Does anyone here have a preschool in your home?

[TXMary2]

I am considering starting an at home Pre-school, not a daycare. I was thinking Mon-Thurs for 2 1/2 hours per day. I have been praying about a way to bring in income without having to leave home and without detracting from my passion for education. I haven't been able to find much information online. If you currently do this or have done this, I would love to hear about your experience.

[Cera]

I don't run a preschool but there seems to be a huge demand for 2 or 3 day preschool. The only one available in our area has a 6 month waitlist which would be even longer if it weren't religiously based (my kid would be on the list). Many parents want the break but don't want to send their kids off every single day. I would imagine you could be very successful.

[cathmom]

I have thought about doing it when my own dc get older! It seems to me that one could make a decent PT income at home by doing this.

[Closeacademy]

I tried to do one but as a daycare/preschool. It didn't work out very well and was a bad experience for me. Some advice:

 

be very picky about the children you accept

 

observe the parents as much as the children because that will give you clues as to behaviors you will have to deal with

 

be firm and start out with more rules and discipline than you may want because they will wear you down

 

Hope this helps.:001_smile:

[Lovedtodeath]

I was planning to do this but was waylaid when baby #2 came along.

 

Here are some things that we considered:

 

The only way to be successful is to either be certified for preschool or certified for Early Education, preferably both.

 

Competition from the church is fierce because they do not have to pay taxes, so their rates are lower. I think offering a secular program is likely to meet with more success.

 

People will take advantage of you. Do not let them. Pick up times need to be strict with penalties for non-compliance.

[i.love.lucy]

It was a tough experience for me too. I did okay with part-time, but when I was full time I felt like my home was a prison. I had no idea the isolation would get to me so much, especially with so many littles around.

 

Part-time is good, especially if you do MWF because then you have a day in between. Most preschools in my area are 4 hours, so if you expect to compete you'd have to be around that price.

 

You'd also have to have firm rules. Would you want them all the same age? If so, what about potty training. You should have your rules in place. I found several preschools/home daycares in my area and copied a lot of their rules. The parents WILL expect you to make an exception but you will have to be firm - especially on payment and hours.

 

Remember that it's stressful. It will take a toll on you and your ability to have much left over to give your own kids. With all the chaos and noise I almost never got any school done with my older dd, so I had to work her schedule around that.

 

All that said, it's a great way for a SAHM to make some money. There will ALWAYS be a need for childcare!

[HerdingCats]

http://www.littleengineacademy.vpweb.com/

 

My ds takes a science club class here in the afternoon and LOVES it. This mom is a fellow homeschooler of two who also goes to my church. I haven't actually discussed the logistics with her, but she has been doing this for a while now and it seems to be very successful. She is super nice and would probably answer questions you may have.

[Renai]

http://www.littleengineacademy.vpweb.com/

 

My ds takes a science club class here in the afternoon and LOVES it. This mom is a fellow homeschooler of two who also goes to my church. I haven't actually discussed the logistics with her, but she has been doing this for a while now and it seems to be very successful. She is super nice and would probably answer questions you may have.

 

Wow, thanks for this link! It's a great idea. I've had success doing daycare in my home before, but dh is not open to full-time childcare right now. I like this set-up and can see myself doing a variation of it.

[duckens]

I have a registered in-home daycare. I am not a preschool, although both of my 3yo have started to read words and put together sentences. We work a lot on what a preschool curriculum would consist of: alphabet letters, calendar, counting to 100, etc.

 

1)Require payment in advance.

Most people are good, but I have one from over a year ago who still owes me a few hundred dollars. She would be rude and angry or hang up on me every time I called her for even a modest payment of $10/week. She got much nicer when, after months of this behavior, I left a message on her fiance's (not the boy's father) phone that I would try to reach her through her former fil (the boy's grandpa, and the only other link I had to her). She called back within 10 minutes, and everything changed. I suspect that she was collecting child support and the agreement was that she was supposed to pay childcare....but wasn't.

 

The same mom would also not show up (even when she asked if I could take her son at 5am), and then believed that she did not have to pay me. If she had paid in advance, then, hey, what do I care if she doesn't show up? I get paid the same,and I've already been paid.

