Parent Interview

Parent Interview Report

I did my interview on a parent who brought her daughter into child care when her daughter turned 1 ½ years old and she is now 2.

She is the parent’s first child and according to the parent, leaving her child in child care for the first time she not only had to cope with the child’s feelings about separating but her feelings as well.

I knew how this parent felt at the time because I went through the exact same thing when I first put my son into child care.

One thing I learned from this parent was that she developed special ways of saying good-bye to her daughter that only the two of them would do to make her daughter feel comfortable about leaving her.

Their routine would be the mother taking her daughter into the child care setting herself, take her daughter’s shoes and coat off, getting her settled in and giving her daughter a hug and a kiss and reminding her daughter that she will be back later on in the day. This parent also realized that saying “I’ll see you later” instead of “Good-Bye” made her daughter relax a bit more about staying. I also felt the same was as this parent did when she said it was hard for her to let go as well. She felt a bit upset and guilty by the thought that she was missing out on the joy of helping her daughter learn new things and watching her make everyday discoveries. She also found it difficult herself saying good- bye to her child but what made her feel better was she talked to the caregiver about her concerns and found out she wasn’t the only parent who felt that way. She realized these feelings were natural and normal and helped her daughter manage better.

The parent also had a bit of jealousy at the thought of the bond the caregiver and her daughter would have. However, she was assured that no matter how attached a young child may become to another caregiver, it’s a totally different attachment than the one the child feels to their own mother and father.

Throughout this whole experience with bringing my own child to child care and talking to this parent, I learned that because of this daycare, I gave my child the opportunity to learn there are other adults besides us (parents) who are loving and can be trusted.

For any daycare to be a healthy part of a child’s growth, parents and child care providers need to work together closely. They must be partners in helping children as they grow.

If those kinds of concerns aren’t mentioned they can easily turn into awkwardness, tension and sometimes fear. But when we encourage children to talk about whatever they’re wondering, we find out they become more accepting and empathetic. Asking and openly talking about differences helps children get beyond the fears so they can feel more comfortable.