to expect. And while this is great for a child, it doesn’t give them full freedom for open play and to use their creativity. Summer camps share some of the structure of your average school day, but also has the flexibility to let your child play on their own!

Helps them make new friends

After seeing the same kids every single day over the last 7 months, it is about time they get to meet new people and make new friends! One of the most important elements of childhood development is learning social skills – one of which is the process of meeting new people. The more you get to practice these skills early on, the easier these moments will be for your child as they get a little older!

Gives them new experiences

Being a childcare facility in Kenosha gives us access to so many amazing activities right in our backyard. As a parent, it can be difficult to help your child see them all! For our summer camp, in particular, we offer 2-3 field trips every single week! This gives your child the opportunity to see all sorts of new things and go places that they might not have been able to make it to this summer! Parks, Zoos museums and everything else in between is on the table!

… which helps them find new interests

What is the best way to know whether you like something or not? To try it of course!

All these new things your child is going to experience over the summer might help them find the things that they absolutely love! They may discover a new love of animals or find that they really want to play soccer this year. Getting to try new things is the first step to finding a passion for themselves later in life!

They will go back to school with so many things to talk about.

Oh, the memories that they will make! How awesome is it going to be when your child heads back to school and they get to have the coolest stories about their summers! While some of their class is going to talk about all the games of Fortnite that they played, your child will get to tell stories completely unique to them!

So what do you say? Ready to sign up your child for an incredible and exciting summer? You can get more information about our summer camp and reserve your spot below! We can’t wait to see you and your child this summer!

The big day is coming soon!

You have decided to enroll your child in daycare for the first time. I think we can all say we are excited to see them!

But we understand it can be a little bit of a stressful experience for you and your child. This might be the first time your child has been away from you for a significant amount of time or maybe it is the first time that they will be playing and learning with a bigger group of their peers.

Thankfully, there are ways you can make the transition a little bit easier for your child, so they can adapt quickly and start to enjoy all of the new things they are going to experience even sooner.

 

Tips For The First Day Of Daycare

 

1) Make changes to your schedule right away.

Don’t wait until the last minute to help your little one get into their new routine. Make sure to start waking them up a little earlier, getting them ready for their day right away, and putting together a schedule similar to what they are going to experience when they show up for their first day. Even sending them off with another parent or family member for the day will help with separation when the day comes!

2) Talk about how much fun it is going to be!

Make sure to talk about how big of a BLAST it is going to be to come and see us every day! We post a lot of the cool activities and games we play with the kids on Facebook, and showing this to your child will help them see what the other kids are up to. This will help ease any concerns they might have, and get them excited to join in on all the fun!

3) Give yourself a little extra time in the beginning.

Especially if this is your first child, you are going to do a little bit of learning. In the beginning, make sure to allow yourself a little extra time to make sure you don’t forget anything. Make sure to pack everything up the night before so it is not a crazy scramble in the morning that is going to have both you, and your child stressed out! Make a list, check it twice, and give yourself a few extra minutes!

4) Try not to hang around, even on the tough days.

This is going to be hard, we won’t lie to you, but the best thing you can do is leave and let your child begin to figure out his or her new world. They will be just fine, we promise! If you want to stick around for a little bit the first few days and just make sure, be our guest, but make sure after a few days to let your child be. They are amazing, after all!

The first few days of childcare can be stressful and everyone’s experience is just a little bit different, but with these little pieces of advice, you can make sure your child has the greatest chance for success in adapting to a new place and new people.

The sooner they do, the sooner the fun will start!

 

If you liked this blog, here are some additional insights from CornerStone Academy:

• Tips for Toddler Naps
• What’s the Ideal Child-to-Caregiver Ratio for Daycare?
• Should You Choose A Daycare Near Work Or Home?

Searching for the best daycare provider is one of the most stressful things a parent can do. And rightfully so! You are trusting a bunch of people that you do not know to make the smart decisions for your child and get them all the things that they need.

It is tough to give up that control, which is why it is so important to find a childcare center where your child is going to have lots of fun, learn and grow, and be in a safe environment so you do not have to worry throughout your day.

There are a lot of things to consider, but where do you start? How do you know where to go when there are so many good daycares in Kenosha to choose from?

Tips To Choose The Best Daycare Provider For You

Does someone always answer the phone?

