FYL 010: Should You Take Your Kids to a Daycare or Get a Nanny

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In order for us to share what we believe are the pros and cons of childcare options, we decided to create what we call as the Pros vs. Cons list. This is a great way to clearly see what we are comparing and hope that this format makes it clear for you when making your decision. This decision is definitely one of the hardest you will have to make when having children. Their care provider has such an influence on your child and you cannot be frugal when it comes to this decision. Spend time wisely deciding what is best for you and your family.

Daycare 

Pros 

• Socializing 
• Structure 
• Routine 
• Different styles of learning from different teachers 
• Constant improvements with facilities 
• Challenge children 
• Learning from other children 
• If a teacher is sick, the facility is still open 
• Need formal documentation for everything such as medication, sunscreen, chapstick and so on. 
• Meet other parents with children the same age as yours 
• Good ratio between children and teachers 
• No screen time 

Cons 

• Exposed to sick kids constantly 
• Learn bad behaviors from other kids 
• Need to pack a child’s belongings each day 
• Expensive 
• Usually has a waiting list/ hard to get into 
• Need formal documentation for everything such as medication, sunscreen, chapstick and so on. 

Nanny 

Pros 

• They come to your house  
• You have more control of what your kids are exposed to 
• Don’t have to pack your kids up 
• It’s super flexible especially if you work odd hours or odd days 
• You can request and pay them to clean 
• All the attention is on your children 
• Nanny can take kids to school  
• You can request them to come on vacations with you 

Cons 

• If the nanny is sick you need a plan b 
• No one is there to ensure that nanny is following your instructions unless you have a nanny cam 
• It can be quite expensive depending on how many hours 
• It can be risky because sometimes you don’t know the person and you are trusting them inside your home  
• Potentially your children can be exposed to more screen time 
• You have to create the plan for the nanny 
• No to little exposure to other kids 
• Your kids can get bored being home all day