Choosing Quality Child Care

Choosing the right setting for your child

It’s a big job!

We are here to help you find the best fit based on your child’s needs and your preferences. This service is available free of charge. We take your preferences and generate a list of child care providers for you!

Quality child care environments are nurturing and safe. These environments present opportunities and materials for children of all ages to learn through play. This is essential to your child’s development.

Accurate information about child development and appropriate expectations for children’s behavior at every age help parents see their children and youth in a positive light and promote their healthy development. We are here to assist you in learning about the different attributes of a nurturing environment that meets all your child’s needs, including their need for early learning.

Children Learn Best Through Play

Below are some resources which can help you choose the best care for your child:

• Scavenger Hunt: Print this scavenger hunt when you are visiting childcare providers to see if any of these important early learning materials will be part of your child’s environment.
• Choosing Quality Child Care Flyer, Checklists for Centers and Checklist for Family Child Care Homes.
• Escojiendo cuidado infantil de buena calidad y Lista de verificación
• Children’s Forum
• Office of Early Learning
• Family Guide to Selecting Quality Childcare Programs
• Guía para la familia
• Quality Indicators for Discussion
• Gold Seal Providers
• Licensing Overview for Childcare Providers
• Search for Your Provider in DCF’s Database
• Article: Why Does Child Care Cost So Much

To request a customized list of child care providers, please click here.

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Safe Sleep

A total of 2,036 Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) deaths occurred in 2010*. Statistics show that many babies die during the first week of child care when safe sleep practices are not followed.

In order to help prevent these deaths, Child Care Providers and families must work together to keep babies safe by placing them in their cribs, on their backs, every time they are put down to sleep.

To view a brief presentation on safe sleep practices, click here.

To request educational materials on safe sleep, contact C.J. Foundation for SIDS at www.cjsids.org.

*Data Source: Final Data for 2010. National Vital Statistics Report, Deaths: Vol. 61, No. 4, May 8, 2013. Hyattsville,  Maryland: National Center for Health Statistics.