What Do You Do With After Schoolers?

[Annalee]

Ita. I think our regs are strict. I have had a 5 year old SA child who was WAY more work than a 2yo.

My current SA is being aged out in fall (one more summer!) because he turns 8. After 2nd grade seems to be my cut off. I am taking on one more SA when he ages out, and that is also when my 4.5 yo dcg who will be going to K in fall (and I would seriously miss her!)

My SA dcb is friends with my two younger boys. On days off of school (random like snow days or here and there like MLK day) they just do as they please. They can play pretend for HOURS, and I just do the physical checks that our state requires. They can watch a movie or SA dcb brings a Nintendo ds for nap. I never hear a peep.

In summer, we are outside sooo often that it isn't much of an issue. I allow them to play on the 'big' playground and keep the small kids on the little one (next to each other). That sort of thing. Our city also has a ton of activities at our local park and I enroll them in those. $5 tye dye tshirts, etc. and then the littles play while we wait for the SA.

I am allowed to keep SA till they are 12, but I do not because that is another book I will be assessed by annually. The assessor would leave at nap and come back when SA arrived for another couple hours....absolutely NO schoolagers for me!!!!! QRIS wreaks havoc around here!

[Heidi]

I am allowed to keep SA till they are 12, but I do not because that is another book I will be assessed by annually. The assessor would leave at nap and come back when SA arrived for another couple hours....absolutely NO schoolagers for me!!!!! QRIS wreaks havoc around here!

No kidding! They have a completely different set of standards for SA"s here, and we are supposed to do assessments, goal setting, and a curriculum for them, too! What the heck do they go to school for?

I am a proud 3-star program. I will do what I have to in order to stay 3-star. No more. If I were a 4 star, I'd get $10 more per week. Ah, no!

[Annalee]

No kidding! They have a completely different set of standards for SA"s here, and we are supposed to do assessments, goal setting, and a curriculum for them, too! What the heck do they go to school for?

I am a proud 3-star program. I will do what I have to in order to stay 3-star. No more. If I were a 4 star, I'd get $10 more per week. Ah, no!

I am three stars which is as high as we can go, but we do not get more pay except through subsidy care clients which I have none.....

[Childminder]

Hang them from a tree and use them as a pinata!

I bought "mud" pants and send them out. In winter they are in snow clothes. I'm all girl SA's right now and all they want is to fight verbally, loudly. OUT I tell you the littles are sleeping.

[Heidi]

I am three stars which is as high as we can go, but we do not get more pay except through subsidy care clients which I have none.....

Yeah, the $10 raise is just for subsidy, too. It's actually $10, so at the max rate for our area, it's closer to $14, I guess. It's 20% for 5 stars.

I have one subsidized kiddo. Oh, and I charge what I charge...the parent pays the difference anyway.

[Annalee]

Yeah, the $10 raise is just for subsidy, too. It's actually $10, so at the max rate for our area, it's closer to $14, I guess. It's 20% for 5 stars.

I have one subsidized kiddo. Oh, and I charge what I charge...the parent pays the difference anyway.

Good for you in making parents pay. I tell clients that when you are self-employed you have to create your own benefits....it is part of the business. Not in a harsh way, but rewards/benefits are earned when working for someone else but self-employment is different. I feel we more than "earn" our pay through quality/dependable care....There is NO pretense in my business...the contract/policy/handbook spells it out before a child enrolls.... I do love my job!!!! happyface

[KDC]

We have a ping pong/air hockey table, My 3rd grader loves the Percy Jackson Books... and 2 of the books have been turned into movies. They finished the first book Lightening Thief, so we can have a movie party. My SA's are into board games (Monopoly, Apples to Apples - although they all have to read, so might be hard with first graders that haven't mastered some of the words yet). Electronic battleship. I have an ipad they can earn time for with many educational games, but since it's not mine craft they usually give it up pretty quick . I've had luck with how to draw books... I find it's harder when I only have an odd number of SA's as well. Some of the girls are fine with helping me with the littles, crafts, rainbow loom, and drawing.

As for outside, do you have bikes/helmets for these children, or do they bring their own from home? What do they 'play' outside? I have a sand box, playset with a slide and three swings, but find they are 'bored' with that and want to ride their electric scooters, or bikes or play video games. My son is in third grade and I do allow video games with DCK's... only play dates after I close.

[Blackcat31]

I am a proud 3-star program. I will do what I have to in order to stay 3-star. No more. If I were a 4 star, I'd get $10 more per week. Ah, no!

I am three stars which is as high as we can go, but we do not get more pay except through subsidy care clients which I have none.....

In my state if you get 4 stars (the max) you get 20% more than what the subsidy normally pays out. Which I don't see as an incentive because we (providers) can charge whatever amount we chose to and are allowed to charge families the difference so if I got 20% more reimbursement, the only person it benefits is the family on assistance...kwim?

I'm currently struggling to stay under 4 stars. I'll get 4 stars later, but right now it's more beneficial for me to be at 3.

Also in my state SA have their own category so not taking them or taking them has NO bearing on the number of kids I can have under SA.

[Heidi]

In my state if you get 4 stars (the max) you get 20% more than what the subsidy normally pays out. Which I don't see as an incentive because we (providers) can charge whatever amount we chose to and are allowed to charge families the difference so if I got 20% more reimbursement, the only person it benefits is the family on assistance...kwim?

I'm currently struggling to stay under 4 stars. I'll get 4 stars later, but right now it's more beneficial for me to be at 3.

Also in my state SA have their own category so not taking them or taking them has NO bearing on the number of kids I can have under SA.

Same here.

In order to get 4 or 5 stars here, we have to have a separate observation by a formal rater; who then uses the FCCER's to score your program. They come with a stop watch and measuring tape. They measure how long children wait for meals, how deep your "fall zone" under any play equipment is, whether or not you followed their version of diapering procedures, if anyone touched the dog and the provider didn't catch it to make sure they immediately washed their hands, and a lot more.

I already have enough "Points" to be a 5 star! But, because I won't do the formal rating and I am 9 credits short of my degree yet, I am staying a 3. I don't want the formal rating and I've been carrying 6-12 credits a semester for 2 years. I'm just done with it.

[Memc2001]

AS long as it isn't horrid out, they go outside. In a 485 sq foot room, there just isn't enough of it to go around. If they have to be inside I try to get everyone seated and feed them fruit and pretzels as long as possible.
To be honest, it's been such a challenge and hassle over the years that I have eliminated almost all of my after schoolers. The only ones I have left are 2 and they are both okay to go inside the house and play with my daughters in their rooms so it's not such a big deal now.
I would love to do more after school stuff if I had a separate space for them indoors to set up study areas and video game stuff.

[Heidi]

AS long as it isn't horrid out, they go outside. In a 485 sq foot room, there just isn't enough of it to go around. If they have to be inside I try to get everyone seated and feed them fruit and pretzels as long as possible.
To be honest, it's been such a challenge and hassle over the years that I have eliminated almost all of my after schoolers. The only ones I have left are 2 and they are both okay to go inside the house and play with my daughters in their rooms so it's not such a big deal now.
I would love to do more after school stuff if I had a separate space for them indoors to set up study areas and video game stuff.

My sister has AS's too, and they are a couple little girls the same age as her daughter. They do the same thing...go play in her room. Bickering, which happens occasionally, means you're in the little kid's daycare room. It really limits the bickering, I think.