Quality Child Care Checklist - the Rainbow Academy Child Care Center Carol Stream Illinois

What to Look for in a Quality Child Care Center

Established business
Rainbow Academy has been serving children since 1983. Nearly a quarter of a century!

The owner of the Center is actively involved with the Center on a daily basis
Karen Daniel has been the owner and Executive Director of Rainbow Academy since 1983. She takes great pride in the Center and takes her job of making her customers happy and secure very seriously.

Privately owned
Our Center is privately owned. We do not become tangled in corporate "red tape." NOT being corporate gives us the flexibility to design our own curriculum in order to individualize it to each child's needs. It is not dictated by a corporate office in another state.

Longevity of Administrators
Executive Director and Owner, Karen Daniel, since 1983
James Erwin, Owner, since 1995
Advisory Board, Dr. Kimberly Bulava, since 1987
Director, Julie Colley, since 2000
Director, Lindsey Hansen, since 2005
Office Manager, Geri Anderson, since 2004
Center photographer and Camp Director, Jessica Rifis, since 1993
Finance Director, Kristina Vogel, since 2000

Staff Longevity
We have numerous programs in effect to encourage staff longevity.

Staff Qualifications
Our key staff have high levels of education in fields pertaining to Early Childhood Education and Special Education. Management has gone through extensive training programs such as the Disney University Professional Development Center in Orlando, Florida.

Each classroom is staffed with a teacher that has either an educational background in early education or elementary education.

DCFS Standards
Rainbow meets and exceeds DCFS standards.

Customer Loyalty
Children who used to come to Rainbow for childcare now bring their children to Rainbow!

Children who used to come to Rainbow now teach at Rainbow!

Developmental Curriculum
What developmental curriculum means is that every art project, every song, every activity has a calculated purpose:

The songs that the children sing will teach them to follow directions or to remember things in sequence (auditory memory) which translates into future success in spelling.

The children sequence pegs from left-to-right and in various color sequences; the first step to reading.

Mixing and measuring ingredients are a pre-requisite to future math skills.

If your child has a solid foundation in the basic pre-requisite skills, success in future academic skills such as reading, spelling and math will be easily attained.

Teacher Resources
Our teachers have access to the many educational websites available to help them implement fresh curriculum ideas in the classroom and to stay abreast of new teaching strategies.

Rainbow subscribes to a multitude of age appropriate periodicals for each classroom to assist our teachers in planning their curriculum.

Rainbow teachers have UNLIMITED access to art materials. Look at all of the projects and decorations made by all of our children and teachers. Creativity blossoms at Rainbow.

Monthly Curriculum Meetings
Together, our teachers and Directors determine what our children's needs are. Together we establish goals to fulfill those needs. Our meetings encourage creativity and "thinking outside of the box."

Weekly Lesson Plans and our Directors.
Our weekly lesson plans and curriculum are created by our teachers.

We do not use "cookie-cutter", or "one-size-fits-all" curriculum units. Our format and curriculum development has evolved over the past 24 years. Collectively our Directors have 60 years of experience in education.

Preschool Program
All classrooms from age two through Pre-K have a preschool curriculum incorporated into their program each morning.

Rainbow also has a separate 3 year old and 4 year old A.M. Preschool Program for children who do not need daycare.

Parent Communication
You will receive informative articles, reports and monthly newsletters regarding your child on a continual basis.

Daily charts recording feedings and elimination are kept for each infant. Development assessments are written for each infant and toddler on a monthly basis.

The 2 year old classrooms receive daily reports about your child's daily activities, including how they ate and slept.

Daily activities are posted on the classroom boards so that the parents are informed about their child's day.

Each classroom has parent bulletin boards where upcoming events and important notices are posted.

Parent's suggestions are welcome at Rainbow. Parent input is what helps us tailor our programs to our parents' and children's' needs.

Our classrooms
Each classroom has its own personality and reflects the age group it was designed for. Our Center does not look institutional; it is warm, inventive and exciting. Look around at all of the child made art projects. Our teachers and children are encouraged to be as creative as their imaginations take them.

Our new facility
We are proud of our new state-of-the-art facility, opened in 2006. Funds are continually being put into the Center for improvements. Our new building boasts a children's Bakery, Theatre, Language Lab, Multi- purpose Room and the heart of Rainbow, our Towne Center.

Performing Arts Theatre
The Performing Arts Theatre houses a 4 foot x 8 foot projection screen with surround sound used for educational and entertainment viewing. The projection screen can also be used to show commercials and skits produced and directed by the children.

There is also a stage provided for "live performances".

Children's Bakery & Gardens
A very important part of our program is baking and cooking from scratch. Children learn to recognize the beneficial effects of eating wholesome foods and the vital role it plays in one's life. Food preparation gives the children many opportunities to learn new concepts in language, math, art and science.

Each classroom, from toddlers to school-age, has its own garden in which to plant, water, weed and harvest. Fruits of the children's labor is served at lunch, for snacks or prepared by the children in the Children's Bakery.

Language Lab
Our Language Lab is equipped with computers designed for exclusive use by the children. Our audio/visual Listening Center has the capacity for 8 children to listen to audio books. Our Language Lab is also equipped with the LeapFrog SchoolHouse Early Literacy Program. This program enhances reading, math and science skills.

Multi-Purpose Room
Our Multi-Purpose room is used by all the classrooms for gross motor development on a much grander scale than can be done in the classrooms.

The Multi-Purpose room also is equipped with surround sound for music activities.

Music trains the brain for learning! Music and movement are two of the most powerful training tools for future academic success. Music that involves activity and musical games teaches the children to follow directions, increase their attention span and expand auditory memory skills, etc.

Playgrounds
Our playgrounds exceed DCFS requirements. We are the only Center in this area who have a colorful state-of-the-art soft surface. The surface is soft enough that when children fall, they don't get hurt, yet firm enough for some serious bike riding.

Tuition
Tuition covers a full day from 6:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. No extra fees are charged for the early morning hours of 6:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. nor the late afternoon hours of 6:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. as it is in some centers.

Baby Food
Rainbow supplies baby cereal and jar food to infants up to the age of 9 months.

A feeling of security
It is our goal to give parents the secure feeling that their child is well cared for and loved while they are at work. We host many events throughout the year to give our parents and children a sense of community.

Transportation
Rainbow has three buses. They are equipped with cell phones for emergency purposes and communication with the grade schools and Rainbow. Each vehicle is safety inspected routinely.

Safety
Our building has a keyless security entry system.

Parents check their children in and out of the Center on our touch screen monitors.

Our exit doors have panic hardware and alarms.

Fire and tornado drills are done on a monthly basis. By doing this regularly, we can evacuate the entire Center in less than 1 1/2 minutes!

Rainbow is equipped with evacuation cribs for the infant rooms.

Children's safety ID's and fingerprinting is offered annually.

All of our playgrounds are fenced in and have rubberized surfacing.

History with the community
We have a 25 year history with the community.

Rainbow gives back to the community
Rainbow's teachers and children give back to the community; a very important quality to possess as a child and as an adult.