Things to Ask a Daycare Before You Enroll

Things to Ask About Licensing and Oversight

Start with the program's legal status and how it is supervised. A licensed or regulated program should be able to explain its license, recent inspections, and how parents can review compliance information where those records are public.

Ask who is in charge when the director is away and how concerns are escalated.

1. What license or registration does this program operate under?
2. How can parents verify the current status?
3. When was the last inspection?
4. Were any violations cited?
5. How were they corrected?
6. Who is the director?
7. Who is in charge when the director is absent?
8. How long has the program been operating?
9. How are parent complaints handled?
10. What outside agencies inspect or oversee the program?

Things to Ask About Staff Ratios and Group Size

The number of adults relative to children affects supervision, responsiveness, and how much attention a child can receive. Ask about the ratio the center normally uses, not only the legal maximum.

Group size matters too. A classroom can technically meet a ratio while still feel very different depending on how many children and adults share the space.

1. How many children are normally in this classroom?
2. How many staff members are normally present?
3. What ratio do you aim to maintain?
4. What happens when a teacher is absent?
5. Do ratios change at opening, closing, naps, meals, or outdoor time?
6. Are children from different age groups combined at certain times?
7. How often does that happen?
8. Who covers breaks?
9. How is supervision handled during transitions or bathroom trips?

Things to Ask About Teacher Experience and Turnover

Young children benefit from familiar caregivers. High turnover can make consistency difficult even when individual teachers are caring and qualified.

Ask how long the current teachers have been there, what training they receive, and what the center does to support staff.

1. How long have the lead teachers in this room worked here?
2. What qualifications are required?
3. What training do teachers receive before working independently?
4. What ongoing training is required?
5. Are staff trained in first aid and CPR?
6. How is staff performance evaluated?
7. How often do teachers leave?
8. What are the most common reasons staff leave?
9. How do you introduce a new caregiver to the children?
10. Can parents meet the teachers before enrollment?

Things to Ask About Daily Routine

A predictable routine can help children know what happens next while still leaving room for play and individual needs. Ask what a normal day actually looks like.

For infants and young toddlers, find out how much the program follows individual sleep and feeding schedules versus a group schedule.

1. What does a normal day look like?
2. How much time is spent outdoors?
3. How much free play is available?
4. How much time is teacher-directed?
5. How are transitions handled?
6. What is the nap schedule?
7. Are children required to stay on cots if they do not sleep?
8. How are infant feeding and sleep schedules handled?
9. How often do children leave the classroom for other spaces?
10. How much screen time is used, if any?
11. How do you adjust the routine for a child having a difficult day?

Things to Ask About Discipline and Behavior

Discipline philosophy matters because toddlers and preschoolers are still learning impulse control, language, turn-taking, and emotional regulation. Ask what teachers actually do when a child hits, bites, refuses, throws, or repeatedly disrupts.

Vague phrases such as positive discipline can mean many things. Ask for examples.

1. What happens when a child hits or bites?
2. How do teachers respond to tantrums?
3. What happens when a child repeatedly refuses a direction?
4. Do you use time-outs?
5. How do you help children resolve conflicts?
6. How are parents informed about recurring behavior concerns?
7. How do you avoid labeling one child as the problem?
8. What behavior could lead to suspension or termination of care?
9. How much notice do parents receive if placement is at risk?
10. How do you support children with different developmental needs?

Things to Ask About Safety

Look beyond locked doors. Ask about arrival and pickup, outdoor supervision, emergency plans, visitor access, sleep practices, incident reporting, and how staff know who is authorized to pick up a child.

For infants, ask specifically about safe-sleep practices and how the program follows current regulatory or professional requirements applicable to the setting.

1. How do families enter the building?
2. How are visitors handled?
3. How do you verify authorized pickup?
4. What happens if an unfamiliar person arrives for a child?
5. How are playgrounds supervised?
6. What are your emergency evacuation procedures?
7. Where would children go during severe weather?
8. How are families notified during an emergency?
9. How are injuries documented?
10. When are parents called immediately versus notified at pickup?
11. What infant sleep practices do you follow?
12. How often are emergency drills conducted?

Things to Ask About Illness and Medication

Illness policies affect both child health and how often parents may unexpectedly need backup care. Ask what symptoms require exclusion, when a child can return, and whether rules differ for fever, vomiting, diarrhea, respiratory illness, rashes, or diagnosed infections.

If your child needs medication or has allergies, understand who can administer treatment and how instructions are documented.

