https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Wed, 08 Apr 2026 15:56:01 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare/page/2#post-2500111 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 19:04:23 +0000 petitenoisette 2500111@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>No cameras and another vote for not wanting them either. Just seems kind of creepy to me though I understand the allure. </p> <p>We do get photos from the tadpoles app @MamaG mentioned. We got more when she was younger but now some days we don't get any and I totally don't mind. Her teacher told me the other day that whenever she tries to take a picture LO goes over to look at the iPad :silly: </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare/page/2#post-2500104 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 18:53:22 +0000 JenGirl 2500104@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>No cameras and I don't mind that. I care about:<br /> Kid to teacher ratio<br /> Education level of teachers<br /> Teacher turnover<br /> Good Outdoor space<br /> Good communication</p> <p>I love that my daycare designates a pnt person for each kid. Obviously, all the teachers know all the kids, but they know "their"kids and parents really well, which is great. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare/page/2#post-2499989 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 16:13:48 +0000 Bluemasonjar 2499989@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Cameras were not a deal breaker but our daycare does have them and I check in a few times during the day either on my lap top or phone. In the beginning I was most concerned about DS's nap schedule and it was nice to monitor how often they were putting him in the crib. Now it is just nice to see what is going on. They also post pictures in the Kid Report app but not on a regular basis. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare/page/2#post-2499967 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 15:49:31 +0000 Chillybear 2499967@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>No cameras but the school has a private FB group where the teachers post photos of the students. I think its great and i love seeing the fun things they are up to. As far as checking up I'm satisfied by just showing up at random times. Some days i get there at 4 other days 5:15 and on rare occasions I'll even go in at 2:30-3 without telling them i'm coming early. I've never had an instance where i didnt like what I found. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare/page/2#post-2499961 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 15:41:16 +0000 LatteLove 2499961@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>our daycare has cameras but the only time I remember to look is around lunchtime, and they've just gone down for naps. Even though I rarely look, it's a huge measure of accountability knowing that I and other parents CAN look and I love it because of that!</p> <p>No pictures or video would be a deal-breaker for me because I wouldn't feel involved in his day. Organic food is not an issue at all for me - I do like that they provide food though - making lunches every day would drive me crazy. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare/page/2#post-2499945 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 15:29:00 +0000 agold 2499945@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm not a mom yet, but I do take my niece to preschool/daycare occasionally. I don't care about cameras so I can watch the child from home/work. But I do care about the campus being a "closed" campus that is locked and restricts visitors. So I took my niece to preschool yesterday and noticed that there is one gate leading from a courtyard that is accessed by the church (its a preschool at a church) that was unlocked. So any random sicko could walk into the church, into the court yard, and then into the preschool grounds. I brought this up to the preschool director and she told me "well there are cameras that monitor that gate". Umm.. so you can show me a video of the sicko that stole my child? No. not sufficient. This is now a serious, time-consuming issue and needless to say, my niece is being baby sat by nana today. </p> <p>Picking day care is so very hard. Best of luck to you! :goodluck: </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare/page/2#post-2499920 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 15:08:09 +0000 MrsLonghorn 2499920@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>we don't have cameras and I think it is good - i would have been watching all the time in the early days. If you trust the teacher/center that is more important, IMO. Because even with cameras, you won't see EVERYTHING - trust is critical. </p> <p>having been through a few rough turnovers, I think that a low turnover rate is important, and trusting the administrators/teachers. If you like the menu, location, and staff I think it is a winner. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499866 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 14:35:24 +0000 sapphire 2499866@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I didn't consider this at all in making my decision. We do get some occasional cute photos but no cameras. I would t have time to watch anyway. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499671 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 12:55:01 +0000 MamaG 2499671@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@regberadaisy: tadpoles is the app we use at our daycare. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499567 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 12:00:57 +0000 Reese 2499567@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Freckles: that's a great idea! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499557 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:57:20 +0000 Reese 2499557@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Freckles: that's crazy! They told me the week or so before LO started I should come for play dates (free) for 2 hours everyday. I could start going out in the hall/ letting him slowly transition. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499552 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:56:03 +0000 Reese 2499552@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@MamaG: interesting you mention other parents. I only had interaction with one mom (I was having trouble getting in/where to go) and she was SO curt with me and wouldn't look me in the eye. She was telling her kids she was late so it was understandable (sort of) but i was put off. