To Take Schoolagers Or Not.. That Is The Question

[Tyna]

Well times are tough... I have a crazy situation.. I have several children that *may* go off to preschool this fall so I started getting my name back out there so I can fill the spots. I have been full for a while so I knew it would take some work...

I have gotten 4 calls for before and after school kiddos. I don't usually take them but I will need something coming in

So all you lovely experienced ladies....

Pros/Cons on schoolagers?

Does anyone keep them just during the school time and not over the summer?

What to charge them? How do you break the fee down?

Any good advice for me???

Thanks!!

[Blackcat31]

Never again in a million years for a million dollars would I ever go back to taking school age children.

Too much time and effort involved for so very little pay and a whole lot of issues.

There are a million things I would rather do than take SA'ers. Like have a root canal or a colonoscopy.

I have had many parents beg, plead, bargain, demand, insist and whine for me to take their SA'ers. Nope, no way, nada, never, uh uh, can't do it, won't do it.

Are my feeling obvious?

Honestly, if it works for you, then go for it.
I just know me and me does NOT offer services to SA'ers.

[MrsB]

[QUOTE=Blackcat31;204480]
There are a million things I would rather do than take SA'ers. Like have a root canal or a colonoscopy.

QUOTE]

happyfacehappyfacehappyfacehappyface You are too funny BlackCat!

I dont know about a rootcanal or colonoscopy but I dont like schoolagers either. If I could only do schoolagers it would be fine but too much of an age split is way to hard to deal with. Over the summer I do have a school age family that comes. They have a boy the same age as my DS, and a daughter the same age as my DD. So they keep eachother entertained, but their are some days that I really wanna pull my hair out. Plus they really dont like it when I make them be quiet and rest during nap time, but that is my break and I am not giving it up! During the school year I have one schoolager (1st grader) but he is only here for an hour in the afternoon. He grew up here at the daycare and absolutely loves playing with the babies. He is very respectful and the sweetest kid ever. I wont take a school ager again.

[WDW]

Never again in a million years for a million dollars would I ever go back to taking school age children. ay and a whole lot of issues.

^^^ Yep! ::

[sharlan]

I've always had SA kids and loved it. They're so much fun to take places during the summer. Now, I tend to agree with BC. I don't think I'll take anymore.

The 2 9yo boys that I have now are a lot of work for not a lot of pay. They can't seem to entertain themselves for more than 30 secs at a time. I can't turn my back on one because I never know what he'll say or entice the little ones to do. I've already had parent complaints regarding nightmares because he delights in telling them scarey stories.

[DCBlessings27]

School-Age

I've never had school-age before since I started daycare when my daughter was an infant and she's now almost 3. I never had any other sa in care, so no one ever wanted to fill my sa spots. Now though, the brother of my 13mo will be sa starting in August. I had him in care from 3-4 and then lost him when I didn't have a spot for lil brother. Now, I had a spot for lil brother but not for him since he's in preschool half days.

Anyway, I had said I could take him this summer because one dcg will be pulled since dcm is having a baby in June. I'm regretting my decision because he gets my kids riled up. He did drop-in a couple days. He runs in my house, talks back, doesn't listen anymore. In the mornings or at pickup, he runs into my house and chases my dcgs all over the house. Then he goes out to my yard and digs in the dirt. EVERY DAY. I love the little boy, but I would be pulling my hair out if I had to deal with him 5 days a week again. I'm thinking SA would be fine for non-school days but not summers.

[nannyde]

No likey school agers.

If you take them you may find that they have the highest level of care of any age group. They require intense supervision at all times. They can require a lot of adult generated, participated, and refereed activities. They have the ability to destroy equipment, your home, and harm your little kids. They also don't nap so you have to figure in direct supervision at all times for the whole time they are there.

Their perspective on things that occur during the day may be vastly different than what really happened. Build into their fees the amount of parent conferencing you will have with them to discuss their perception of events.

Many providers cope with school agers by doing a LOT of screen time. Get some rules in place about them bringing gaming equipment. Also, if you have them outside realize there is a high chance of injury. Make sure you are insured for serious injury.

