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Child Care near Elmsford, New York?

Child Care Near Elmsford New York
Why Should You Enroll Your Kids in the Best Child Care near Elmsford, New York?

Are you looking for quality child care near Elmsford New York. Just 24 miles northeast of Manhattan, the 1.1-square-mile Elmsford is one of six villages in the town of Greenburgh. The village, though, is quiet; its roughly 4,700 residents live on tree-lined streets in neighborhoods sprinkled with parks that are full of children.

Is My Child Safe in a Child Care Center?

There are many Child Care Centers to keep your child while you are at work. Discovery Village is unique. We offer the care of a village, the creativity of an art studio, and the discovery of a science lab. Children are immersed in quality learning and care. We have a state of the art keyless entry system, ensuring that parents can enter during center hours to see their children, while we keep those we do not know out. Families living and work can find at Discovery Village the best of child care near Elmsford.

Why Should I Leave my Child at Discovery Village?

At Discovery Village, children take part in designing classrooms into communities where they pursue their interests through projects and play. These communities incorporate fun, creativity and social interaction. 

Early education can build the foundation of your child’s future. Here are a few benefits in enrolling your child:

  • Child Care Centers Can Help Develop Social and Emotional Maturity

When you leave your children at Discovery Village, you give them the chance to meet new people. They will learn to share and mature while working together to create a community of fun, independence and creativity.

For all age groups Discovery Village’s high quality, imaginative learning experiences support children to thrive today while setting foundations for the future.

Child Care Services from Discovery Village

Discovery Village Childcare & Preschool is a child care institution located in Tarrytown, NY. Their goal is to provide an innovative approach to early childhood learning. They also designed their classrooms to nurture children’s interests. Focusing on caring relationships and creative self-expression, Discovery Village aims to give your children the best experience they need with different projects that can cultivate their curiosity and creativity.

From newborn through pre-K, Discovery village meets your child where they are to help them grow and develop with experience that includes self-care, care for others, care for our communities and care for our world. Check out their website today at DiscoveryVillageCenter.com and enroll your child today. You may also call them now at 914-631-1009!

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Caring for Children with Food Allergies in Daycare

Caring for Children with Food Allergies
A blog written by Discovery Village Center titled

Kids are energetic, unpredictable and curious. Whether they are under the care of a small in-home provider, a large daycare center or even in their own home, countless dangers are around every corner. However, one of the most common risks for children is food allergies. 

Food allergies are on the rise and have been for some time. It can be frightening to see a child’s face swell and realize that they are having an allergic reaction. The reaction is a result of the body’s immune system thinks that a particular food product is harmful. When someone has a food allergy, the body reacts by releasing chemicals, including histamine, when exposed to that food. These chemicals trigger allergic symptoms which range from mild to life-threatening. 

You have spent their early years protecting your child from allergy-causing foods. However, as they grow and become more sociable, you will realize how challenging it is to keep your child away from food allergies at school or camp. After all, you can’t be with your child 24/7. 

If your child does have food allergies, the idea of sending them to childcare centers can make you feel scared and nervous. Therefore, it is essential to choose a child care facility that knows how to deal with food allergies and can recognize a reaction since some children don’t know how to explain what is happening to them. 

What foods often cause allergic reactions?

A child can be allergic to any food. However, the most common food allergens include eggs, cow’s milk, peanuts, wheat, fish, shellfish, soy and tree nuts. Peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, and fish are usually the most life-threatening allergies that cause severe reactions. Some schools even implement “Peanut-free” policies to avoid the grave implications of peanut exposure to peanut-allergic students.

There is still no medication to treat food allergies. All you can do is avoid the foods that trigger the allergic reaction. However, avoiding the allergen altogether is not always possible, especially when caring for young children. 

You can treat mild to moderate allergic reactions, including diarrhea, eczema and hives with antihistamines or topical steroids. For severe reactions, such as loss of consciousness, shortness of breath and chest pain, inject epinephrine to keep the blood pressure up. If an epinephrine injection is necessary, but the child does not have an epi-pen take the child to an emergency room or call 911 immediately.

 

5 Ways to Protect Your Child from Allergic Reactions 

Anyone working with young kids should know about the basics of allergic reactions. If you are entrusting your child to a childcare center, make sure that your chosen provider knows how to identify and respond to an allergic reaction. Of course we would rather there be no allergic reaction in the first place, so here are five ways to avoid an allergy trigger:

Read the label

When grocery shopping, it is essential to read the label of every product you buy, especially as a parent or a caregiver. The innocent-looking fruit roll up might have trace amounts of common allergens, so check the ingredient lists and advisory statements like “may contain peanuts” or “processed in a shellfish facility.”  Moreover, if you encounter a product without an ingredient list, do not buy it – it is not worth the risk.

