My family is starting public school for the first time ever. We were fortunate enough to send our kids to private school until recently. Right now, there are registered at a CPS Charter school not to far from home (about a mile away). However, I am having some issues dealing with after school programs. I need care for about 2 hours after school and am not sure what to do, where to look. What do you do, those in the same situation?
Ask the staff at the school. sometimes they maintain a list of child care providers that pick kids up from the school.
Also, we have an entity called Child Care Council who can direct you to daycare facilities in the area. See if your area has something like that.
I would try to find a mom or a high school girl that would be willing to do it. I'm sure there is a mom that would like to make a few extra dollars that wouldn't mind taking your kids home with her. A high school girl is another good option, if you can find once that isn't in sports and gets out before your kids. Ask around, I bet you will find someone with little or no problem.
My daughters are both picked up from school by the instructor of their Taekwondo school. Their instructors take them to the taekwondo school and give them their TKD lessons until my husband and I get off of work. So far, it has been a great thing, because my girls get lots of exercise after school, and we don't have to worry about doing TKD lessons in the evenings. I love it!
Last year, they both did the YMCA after-school program. See if the Y offers that in your area.
Lots of daycares and martial arts schools (there are several in our area) will send a bus to pick up your kids and care for your kids after school.
Often programs will charge until 6pm no matter what, so you might not be able to pay for 2 hours. Check the YMCA or any programs at the school itself or the Chicago Park District.
I only needed 1/2 hour care so I went with an expensive private daycare center who was willing to work with me, which was much cheaper than paying until 6pm at the low-cost school care anyway. :)
YMCA Kids University
YMCA afterschool program (similar)
Public/Charter School's (aka their school's) afterschool program
Public/Charter School's daycare (similar)
Your old private school's afterschool program (many are "open" to the public, but with limited slots it's families like yours that have ties to the school who can get in)
Your church's afterschool program
etc.
Google Chicago Afterschool Programs
Around here (since it's a city, and a predominantly dual income city), there are hundreds of options... and they run on one of several common 'platforms'. Like hourly, daily, weekly, monthly; or session based (session A session B session AB, for x number of weeks or months); or flat rate.
'Round here... 2.5 hours a day, 5 days a week, is about $1500 a quarter (or apx $100 a week per kid) through the YMCA. The same, on a drop in basis through other programs is about $50 per day ($250 per week).
Which is part of why sooooo many people don't use afterschool programs, but trade off with friends, or pay friends/neighbors/family for afterschool care. Or have 1 sahp. (Daycare costing more than they make)
My son goes to a charter, and my daughters daycare picks him up and takes him to her daycare, where they have an after school club. Ask at the daycares local to the school. It is a common thing, you will find somewhere.
I pay $125 a month, for him to be picks up and given a snack,
You pay for the day, not the amount of time they are there.
I got paid $12 per day for after school kids by the state so that's what I charged my cash paying customers too. Some of these kids would get picked up at school and dad or mom would already be at the center by the time they got back. We did pick up from several schools so it took about half an hour.
Then some kids were there until the stroke of 6pm when that program closed. I got the same pay whether the kids were there and got snack and playtime for hours or if they never even went into the building. They got picked up from school.
The parents were required to pay for the entire week every week even when the kids were out of school on Christmas break or Spring break. I did get more money on those days since they ate breakfast, lunch, and 2 snacks plus I had to have a teacher for them the whole day.
If your school does not have an after school program you are going to have to find what child care centers pick up from that school. If no one does then you're going to have to find a parent there to pick up your kids and take them to their house every day. I'd find out what the weekly charge is for your amount of kids for after school care at several local centers then offer her something comparable but less.
