Parents Secretly Recording Daycare: Logged Out

[bgmeyers]

sorry, I think you are reading into this way too much.....

I have to ask and flame me if you want...but are you doing something that makes you think that the family would want to record you?

I disagree....people are weird. They can do incredibly stupid things, like send in a hidden recording device with their children. I may be jaded, but this doesn't surprise me. Think of nanny cams and how popular they are. The problem is that this is in the provider's home and most likely illegal and just plain rude.

I would seriously research this little device.

[Mommy2One]

If I distrusted my child's provider enough to feel like I needed to send in a recording device I would have already pulled my child from care - I wouldn't wait to collect evidence that my fears were founded. As a parent, I would be very upset to find out my child was being recorded by another daycare family. Many of you expressed legitimate concerns about bathroom privacy and the recording of after hours conversations and I can completely understand why you all would be offended and very angry about being distrusted and secretly recorded.

But at the same time I think when you accept other people's children into your home and turn it temporarily into a place of business you are forfeiting some of the privacy rights of being in your private home. I can understand a parent feeling that they have the right to know exactly what's being done/said to/with their child 100% of the time that they're in your care. Many centers in my area offer webcam access to parents and have an open door policy for exactly this reason. Scheduling a time to observe or record would be useless - no sane provider would treat children badly when they know parents are watching.

[Willow]

I have at least a handful of toys/dolls with sewn in noise makers of some kind.

My "Walter the Farting Dog" (a stuffed dog that farts when you squeeze it - came along with a book set my kids got) is one that immediately leaps to mind.

The bird toy on my Skip Hop tummy time mat will sing when it's squeezed and there is zero battery entrance/opening on it.

I've got loads of dolls that do or used to giggle, burp or cry when you squeeze their bellies with zero battery entrance/opening on them.


It's really not that usual at all.



Before anyone springs to accusations that this doll must be some sort of attempt at sexual perversion or some paranoid distrust in the provider, perhaps the question should be asked why on earth a provider would ever keep a family around they thought would ever pull such a stunt? I could never in a million years see any of my families trying to "spy" on me for any reason. There's no way my brain could ever even go there. If it did, even for a split second, I'd be terminating effective immediately.


Trust needs to go both ways. If a parent doesn't trust a provider they shouldn't bring their child anymore. If a provider doesn't trust a family they shouldn't be offering care anymore.


If I seriously thought something was amiss with a toy I'd simply ask. If I felt I couldn't I'd terminate over that as well.



ETA -
http://www.amazon.com/Walter-Farting.../dp/B000MWB730 - a review right on the page - The face is very true to the books... really cute and goofy. The plush is nice, with a good feel. The toy is a bit small and the fart box does make it a bit lumpy... but hey, this toy is about FARTING, not cuddling. I am not sure if the fart box is electronic or all mechanical... if it is electronic and the batteries ever wear out I'll probably do a fartbox-ectomy and add stuffing and resew him - he's that cute.
http://www.buybuybaby.com/product.as...13452&RN=7088& - the bird on the right

[Unregistered]

This is a new family so I don't know them well enough to know what kind of people they are. To answer your question Daycare- of course I am not doing anything wrong at all. This particular child comes from an only mom before care situation, and I am their first provider. I may be wrong in the assumption that there is a recording device, but I always feel very uncomfortable around this family for some reason, and I don't like the feeling I get at drop off or pick up. I don't know why, perhaps it is the way the mom looks at me or quizzes me. I have never had this issue or these feelings before. The whole situation is fishy to me, and then this mysterious non vibrating, no battery paneled doll comes into my home. The child that comes is a bit odd, always scowling and standing watching the other kids, despite all of my efforts to engage them in play. I attributed it to the child being new, but it is still going on. I would love to be rid of this family if for no other reason than they make me uncomfortable, but I need the money right now.