Make a list

If your child has food allergies, make a list of what they can and cannot eat. You can also request a letter from your child’s doctor that outlines their food allergy triggers, ways to avoid these allergens, along with medications and treatments in case of an allergic reaction. Having this handy list can be a lifesaver, especially if your child is in a childcare center. 

Determine the symptoms of food allergies

Since no two people react the same way to foods, it is challenging to determine food allergies. What’s tolerable to some might be a nightmare to others. Therefore, knowing the traditional symptoms can go a long way. If your child experiences diarrhea, hives, vomiting, difficulty in breathing, swelling of the mouth, tongue or lips, or  sudden blood pressure drop, it’s time to take them to the nearest doctor. 

Talk to school staff

Another way to protect your child is by reaching out to the school’s administration, nurses and teachers about their condition. This should happen at the beginning of the year to ensure that everyone is on the same page and protocols are in place. 

Always keep an emergency medication on hand 

If your child starts having severe allergic symptoms, give them an epinephrine auto-injector right away. In addition, carrying an over-the-counter antihistamine for your kid can also help treat mild allergy symptoms. But remember that antihistamine is not a replacement for the epinephrine shot. 

Taking care of kids with food allergies is a challenging responsibility. At Discovery Village Center, we make sure that every child gets the nutrition they need in a safe manner. We keep strict records of all food allergies and intolerances. If your child requires a special diet, we will work closely with you to make sure that your little one gets the nutrition they need and deserve. Call (914) 631-1009 today!

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How a Quality Daycare Program Can Prepare Your Kids for Kindergarten

daycare near White Plains
How a Structured Child Care Program Can Prepare Your Kids for Kindergarten

The early years of a child’s life are critical. Children absorb more information than we realize like sponges. They develop through their interactions with the world as they discover things for themselves. 

As a parent, you make dozens of decisions to support your child’s health, growth, and development each day. For instance, one of the most crucial choices that working parents have to make is choosing the most qualified place to care for their children while they are away. Many families search for quality daycare near White Plains. Since their kids will spend a significant amount of time in these environments, it’s understandable why parents put so much time and effort into researching before making their decision. 

When evaluating daycare near White Plains, it is essential to consider their curriculum. Why? Because it sets the tone for every activity in the center. If you want your little one to pick up foundational skills before formal school starts, crayons and flashcards may not be the answer for your energetic child. Both a parent and kid-friendly solution to this issue is structured play. But can a child learn while they are playing and having fun?

What is a structured play? 

The good thing about the structured play is that it does not have to take up more precious time than is necessary. Structured playtime, also known as “play with a purpose”, combines an enjoyable activity with a learning objective. It can take on different forms — physical or mental — which keep the children active while learning. In this setting, the activities support kids in learning fundamental skills with adult supervision. Some people refer to these skills as the ABCs, which stand for agility, balance, coordination, and speed. 

Structured activities such as following directions to assemble a Lego-theme set or playing card games with a set of rules can develop these skills. If you’re teaching your child how to fold their clothes, let them match socks and count afterward to see how many he or she can match correctly. Working in some physical activity helps too.
Overall, structured play supports children’s competence and confidence, which helps them get comfortable in trying a variety of activities in different settings.

Some parents question if they should add structured play to their child’s schedule if it means taking away their regular playtime. It is important to know that not every session should have an objective or task to complete. You can provide them with at least an hour of structured activities every day, especially if they are already getting structured play through a child care curriculum. The best practice would be to break down that 60-minutes of play into smaller chunks to allow your child to concentrate.

4 Ways to Prepare Your Kids for Kindergarten with Structured Play

A structured playtime is an option that both parents and teachers rely on to help children learn and grow. If you want to close the gap between an early child care program and a kindergarten, here are four ways to do it: 

Always set clear expectations

Some parents believe that there shouldn’t be any expectations for their kids at an early age. However, instructors believe that with clear expectations, children will learn how to cope with them successfully. For instance, teachers should introduce teacher-designed expectations in most activities, so children can learn to be accountable for the proper completion and quality of the task. 

Establish classroom rules

Rules are essential to a childcare curriculum since it helps them prepare for kindergarten, while at the same time improves their day-to-day conduct. These children should know how to sit correctly with both feet in front of them, work quietly, and put their used materials back to their original place after completing a task. 

Emphasis on classroom routine

For the first few weeks, teachers should clearly teach the kids the habits and expectations of the classroom and schedule. Reinforcing the desired behaviors during each activity goes a long way.

