Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/momentum-handle-with-care-strategies-for-retaining-children-in-your-program/5006721/
The first few weeks of enrollment in a child care program are psychologically and physically demanding for everyone involved-the parent, the child, the teachers, and the director. How new enrollments are handled has an impact on how long children remain in your program. And most directors would agree that it's a far, far better thing to keep an enrollment than to recruit a replacement and repeat the process.Chances are, most parents won't make a change in their child care arrangements during the first fragile weeks of enrollment, even if things happen that concern them. Withdrawing immediately means parents are admitting they chose the wrong child care program, and that's not easy for them to do. As long as nothing drastic happens, most families will remain in the program rather than admit their mistake and upset the family routine once more. Or will they?
Surprisingly, they don't always stay. A market study I conducted in over 100 child care centers in 1985 found that a startling number of families left programs in the fourth to sixth week of enrollment. Obviously, all of these parents weren't suddenly transferred across the country for new jobs. Something must ...