 

Another mom I sit for is low income and receives subsidies from the state for childcare. One CAN live on a low income from paycheck to paycheck....as long as there are no disasters (car breaks down; work tells you that you need fancier clothes; your hours at work get cut; you are sick and have doctors expenses PLUS miss work for sickness; etc).

 

The state pays promptly, but I just carried her $10-$20/week payment until it hit six months. The first time, Grandma paid the $$$ for catch-up. The second time, Grandma was mad that this had happened again, so the mom has been paying an extra $20/month until her tax return come in next year. I need to be tougher because it doesn't do anyone any good for her to get further behind.

 

2)Be tough about pick-up times, with stiff penalties. Be tough about drop off times. One of my dads has finally learned that he needs to be enough of an adult to call me when the schedule changes. (I am totally willing to be flexible if I know in advance). If they drop off their child early, even by 10 minutes, this interferes with your planning time (even if all you were going to do was go to the bathroom). Charge a general$10 fee for everyone that shows up on your doorstep even one minute before drop off time is.

 

3)Require them to call you if they are delayed or not coming. Otherwise you will be holding activities for that one child that may not be coming. When parents sign with you, tell them that you will call them if they don't call you. Reassure them that you are only calling to make sure that everyone is safe. Every year, we hear about children forgotten in the back of a car who die from extremities in weather. I always wonder if the babysitter tried to call the parents in any of these tragic situations.

 

4)Consider becoming a registered provider with your state. This may be more hassle than it is worth, but you may benefit if you are registered. Because I am registered, I could telephone our local childcare resources place and tell them what age and what hours I am available for. They send people my way if they know I am looking. Let them do the work for you. There are a LOT of people looking for childcare. Plus, if one is registered in my state, one qualifies for low-cost ($5) CPR and first aid classes.

 

5)Make a list of all of the days that you are unavailable in 2010. Of course, you do need to plan your family vacation in advance (if your partner's work will let you do so). Be sure to ask off obvious days like Thanksgiving and the day after, Christmas, Labor Day, Memorial Day, and 4th of July. Is it important that you have Christmas Eve off? Is it important that you have Good Friday off? Do you want your birthday off? In this way, the families can plan ahead, and there is no excuse for them being unhappy for you taking the day off. Add a caveat about funerals in case of family death. Decide whether they should pay you for these days or not, and be clear about which days they need to pay you for and which they do not.

 

Of course, I have one dad, that even though he is given this information in writing every year and reminded in the weeks before, he is unable to plan ahead, or even realize that I have asked for the day off. (It's not as if he's actually working; he just wants to take off on a booty call with his new gf, so I have even less patience for this behavior).

 

--Laura in Iowa

[Lovedtodeath]

I had daycare for a while too. Laura gave good information.

 

When we were going to do preschool we were going to try to support the family from home, so I had plans for 2 classes most days, 3 and a half hours each, 2 and 3 days a week. That way you can have 4 different classes with a weekly pament for each.

[cougarmom4]

As far as late pickups go, the preschool my dd went to years ago had a very strict policy...each family had to pay $15 at the beginning of the year and every time you were late you were deducted $.75 per minute. I was only late once! Ouch! (I think there was a little grace period--like ten minutes or so were allowed for pick up, but after that she'd just hand you a sticky note that said how much you would be deducted...no words, just the sticky note...). I think if you are doing preschool you wouldn't have as many issues with late pickups/early dropoffs as daycare, but I could be wrong.

 

I haven't run a preschool, but have loose plans in mind to try this in the coming years...or should anything happen to dh, it's kind of my fall back plan. One thing I thought of was to have M/W class and T/T class and that way I could repeat things--it would cut down on the planning. I think it sounds like fun, but it also worries me a little to commit to such a thing and have to carry it out for the whole year. I can see myself enjoying it at first and then starting to dread it as the weeks go by. I bet it is so exhausting!

