Parents Don't Want Child To Nap

[Lil_Diddle]

I've had same request and it is one I will not budge from. I will not deny kids a rest period and if they fall asleep I will not wake them earlier than the scheduled wake up time. If child wakes up or does not fall asleep I'm happy to find them a quiet activity. But if they fall asleep, obviously they need their rest. I also need quiet time as I explain to parents. I'm with their children 10 hours a day and have my own toddler for a full day. I always use the first hour to myself no matter what needs done to refresh myself. I eat lunch and just relax. The second hour is when I plan and prep all these fun activities that parents enjoy having sent home. I made it a promise to myself that I will no longer use any of my personal time again wether it be lunch break, after closing or weekends. So it is very important that they nap.

The recent parent that mentioned to me again. I finally quit being subtle and reminded her we talked about it at the interview, you signed and agreed to the terms of my handbook and when you asked me a second time after enrollment I reminded her of my policy. So the third time she asked I was blunt. I think she got the point but if she brings it up again I think I'm just going to let her know that obviously this isn't working and that we should consider this her two week notice

[CityGarden]

^^ meanwhile the classic sign of not getting enough sleep is getting up too early!

My kids are in bed 7:30 (4yr old) and 8:30 (8yr old) every night. They both wake up at 7am. Meanwhile my neighbours kids who are the same ages go to bed 9:30-10pm and wake at 5am. They also fall asleep everywhere all the time. We went over for dinner a few weeks ago and when we got there the 4 year old was asleep. Poor guy had to grab a nap wherever her could.

With my own dd I notice if she has the right amount of sleep, then sleep comes easy to her, if not it is a beast. She is 10 (almost 11) and has an 8:00pm bedtime (it would be 8:30pm but she takes a bit of time to settle).

[HappyEverAfter]

I make naps mandatory for all kids. Under age one they simply follow whatever feeding/sleeping schedule they use at home. For over the age of one, there is an optional morning nap of 30 min to an hour and a mandatory afternoon nap of 2 hours. The optional part of the morning nap is that it is always MY option to put a child down to nap or not. This is not a parental option. I gage how the child is acting and if I see signs of being sleepy (yawning, eye rubber no, general fussiness) prior to 10am then they go down at 10am for at least 30 minutes. I do wake them at an hour so that it doesn't throw off the afternoon nap. Only once ever have I put a child down who didn't sleep at all so I got her back up at the 30 min mark. In the afternoon they go down at 2pm and stay there until 4pm. If they are still sleeping at 4pm then I leave them sleeping.

[Unregistered]

I don’t agree with you

I think the messages on this forum are absolutely terrible. Naps should not be mandatory. And if a parent doesn’t want their kids napping, then they shouldn’t nap. How judgmental to think any one of you know better than the parents or expect a parent to change the time their kid goes to bed. A childcare worker is supposed to care for a child and the family...by imposing what works better for you and not the child and family is very wrong.

[Cat Herder]

I think the messages on this forum are absolutely terrible. Naps should not be mandatory. And if a parent doesn’t want their kids napping, then they shouldn’t nap. How judgmental to think any one of you know better than the parents or expect a parent to change the time their kid goes to bed. A childcare worker is supposed to care for a child and the family...by imposing what works better for you and not the child and family is very wrong.

Naptime is state-regulated.

[Hunni Bee]

I think the messages on this forum are absolutely terrible. Naps should not be mandatory. And if a parent doesn’t want their kids napping, then they shouldn’t nap. How judgmental to think any one of you know better than the parents or expect a parent to change the time their kid goes to bed. A childcare worker is supposed to care for a child and the family...by imposing what works better for you and not the child and family is very wrong.

Number one, as PP said, we are required by licensing to offer a child rest, and at least in my state, not wake them before the end of the specified nap period. Doing so is considered withholding sleep. Plus "rest" doesn't equal "sleep". A child will only fall asleep if they need to.

Two, most of these ladies aren't "childcare workers". They are business owners, and therefore do not work for parents. They provide a service and parents choose to either buy that service as-is or not.

Three, allowing parents to dictate every part of your business does not work. You have one parent who doesn't want their child to nap and you accommodate that. Do you also accommodate the parent who wants their child to be served 7 small meals a day? Or the one who sends their child school with an iPad so they can watch YouTube like at home?

[ColorfulLearning]

its in my handbook that all children rest at nap time. so if she outgrows nap she outgrows my daycare. that's my break time so I wouldn't care what the parent wanted, everyone goes down for nap.

[CeriBear]

We are required by licensing to have a nap/rest time for an all day program. I don’t ever force a child to sleep but they are required to lie quietly on their cots and rest. If a child is falling asleep they obviously still need a nap. My kids are 3.5 to 4 and all but a couple of them still do take at least a short nap. I once had mom ask me to let her 4yo skip naps everyday so that I could work one on one with her on her numbers, alphabet, and phonics. Nope. If you want that hire a full time nanny.

