Nursery requires babies to wear masks

[Peridotty]

Just to clarify we live in the USA in a state where masks have been mandatory for over 2s since March and takes covid very seriously.

I was viewing a nursery and found the one of our dreams (ok slight exaggeration but it’s got what we’re looking for). However! This owner wants all kids to wear masks. They start taking babies from 12 months up and our baby would start when she is 13 months old.

The national guidelines are that masks on babies and toddlers under 2 is a suffocation and choking hazard and should not be worn but this is only a guideline and the owner can do what she wants. The owner says that the parents of the babies are all happy with it and the staff members help the babies wear masks. She says that the babies will wear them when they see other babies wearing them too. I don’t think they wear them when they’re sleeping or eating. Only when supervised by three staff. The ratio is 8 kids to 3 staff.

What would you do? Keep looking for another nursery?

Mine wouldn’t keep socks on at that age.

I'm extremely pro mask but there is no way my baby would be doing this.

No way. Find a different nursery. The strangulation/suffocation/choking risk is too high.

That sounds dangerous.

That's a big no from me. I can't believe they're doing it.

Wtaf. This is madness. Absolute shite.

Illinois rules seems to say "public place" and only if 6' can't be maintained.

Inside the nursery is not a public place, is it?

Presumably this is meant to be age 3+, not age 24months+.

Sucks :(

Christ, that's ridiculous.

Good luck keeping them on for a start.

Plus a choking hazard.

Madness.

Absolutely keep looking - that is so unsafe.

How will the children learn to speak if they can't see adults forming words with their mouths? Sounds utterly crazy to me

How kind of them to allow them to remove masks to eat.

Ds is 12 months. The only way he would keep a mask on is if it was tied to his head. Not a chance I would send him anywhere that would do that.

Did you actually see babies with masks on when you looked round the nursery?

I would send my 2/3/4 year old to a nursery that required them to wear masks. No way would I send my one year old to this nursery.
How do they get them to keep them on?! My youngest is one and she pulls her socks and hats off constantly.

Just no.
I would look for another one.

It is not appropriate for any young child to be in a mask all day, nevermind a baby. That is awful. There is no way I would send my child there.

This is crazy, no way would i choose this nursery.

No way would I send my baby there.

No absolutely not.

@Spanglebangle no I didn’t see any babies wearing masks because we visited on the weekend (non business hours) due to covid. Very few nurseries are even conducting viewings in person. We just met the owner.

I work in a baby room and there is no way babies would keep a mask on, they can't even keep socks on!

None of the little ones in my nursery wear masks, it's not fair to them. I even think 2 and 3 is far too young!

Do the staff have to wear masks in the room too op? Because that is also unfair to the children, especially babies who rely on our facial expressions to communicate with us and to feel safe and secure

I’ve pro masks in schools but not before kindergarten age.

no way. That said compared with other countries we seem to have a fairly lax attitude to masks, I mean I see people wearing them in the supermarket but never when out for their walks. I'm willing to believe that some babies in some places wear masks but personally I'd be going elsewhere

She sounds absolutely deranged 😳

In addition to being unsafe, kids at that age learn language and socialise by imitating. A mask would get in the way of that. In our nursery that's been discussed clearly and when in their bubbles in the room neither staff nor Toddlers are wearing masks.