 

Another idea is to have some kind of Mom's Day Out type of thing. I would *love* to know someone near me who would just babysit in their home from 9-12 one morning a week...or even a Friday night type of thing for Date Night. I'd have a clear policy on dropoff/pickup times and definitely enforce an extra fee. You could even take reservations & have a changing group of kids. Throw a theme onto it and it would look more inviting and make filling the time easier. My friend does this during the summer for a preschool summer camp type of thing and fills up pretty quickly. (Pirates...Summer Olympics...Water...Princesses...etc)

 

Hmm, that makes me think you could even do some kind of preschool class/camp that wouldn't have to be three hours of preschool two/three days a week...you could make it more of a specialized type of thing...Arts & Crafts (just an hour every Wednesday, for example, for six weeks) or Shapes & Colors (again, just an hour or so per week...and do all kinds of crafts, play games, stories, etc learning that specificially). I'd bet lots of Moms would like this type of enrichment thing--especially if they didn't want to sign their kids up for 'preschool' but wanted them to have some experiences like this. Just brainstorming as I sit here...

 

Good luck!

[amy g.]

I had one at a church, then later in my home. My hours were 9-2 Tues. & Thurs. I charged $100 per month per child no matter how many classes were in that month. The kids brought lunches, but we had a cooking activity every day that they could eat for a snack.

[Renai]

I agree so much with this, I'm just adding my comments in red.

 

 

1)Require payment in advance.

 

Most other daycares and preschools require this- you are a business as well. Whether it's weekly, biweekly, monthly, whatever, payment should be made in advance. Have a set rate. If they don't show up, that payment held their spot in your preschool that another paying family could have taken. I don't do pay by the day unless they're drop-ins, and I've not had drop ins.

 

2)Be tough about pick-up times, with stiff penalties. Be tough about drop off times.

 

When I first had my daycare, it was imperative that parents picked up their children on time because I had college classes across town, and it was pushing it close time-wise. I made my pick-up time so ridiculously high, I never had a problem with late pickup!

 

3)Require them to call you if they are delayed or not coming.

 

4)Consider becoming a registered provider

 

It doesn't take much in our state to become registered, and there are benefits. One, there is a guaranteed check each month. And here, if you're registered, you can join the food program and they reimburse for meals you provide the children. A background check is done, they check the home, and I believe a couple of visits a year (I don't remember since it's been a while for me).

 

5)Make a list of all of the days that you are unavailable in 2010.

 

Not just a list, but draw up a contract. I even put together a parent handbook, patterned after other handbooks I've seen in daycares where I previously worked. I googled childcare forms and came across a lot of free resources. Unfortunately, those bookmarks are in my Mac, which refuses to cooperate with me .

 

 

I hope it works out for you. I'll go back to it in a heartbeat if dh agrees (which will be a long time coming).

Edited December 18, 2009 by Renai
added info

[cougarmom4]

http://www.littleengineacademy.vpweb.com/

 

This looks awesome! I wish it was near me!

[SonshineLearner]

Hi There,

 

I had my daughter going to an at home preschool. It ended up not working forever... but I think it would be good if it had ... It was called Sweet Peas.... I liked it because it was VERY hands on... not too much into writing and such.... And, for me, 4 hours would be the clincher.... The Preschool I know of in town, that someone has in their home is called ...Secret Gardens... and it's so cute. They do field trips... (I've never been into having my children go on field trips without me...) but they do tons of hands on... and they made lunch together... kinda the Charlotte Mason, Montessori mix... and having them make and eat lunch together always sounded so great to me. Depends on what your market will support. I think that T-TH (three days) would be great!! Secret Gardens is Monday-Thursday...

Carrie:-)

[ereks mom]

Either that or tutoring math & reading for homeschoolers in my area on weekday mornings.

[Cinder]

Ds1 went to an in-home preschool. It was over 10 years ago but we had a great experience with it. The teacher was certified for K4 and used a standard curriculum--letter of the week, color of the month type. The program ran 3x/week for 3 hours each morning. Second semester she extended Weds to 4.5 hours with 1/2 hour break for lunch (we brought our own) for anyone who wanted to work on phonics instruction.

