Congregations Caring for Children

Family Child Care Homes

Licensed family child care homes refer to child care in an individual's private

home. The home may be rented, leased, or owned. It may be in a mobile home

park or in an apartment. Because family child care is home based, children tend

to be cared for in a family like setting with all the daily activities usually associ 

ated with home.

The types of family child care homes vary widely, from the neighborhood parent

who cares for a few children to a large family child care home that cares for up to

14 children. A family child care home is a business. You should expect profes 

sional service and should treat your provider as a professional.

Ratios

The number of children cared for at a family child care home may vary, depend 

ing on the age of the children and whether an assistant is pre sent. The children

of the provider and assistant who are under the age of ten are included in deter 

mining the adult to child ratio. When looking at a family child care home:

Find out how many adults and children are present.

Ask the provider the number of children she is licensed for.

Ask if she cares for school age children.

Finally, when you contact your local resource and referral agency and

Community Care Licensing, double check the ratio.

Staff qualifications

Family child care providers are required to be licensed if they care for the chil 

dren of more than one family. Licensing has minimum health and safety stan 

dards that providers must follow. Licensing requires that providers take pediatric

CPR, first aid, and health and safety classes. Providers may have additional

education, such as a degree in early childhood education, community college

courses, or training through child care associations. Providers may receive ac 

creditation through the National Association for Family Child Care (NAFCC).

This organization's mission is to recognize high quality in family child care.

Points to consider in choosing family child care

Environment: Is the home clean and safe? Are latches on cabinets, plugs on

outlets? Are the stairs, fireplace, and windows child proofed? Are there any

physical concerns you may have, such as a pool or unused cars or equipment in

the backyard? Does the provider keep firearms in the home? If so, are they

locked up and stored away from reach? Are there plenty of interesting and age 

appropriate toys and materials for your child to play with? Does the provider

offer a preschool program or help prepare your child for school? Does the pro 

vider offer transportation to and from school? If the provider transports your

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