Archive: Providers

Build Your Childcare Resume

Putting together a resume can be overwhelming and challenging, but Mom Trusted is here to help. If you’re looking for the best way to build your childcare resume, we’ve got a few tips to help make the process easier and help your resume stand out:

Include the basic stuff

List your name, address, number, education and dates and locations with everything listed.

List only relevant experience

If you’re building a resume geared toward childcare, list any previous jobs or activities related to daycare, preschool, teaching and even camp counseling or nannying. Interested parties are likely to be interested in only former jobs related to children.

Don’t forget to explain

List two or three examples of tasks you were responsible for under each job. Be descriptive, but brief.

Ages are important

On childcare resumes, it’s important to include (often in the description lines listed above) the ages you worked with in each position.

Make your skills known

Do you know CPR? Are you a trained lifeguard? List any certifications related to health and safety. These are especially important to parents and care centers looking to hire.

References are key

Especially in a profession that deals with children. Childcare centers and parents want to take extra precautions to make sure their children are in good hands. If you have three to four references who will vouch for your responsibility and skills, list them right on the resume. Just make sure to give them a heads up before you do!

Why do you love kids?

Write a clever, but brief cover letter in which you describe why you want to work with kids. Be honest and open.

Have someone edit for you

Sometimes a second set of eyes makes all the difference. Have a friend or family member read through your resume and cover letter for any typos, grammatical errors and just to make sure everything is clear.

Once you have your resume completed, be sure to post all your information in MomTrusted so parents can learn more about your services and hire you! Get started here: http://momtrusted.com/getstarted

Sources:

“Cover Letters and Resume Samples.” Childcare Worker Resume Sample

“Sample Child Care Worker/Social Services.” About

“Childcare Resume Writing. What Should It be About?” Resume Writing Tips

Photo courtesy of Ambro/freedigitalphotos.net

10 Signs that You Found the Best Daycare

You hunted high and low, near and far to find the perfect daycare for your child. You’re pretty sure you did a good job and overall are pleased with your pick, but every now and then a gnawing pang of worry pops into your stomach. How can you be sure you made the right choice? Here are a few signs that tell you that you found the best daycare possible:

1. The staff calls both you and your child by your names when you arrive. And they remember to ask things like, “How was the camping trip this weekend?”

2. Your good friend, family member or trusted coworker highly recommended the place.

3. There are lots of staff member and the worker to child ratio is very high, allowing for more one-on-one attention.

4. They have one of those annoying lists of rules that prohibit things like peanuts. Although often long and sometimes irritating, those rules mean that the daycare really cares about your child’s health and safety.

5. You checked with the state and they meet all of the health and safety codes.

6. They remind you when you’re running low on diapers or let you know when your child didn’t finish eating. Communication is priceless.

7. The daycare doesn’t offer unwanted advice too often. While you want to stay in the loop and know what’s going on, you probably don’t want someone telling you how to parent.

8. Parents of the other children seem friendly and you’ve either already organized play dates or are planning to soon.

9. The daycare has a low turnover rate. That’s how you know the staff loves what they do and care about their work.

10. Your child comes back from daycare excited. Don’t worry if he or she is hesitant to go in the morning; that’s perfectly normal. But if they come home bubbly and thrilled to tell you about all the cool stuff they did, you know you’ve got a winner on your hands.

Sources:

-“8 Tips for Choosing Child Care.” Parents.com

-“What Makes a Great Daycare.” Parents.com

-“Daycare Dilemmas.” Parents.com

-Photo courtesy of photo stock/freedigitalphotos.net

New Study Finds Happier Kids

A new study found that kids who perform acts of kindness are happier and more accepting.

Researchers in Vancouver, Canada studied how performing kind acts influenced behavior, emotions and even popularity of 9 to 11 year-olds. The researchers had two groups: one was asked to visit three places each week, while the other was asked to perform three random acts of kindness each week.

The experiment lasted for four weeks and, in the end, when compared to previous test results, both groups of children were deemed happier. The ones who performed random acts of kindness, however, were also deemed more accepting of their fellow classmates.

Researchers believe that because the acts of kindness were intentional and planned, they created more positive, accepting attitudes among the children. Observers believe that this could be a solution to bullying in schools. By encouraging kind acts in children and creating more open-minded attitudes, the hope is that the acceptance will spread throughout school children.

