Child Care: Child Care Guide

 

To guide you in your search for child care, please read this State of Michigan resource: A Parent's Guide to Early Learning & Care in Michigan (pdf).  

 

CENTER CARE

Centers provide care for a number of infants or children in a group setting outside of a home.

Potential Advantages

  • Environment and staff responsibilities are focused on child care.
  • Teamwork can promote a positive atmosphere and spirit of cooperation.
  • Staff emergencies do not affect center's hours.
  • There is more than one adult to care for children.
  • Centers are more likely to provide a written account of an individual child's activities.
  • A center is more likely to have connections with other community resources.

Potential Concerns

  • Exposure to larger numbers of people increases the risk of illness.
  • A center may have a more institutional atmosphere.
  • A center may require more conformity and routine than home care, resulting in less flexibility.
  • Changing shifts and staff turnover may affect relationships between the child and primary caregiver.
  • There may be communication gaps due to multiple providers.

HOME-BASED CARE

Home-based care is a form of child care in which providers care for children, often of different ages, in their own homes or the homes of the parents.

Licensed Family/Group Home Child Care: A family child care provider cares for up to 6 unrelated children in his or her home. A group provider has up to 12 children and must have an assistant if there are more than 6 children or more than 2 infants and/or 4 toddlers.

In-Home Care: A provider is hired to care for the children of one or more families in a child's own home. This option includes au pairs and nannies.

Potential Advantages

  • The setting is more home-like than a center.
  • Individualized care is more likely.
  • Parents and children can benefit from a sense of an extended family.
  • There are more opportunities for multi-age interaction.
  • Continuity and bonding with the same primary caregiver is possible.
  • A home may be more flexible in caring for children with minor illnesses.
  • A home may accommodate a parent's need for longer or unusual hours.

Potential Concerns

  • Provider often works alone, unobserved by others. Long hours can cause stress and fatigue.
  • Handling emergencies can be more difficult if only one adult is available.
  • Provider illness and family emergencies can leave a parent without child care unless a backup is planned.
  • Provider may not have the resources or expertise to provide an age appropriate environment for several different age groups.
  • Inexperienced providers may go out of business after a short time.

LICENSING AND ACCREDITATION

Child care centers and family/group homes should be licensed/registered by the State of Michigan Department of Human Services, Office of Child and Adult Licensing. Always check to ensure a center/home has necessary licenses and meets regulations for staff qualifications and program structure.

In addition, always review a program's licensing history by reading the center or home's Inspection/Renewal Reports for violations, and any Special Investigation Reports. Any program's most recent reports are "clickable" on the online statewide databases as you search for child care. Older reports (3-5 years ago or more) are available to the general public via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the State of Michigan Department of Human Services, Office of Child and Adult Licensing.

Regulations are only MINIMAL standards, not indicators of quality. Accreditation by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (centers) or the National Association for Family Child Care (homes) is an indication of meeting quality standards.

Reprinted with the permission of Child Care Network, Washtenaw County 4C