Daycare · Choosing

Questions to ask on a daycare tour

Every center shows you a clean room and a warm director. The questions that matter are about the things you can't see in twenty minutes.

By Tammy Gold, LCSW
Author of Secrets of the Nanny Whisperer (Penguin)

Tammy Gold, LCSW, MSW

Columbia University

20 years in childcare

Secrets of the Nanny Whisperer by Tammy Gold, published by Penguin

FROM THE AUTHOR OF SECRETS OF THE NANNY WHISPERER

Guidance from the therapist who wrote the Penguin book on hiring a nanny

Tammy Gold, LCSW, spent years matching families with nannies before writing Secrets of the Nanny Whisperer (Penguin). Today she works beside families, and their agencies, as a neutral expert: defining the job, interviewing candidates, checking references and setting up the first 30 days.

Book an hour with Tammy — $189 → Press and media

Ask about the people

“How long have your current lead teachers been here?” — turnover is the single strongest quality signal
“What's the actual ratio in this room right now?” — not the licensed maximum, the real number
“Who covers when a teacher is out?”
“What training do caregivers get after they're hired?”

Ask about how they handle hard moments

“What happens when a child is inconsolable at drop-off?”
“How do you handle biting or hitting?” — listen for a plan, not a policy
“How do you tell parents about an incident?”
“What would you do if you had a concern about my child's development?”

Watch while you're there

Stand in the room for five minutes and ignore the director. Does a crying child get comforted, and how fast? Are caregivers on the floor at eye level, or supervising from the edges? Do the children seem to know the adults?

Then visit again, unannounced if they allow it. A center that discourages drop-ins has told you something.

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