Although some parents struggle with the idea of parting with their child when it comes time for preschool, the reality is that many jobs demand that mothers and fathers show up to the workplace with their child safely cared for elsewhere. This requires parents to pick some form of childcare from the multiple options that Chattanooga offers.
Three particular childcare establishments have distinct ways of educating the children who attend, caring for their well being, and even in providing discipline when appropriate.
Childcare Network
Childcare Network has several locations around the Chattanooga area, around 180 locations in the South, and plans for more centers. Jennifer Parton has been the director of the Childcare Network on Ooltewah Harrison Road for two years, and employed with the company for five years. Before this, she had 18 years of experience in childcare, an element she says comes in handy for her relationship with her teachers and parents. This element of experience is something that Childcare Network tries to find in its teachers, although they do employ college-aged assistants as well.
Parton says that Childcare Network is called “the working parent’s best friend” because, compared to other childcares around the area she has encountered, Childcare Network’s pricing and quality is the best. Part of this difference is the high reach curriculum they use, she says. High reach curriculum is based on play learning and hands on methods. For example, for the month of April, the group will talk about water for one week. They will discuss everything about water, from how it feels to how it tastes, and do activities with the water, because the children learn the most through seeing, touching, tasting and other hands-on activities, Parton says.
“In our classrooms, a lot of the centers are set up to learn through manipulatives and blocks, and all the centers are set up in different styles so they can use their cognitive skills and their social skills,” she says. Parton says she has been at childcare centers where the creative curriculum was used, and she likes the high reach curriculum better. With the high reach curriculum, children have themes each month that include newsletters, postcards, books and more so the parents can keep learning what the children are learning at home. The curriculum also utilizes child directed art, which relies more on a child’s creativity and independence in art projects rather than set patterns, shapes or directives.
Another element of Childcare Network that Parton likes is the discipline system. Rather than putting a child in time-out, they train their teachers in the five-finger method, which features a cool-down period, discussing the problem, finding a solution, selecting a solution together, and then trying it out. “They are not just sitting in a chair wondering ‘why did she put me here?’ I love that because it allows the teacher to sit down eye to eye with the child and explain to them good choices and bad choices and find a better way to handle this,” Parton explains.
Childcare Network accommodates those from six weeks of age to children in school with before and after school care. They offer a summer camp program for students during spring or fall break. Certain Childcare Network locations have buses that go to the schools and pick up the children for these programs, and other locations offer Headstart. At the Ooltewah location, they have a pre-k program with a curriculum geared to meet every standard in getting them completely ready for kindergarten. “The teacher I have in the Pre-K room has 13 to 14 years experience and is very structured and keeps them on a classroom school schedule so they are really familiar with the structure so as to not be shocked when they get into kindergarten,” Parton says.
Childcare Network locations offer the USDA program at all locations, which is the same food that is served at the school systems. This means strict guidelines for portions of fruit, vegetables, protein and milk. A hot breakfast, a hot lunch and an afternoon snack is included in the price for Childcare Networks program. In the infant room, Childcare Network offers Similac formula at no charge to parents. When children start eating baby food, the centers supply all the baby food, rice cereal, and in the diaper changing rooms, they supply the wipes. “When parents know that and factor in that, it is saving them even more money,” Parton says.
The corporate structure also allows for more funds to offer children a better time and education compared to some of the other childcare options, Parton says. “We are growing and definitely a company that is doing something right. I think our pricing and the quality that we give for the price is the best ticket there,” Parton says.
Primrose School of Hixson
The Primrose School locations in Chattanooga are quality private preschools. The Primrose School of East Brainerd was built in May 1993, and the Hixson location was built in November of 1994. Dan Case has been the franchise owner of these locations for the past 11 years. Through their exclusive Balanced Learning curriculum, all Primrose locations prepare children for academic success while fully integrating character development, thereby creating a well-rounded young individual. At their locations, they offer year round programs of full and part-time childcare and preschool education programs for children from six weeks to 12 years of age. This includes early childhood education, after school child care, summer camps and full-day pre-kindergarten.
Primrose is a SACS/CASI accredited school, much like UTC, the public and private school system. Case says their curriculum prepares children well as a base for elementary school and beyond. Many childcare centers base their structure on National Association for the Education of Young Children standards, and most of their classroom structure is based on child initiated play, Case says. Primrose is more of a teacher initiated/child directed center with more control over what the children are doing in the classroom in terms of activities, he says. Children have choices of activities and learning centers they can do, but the program is overall a little more structured than most preschool programs across the country, he says. Their character development program is folded into their curriculum and touches on things like friendship and kindness.
