What is Group Family Daycare?
Group Family Day Care offers child care in a family home on a regular basis for more than three hours per day per child. In this type of care there can be 7 to 12 children, ages 6 weeks to 12 years, plus four more school-age children. Since there are no classrooms, children ranging in ages 6 months - 4 years of age interact amongst each other on a daily basis. Group family daycares and their staff are licensed by the State and Department of Health. Riverside Daycare is subject year round to random inspections during normal business hours, conducted by a Health Inspector on behalf of the Department of Health.

What are the teacher/child ratio at Riverside Daycare?
The teacher to child ratio for Infants (ages 6 months - 2 years) is 1:2 and Toddlers (ages 2 years and up) is 1:6. Here at Riverside daycare we are lisenced for 12 children, but choose to max out at 10 children. We have room for 4 Infants and 6 Toddlers.

Why choose Riverside Daycare over a traditional daycare center?
Those who choose Riverside Daycare for their children are most likely to cite the clean, organized, and homey atmosphere of our daycare as their main reason for doing so. With a smaller space to maintain, smaller ratios, and less children to be supervised compared to a traditional daycare center, children in our care receive more attention. Children in our care get opportunities daily to socialize amongst themselves with a much smaller group of  children than they would be exposed to in a center. The younger children consistently see the older children participating and tend to pick up faster on our daily activities and routines. Children are not separated by age group as in traditional daycare center. Having mixed ages can be super beneficial. For example, during clean up time, our younger children begin to grasp the concept of "Clean-Up" by watching our older children clean up themselves. During lunch time, all ages eat together. This gives a younger child a chance to witness older children sitting at the table, eating amongst themselves, trying new foods, and using utensils. Younger children see first hand other children using proper table manners. These are the start of lifelong skills we continue to work on. We ensure children of all ages develop the same positive routines, behaviors, and habits, which they will eventually be able to utilize at home. Our mission is to better prepare your child for a real school setting. The ability to teach children in a safe, comfortable, and homey atmosphere makes Riverside Daycare the more attractive option.

What is the Transition Process/Phase-in Philosophy?
At Riverside Daycare, we want the transition from home to daycare to feel as smooth and comfortable as possible. We work together with the parents to make sure that each child has a graduated phase-in that works best.

Day 1, your child will stay half day and must be picked up by 10:00 am.

Day 2, we extend hours and your child must be picked up by 11:30 am.

Day 3, we transition into a full day.

How much time may parents spend at the daycare?
Here at Riverside Daycare we would appreciate if drop off is as quick and easy as possible. We understand there may be days where the drop off process doesn't go as planned. We do ask that you do your best to expedite dropping off your child. The morning can get hectic with the foot traffic from parents dropping off children and strollers. The drop off area tends get a little tight to move around.

Why is the cut off 9:30 am for arriving children?
Routine amongst children & staff is THE KEY to a smooth and successful day. Children in our care pay close attention to our everyday routines & daily activities. We begin serving breakfast at 9:00am sharp. If you want your child to recieve breakfast, He/She must arrive by 9:00 am. We clean up breakfast promptly at 9:30 am and flow into our day. When a parent drops off a child after 9:30 am, in the middle of our morning activity, it distracts the children already engaged. The sound of the downstairs buzzer and the doorbell tends to throw our little ones focus off. We feel it is unfair to the children and our staff. The teacher now has to stop the activity with the children to settle in the late child. It takes up educational time getting all of our children to focus back on the activity at hand. Our children enjoy participating in every morning song and activity. We want our children to get the full experience each and every day. We do not want our time cut short or borrow time from the next planned activity.

This is why our cut off for arrival time is 9:30 am. 

Do you provide meals and snacks?
Yes, after the age of 1, breakfast, lunch, and snack, are all included in the tuition. For children under the age of 1, we ask that parents provide food for the day. We follow guidelines set by Community Life Food Program to meet all children's daily nutritional needs. Once or twice a year a representative will randomly check in during normal business hours to ensure we are up to par in following the guidelines they have implemented.

Do you follow a curriculum?
Yes, we have a weekly themed curriculum set in place September - May. You can find see our full curriculum by clicking HERE. The summer months of June, July, and August are all about “Fun in the Sun” As long as the weather permits, we visit the sprinklers frequently and conduct fun and educational outdoor activities for our children to participate in.

What is the sick policy regarding children?
Should a child have signs or symptoms requiring exclusion from our daycare, he/she will be isolated and the parent/guardian or other authorized person will be notified immediately to pick up the child. We define illness related exclusions as any illness that prevents your child from participating comfortably in our daycare environment or an illness that results in greater care than we can provide without compromising the health and safety of the other children in our care.