 

She could only take up to 10 kids--there were 8 our year--and she only took K4. You had to be recommended by someone she knew--a friend or another student's parent. She would then meet with the parent and student to determine if they fit her program.

 

We had field trips--about one per month--and parents were expected to attend. She also did a couple of fun "show off what we've learned" gatherings.

 

Good luck with this.

Cinder

[PiCO]

I am considering starting an at home Pre-school, not a daycare. I was thinking Mon-Thurs for 2 1/2 hours per day. I have been praying about a way to bring in income without having to leave home and without detracting from my passion for education. I haven't been able to find much information online. If you currently do this or have done this, I would love to hear about your experience.

 

My children both went to in-home preschools. One was MWF 9-12 and the other was M-Th 9-1. Both were Charlotte Mason & Montessori based. They were great! The limit was 6 kids with one teacher. Lots of hands-on, read-alouds, fine motor work. I was so glad to contract out the finger painting and other messy stuff!

 

One teacher got frustrated with some parents who didn't want their little princesses getting dirty. I would put that in the contract- that's the whole point!

 

In the other place, the husband was a clean freak- he wouldn't let anyone park in the driveway for pick-up or drop-off because they might leak auto fluids in his driveway and decrease the resale value of the house :confused:.

 

Be careful not to underprice yourself. Don't try to compete with churches and public schools or rec centers. Look at private preschools and home preschools. Think about how you are going to be better and different than other schools, and talk that up. I think an emphasis on science experiments and projects would be a great selling point.

[TXMary2]

Thanks everyone! I am most definitely not doing a daycare. A daycare does not interest me at all. What does it mean to "register?"

 

There are mostly daycares in my area so having an exclusive pre-school program could be advantageous for me. The preschool programs I have researched were typically 2.5 hours. I think for 3-5 yo's that would be plenty.

 

I was thinking of offering m/w or t/th for one price and then a higher price if they want 4 days. I would not do Friday's at all as that is our light day and park day. I was thinking 9-11:30 since my kids typically do the bulk of their schooling in the afternoon. My little guy would probably love being my "helper" with the other kids and I think it would be a good experience for him. I also don't need to make the big bucks, I just want to make additional income to help with paying off our vehicles faster and establishing an emergency fund.

 

What kinds of materials/supplies or furniture do you think I would need on hand? I am picturing needing a "romper room" type table with little chairs. I also think I don't want more than 6 kids in a class. I like the idea of having a science focus as well as reading prep for Kindergarten.

[Lovedtodeath]

Thanks everyone! I am most definitely not doing a daycare. A daycare does not interest me at all. What does it mean to "register?"

 

There are mostly daycares in my area so having an exclusive pre-school program could be advantageous for me. The preschool programs I have researched were typically 2.5 hours. I think for 3-5 yo's that would be plenty.

I disagree. I had my DD in a 2.5 hour preschool and I hated it b/c no sooner would I drop her off that I had to pick her up again. If a mommy is signing up for preschool in order to have alone time or get something done then I think 3-4 hours is better. I have also made sample schedules for my preschool and 2.5 hours doesn't leave enough time to get everything in that I plan. You need outside play, social time, time for math, reading, story, snack, manipulatives to build up little finger muscles... there is a lot to get in to a quality program.

[SonshineLearner]

I agree about the time thing. It's one reason why I didn't do preschool or kindy with my son. It's not enough time to do anything. I actually think that kindy could be a fun 4 hours 2-4 times a week:-) so could preschool.... And... fixing lunch and eating is a really fun part of what kids like :-)

 

Carrie

[Johanna]

bumping this to see if there are other experiences or advice.....seriously considering opening a preschool in my home 9-12, 2-3 days a week.

would love to see if anyone else has dones this!

[Pamela H in Texas]

I also agree with having it be a little longer in the morning, like starting at 8 if you want to end at 12. You have to remember they will need to have run time and a snack which takes time as does potty time. You'll feel less rushed as will the moms.

[Johanna]

i dont know, I'd rather have too little time then too much time. I will have to think about that. I think 3 hours is what all the preschools around here are....I will have to think about that??