When you start looking for a child care center, you are probably going to start making a few calls to schedule tours and talk to the staff. When you call, take a note on who answers the phone, how quickly they answer the phone, and how quickly they get back to you. There are going to be times, especially if you are leaving a child for the first time, that you are going to want to check in and see how things are going. You will get a good feel for the responsiveness you will receive if you were to choose that center!

Is the staff friendly and do they answer your ridiculous questions?

The best daycare staff is there to make sure that your little ones are having fun and having the best experience possible, but they are also there as a resource for you! There are going to be times you have questions that you think are silly or kind of… well weird. If the providers are patient with you and your questions, you can rest assured that your child will be in the hands of caring and patient people that will give your child the best daycare experience.

Check out online reviews.

I’m sure you’ve already done this, but there are plenty of places online to find the best daycare in your area. Real people leaving real reviews like these should be helpful in your decision-making process!

Trust your gut.

You always know what is best for your child. Parents have a special connection with their kids and can sense when a place is going to be right for them. I have seen it first hand – it is like a sixth sense! The last step is to consider what your gut is telling you about the care that your child is going to receive. This is a very important decision and you need to make sure you are just as comfortable as your child will be. So take your time, evaluate the options, and make the choice that is right for you!

There are many things that go into picking a place for your child. With all the Kenosha and Racine area daycares, it can be tough to evaluate it all. Obviously, things like costs, location, and age limits are very important things to consider when making a choice, but it can be the way you are treated or the gut feeling you have that will make the ultimate decision. Trust those feeling and make sure you give your child the place to nurture them and help them grow!

If you liked this blog, here are some additional insights from CornerStone Academy:

• Tips to Raise a Happy Child
• What’s the Ideal Child-to-Caregiver Ratio for Daycare?
• Should You Choose A Daycare Near Work Or Home?

Naps are an important part of a child’s development. A newborn baby will nap and sleep throughout most of the day and evening. Then, after a baby is 4 months old, he or she will need two separate naps throughout the day. Your baby will need one nap in the morning and one nap in the afternoon.

Then when a baby grows to a toddler, he or she will need just one nap during the daytime. This nap is typically during the early afternoon and sometime after lunch. This nap can range anywhere from 20 minutes to 2 hours.

Here are some tips for toddler naps to ensure your child sleeps peacefully:

4 Tips for Toddler Naps

ROUTINE

Both newborns and toddlers respond very well to routines. Your best bet for a successful nap for your toddler every day is to put your son or daughter down for their nap at the same time each day.

You will find a time that works best for your schedule and for your child but we often find that sometime soon after lunch is a good time for a nap for a toddler.

ENVIRONMENT

You want the room and the bed or crib your toddler naps in to be the same room he or she sleeps in at night. This will help set the expectation that this is the time for quiet and sleep.

If necessary, run a white noise machine or a floor fan to drowned out noise from other rooms in the house and dim or turn off the lights in the room as well. If your toddler still needs a pacifier, he or she will probably want one for their naptime as well (Read: How to Take Away Your Toddler’s Pacifier).

THE FERBER METHOD

You have probably heard of the Ferber Method for helping children fall asleep. This method recommends that for both naptime and bedtime, a parent put their child in their crib or their bed when they are still awake. Don’t wait until your child has fallen asleep somewhere else and then move them to the crib.

This method does involve some patience on the part of parents as children might first cry when left in their bed or crib alone but over time the child will learn to soothe themselves to sleep and this will be better for everyone in the long run.

LENGTH

It is not recommended for a toddler to nap much longer than 2 hours in the afternoon. If a toddler naps well over 2 hours it could disrupt their schedule for the remainder of the day and it might also prevent them from falling asleep on time during the evening bedtime routine.

Cornerstone Academy daycare in Kenosha, WI offers a soothing environment for naptime for toddlers. We feel naps are an important part of a toddler’s routine and do our best to create a relaxing space for them at our location.

An important question from our series on Questions to Ask During a Daycare Tour regarded the amount of staff at a child care center compared to the number of children or students in attendance. For us, the perfect question is “What is your ratio of staff to child?”

This is an important question because you want to be 100% certain your child is receiving the proper care and attention during their time at a daycare Kenosha location or preschool. If the staff members in the facility are overworked, it will be impossible for them to provide the necessary focus on your child in a day.

But, what is a good ratio? Ideally, there would be one caregiver for one child but that is rarely the case for most preschools and daycares. Therefore, we have provided the perfect child-to-caregiver ratio for each age group in order for you to have an understanding of what a good answer would be when you ask about the ratio of staff to children.

