您’我一直喜欢照顾孩子—playing games, planning healthy meals and watching them grow and develop has always been rewarding for 您. Why not make all that a career?

Starting 您r own in-home childcare sounds like the ideal way to pursue 您r passions while being 您r own boss, but 您 want to know what 您’re getting into. What exactly does it take to run an in-home childcare center? Starting a business of any type is difficult and demanding, no matter how passionate 您 are about the subject.

Before 您 pursue this as a potential career option, 您’ll want to have a strong understanding of what it takes to run a home childcare center and plans for accomplishing 您r goals. We’ve dug in and done the research so 您 can approach this new business venture with a clear view of what 您’ll need to do. 

开办家庭托儿所之前应考虑的事项

那里’s more to running a home 日托 than caring for kiddos. 您’ll want to consider the following factors as 您 plan 您r next steps.

1.制定和执行政策

When home becomes 您r workplace, lines can blur quickly, especially if some of the children 您 care for belong to friends or family. One of the best ways to prevent this is to set clear boundaries by crafting clear guidelines and policies for families to adhere to.

Chances are 您’ve already thought of having some formal policies around 您r operating hours and billing, and that’s a great start. But 您’ll also want to flesh out policies for topics like discipline, required forms and emergency contact procedures and more to help 您 maintain healthy boundaries and project professionalism.

家庭政策手册可能会非常有帮助 —saving 您 time explaining various policies to individual parents during busy pick-ups or drop-offs.

家庭手册可以包括有关以下方面的信息：

• 任务 and philosophy of 您r program
• 营业时间
• Ages of children 您 serve
• 学费支付和滞纳金信息
• 课程和日程安排
• 必填表格—健康，药物，紧急联系方式，实地考察表
• 有关纪律，接送和饮食的政策

Consider posting 您r family handbook 上 a business website or Facebook group so parents can easily access the information and reference it when questions arise.

2. 主ing 您r finances

Whether 您 consider 您rself good with money or not, it’s important as a small business owner to get 您r financial house in order. Creating a budget and determining the cost of tuition means accounting for overhead costs like food, cleaning supplies, insurance costs and dues for licenses while also paying 您rself and any potential employees.

ChildCare Aware建议 家庭育儿预算 应包括以下方面的拨款：

• 活动和筹款
• 员工健康福利
• 员工工资单
• 会计和法律费用
• 维修与保养
• 市场推广
• 育儿用品（每周，每个孩子）
• 实用工具

Getting a big picture look at all of these potential expenses will help 您 determine how much to charge for tuition per child and how much to charge for late payments. Additionally, some parents may be interested in seeing an itemized list of costs so they understand what their tuition pays for. This transparency could also give 您 a competitive edge—child care isn’便宜，人们喜欢知道钱的去向。

Another avenue 您 may want to explore when getting 您r budget in order is funding from government programs. Some options include:

• 儿童和成人保健食品计划—针对合格和有执照的提供者的食品补偿计划。
• 育儿与发展基金 —联邦政府向各州提供的补助金，以支持儿童保育补贴。
• 小型企业管理—提供有关小型企业贷款，赠款和其他融资机会的各种信息。

3. Where 您r business fits in the market and how to promote it

Though there are many ways to advertise 您r in-home child care, the first-step is knowing exactly what sets 您r child care apart from the rest. Do 您 上 ly serve organic food? Do 您 focus 上 music or reading? Do 您 prioritize the children’s time in nature? Are 您 a no-fuss, convenient option?

ChildCare Aware建议家庭育儿提供者填写一份 需要评估 that helps 您 evaluate the childcare market around 您. This will give 您 a better understanding of who 您r competition is, potential demand for childcare in 您r area, and any potential services that may be lacking in 您r area.

Once 您 have a stronger understanding of the market around 您 and where 您r business will fit in, 您’ll need to spread the word! 您 can advertise 您r in-home 日托 in many ways:

• 创建一个优质的网站
• 保持活跃在社交媒体上，为现有和潜在的父母
• 举办活动或与当地企业合作
• 鼓励父母在线发表评论
• Seek referrals from parents 您 currently work with

4.获得许可和证明

是否需要育儿许可证取决于您的州和您打算如何开展业务。尽管联邦法律要求对居住在家庭托儿所中的所有成年人进行背景调查，但其余规定将取决于您的目标。例如，有些州不’不需要许可证就可以在家中经营小型企业，但是如果您’重新希望雇用员工，接受一定数量的孩子或扩展到新的地点，您’可能需要寻求许可证。

If this all sounds like a hassle, 您 may be a surprised to find that it’s easier than 您 think. ChildCare Aware suggests checking with 您r state 您r 国家许可机构 or 您r local 育儿资源和转介机构 找出要获得许可所需的确切条件。

If 您 decide to take those steps, a license can benefit 您 and 您r business in many ways. For 上 e, seeing that framed license hanging 上 the wall may bring them some peace of mind. Earning state licensure generally means 您’达到了健康和安全，人员比例，教育和培训等标准。这不仅可以使现有父母放心，还可以帮助吸引新父母。

Beyond state licensure, 您 may also want to consider bolstering 您r credibility as a childcare provider by pursuing formal education in an 幼儿教育计划 或一个 儿童发展助理证书. These steps will bolster 您r ECE knowledge and potentially provide 您 with a way to stand out among child care providers.

5.保险要求

Like child care licensing, insurance requirements for in-home providers will vary from state to state. 您’ll first want to check with 您r 国家许可机构 找出什么’s required of 您 specifically. Generally speaking, there are three primary types of insurance to consider as an in-home childcare provider:

• 业主’s insurance—一般责任和财产保险的结合
• 专业责任保险—covers losses 您r business may suffer due to staff’s negligence
• 工人’赔偿保险—如果员工在工作中受伤，将支付福利

尽管筛选保险单可能不是最令人兴奋的步骤，但它是’非常重要。这些政策旨在保护您和您的房屋—甚至可能是您的个人房主的要求’的保险。当您投保不足的后果’如果出了问题，重新生活在您的工作地点可能会造成灾难性的后果—you’re not just out a business, 您 could lose the roof over 您r head. Do not take insurance lightly.

Ready to start 您r own in-home 日托?

在平衡预算和遵守州和联邦法规之间，运营一个家庭内托儿中心并不容易。’简单，但回报—building relationships with families and their children, being 您r own boss and working out of 您r own home—可以使一切都值得。

没有 w that 您 know more about what it takes to run a 日托, 您’re likely wondering what exactly 您 need to do start 您r own home day-care. Take a deeper dive with our article, “您r Step-by-Step Guide to Opening a Daycare.”

编辑’注意：虽然术语“daycare”通常，许多幼儿教育工作者更喜欢使用其他术语来更好地反映该领域的专业水平。我们会在文章中进一步解释这一点，“育儿与日托：什么’的区别？ （及其重要性）.”

拉斯穆森学院的幼儿教育计划的毕业生没有资格获得小学或中学教师的执照。学士学位’在公立学校和某些私立学校中担任教师时通常需要学位和州教学许可。州，市，区或个别学校可能对许可有更严格的要求。学生必须在打算工作的州和学校确定许可要求。
育儿设施及其所在的州为从事儿童工作的工作人员设立资格，并经常执行有关年龄，教育程度，经验和职业发展的准则。学生必须确定其工作所在州和设施的许可要求。
This program has not been approved by any state professional licensing body, and this program is not intended to lead to any state-issued professional license. For further information 上 professional licensing requirements, please contact the appropriate board 或一个 gency in 您r state of residence.