Promote independent working 

Some of the physical and social activities in the structured play don’t always promote independent work. To help the children learn independent working, teachers need to decrease the amount of guidance they give their students. If any problems arise, they should encourage the child to resolve the issue on their own instead of spoon-feeding them the answer.  

Whether your child is six weeks or 12 years old, you wouldn’t want to send your kid just anywhere. You would want to find a child care center that cares for your child as well as you would and supports optimal development. At Discovery Village Center, that is precisely the kind of environment we will create for your child. Nothing is better than seeing your kid smile during their structured play. If you want to see the benefits of our quality child care curriculum first-hand, schedule a tour today and discover the beauty of our quality daycare near White Plains.

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How to Get Your Child Eat Healthy with a Childcare Provider in Sleepy Hollow

featured image of blog titled "How to Get Your Child Eat Healthy with a Childcare Provider in Sleepy Hollow"
How to Get Your Child Eat Healthy with a Childcare Provider in Sleepy Hollow

Kids either love or loathe veggies – there is usually no in-between. Most parents experience an uphill battle with feeding their little ones due to peer pressure and TV commercials. Once you factor in their hectic schedules it is no wonder that their kids’ diet includes takeout food and meals with little nutritional value. 

Food is a vital part of life, especially for kids – a time to nourish their bodies and minds. But what’s the harm a burger or fried chicken? And what’s wrong with keeping a pack of chips or even crackers in the cabinet? While these choices might seem harmless, it turns out that poor eating habits tend to stick with kids as they grow up. Thus, it is essential to teach your kids how to make healthy food choices at an early age.

If you’re a busy parent with loads of tasks on your plate, childcare is a fact of life — and this is where a childcare provider in Sleepy Hollow comes into play. When parents choose trusted people to care for their kids in their absence, they are valuing their child’s early development. Nutrition should be as vital to parents since your kid may never outgrow poor eating habits.

How Healthy and Nutritious Food Benefits Your Kids

It is challenging to feed children nutritious food. Then if you have a picky eater on your hands that challenge becomes even greater. They tend to refuse foods based on color or texture that doesn’t seem pleasing to their eyes. 

However, children need to receive the necessary nutrients in their body for growth and development. When your little ones start a life with healthy meals, they can avoid several health issues. This can have a massive impact on both their childhood and adulthood years. 

Aside from avoiding health problems, children under a balanced diet also see benefits in brain development. A child who is not receiving an adequate amount of iodine and iron may experience both motor development and cognitive delays. 

5 Ways to Promote Healthy Eating Habits 

Is your kid hooked on junk food? Does your little one turn up their nose when they see the salad and casserole on the table? They would probably ask for macaroni or chicken nuggets. As you tear open the bag of frozen chunks, you ask yourself: “What can I do to get my child to eat nutritious foods?”

Whether you’re a childcare provider in Sleepy Hollow or a frazzled parent, you need a few tricks up your sleeve to get your kids to eat healthily. Here are five simple tips on how you can get your child to eat better without turning mealtimes into a battlefield: 

Sneak in some greens

If you’re tired of arguing with your child about eating vegetables, you can sneak in servings of greens without them knowing it. If they love eating pizza, you can make your version and spice it up a bit by making the tomato sauce even healthier by adding unseasoned pumpkin puree. You can also make homemade french fries by baking the potato instead of buying them deep-fried from fast-food chains. 

Talk to them about eating healthy

You can talk to your kids about eating healthy even if they can barely understand it all. By teaching them where the food they’re eating is coming from, how to make and how to grow them, they can develop a frame of reference about making healthy choices. In addition, give your kids praise and encouragement when they try new foods.

Involve them in food choices

When you’re grocery shopping, make it a habit to involve your child and create a healthy food shopping list with them. You can also present them with some healthy snack ideas and have them pick the ones they want (avoiding unhealthy options). By doing this, your kids will acquire the habit of searching out and selecting nutritious foods.

Please don’t force it

As you expose your children to different foods and flavors, always encourage – not force — them to eat healthy food. Pressuring or bribing them to eat a particular food will do more harm than good in the long run. 

Be a role model

We all know that learning does not only happen inside the four corners of the classroom. If you have a picky eater, you can be a positive role model by eating nutritious and balanced meals as well. Drink water with your kid, eat your greens and try new foods with a smile on your face to encourage them to do the same. 

Now that you have an idea of how to get your child to consume healthier foods, put them into good use. Childcare providers should prioritize children’s health and wellness. Children under care should have regular healthy meals, snacks, and fluids while at the same time enjoy positive meal experiences. So if you’re looking for a childcare provider in Sleepy Hollow, let Discovery Village Center help you in getting your little one to eat better. We support families in the process of ensuring good health for future generations. Call (914) 631-1009 today!