 

I think 3 hourse is plenty for my schedule : tell me what you think..

9:00am Children Arrive

 

 

9:00 - 9:25am

Indoor/Outdoor Free Play

 

 

9:25 - 9:55am CircleTime

 

 

Opening Prayer, Calendar, Sharing & Number or Letter of the Week

 

 

9:55 - 10:15am Cooking Project

 

 

10:15 - 10:45am Circle Time

 

 

Theme of the Week/Lesson

 

 

10:45 - 11:15am Arts & Crafts

 

 

11:15 - 11:45am Lunch (Parent Provided)

 

 

11:45 - 12:00 Noon Music and Stories

 

 

12 Noon Parents Pick-Up

 

 

Maybe 12:30 can be pickup???

 

Just brainstorming.....

[JoyfulMama]

Thinking constructively... :001_smile:

Personally I would add in a specific bathroom time, right before the kitchen craft, so hands are nice and clean. You may have to do the same thing between the craft and snack time, again to ensure clean hands. Littles will still need assistance in the bathroom, esp to ensure good clean hands.

I would limit times for most activities to 20 minutes instead of 30.

I would hesitate to put the craft time and the eating time on top of eachother if the same space will be used for both. But honestly if I were having my child come for 3 hrs, I'd rather you just offer a snack, or that I provide a snack rather than lunch. If you are going to be doing a cooking project, I would make that the snack.

I would keep pick-up the same, so hopefully your own crew could eat lunch by 12:30. Remember that once the kids leave you will still have some clean-up/putting away to do.

I think this could be a great idea!

[Tidbits of Learning]

i dont know, I'd rather have too little time then too much time. I will have to think about that. I think 3 hours is what all the preschools around here are....I will have to think about that??

 

I think 3 hourse is plenty for my schedule : tell me what you think..

9:00am Children Arrive

 

 

9:00 - 9:25am

Indoor/Outdoor Free Play

 

 

9:25 - 9:55am CircleTime

 

 

Opening Prayer, Calendar, Sharing & Number or Letter of the Week

 

 

9:55 - 10:15am Cooking Project

 

 

10:15 - 10:45am Circle Time

 

 

Theme of the Week/Lesson

 

 

10:45 - 11:15am Arts & Crafts

 

 

11:15 - 11:45am Lunch (Parent Provided)

 

 

11:45 - 12:00 Noon Music and Stories

 

 

12 Noon Parents Pick-Up

 

 

Maybe 12:30 can be pickup???

 

Just brainstorming.....

 

I noticed that you have a cooking time and I wanted to warn you that you may have kids with food allergies. I know most people don't think about that, but there are a lot more kids with food allergies. Having a child with food allergies myself, I will tell you most places avoid cooking projects any more.

[Johanna]

oh yes, I didnt think about food allergies. I liked the idea of kids doing a cooking project (which is just a fancy way of saying, "making own creative snack that is theme based") but, it may be easier to just have kids bring their own snack.

 

keep the ideas coming....these are good! Ok, definitely planned to factor in bathroom break. I just didnt put it in schedule....which is more like a time flow then a schedule.

 

 

 

I am debating on whether to offer lunch or not. If I go from 8:45 to 11:45, lunch is not necessary....will make it easier on me.

 

I am thinking doing this on Tuesdays and Thursdays as a K-prep class for 3's and/or 4's. Should I just state one age, or combine???

 

Thursdays my kids would be in co-op, so I would just have to juggle one day (Tues's) with my kids and the preschoolers....no big deal!

 

I am really working on thinking of something that would really "set me apart"....like having a special focus ie: nature, science....etc

 

what do you think?

thanks ladies, its nice to have this to bounce off all of yoU!

[JoyfulMama]

I'm thinking you would be offering something smaller and more intimate than a traditional preschool program - THAT being what sets you apart. IN that smaller setting you might be able to still offer snacks even with known food allergies. This might take some creativity, but in a group of 6 kids (I think that is the ratio here) I wouldn't anticipate 6 kids with 6 different sets of allergies. You could certainly see what you could come up with, and stick to fruits, vegetables for snacks. Based on the kids you have you may be able to use sunflower butter, applesauce, honey, popcorn (unless there is a corn allergy), and others.

