But you get to finger paint!
I'm a Preschool provider by choice. Yeah, I choose insanity as a profession. Some might think "Preschool? So what? It can't be that hard to play games and finger-paint all day can it?" If you are a parent or childcare provider reading this than I'm going to assume you just laughed as well. But if you've never experienced childcare then I've got a secret for you, THIS JOB IS NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART!
What is childcare?
I want to eliminate any ideas in your head that tell you that watching children is easy. Its not. Aside from parenthood, I believe being a teacher is one of the most straining jobs a person could have. Parents have entrusted you with the most valuable treasure they have and children are at the most developmentally critical time of their entire lives! As preschool providers, we have the responsibility to bring up the next generation to be wonderful and kind citizens. That’s a lot of power and responsibility Spider-Man!
Childcare is more than babysitting or playing. There’s a lot of training that you should undergo to be able to fully understand this importance. Not only are you a child’s coach, you are their role model, nurse, personal chef, teacher, friend, an engineer, neuro scientist, custodian, theripist, CEO, taxi driver, mathmatician, comedian and so much more! Each role playing just as big of an importance as the next. It can take every single molecule of energy and attention to detail to get through a day of childcare.
Why get into childcare at all then?!
When I first started working for an in home pre-school I realized very quickly that I knew little to nothing about childcare even though I have been around kids for most of my life. I found out on my first day that we were not just finger painting and singing fun songs. This was a job where you were constantly battling other peoples problems and had to be a pro at leaving your own issues at home. A kid having a difficult home life, parents having different opinions about what is acceptable behavior in school or parents that didn't seem to care about their kids academics or social awareness at all! Children approach you with many little issues like “So and so took my toy” to several big issues like “I live with my grandparent now” that you are not only dealing with life at preschool but often life in their home as well. That is why it is so important to us to build strong and lasting relationships with everybody who walks through our door. You never know what someone is dealing with until they feel safe enough to open up to you.
Then I discovered how human these little guys were. They crack up at their own jokes, fart in a room full of strangers and color outside the lines. That's when I knew that working with children was what I wanted to do forever. These kids had nothing to be ashamed of. Nobody cared if they colored the picture of an elephant green and purple because it was pretty. I would love to see a multi colored elephant! Kids have this incredible ability to be creative and think of things you never would expect. How much more human can you get?
Three years into teaching I realized that the kids have probably taught me just as much as I've taught them, if not more! They keep me on my toes and have taught me how to love endlessly. Now I’ve been doing this for over a decade and just find more things I love about this job. I feel like a superhero every time I finger paint because I know its so much more than painting, its a connection to the future.