Sources:

-“Acts of Kindness Make Kids Popular.” Parenting.com

-“Random Acts of Kindness Can Make Kids More Popular.” NPR

-Photo courtesy of Ambro/freedigitalphotos.net

Easy Crafts: Make an Educational Felt Board

Looking for some easy crafts to keep you and your little one busy? Check out this felt board that’s both educational and fun. You can use it to teach colors, shapes, letters and more.

What you need:

-Different colored pieces of felt

-Large picture frame

-One plain piece of adhesive felt about one inch l inch larger than the frame

-Scissors

-2 pieces of cardboard board the ½ inch smaller than the frame

-Duct tape

-Kraft paper

Instructions:

1. Remove and discard of the glass from the frame.

2. Cut about 1 inch of the corners off of the large piece of adhesive felt.

3. Tape the felt around the cardboard.

4. Place the felt-covered board within the frame.

5. Add a second piece of cardboard to the back for extra support.

6. Secure with kraft paper and duct tape.

7. Cut fun shapes out of the different colored pieces of felt. Here are a few ideas:

-Letters

-Numbers

-Basic shapes

-Animals

Sources:

-“Felt Board for Kids.” Martha Stewart

-Photo courtesy of Grant Cochrane/freedigitalphotos.net

Happy Valentines Day! +Beautiful Hand Drawn Coloring Sheet

Happy Valentines Day from the MomTrusted.com Team!

Just click the image above to download the printable coloring sheet.

Choosing the Right Daycare

Choosing a daycare can be both overwhelming and scary. Whether you’re considering a care facility that a friend swears by or flipping through the yellow pages, it’s important to be well informed and highly involved with your selection process. When shopping for a new daycare, here are some of the most beneficial questions to ask:

Is the daycare licensed?

While most states do require childcare providers to fulfill licensing and background checks, not all do. Make sure that, whether the facility is located in a personal home or its own building, the caretaker is properly certified to watch your child. Do they have CPR training? How often must they pass inspections? Before committing to a daycare, contact your state’s childcare licensing resource to make sure it’s certified. Many states even have online tools that allow parents to search for certifications.

How long has the company been in business and how long have each of the caregivers been with the company?

Lower turnover rates generally mean a happy, expert-filled environment.

What is the adult to child ratio?

 You want your child to be getting as much one-on-one time as possible. Not only does specialized attention keep your little one busy and engaged, but more adults means more safety. Here is the recommended adult to child ratios, based on children’s ages:

• Under two years old: 1:4
• Over two years old: 1:12, but no more than two of those children should be under one year old and not more than four under two years old

How big is the group size and what are the ages of the other children?

Generally, the smaller the group, the better because it means more attention for each child. After age two, it’s also important for your little one to be around other children his or her age. Because toddlers start socializing around this age, it’s valuable to set them in an environment where they’ll be around other tots at a similar level.

Do you get a good feeling from the center and staff?

Go with you gut. Visit the daycare in person so that you can meet the workers, see what the space looks like and check out the kind of activities the other children are participating in. If the facility looks good on paper and passes all of the questions above, but you still don’t feel completely comfortable committing, it’s probably not a good fit. Keep comparing your options.

Our Latest Preschool Activities

We’ve had a lot of fun lately doing activities with the kiddos and wanted to share them with you. Try our latest preschool activities with your kids this weekend or after school!

Learn how to draw your hand in 3D using this simple optical illusion technique.

Painting with balloons gives your child a new squishy, flexible tool to work with.

A bunch of ideas for teaching your child about the five senses.

Recipe for how to make flubber.  This stuff has an amazing consistency and isn’t as messy as it looks. :)

This is an adorable printmaking idea that your kids will love.  I want to try this on canvas next time!

Fun little science project that’s easy, you probably have everything you need on hand, and the kids get to keep their experiment to play with.

We made this as a gift for my mother’s garden.  She loved it and was surprised at how easy it was to replicate this project.

I am totally fascinated by spin art.  My kids could do it for hours because each piece turns out different.

Cute printable coloring page for your little friendship bracelet makers.  Just in time to start the school year.

Looking for a gift idea for grandparents?  This one is perfect.  Click through to see how to make this reverse hand print artwork.

Also be sure to like us on Facebook and follow us on Pinterest to get your daily preschool activities!