Choosing the BEST Daycare for Your Foster Child

What should I look for when choosing a child care center for my foster child? 

Finding the right daycare and preschool for your foster child may very well present itself as a challenge. It is no surprise that when looking for the right daycare center to send your foster child you want it to be safe, stable, high-quality and have a nurturing environment. The daycares and preschools that have well trained and certified teachers and that also use a nationally accepted curriculum can be extremely beneficial for your child in foster care. If your child is coming from a home where they had little sensory stimulation then they may present delays in gross motor movement, sensory development, fine motor skills, and social emotional skills. A daycare is a perfect setting for your child to improve on these skills! Social emotional learning allows your child to feel safe and welcome in their classroom setting, and with the right program there are endless number of activities to allow for this to happen. High quality daycare and preschool centers, like Little Lukes, can help children socialize with others! This will help them hone in on communication skills, problem-solving skills, inclusion, the act of sharing and taking turns, and could help ease separation anxiety, which is very common for foster children. All of these are things you should be looking for when trying to find the right center for your foster child. Your child will flourish in a safe and structured environment!

Do foster parents have to pay the cost of daycare?

Little Lukes is social services friendly! The NYS Office of Children and Family Services provides assistance with child care costs and Little Lukes is no exception. Generally, families are able to receive assistance if they meet the state’s income guidelines and need child care if they are a working parent, looking for work, or need to attend an employment training. If you are wondering if you meet the requirements, visit your County’s Department of Social Services website.

Little Lukes is DSS Friendly | Foster Children Welcome

At Little Lukes, we are proud to report that your child will be learning from NYS certified teachers. The highest quality of teaching for your child is what we strive for, which is why Little Lukes only hires teachers with a NYS teaching certification. Teachers must obtain a degree in Early Childhood, Child Development or complete a certain number of credits in either program. Additionally, all of our teachers have completed at least one year of experience specific to their qualifications. Our teachers are required to complete ongoing training every two years. This training helps to improve skills associated with:

• The basic health needs of children.
• Communication between the parents and staff.
• Identifying child abuse and maltreatment.
• Regulations that pertain to child abuse and maltreatment.

Not only are our teachers exceptionally qualified to care for your child, they also hold magnificent qualities such as: 

• Genuine caring qualities to nurture your child in the best way possible.
• Creativeness when it comes to stimulating children’s imaginations and expanding their perspectives about the world around us.
• Lastly, our teachers are committed to providing the best care for your children.

The curriculum used at Little Lukes is the "Get Set for School" program created by Learning Without Tears. The “Get Set for School” curriculum is specifically created for preschool age children. This program helps preschoolers improve on:

• Physical development 
• Social Emotional Learning
• Science and Social Studies
• Numbers and Math
• Readiness and Writing
• Language and Literacy

All of these domains of development prepare your foster child for a school setting. This program will help to deepen your child’s understanding of the world and people around them. They will be able to build their own friendships, complete problem solving tasks on their own, and develop any skills they may present delays in!

Little Lukes not only focuses on the development of preschool children but also on the development of infants and toddlers as well. A stimulating environment can be extremely beneficial for infants and toddlers who may not have received adequate stimulation in their early years. Little Lukes provides a warm, welcoming and nurturing environment to help your infant feel comfortable when playing with teachers and other babies. Our toddler program helps to promote learning and overall development for our busy toddler friends. We look for ways your children in foster care can build trust into their relationships, something that may be difficult for children who are in foster care.

Enroll Your Foster Child at Little Lukes

Little Lukes offers top quality child care for foster children at all five of our centers, including Dewitt (East Syracuse), Baldwinsville (Radisson), Oswego, Fulton, and Pulaski. To schedule a virtual tour of one of our centers, please visit www.littlelukes.com/ccscheduleatour or call us at: Dewitt (315) 710-1107, Baldwinsville (315) 857-0800, Oswego (315) 342-4600, Fulton (315) 887-5250, or Pulaski (315) 298-5070.

More About Little Lukes

Little Lukes is a leading Syracuse and Oswego County education provider with five inclusion preschool locations. The early education program includes credentialed and caring staff that specializes in comprehensive infant, toddler and pre-kindergarten development. Additional services include pediatric speech therapy, pediatric physical therapy and pediatric occupational therapy. Preschool locations include Oswego, Baldwinsville (Radisson), Dewitt (East Syracuse), Fulton, and Pulaski.

For information about Little Lukes, please contact us at https://www.littlelukes.com/contact.html