Things We Wish Parents Knew About Child Care (A Light-Hearted Guide)

Photo by Kym MacKinnon on Unsplash

As educators, we absolutely love what we do. We get front-row seats to some of the funniest, sweetest, and most chaotic moments of childhood. But there are a few things we secretly wish every parent knew about life in child care…

1. We Know When Your Child Has Had Chocolate for Breakfast

You think you’ve hidden it well.

Your child walks in and proudly announces: "I had cake for breakfast, TWO pieces!”

Thank you for the honesty, little one.

2. The Goodbye Is Usually Harder for You Than Them

We’ve seen it all.

Parents standing at the window wiping away tears while their child has already found a dinosaur, made three friends, and forgotten they exist.

Trust us, they’re usually okay within minutes.

3. We Can Tell When Someone Missed Their Nap

We don’t need a sleep tracker.

The moment a child bursts into tears because their banana broke in half, we know exactly what’s happened.

4. Children Behave Differently at Child Care

The child you describe as “wild at home” might sit quietly reading books all day.

The child you describe as “an angel” might lead an entire group into a spontaneous mud excavation project.

Children like to keep us all guessing.

5. We Spend More Time Looking for Hats Than You’d Ever Imagine

A significant portion of our day involves asking:

“Where is your hat?”

No one knows.

Not the child. Not the educators. Not even the hat.

6. We Don’t Judge Your Parenting

Truly.

We’ve seen children arrive wearing pyjamas, superhero costumes, gumboots on sunny days, and occasionally shirts on backwards.

If everyone arrives safe, fed, and loved, we’re doing just fine.

7. Your Child Tells Us Everything

And we mean everything.

Family holidays. What you had for dinner. Who forgot to take the bins out. Who snores. What the dog did.

Nothing is confidential when you’re four.

8. Glitter Is Forever

We don’t know where it comes from.

We don’t know how it spreads.

We only know that once glitter enters a service, it remains part of the ecosystem forever.

9. We Celebrate Every Little Achievement

First time using the toilet?

Amazing.

Shared a toy without being asked?

Outstanding.

Ate a vegetable voluntarily?

Please alert the media.

The little wins matter.

10. We Love Your Children Like They’re Our Own (For 8-10 Hours a Day)

We cheer them on when they’re proud. Comfort them when they’re sad. Laugh with them when they tell us jokes that make absolutely no sense.

Watching children grow and learn is one of the best parts of our job.

The Truth Is…

Behind the paint-covered shirts, missing drink bottles, mysterious pockets full of rocks, and endless questions about dinosaurs, there is something pretty special happening.

Your children are building friendships, confidence, independence, resilience, and a love of learning every single day.

And while we might occasionally wish parents knew where their child’s hat was, we wouldn’t trade this job for the world.

To all the parents: thank you for trusting us with your little humans. Even when they tell us you had cake for breakfast.