If you’ve decided that daycare is the best option for you and your kids, then you’ll need to do a little research to find the right place. Choosing a child care center can be difficult if you’re unsure of what to look for. Fortunately, there are some steps you can take to ensure you’re introducing your children into a safe environment. Use the following three tips to help you find a high-quality child care center.

1. Schedule A Visit

Visiting potential care centers is an excellent way to get an idea of the level of quality they offer. Unexpected, in person visits allow you to see the children and the workers in their natural element. If a business you’re considering doesn’t allow unannounced drop by’s, you should be worried.

When making an in person inspection, bringing your child is a good idea. They can get familiar with the place and give you their impressions on it later. You can watch how your child interacts with the other children and see if the center has any activities that interest your child. You can also watch and see how the other children are interacting with each other and gauge if the center feels warm and personable.

Another thing to look for when making your visit is the demeanor of the staff. The people you’re going to be leaving your kids with should be friendly, respectful, warm and personable. If you feel uneasy or get bad vibes from the staff, it’s a good idea to trust your gut and move on.

2. Red Flags To Look Out For

When looking for a care center, there are some clear red flags you should watch out for. Anytime you see any of the following red flags; you should stay away.

The first red flag is if you visit and the children seem bored. If everyone is sitting around watching TV and not interacting and playing, then you need to stay away. You’re not paying to send your child to daycare for them to watch movies all day. They need to develop social and kinesthetic skills that come from engaging in a broad range of activities at the care center. Anytime you see unengaged children you should be concerned.

Another red flag is if you notice the staff is talking down to the children. Quality child care workers understand the importance of respectful, age appropriate contact with children. The staff members should be warm and make an effort to speak to the children at eye level. Dismissive and condescending behavior towards the children indicates a lack of professionalism.

One of the biggest red flags to look for is if there’s an unbalanced ratio of children to staff members. You don’t want to introduce your child into a situation where there simply aren’t enough staff members to adequately supervise all the children. Acceptable ratios depend on the age of the children. Generally, there should be at least 1.5 staff members per child.

3. Come Prepared With Questions

When you make your visit to the child care center, it’s important to make the most out of your visit by coming prepared with questions. The more details you can gather on the place the less chance of confusion there is. It’s important to get clear on everything from cost to pickup arrangements.

Some basic things to ask about include the staff’s accreditation and qualifications. You should also ask open-ended questions surrounding discipline to see if you agree with the center’s approach. Ideally, you’ll find a place that takes a similar approach to discipline in order to maintain consistency with your children.