Focusing On a Specific Age Group ~ Pros & Cons 0-2 vs 2-5 Years

[CityGarden]

As some of your know I recently moved... now that we are *mostly* settled in, I need to set up my preschool / daycare space.

Given the our new space is smaller than I had in my prior home I am now debating if I should specialize in 0-2 instead of 2-5 which is the age I love but we will see what happens. My long term goal is to open a stand alone preschool or if someday my state allows I could have a set up like Black Cat! But for now I am a single mom and need to be strategic...

What are your pros and cons of 0-2 years vs 2-5 years in terms of care you provide to the children?

What are your pros and cons of 0-2 years vs 2-5 years from a business stand point?

[daycare]

I do 18m to 5yr only.

I think the only draw back that I can see with the younger ages is that you can have less kids. I dont take younger kids becuase when I did many moons ago, I found it was harder to adjust them and get them on the same routine as even a child 6mo older than them.

I love that I do preschool only. All of my kids right now are 2.5 to 4.5. I love these ages. They all mesh well together, we have split groups and it works out great for me and my staff.

Are you going to increase to a large license? I live in a 1200sf home and have a large child care.

[CityGarden]

I do 18m to 5yr only.

I think the only draw back that I can see with the younger ages is that you can have less kids. I dont take younger kids becuase when I did many moons ago, I found it was harder to adjust them and get them on the same routine as even a child 6mo older than them.

I love that I do preschool only. All of my kids right now are 2.5 to 4.5. I love these ages. They all mesh well together, we have split groups and it works out great for me and my staff.

Are you going to increase to a large license? I live in a 1200sf home and have a large child care.

That is promising.... I do read quite a bit of your post Daycare and find them helpful. love this

Start up cost wise it would be cheaper for me to do a preschool set up since I can use tons of items I have left over from teaching plus I think I would enjoy it more. Infants / young toddlers would require the purchase of equipment (high chairs, pack n plays or cribs, maybe a swing if CA allows them) which I would rathe not purchase if I can avoid it.

That said from reading this forum and looking at post elsewhere there seems to always be demand for infant care. Finance wise I could charge more for infants so I could make my target income with 4 infants/young toddlers with the older set I would need 5-6 children to reach that same amount.

18 months is a great entry point, catching them even before they are 2 years old.

[DaveA]

Is there a resource and referral agency in your new area? They might be a good point to see what kind of programs are in your immediate area and what types of care they get the most calls looking for. In my area specialized care is pretty much unheard of. In the next city over it is common due to many centers that don't take infants and parents wanting alternatives to the school's preschool programs.

Good luck.

[jenboo]

I do 0-2 and love it! They all take a 3 hour nap, they can't talk yet, they don't really fight over toys, Parents don't have crazy learning expectations...
Do you have any specific Questions i could answer?

[CityGarden]

I do 0-2 and love it! They all take a 3 hour nap, they can't talk yet, they don't really fight over toys, Parents don't have crazy learning expectations...
Do you have any specific Questions i could answer?

I know of a local provider (but not well) and she loves 0-2/0-3 care however I come from a teaching background and feel somewhat lost..... what do you "do" with children 0-2 in a group setting?

When my dd was that age I was home with her and we did RIE classes. It was mostly mindfully setting up the room and allowing the children to explore.

I have tile floors which are great for messy art but not what I think of when it comes to infants..... California does not allow jumpers, walkers. I don't see language on if they allows sings or not.....

What made you decide to cater to 0-2? I see some advantages (constant need for infant care so little trouble finding clients and staying full, low ratios and less parents to deal with) but I also feel less confident in what to "do" during the day with them. What are the expectations / benchmarks, etc that parents look for in that setting?

[Nurse Jackie]

I'm in California and yes you can have swings. At least in my county you can.

[CityGarden]

I'm in California and yes you can have swings. At least in my county you can.

That is good to know! Thx. I feel out of the loop inftant wise...

[Blackcat31]

That is good to know! Thx. I feel out of the loop inftant wise...

I am PMing you a site I came across recently....

[tenderhearts]

I also have been thinking about doing 18 mo -5 but what do you tell families who have a child in this age group and then get pregnant? do you usually lose the sibling? I also really thought about doing just before and after school care but I don't know how well I would do with that.

[CityGarden]

I also have been thinking about doing 18 mo -5 but what do you tell families who have a child in this age group and then get pregnant? do you usually lose the sibling? I also really thought about doing just before and after school care but I don't know how well I would do with that.

I was/am more leaning toward 2-5 years and I planned to just tell current parents who are expecting "I look forward to having your new little one in our program once they turn 2!"