If you know what children and allergies you will be dealing with ahead of time, and will be able to work with the parents, I think this would be a HUGE selling point for you as well.

[Cera]

I would leave out lunch. Most of the preschools we looked at had lunch at 12:00 when the morning kids went home (for those who stayed for aftercare).

[AngelBee]

I have thought about this on and off for years.

[Johanna]

I would leave out lunch. Most of the preschools we looked at had lunch at 12:00 when the morning kids went home (for those who stayed for aftercare).

 

yeah, this would be easier on me as well. Maybe I can offer a "once in a while" option to eat lunch as a group.

[TwinMominTX]

I think 3 hourse is plenty for my schedule

 

 

 

I think that three hours is probably plenty for the kids, but not for the parents. Your customers will either be stay at home moms or work at home mom's and depending on how far people drive - even 15 minutes each way - means only 2 1/2 hours of actual care. Not worth it for me.

[Johanna]

yeah, I plan to cater to children in my neighborhood whose mommies are looking for a couple hours to run errands and grocery shop. We'll see!

[Pamela H in Texas]

I would say 3-5 yr olds. Two reasons: First, kids will turn 5 in the year before they will go to Kindy. Second, there are great positives of multi-age programs. And you'll find that you can easily adjust for the range in time.

 

IF you do a themed preschool program, you will be limiting yourself to people interested in that. Also, if you do 3-5yr olds, you may have some children for 2 years. You may want to have an A year and a B year so you have variety for second year students. Of course, they could be related, like plants in year one and animals the following (so still life science). Or it could be zoo one year and farm a second. Or chemistry one year and physics the second. Or....

 

HTHs,

[Johanna]

I also agree with having it be a little longer in the morning, like starting at 8 if you want to end at 12. You have to remember they will need to have run time and a snack which takes time as does potty time. You'll feel less rushed as will the moms.

 

good point!! :D

[Johanna]

I would say 3-5 yr olds. Two reasons: First, kids will turn 5 in the year before they will go to Kindy. Second, there are great positives of multi-age programs. And you'll find that you can easily adjust for the range in time.

 

IF you do a themed preschool program, you will be limiting yourself to people interested in that. Also, if you do 3-5yr olds, you may have some children for 2 years. You may want to have an A year and a B year so you have variety for second year students. Of course, they could be related, like plants in year one and animals the following (so still life science). Or it could be zoo one year and farm a second. Or chemistry one year and physics the second. Or....

 

HTHs,

 

 

Pamela, this is great!! Thanks so much for your input!

[Sonshine]

The time would be an issue for me. 3 hours minimum - 4 would be better. I need the time to get something accomplished. You might have them send lunch, and have an occasional/once a month snack preparation activity. I think the number of people who would not pick you because you didn't cook the meal for them would be low to none, versus the trouble for you in cooking the meal. As well as allergies, many kids are just plain picky eaters and it could be a real pain to work around different food preferences.

 

The disadvantage with a wider age range is greater difficulty in planning the activities/lessons so that everyone will learn and benefit. The advantage to a wide age range is keeping the same kid for more than one year and possibly accomodating sibling groups.

 

If you are not sure you want to do this, you could make it a summer thing and then just keep doing it if it's to your liking.

 

I wouldn't pick one theme like science. You are limiting yourself too much.

 

I hope this works out well for you.

[Johanna]

thank you Sonshine, this is great advice. I think I am going to accomodate ages 3-5 and I am going to do offer it from 8:30-11:30. Once a month I may offer them to bring lunch and have the pickup at 12.....I dont know, still brainstorming.

 

I was thinking about MFW K to use as a curriculum because it is so easy to water down, I have used it 3 times over and feel very comfortable with it. I like how it focuses on nature and science.

 

any more thoughts or ideas??

[Free Indeed]

I think MFW K would be a GREAT idea. :D

[Johanna]

I think MFW K would be a GREAT idea. :D

 

Thanks for the encouragement!

:D