Their balanced nutrition menu comes from their corporate offices as well. The centers try to do a lot of fruits and vegetables, using high quality food service products, Case says. They also have a “Primrose Patch” where children have grown vegetables and tried them for lunch. Case says. “We have math programs, reading programs, and things like that. It’s basic skills that children need when they go to school, not only educationally but also socially, with life skills and social interaction.” What sets Primrose apart are their educational programs and the delivery of what they do in the classroom, Case says. Primrose teachers do lesson plans every week to provide a structured program for every day that is well laid out and engaging for the children.
Cheryl Townsend, director of the Primrose School of Hixson, says “A lot of schools have a curriculum in place and have all those things, but if it’s not being implemented, then you are not getting the services.” Primrose also has a system of checks and balances to make sure the schools are following their lesson plans and staying on track. Primrose does assessments on the children in all the classrooms to make sure the child is where they should be, and if not, where they are lacking and what can be done to help. In the pre-k classroom, they do a standardized test in the fall and again in the spring called the Bracken School Readiness Assessment which shows where they rank nationally. Not only does this test their progression, but it also tests the Primrose program and shows the center if they need to change their approach in certain areas, in any way.
“The biggest thing is that we provide a very solid foundation for children in their development and their school readiness. Children come out of our program and are ready for school,” Case says. “We have parents tell us all the time that ‘my child rolled right into kindergarten and is doing great and testing at higher levels than other children.’”
YMCA
The YMCA cares for more children nationwide than any other childcare provider. Every activity is carefully designed to spark a child’s imagination and encourage positive values. These important differences in the YMCA of Metropolitan Chattanooga Preschool Program will give children what they need to grow in spirit, mind and body. Bill Rush, the executive director at the North River YMCA, says the program features a nutritious breakfast, lunch and snack; swim lessons with report card (downtown location only); computers for learning gross motor development; parent meetings and open door policy; and scholarships for families in need. Child Care Vouchers are also accepted at the Downtown Preschool.
The YMCA Preschool uses the creative curriculum. Lesson plans and daily activities are based around a weekly structured theme. Each day children are exposed to activities in the following areas: books, science, art, sand and water, clocks, table toys, home living, and Bible verses. The child’s day is balanced with structure and free choice play. The YMCA’s character development traits of honesty, responsibility, caring, respect, and faith are implemented throughout the program. The YMCA has a strong commitment to school age programs with summer camp programs located in East Brainerd, Hixson, Downtown and East Ridge. Along with their day camp program, the Downtown YMCA offers 11-weeks of camp designed specifically for four and five year olds. Experiences include arts and crafts, explorer time, swimming daily with swim lessons available, field trips, and more. The YMCA offers after school care at a variety of locations throughout Chattanooga. The programs range from a typical after school tutoring program to the YMCA’s Mobile Fit initiative. Mobile Fit works in under-served communities providing physical activity and nutrition based curriculum.
The YMCA offers a number of teen and youth programs that range from Youth Leadership Chattanooga to Model United Nations. These programs have a variety of different themes but all focus on leadership, character and asset building. Each of the programs are guided by staff and volunteers but allow the students to lead. In addition to providing a quality program for children with the after school program, the YMCA employs a well-trained staff that focuses on meeting the needs of individual participants, Rush says. The staff is committed to serving as excellent role models for the community and helping to establish an atmosphere where parents can be secure and confident about the place their child grows, he says.
The YMCA also offers unique father and child programs for school age children. For boys and their fathers, there is the Adventure Guides program. For girls and their fathers, there is the Princess Guides program. First established in 1926, both programs are designed around four key areas: family, fun, nature, and community. The parent child combos are joined with a “tribe” in their local community. Tribes meet monthly, while the “Nation” hosts special events throughout the year.
Rush says, “The YMCA offers many family programs, all of which meet the YMCA mission and goals. However, Adventure Guides and Princess Guides provide a unique niche. The focus on nature, camping, and building community provide opportunities that are not as prevalent in other family programs.” The YMCA is committed to families, and Y-Guides is a great way to help dads and their kids spend more time together building a lifelong relationship, Rush says.