[Snowmom]

I think the messages on this forum are absolutely terrible. Naps should not be mandatory. And if a parent doesn’t want their kids napping, then they shouldn’t nap. How judgmental to think any one of you know better than the parents or expect a parent to change the time their kid goes to bed. A childcare worker is supposed to care for a child and the family...by imposing what works better for you and not the child and family is very wrong.

I mean yes, how judgmental of me to think that a parent would do what's best for the entire group of children I care for and not just them.
How dare I suggest that naps are required in group care.
What an awful provider to look out for the well being of everyone in my care.

[Meeko]

I think the messages on this forum are absolutely terrible. Naps should not be mandatory. And if a parent doesn’t want their kids napping, then they shouldn’t nap. How judgmental to think any one of you know better than the parents or expect a parent to change the time their kid goes to bed. A childcare worker is supposed to care for a child and the family...by imposing what works better for you and not the child and family is very wrong.

We don't work for the parents. We are self-employed and we do what works best for our GROUP of children. We also follow state regulations, which include nap time.

Any parent who expects their personal wants/schedule to be adhered to, need to hire a nanny.

You seem to think that parents employ their daycare provider. They don't.

[Blackcat31]

If the parent doesn't want their child to nap, then get a nanny.

Don't expect a GROUP care provider to do what ONE parent wants.

Being an ADULT means understanding not everyone gets a trophy.

If you want individualized care, pay an individual fee to one person and you CAN be in charge. If you are paying for a spot within a group, then you are part of that group. It's similar to being a team player.

See how that works?

[Ms.Kay]

I think the messages on this forum are absolutely terrible. Naps should not be mandatory. And if a parent doesn’t want their kids napping, then they shouldn’t nap. How judgmental to think any one of you know better than the parents or expect a parent to change the time their kid goes to bed. A childcare worker is supposed to care for a child and the family...by imposing what works better for you and not the child and family is very wrong.

Unfortunately...WE providers spend more time with these kids...and sometimes know them better than the parents.....we also know most parents want to make parenting as easy as possible...pick.them up from daycare...feed them...and put them to bed....bribe them...and negotiate....so parents can have "me time".

[Rockgirl]

Funny how so many non-providers are experts on running a daycare! I think I’ll go find a few message boards pertaining to other professions and inform the posters what they’re doing wrong at their jobs. I’ll also tell them how they SHOULD be doing things.

[daycarediva]

I think the messages on this forum are absolutely terrible. Naps should not be mandatory. And if a parent doesn’t want their kids napping, then they shouldn’t nap. How judgmental to think any one of you know better than the parents or expect a parent to change the time their kid goes to bed. A childcare worker is supposed to care for a child and the family...by imposing what works better for you and not the child and family is very wrong.

What's terrible? OP said child obviously NEEDS a nap. She could be cited by licensing for withholding basic needs.

It's state mandated here. All children not enrolled in FT school/K or higher are required to have a rest period. They do not HAVE to sleep. If they do, they need it. If not, they don't and are given quiet activities.

Number one, as PP said, we are required by licensing to offer a child rest, and at least in my state, not wake them before the end of the specified nap period. Doing so is considered withholding sleep. Plus "rest" doesn't equal "sleep". A child will only fall asleep if they need to.

Two, most of these ladies aren't "childcare workers". They are business owners, and therefore do not work for parents. They provide a service and parents choose to either buy that service as-is or not.

Three, allowing parents to dictate every part of your business does not work. You have one parent who doesn't want their child to nap and you accommodate that. Do you also accommodate the parent who wants their child to be served 7 small meals a day? Or the one who sends their child school with an iPad so they can watch YouTube like at home?

I've actually gotten a few 'extra special' requests. Cut food up certain ways (not for an infant, for 4 year old's preference), youtube video for pottying, candy for 'cleaning plate at meals'. Nope. Sorrrrry.

[Unregistered]

I think the messages on this forum are absolutely terrible. Naps should not be mandatory. And if a parent doesn’t want their kids napping, then they shouldn’t nap. How judgmental to think any one of you know better than the parents or expect a parent to change the time their kid goes to bed. A childcare worker is supposed to care for a child and the family...by imposing what works better for you and not the child and family is very wrong.

We are early childhood professionals and have knowledge in children's development as well as their needs. Our licensing inspector was informed when a parent requested that their child doesn't nap and she sent us a reply to share with the parents. There is obviously an issue when a parent doesn't understand that we are supporting a child's need by allowing them to have a rest/ nap period. If a child should fall asleep in that time, we are not permitted to wake them up.
In most cases, it is a parents need not a child's. The parent(s) don't want their child to nap. I had a father who would send their 2.5 year old in and remind her not to fall asleep during nap time. How sad? You may think its judgemental but I think what parents are doing to their children by reminding them not to fall sleep and then letting their frustrations out on a child is actually much more determental to their mental and overall health!