Today, daycare is a fact of life. More than 32.7 million children are in some sort of childcare arrangements, especially as fewer than one-in-three children today have a full-time, stay-at-home parents, which necessitates external child care until the kids is of age to go to school. Some parents pale at the idea of sending their baby to an unfamiliar place to play with strange children all day, but in fact, daycare can be an incredibly positive place. Kids in daycare learn to interact and share with other children, gaining invaluable social skills and soaking up tons of new information. The activities they are exposed to can do a lot to get them ready for reading and writing in school, as well.

These are three examples of activities your child might be exposed to in daycare:

Group Projects
Building a complex structure with blocks, making a paper-mache sculpture, or participating in a skit, dance, or play are all things your child is likely to do at daycare or an after school program. These things will lead them to make friends, learn new thinking and problem solving skills, and increase communication. Time spent outside of home is valuable for them to develop new relationships and start to widen their horizons.

Art
Getting the creative juices flowing early is important, even if your child doesn’t grow up to become a painter or graphic designer. Doing simple art activities and projects in daycare, like coloring or playing with clay will solidify in your child’s mind the power of imagination and their ability to make it a reality.

Physical Activity
Moving around and getting exercise is vital to even the littlest child, both for their current health and their future health. With childhood obesity becoming more and more of a problem, getting kids in the habit of exercising can seriously alter their life for the better — forever.

Eliminate complicated child care management by enrolling your child in a quality care program, where they will have fun all day while you are work, and not even know how much they are benefiting from it. Organized facilities tend to take care of a full 25% of childcare arrangements, including food and nap-time, so you don’t have to worry about it. Your daycare payment will surely pay off and help to make life for you and your child more enriching.