i am asking for your help...

[shhhhhhh]

do you provide parents with reports re child development, behaviour, etc. if so is it done daily, weekly, monthly? and do you meet up with the childminder regularly to discuss your child?

it's just that I do not get to know much about my DD and although I know she is very happy there it starts to annoy me quite a lot to the point that I am thinking of taking her somewhere else.

should I leave her or change? DD is 2.

(i've name changed because childminder might be here).

maybe I'll try tomorrow...

I'm not a childminder but my son attends a nursery. Each time I pick him up they tell me what he's been doing, eating and how he's been. They notify me of any mood changes, concerns etc. It's not in a physical form just verbally but it helps me track my child's development when he's not with me etc. I'd expect exactly the same from any type of childcare provider.

im a cm and dont provide these atall, i obviously chat with the parents daily re their dc and what they have done that day and development etc....
did your cm advise you that she would do this?

no not the report thing, but she said she's organize regular meetings without the kids for update and catching ups etc.

TBH I did not push it either as at first my main concern was to find a place were DD was confortable and where she enjoyed going. and she did and still does.

It's just that when I did ask for some written info (brief) I was not given any.

Like I said it is not an issue re DD wellbeing more about that I'd like to know a bit more of what she does there and what she learns etc, especially because she speaks a different language with me, and learns english mainly there.

I just wanted to know how others do and whether I am being unreasonable.

Hi. I'm a childminder and have a daily diary for all under 5's (as do a lot of childminders on here plus OFSTED don't like it if you DON'T provide this). In my diary I detail:

Nappy Changes (wet or dirty plus what time)
Bottles (time and how much had, if a baby)
Meals (what was provided and what they ate)
Naps
What we've done that day
Favourtie toy / game / activity
Development (to a point, i.e. new word, fastened own coat etc)

I don't go into detail about negative behaviour, I just speak to the parents - want the diary to be a positive thing as some will be kept as 'memories' or shown to grandparents etc.

I don't do anything more than that atm HOWEVER we soon have to do a lot more when the Foundation stage framework comes in!

If it was me, I'd ask for a daily diary to be provided and say that you as a parent can write in if they have a bad night's sleep, got up early so may want earlier nap, medicine given recently etc.

HTH

Oh, and I wish I could get parents to WANT to have meetings - it's hard enough pinning them down to do the 6 monthly review!

looneytune what monthly meeting???? that's the one it was promised and now, 14 months later I haven't seen one!

also the report you do is brilliant, a lot of info, useful and delightful to read if you have been away from you little one all day. that's more that i coould wish for. I also would like to know how much tv she watches, if they've been out etc. It's just that I realise after weeks that she has said words in english or she can count etc

I did ask once for a food report (especially because she does not provide meat) so that I could plan what DD would eat when she's at home but nothing.

I don't know maybe I should be more demanding, sometimes I feel though if it is an issue more about me than dd.

I didn't say I do a monthly meeting, it's the 6 monthly reviews I was talking about (and also getting parents to meet up to chat when I think it's needed for whatever reason). You ARE supposed to do reviews of your contract - if you use NCMA ones, have a look on the back page.

sorry, i read that as if you were a CM and not the OP

As we childminders are self employed, we can do what we like but I think it's not a good sign that you've asked for these things and not been provided with them. I personally would want to know everything about my ds if he was with a CM and he's 4 so can easily tell me!

If you have a copy of the contract and it's NCMA, have a look at the 3rd page, nearish to the bottom - has a review date been written in?

I don't write about tv unless we watch a movie (rare) as it's the same each day - 20 mins approx before both lunch and dinner (to calm them down ready for meal plus so I can keep a better eye on them when preparing food)

yea sorry looney i meant 6 months review... l'll look it up. like I said maybe it's my fault as I should have asked for this things first. but like I said I was more concerned to give DD a nice environment.

something learnt for next time.

Don't worry, I don't think I've ever been asked if I do these things and I quite often forget to say as I just expect everyone to do it.

Ofsted do like to see these things and asked for my records when they came to visit! I would definitely ask her about the meetings though as she clearly promised that and hasn't followed it through.

I would doubt that any daily diary will be significantly detailed to state exactly how many minutes a child has watched TV. However, if you do not want your DD to watch very much TV, if any, then make your view regarding TV watching known to your childminder.

By food report, do you mean a menu? I would not consider that request to be unreasonable... many childminders I know have a sort of menu planned - even if in reality things don't always go to plan. At least it gives an idea of what the general food situation is like.

You mention multi language... Is there any language barrier between you and the childminder? Could perhaps the childminder not be very good at writing things down - especially in English, if English is not their 'mother' language.

General Question (for anyone): What is best to use for a daily diary - can anyone recommend a particular product? I work School Terms, so is using an academic diary useful, or is it easier just to use a plain book and write in dates?

I do a daily diary for under 5s, which includes the same things looneytune mentions. I buy a 'project book' from woolworths, they are spiral bound with lined paper, and have 3 different coloured dividers with pockets, which can be placed at any point in the book (I use them to mark current page). I use one pocket for notes to me, one for notes to parents, and one for receipts. They are reasonaly priced and I find them ideal.

nannynick I don't mind DD watching TV at all, she watches some at home and I am sure she doesn't watch a lot there either, same goes with the food, I know it is homemade.

as for language childminder is english, I am not so DD speaks a different language at home than english. As for mow she is much more fluent in my language I'd love to know what she learns from her. I just discovered she can count in english and I have got no idea when that happens. I do not know how much english she knows.

It's not anything in particular I do or don't want her to do it's just that I am not told. None of these things is a worring or important thing it's just that I'd like to be kept informed on my DD. when I ask she gives me answers but nothing in depth at all. like if I say 'does DD speaks in english to you a lot?' 'oh yes she can say a few things'. Now, what kind of an answer is that?

but thanks all for your help. maybe I am a bit of a pushover with certain people.

Could you maybe have a words book, where childminder writes down new words your dd can say in English.

Has your childminder had an ofsted inspection since she started? You can view these online. It's just this is something they always ask to see and with your dd being bilingual it does seem like an important issue for you to have good communication about her language development.