“He had a great day,” your kid?s daycare teacher beams. ?He listened well, napped for three hours and ate all his veggies.?
Ever wonder why the child your daycare describes sounds nothing like the one you drop off and pick up every day"
There are good reasons the wildling you know at home is a model of decorum at daycare. No matter how familiar, it just isn?t home; kids are less likely to push the same boundaries. They may also hold in their angst until they see you at the end of the day?hence, the pre-dinner meltdown.
But there?s something else: Year after year, daycare professionals get up close and personal with dozens of babies, toddlers and preschoolers. This repetition lets them finesse their skills and strategies?that?s a huge advantage over parents, who get only a few kicks at the can, if that. We asked early childcare educators (ECEs) across the country to share some of their best tips and tricks for managing the toughest parenting challenges in the toddler-to-preschool demographic. Here?s what they had to say. Parent problem #1: Transitions are a nightmare
Daycare fix: Simplify your routine

?The art of preschool is the art of repetition,? says Maigualida Osorio, supervisor at Small Fry Preschool in Ancaster, Ont. Predictability feels safe, she says, particularly for kids who are pre-verbal or working on language skills. That sense of security breeds confidence in toddlers and preschoolers, and it?s for this reason that most daycares keep their ...