Hello! My name is Michelle Slimak and I love my job. Yes, I said it, I love my job. Being a home daycare provider is a very rewarding career. I have been working in childcare for over fifteen years, as a babysitter, a center based provider, in an on-site care facility, and now as a home daycare provider. I am the co-chair of the Early Childhood Collaborative of Southington, (www.southingtonearlychildhood.org) a volunteer group of concerned parents, providers, teachers, and community members tasked with preparing all Southington's children for school ready to learn.
The field of early childcare has changed drastically in the past thirty years, and it seems as if the changes are not done. More and more research is being done on the first five years of life, and through that research more information is being gathered about the importance of early care providers in the lives of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Early childcare is no longer babysitting, it is a learning environment, where intentional teaching is essential to growth and development.
Through this blog, I would like to bring information about early childcare to the community. I would like to discuss issues of concern to parents, grandparents, and early childcare providers. Next time, I am going to discuss the importance of finding quality early childcare and address some questions parents should ask any prospective provider.
