"Sam is our first and only child, and he doesn't have cousins his age in the family. That's why, when I returned to work after my maternity leave, we found daycare to be a great place for Sam to practice his social skills and make friends.
Sharing and waiting
At home, Sam never really has to wait, share, or listen to other children. We always tell him what is and isn't allowed. We believe it's important for him to hear that from others as well. And for him to learn to do things in a group setting, also with the future transition to primary school in mind. It's great that he can practice certain social skills at daycare.
Making friends
Sam is now at the age where he makes real friends. That's why, despite moving to a different city, we decided to keep him at this daycare center. He enjoys it so much and loves playing with Simon, his best friend since the baby group. He often talks about the other children at home too. If someone is absent for a day, they are immediately missed.
Partou Friendship Week
At Partou, we witness friendships forming every day. Two babies smiling at each other on the mat, toddlers helping each other put on their jackets, and children collaborating on activities. Friendship is therefore an important theme within Partou. We even have a Friendship Week every year, a week in which friendship is celebrated across all locations with various activities. Children make friendship bracelets for each other, take photos together, sing friendship songs, or send each other cards. Friendship Week helps children realize what is truly important in life.
Just like at home
Sam also adores caregivers Stephanie and Natascha. They have known him since he was a baby. “We didn't want to take away that familiar environment from him, so we are willing to drive a few extra kilometers for it. What's also great is that we always have good communication with Stephanie and Natascha. For instance, when it came to potty training, we agreed to approach it the same way at home as at the daycare. And it worked. We did the same with his nap times back then, following the same routines at home when putting him to bed.”
From one to two
“There was a period when Sam only attended daycare for one day, and my parents took care of him the other day. Stephanie advised us to go back to two days for the sake of continuity. We followed that advice. We truly see daycare as an investment in Sam's development. And it's wonderful that he enjoys going there so much. We always go to work with a good feeling."
"We already stimulate social skills in the baby group"
Stephanie is a pedagogical employee at Partou Lokomotief in Delft. In the mixed-age group (0-4 years), social skills are stimulated from a very early stage. "We start with this in the baby group. Babies don't play together yet, but they are interested in each other. They reach for each other's hands, for example. We encourage this positive interaction, by placing children next to each other. We also label feelings and emotions so that they start recognizing them in others. Recently, Sam gave his favorite cuddly toy ‘Kees’ to a child who was feeling sad, just to comfort him. Experiences like these contribute to social-emotional development, which is beneficial throughout one's life. During Friendship Week, we always pay extra attention to friendship with fun games and lots of cooperation."
In collaboration with ‘Ouders van Nu’ (Today’s Parent)
Every day, ‘Ouders van Nu’ (Today’s Parent) selects interesting news from within and outside the country specifically for (expecting) parents. They focus on tidbits that make (expecting) parents better, happier, or wiser. This article was written in collaboration with ‘Ouders van Nu’.