[nanglgrl]

My children have several Build-A-Bear stuffed animals that have devices in them that used to record but don't any longer. There is no way to access them. They are devices we bought at Build-a-Bear and recoded "I love you" or something like that, some came with pre-recorded sayings, they were sewn in when they sewed the stuffed animal up and since the batteries died I haven't had the time to pull the stitches, change the batteries and re-sew them. Could this be a Build-A-Bear? (they have all sorts of characters)
If it was a doll, I've seen some where you squeeze the hard tummy where the device is located and it makes crying sounds and they also had no access to change batteries.
I do agree that you should look up recording devices though. My curiosity would have been to great and I would have opened the darn thing if I were suspicious. If I would have found it to be a recording device I would have done as Blackcat said and recorded my termination speech and then I would have put the doll back together so they were none the wiser.
If you checked the doll thoroughly and didn't find a spot for a USB hookup I would say it's probably not a recording device as they have to have some way to get the information off of the device and for items that are pricey like this manufacturers are not going to require tearing open the doll.

http://www.spycameraadvice.com/category/toys/

http://www.squidoo.com/stuffed-baby-monitor-hidden-camera

[Michael]

It is probably against the law in your state to record without permission. If you were to open it up and there was a recorder who's to say the parent claims there was never one in there if you call the police. It's a she said, she said situation.

I would do as one of the others here stated and put the doll in the washing machine with the other cloths.

If you suspect that a parent is not trusting you, you should terminate. No guessing allowed.

[daycare]

This is a new family so I don't know them well enough to know what kind of people they are. To answer your question Daycare- of course I am not doing anything wrong at all. This particular child comes from an only mom before care situation, and I am their first provider. I may be wrong in the assumption that there is a recording device, but I always feel very uncomfortable around this family for some reason, and I don't like the feeling I get at drop off or pick up. I don't know why, perhaps it is the way the mom looks at me or quizzes me. I have never had this issue or these feelings before. The whole situation is fishy to me, and then this mysterious non vibrating, no battery paneled doll comes into my home. The child that comes is a bit odd, always scowling and standing watching the other kids, despite all of my efforts to engage them in play. I attributed it to the child being new, but it is still going on. I would love to be rid of this family if for no other reason than they make me uncomfortable, but I need the money right now.

thanks for not getting offended by my question...my mother always told me that guilty minds eat at you to believe crazy things....

So where is the doll put when the child arrives? I mean wouldn't it have to be out and in the same room with everyone at all times if it were a camera in order to video anything???

When my DCK come here, their stuffies go straight into their cubby boxes, so if there were anything in it. It would be recording the cubby box all day until nap time then it would more than likely be recording my floor ceiling or under the blanket.

You said they make you uncomfortable, then maybe this is why you think this. I would not be able to do business with someone that made me feel the way that this family is making you feel. Have you tried to talk with them about this?

[HappyHearts]

I would love to be rid of this family if for no other reason than they make me uncomfortable, but I need the money right now.

I could never understand why providers feel this way. To me, if I felt that uncomfortable about a family, I would term, whether I needed the money or not.

No matter how much I needed the money, imo, if I am made uncomfortable by a parent/family, it causes stress, tension and all sorts of uneasy feelings. That makes for a very long and stressful day, and possibly even impact how I care for the children throughout the day. I don't want to be made to feel that way in the privacy of my own home. I would much rather term, have less money, but feel comfortable and less stressed while looking for another family to enroll.

[EchoMom]

This thread has me all paranoid now! LOL! I have an overwhelming desire to go pat down all of my kids and inspect all of their lovies! LOL!

[grandmom]

I just spent half of nap looking at these websites. I found several I want in my work area. How cute, how normal looking.

[daycare]

I also wanted to add, if the parents did do this, and you have nothing to hide, then no need to worry about that. I would just be worrying about how to prove it so that you can bust them for it.

[Unregistered]

I'm not worrying, I am just majorly uncomfortable. If there was a recording device then they would probably never bring it back anyway because i'm great at my job and have nothing to hide. The doll was carried around by the girl all day, and when I put it with her stuff she whined and cried for it. I do not like the idea of someone violating my or any of my other kids privacy, and the family is just odd in general. Call me paranoid, but I do not put anything past anyone these days unfortunately.

[daycare]

I'm not worrying, I am just majorly uncomfortable. If there was a recording device then they would probably never bring it back anyway because i'm great at my job and have nothing to hide. The doll was carried around by the girl all day, and when I put it with her stuff she whined and cried for it. I do not like the idea of someone violating my or any of my other kids privacy, and the family is just odd in general. Call me paranoid, but I do not put anything past anyone these days unfortunately.

I do agree with that. I dont trust people as far as I can throw them and thats not far.

If you really are that uncomfortable, then I would let this family go....

[EntropyControlSpecialist]

This thread makes me really want cameras in MY home just in case I am ever accused of something. Parents do so many unpredictable things these days.

[dave4him]

throw it in the wash, the tub, wherever