BEST RATIO FOR DAYCARE STAFF TO CHILDREN:

NEWBORN TO 18 MONTHS: 1:4

Wisconsin state requirements are one child care staff member per four newborn or infant children under 15 months old in a daycare. The WI DHFS feels that one staff member should be able to coordinate feeding schedules, naps, diaper changes and other basic newborn needs throughout a day without much help from additional staff members.

TODDLERS (2 YEARS OLD): 1:6

TODDLERS (2.5 YEARS OLD): 1:8

3 YEARS OLD: 1:10

4 YEARS OLD: 1:13

The WI DHFS recommends the same child-to-caregiver ratio for toddlers as it does for newborns and infants. There should be one staff member assigned to every group of six to eight toddlers. A toddler is a child between 18 months and 30 months old. The caregiver will need to be able to help children to go to the bathroom, prepare snacks and meals, coordinate naps and schedule one or two activities throughout the day to stimulate the children.

PRESCHOOL: 1:17

Children ages 4+ in preschool only need one child caregiver per every 17 children/students. This is because there is the expectation that a 4-year-old child will be better behaved than a toddler or an infant. The expectation is the child will listen to directions, be respectful to the teacher and other students and be able to use the bathroom by themselves.

Therefore, it is the recommendation of Cornerstone Academy in Kenosha, WI that the daycare you choose for your child offer the child-to-caregiver ratios we have provided above that have been approved by the WI DHFS.

If the daycare you tour doesn’t staff enough caregivers to meet these recommendations, you should continue to interview and research other facilities near your home or job that would be better prepared to care for your child and provide them the necessary attention to foster growth and ensure safety and comfort.

To learn about the child-to-caregiver ration at Cornerstone Academy and our current enrollment opportunities, contact us online or call (262) 552-5368.

For most parents, the location of a daycare is one of the primary factors in determining where to send your son or daughter for child care in Kenosha, WI.

Parents will often choose a daycare either near their home or near their workplace in order to drop off and pick up their child on the same route as their work commute.

But, should you choose a daycare near work or home? This is a very common concern for parents when researching the best preschool or child care center for their child.

Here are some things to consider when deciding the location of your child’s daycare:

Who Will Drop Off & Pick Up Your Child Most of the Time?

If the plan is for one parent to do the majority of the dropping off and picking up at the daycare then that parent should choose a location most convenient for them, whether that is near their work or near their home. It could be that none of the daycare near that parent’s business are a match in which case that parent will need to compromise and choose a daycare closer to home. 

How Far is Your Work from Your Home?

If it is a very long commute to and from work every morning, you might want to choose a daycare near your home instead of near your work. The reason is, if you call in sick to work or unable to go to your office for any reason, it will require your spouse to drive all the way to the daycare near your job instead of just driving to a daycare near your home. He or she can then easily pick up your child at the end of the day as well. Another reason a daycare near home is convenient is if you forget to pack something for your newborn or toddler and need to return home quick to retrieve it. This will be much easier if the daycare is by your house and not your job.

Does Your Work Require Constant Travel?

The amount of travel your job requires is important in determining if you should choose a daycare near your office or place of business. If the company you work for demands constant out-of-state and overnight travel, you will want to consider a child care center closer to your home instead of one closer to your work. The reason is similar to the issue above in that if you are out of town traveling, it will require your spouse to drive and drop off your child near your office instead of near his or hers.

Do You Want Your Child Near You During the Day?

Your comfort level and the comfort level of your child concerning how far away you are from them throughout the course of a work day depends on the needs of your child. If you have a long commute but don’t want your child to be 20-30 minutes away or even an hour or more, you will want to favor a daycare near your job.

Is There Heavy Traffic During Your Commute?

If there is heavier traffic on your commute to work, it might be best to choose a daycare near your home in order to drop off your child right away and ensure he or she doesn’t miss any part of their routine during the morning at daycare. On the other hand, if there is more traffic on your commute home from work you might want to consider a daycare closer to your job to avoid arriving late for pickup at the child care center or preschool. There are some daycares that charge a fee for pickups that occur after the designated time. This is something to consider before you choose a daycare for your son or daughter.

Location is very important and you need to decide the location of the daycare you choose that is best for you, your child and your spouse and is compatible with your family’s schedules and work day.

Cornerstone Academy is centrally located in Kenosha, WI at 1230 22nd Ave and is near a myriad of suburbs and neighborhoods as well as office buildings and industrial complexes to suit the needs of a variety of parents and lifestyles.

Learn more about enrollment here.