[Unregistered]

The thing about SA kids is that they can be a lot of fun if you are used to dealing with that age group (Meaning if you have SA kids at home or have had a lot of experience with this age group)
For someone with small children at home or mostly small children in their daycare it can be quite a challenge. I once had a group with 5 SA kids and 3 preschool aged children and it was rough. My children were not yet in school and I was never really sure what to do with the SA kids. They can be a handful and are hard to keep entertained if you aren't sure how to handle them. The 2 hours they were in my home felt longer than the 10 hours I had the preschool kids.

However, I now have 2 girls who are both in school so it makes it a lot easier on me. I have 5 SA kids here on most days and I am comfortable with disciplining older kids and have become immune to the preteen attitude and eye rolling. The kids who come here go to school with my girls so they all hang out and play outside afterschool. They have breakfast together in the morning and we have a lot of laughs together in the afternoons.
They are all excellent with my 3 yo and will take him out to play with them in the afternoons and play with him.
We bake cookies, make crafts and play board games on days off from school. Sometimes I'll even load everyone into the minivan and we'll go to the zoo or go see a movie. There is a lot more flexibility in my days.
The only thing I find a little difficult now is that they tend to want to Hang out with you a lot. They will come and see what you are up to or listen in on your conversations with other parents and things. That can be irritating but other than that it is a pleasure. They require minimal supervision if they have a good space to play and hang out in. (TV, video game console, bean bag chairs and age appropriate toys). They will not do well in an area geared towards small children because if they are bored they will pick at the younger kids.
Hints for if you decide to go ahead with it -
Don't let them get under your skin because they will try. Stay firm but try to have fun with them.
Have a good space devoted to them for them to hang out in.
Send them outside as often as possible (Establish that outdoor time from day 1). My SA kids know that on nice days after snack they go outside.
Plan fun age appropriate activities for them once in a while but always make it an option otherwise the kids who are not in the mood will ruin it for everyone.
Tell the parents you will take them on a 2 week trial before committing especially if you have little ones at home. They will greatly influence the mood in your home so make sure they love little kids and are a good fit for you and your home. The right kids can be little blessings and a nice change in conversation from the everyday diaper changes and crying

[Zoe]

There are some SA kids that are great, play nice with the babies, are quiet during quiet time. Then there are some SA kids who require more attention than the infants, are loud during quiet time, and keep you running all day every day.

I've had both. I use the excuse that during the school year our street is so busy I don't feel comfortable making them wait for the bus there. BTW, we use our alleyway behind the house for our parent drop off and pick up stop, it's just the front street that the bus would come for SA's. Anyway, I will only take the 6 year old that I had when she was younger who is the same age as my DD for the summer because she is so low-maintenance and knows how things work around here. I can handle that. I wouldn't take on anymore SA's though over the summer. Just her.

[AfterSchoolMom]

My advice to you is to take ALL SA's or NO SA's. SA's with littles just does not work well. I speak from experience!

I'd also advise you to interview SA families very, very carefully. Something happens to parents during the early school years...they forget what it was like to have a child in daycare and suddenly they think it's preposterous for you to expect them to pay you a decent amount of money to care for their child, and they just can't seem to understand why said payment can't happen tomorrow, or on Thursday, or next week, or why they can't just catch you up when they get paid next. Also, you'll need to make it VERY clear to them what you're willing to provide as well as food, homework time (don't tell them you'll make sure they do all of their hw!! they won't, and the parents will complain!). You'll also need to make sure that they understand that you will not be doing their science projects with them, listening to them practice their trumpets, or forcing them to sit quietly for an hour each afternoon to read when they hate reading and just got out of school ten minutes ago.

(Ok, so its obvious that most of my issues are with SA parents and not the SA's themselves, )

[cheeseheadmama]

My advice to you is to take ALL SA's or NO SA's. SA's with littles just does not work well. I speak from experience!

This!!!! I have had a mix of ages in the past and I am more exhausted at the end of the day with the SA's than with any other age. They are just emotionally and mentally exhausting. The squabbles, pettiness, whining, etc. are just NOT worth the few dollars parents are willing to spend. I am not looking forward to the SA kids being here again this summer and one of them is my own son! Yes, they are fun to take on field trips and play in the backyard, but I am ALWAYS breaking up some argument or soothing some one's hurt feelings.