Before/After school only

[Unregistered]

Hello! It says unregistered, but it wouldn’t allow me to login for some reason. I’ll have to try again later. Anyway, i’m trying to make a decision whether to do before and after care only. I have had an in home preschool program for over 10 years and do enjoy it. But, I’m thinking although it would be a less income(about 15k year less), I would have my days free to go to doctors appointments, volunteer etc. All the things I can’t do now. As many of you know. We work soooo many hours. In the evenings I take my own children to activities, make dinner, ride my bike with my kids etc. It would be awesome to be able to go to the gym, have lunch with friends,take my kids to appointments, or do some volunteering I’ve always wanted to do. I guess I’m wondering is the grass really greener? Has anybody done just before and/or after school care and besides the reduced income vs time, what are the pros and cons.
Also, I would have no trouble filling spots. It’s needed I’m my area. I also considered doing specialized one week summer camps ex- music lessons, engineering camp. I could charge quite a bit to make up for the loss of income. In my area, after school programs do not do summer camp, it is often separate.
As you can see I really am not sure what I want to do. Lol would love some advice/opinions. Thanks!

[Cat Herder]

When my kids were young I only did before and after school care, because I did not want to keep kids my own kid's ages. I was able to make it profitable at the time because the state allowed me to take 12 kids as long as they were 5 years and up.

I stayed full because the school system did not have after school care. I charged $35 ($420) per week and served heavy snacks. I did not do homework help because for many kids that is the only parental interaction they have during the week. I had a part-time job to make up the difference when my husband was home with the kids.

Now the state allows only 6 kids, no matter the age. Bonus, the public schools now offer after school care for $5 per day until 5:30. That is less than I was making in 1997. I would make maybe $210, per week, tops, now. That won't even cover my mortgage payment. :dislike:

[Ariana]

It really depends on how things look in your area. Right now in my area not many parents need it because they either stagger their hours or they use the schools B&A programs. It is mandated now that all schools have it. That wasn’t the case a few years ago. The only kids I ever had ended up leaving once they got into the schools program (there is a waitlist with kids aging out at 10).

[jenboo]

I tried but couldn't compete with the schools programs and boys & girls club prices. There are too many options for pennies.
Eta: I can have 12 kids over 5 years old.

[Unregistered]

I do before and after school care in my neighborhood and love it. My market is good for it. Local daycares are charging between $500-800/no for morning and afternoon care, so I price myself at $98/week. I can take up to 6 kids, but haven't gotten that many because my house is too small, and I'm limited by the space in my SUV (I drive to and from school). Space would be the main thing to consider. Otherwise, there are so many pros - I have my days free, the kids are at an age that they basically entertain themselves, the money is good for the hours I work. I also can accelerate my income by offering full day care on teacher work days etc. I charge $45 per day for that

[Unregistered]

When my kids were young I only did before and after school care, because I did not want to keep kids my own kid's ages. I was able to make it profitable at the time because the state allowed me to take 12 kids as long as they were 5 years and up.

I stayed full because the school system did not have after school care. I charged $35 ($420) per week and served heavy snacks. I did not do homework help because for many kids that is the only parental interaction they have during the week. I had a part-time job to make up the difference when my husband was home with the kids.

Now the state allows only 6 kids, no matter the age. Bonus, the public schools now offer after school care for $5 per day until 5:30. That is less than I was making in 1997. I would make maybe $210, per week, tops, now. That won't even cover my mortgage payment. :dislike:

12 would be nice! There’s no competing with those programs in your situation. I’m glad it worked out for you when your kids were little at least.

[Unregistered]

I tried but couldn't compete with the schools programs and boys & girls club prices. There are too many options for pennies.
Eta: I can have 12 kids over 5 years old.

There’s one decent after school program and they charge $155 a week. But they are open till 630 which is a little late for me. There’s also one after school that’s a lot cheaper ( $70 week) but doesn’t seem that a lot of people like the program. Mostly sitting in the cafeteria coloring and playing board games.

[Unregistered]

I do before and after school care in my neighborhood and love it. My market is good for it. Local daycares are charging between $500-800/no for morning and afternoon care, so I price myself at $98/week. I can take up to 6 kids, but haven't gotten that many because my house is too small, and I'm limited by the space in my SUV (I drive to and from school). Space would be the main thing to consider. Otherwise, there are so many pros - I have my days free, the kids are at an age that they basically entertain themselves, the money is good for the hours I work. I also can accelerate my income by offering full day care on teacher work days etc. I charge $45 per day for that

I have plenty of house space, and 10+ acres of ground. It would be nice for them to be old enough to just all go play kickball for example. . Do you find there’s a lot of drama or anything though being that they’re older? What time do you stay open till? What about summer? Thanks so much for the input!

[Unregistered]

There is drama between the kids but I've been pretty lucky in that the kiddos I care for are really pretty well behaved. I stay open till 6pm but most of my kids are gone by 5. The hardest part is getting all of them on the same page. I'd love it if they all played together but often they go their own way. So I've set up centers of things they can do independently. We have science experiments and crafts they can do about once a week as a group activity. It's a great gig! About the time I'm losing patience is when mom and dad come pick them up 😂

[Unregistered]

Oh and I don't do summer care. So I can spend time with my own kids. They need a break from daycare during the summer months.