1. What symptoms require a child to stay home?
2. When can a child return after fever or vomiting?
3. Do you require a doctor's note for certain illnesses?
4. How do you handle contagious-disease notifications?
5. Who can administer medication?
6. How is medication stored?
7. How are doses documented?
8. How do you handle food allergies?
9. Where are emergency medications kept?
10. Who is trained to use them?
11. What happens if my child becomes sick during the day?

Things to Ask About Food and Feeding

If meals or snacks are provided, ask what is served, how allergies are handled, and whether children are pressured to eat. For infants, ask about breast milk, formula, bottle labeling, storage, and introducing solid foods.

Food routines should fit both safety requirements and the child's developmental stage.

1. Are meals and snacks provided?
2. Can I see a sample menu?
3. How often does the menu change?
4. How are allergies and dietary restrictions handled?
5. Can families send food from home?
6. How is food from home labeled and stored?
7. How are bottles labeled?
8. How are breast milk and formula stored?
9. Can parents provide their preferred formula?
10. How do teachers handle a child who refuses food?
11. Are children ever required to finish food?

Things to Ask About Development and Learning

A strong early-childhood program does not need to look like elementary school. Young children learn through language, play, movement, repetition, relationships, and exploration.

Ask how teachers choose activities, observe development, and adapt when children progress at different rates. Be cautious of programs that promise accelerated outcomes without explaining how the daily experience remains developmentally appropriate.

If your child receives speech, occupational, physical, behavioral, or other services, ask how outside providers can coordinate with the classroom where appropriate.

1. How do teachers plan activities for different developmental levels?
2. How much of the day is child-led play?
3. How do you track developmental progress?
4. How are concerns communicated to parents?
5. How do you support children learning language at different rates?
6. Can outside therapists or specialists coordinate with the program?
7. How do children transition to the next classroom?

Things to Ask About Communication with Parents

You should know how much information you will receive about meals, naps, diapers, behavior, learning, injuries, and the child's mood. More data is not always better, but the communication should be reliable.

Ask how teachers communicate without spending the entire day on an app.

1. What information do parents receive each day?
2. Is communication through an app, paper report, email, or conversation?
3. How quickly are messages normally answered?
4. Can parents contact the classroom directly?
5. How are developmental concerns raised?
6. How are injuries communicated?
7. Are parent-teacher conferences offered?
8. How often do teachers share photos or updates?
9. How is sensitive information kept private?

Things to Ask About Cost and Schedule

Understand the full cost and what happens when the center is closed or your child is absent. Registration fees, deposits, supply fees, late pickup charges, activity fees, and annual increases can affect the real budget.

Ask for the calendar before enrolling so holidays, professional-development days, and seasonal closures are not surprises.

1. What is the weekly or monthly tuition?
2. What registration or enrollment fees apply?
3. Is a deposit required?
4. Are there annual supply or activity fees?
5. When does tuition normally increase?
6. Is tuition due when the center is closed?
7. Is tuition due when my child is absent?
8. What is the late-pickup fee?
9. What are the normal opening and closing hours?
10. How many planned closure days are on the calendar?
11. What notice is given for weather closures?
12. Is part-time care available?

Things to Ask Before You Enroll

Before committing, ask to spend enough time in the classroom to notice how adults speak to children, whether teachers are on the floor interacting, how crying is handled, how busy transitions feel, and whether the environment seems calm enough for the number of children present.

Look at the children's behavior too. No classroom will be peaceful every minute, but you can notice whether children generally approach caregivers for help and whether teachers seem to know individual children well.

1. Can I observe the classroom during normal activity?
2. Can I meet the teachers who would care for my child?
3. Can I review the parent handbook before paying a deposit?
4. Can I see the current calendar?
5. Can I see sample menus?
6. Can I review illness, discipline, medication, and termination policies?
7. What is the waitlist process?
8. What payment is required to hold a spot?
9. Is that payment refundable?
10. What does the transition period look like for a new child?

How to Compare Two Daycare Options

Write down the same facts for each program: hours, tuition, fees, ratios, group size, teacher tenure, closures, food, outdoor time, discipline, communication, distance, and your impression of the classroom. This prevents one impressive feature from overshadowing the daily realities.

Then identify the three factors that would matter most on a difficult week. A shorter commute, reliable hours, lower teacher turnover, better illness communication, or a calmer classroom may matter more than an extra enrichment activity.

If something important is unclear, ask again before enrolling. Childcare is too central to family life to rely on an assumption you were afraid would sound picky.

1. Which program has more consistent caregivers?
2. Which schedule fits our work with the least daily stress?
3. Which classroom felt most responsive to children?
4. Which policies are clearest?
5. Which costs are truly predictable?
6. What would be hardest about each option six months from now?