A day care deals with a global pandemic

COVID-19 has brought changes to everyone's lives and jobs in the past year. Day care providers have seen significant changes in every aspect of their work. 

Natalie Bautista owns Wee Care Daycare in Havre. She said running the business during the pandemic has required many changes.

"It's created more work and it's created a lot more chaos with the school schedule with different kids, different days, different times. It's just been a lot to keep track of," said Bautista. 

Employee Amy Marshall was home at the beginning of the virus for six weeks due to the school closures and said her children were also out for two weeks this fall.

"Other than those closures, we have been keeping busy and trying to keep a schedule at the day care," said Marshall.

Impacts of the pandemic

Several other local day care operations had not responded by printing deadline today to requests for comment about operating during the pandemic.

When COVID-19 cases first started in Montana last year enrollment in Wee Care Daycare dropped drastically, Bautista said. 

As a result of the decrease in enrollment Bautista's employees were on unemployment for a time because she couldn't afford to pay them. 

Wee Care Daycare is open from 6 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Last year during the shutdown and for some time after, Bautista at times had only three children in the day care. Her usual enrollment is 16 children age 2 and older and eight children younger than age 2.

Bautista is just now getting back to regular enrollment in her day care. She still has low enrollment on Saturday's but hopes this will increase as well. 

The day care has 12 school age students and does assist in the online homework when needed.  

Day care rules have changed since the pandemic began as well. Daily temperature checks are conducted for employees and children in the day care. Handwashing is also a requirement; however, Bautista had already incorporated this in her day care. Sensory toys, books, the outdoor sand table and toys that cannot be sanitized daily have been put away.

COVID-19 programs have helped Bautista's business recently in the form of grants. She used the grants to take training specific to COVID-19 and pay her employees hazard pay back-dated to March 1, 2020. 

All recent trainings have been conducted through Zoom for the employees of Wee Care Daycare. These classes included CPR and the training Bautista attended on new COVID-19 requirements for day cares.

A day in the life

The day care opens at 6 a.m. and most children are at the day care by 9 a.m. Every child has their temperature taken and washes their hands upon arrival. The children are then allowed to free play until handwashing time before breakfast. 

Breakfast is served and after the children are done eating they go back to free play until circle time. Circle time includes learning the days of the week, sometimes reading a story and show and tell. The children do yoga after circle time followed by reviewing the letter of the week. 

If the weather permits the children go outside and if not, they do an activity indoors before washing their hands for morning snack. 

Between morning snack and handwashing for lunch the children engage in more free play time. After lunch there are around two hours of quiet time before handwashing and afternoon snack.

The children then go outside again or do another indoor activity before washing their hands for dinner. After dinner, the children do puzzles and play on learning tablets until pick up time. 

After pick-up time Wee Care Daycare staff clean and sanitize the toys and establishment. 

Wee Care Daycare has had a shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The health department did not require the day care to shut down, however, when there was a close contact who tested positive Bautista decided to shut down as a precaution, she said.

Bautista said the day care has a book about COVID-19 that they use to teach the children and it has provided masks for all the children attending.  Talking about the virus has been included in circle time as well.

"The kids surprised me. They definitely know what is going on with COVID and the masks have just become the norm for them. If an establishment is closed the kids, ask if it is from COVID. They are aware of COVID," she said.