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499551 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:56:02 +0000 regberadaisy 2499551@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@MamaG: my daycare just started this too!! I love it so much. I wonder if we're using the same program?? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499545 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:54:19 +0000 Freckles 2499545@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@MamaG: I realize it makes a difference as to the other parents that are there. At LO1's old daycare, the parents never raised any concerns and i always felt like i was the crazy one questioning certain things the director had in place. But at LO2's daycare, almost all of the parents are very involved and i don't feel so crazy anymore. :P A friend of mine at a different daycare said the parents have a FB group to discuss daycare related things and will collectively bring up issues/concerns to the director. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499535 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:51:26 +0000 Freckles 2499535@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>It wasn't a deal breaker for us. There is a daycare that uses cameras and it's only $100 more. It's not a common thing around here, and i'm not willing to drive 20-30 minutes just to put her in a daycare that has it.</p> <p>The one thing i love about my daycare is that they are very accommodating to parents. When transitioning LO2 over, i was able to stay for the entire 2 or so hours and observe - that made me feel comfortable. When transitioning LO1 to other daycares, they did not let me stay for more than 5 minutes! </p> <p>In the end, what mattered most was that i liked the teachers, the food was made from scratch, there was a big indoor/outdoor play area, and that it was close to home and work. </p> <p>I think you'll have an idea of what's the best fit for you and your kid once you've visited a number of daycares. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499532 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:50:48 +0000 MamaG 2499532@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>No video and I'm completely okay with that. They are now integrated with an app and have ipads to document arrivals/departures and the days activities. We get a photo probably once a week. It's usual taken from above, so I know LO is not being stopped to take a picture. There are other things that are more important to me.</p> <p>Safety and security of the building<br /> What sort of other parents are there<br /> What sort of activities/curriculum they are using</p> <p>I essentially want my kids to be loved, happy and learning. We've accomplished that without video or lots of photos. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499522 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:43:19 +0000 Reese 2499522@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Adira: such a good point. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499521 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:43:12 +0000 mediagirl 2499521@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Reese: I should mention, I felt like this was a HUGE DEAL when I first started looking for daycare centers. Then I realized I loved too many places that didn't do it and that couldn't be a killer item for me. What was more important was the love my child was getting and all the other things. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499513 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:32:38 +0000 nana87 2499513@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My daycare does not do streaming/video cameras, and I don't mind at all. In my mind, the main reason to have that would be if you don't trust them/want to check up on them, and I trust my center 100%. I believe in their philosophy and curriculum, know that the teachers are loving and experts in child development, and we have great communication about my daughter with them. </p> <p>They do pictures sometimes--once a week there's a group note (as opposed to individual notes) that has pictures of what the children were doing that day. Plus they take pics sometimes to use around the room, like they'll incorporate laminated pics of the kids in the sensory table or for collages, etc. But they don't take or share pics every day--the camera could be a distraction from the actually learning/teacher-interaction with the kids (I know my lo dives at any phone she sees and wants to look at pics on it!). they use pics in the materials they prep for teacher-parent conferences too</p> <p>ETA the one time LO's teacher explicitly showed me a picture not during a conference meeting was after an exceptionally cute interaction between lo and another child--they're mostly parallel players but they were playing together with their arms around each other for like 5 mins straight so the teacher made sure to share that make with me directly because it was so sweet </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499511 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:30:33 +0000 kodybear 2499511@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>no cameras at our daycare/preschool. i actually like that! i hear too many stories about creeps who can hack in and watch. :-/ they do take pictures but we only get them at the end of the day and not every day, so it wasn't a huge priority for us. location is huge for us. i have a long commute and if i had to take my kids on that commute, i think we'd all go insane. so the location is very close to home. also i'm not sure what it is exactly, but once i checked out the preschool, i knew itw as a good fit. it just felt right and i liked the space and cleanliness. i'd def look around and see if you find one that feels right to you. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499508 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:24:43 +0000 Ms maths 2499508@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our daycare has no cameras and only very occasional photos. I would love more photos (and we sometimes fantasize about being able to watch what they are actually doing during the day, rather than just hear about it through teachers), but it is not anywhere close to a deal-breaker to me. </p> <p>As @Sunny mentioned/hinted, I would rather the teachers be focused on their work with the kids rather than getting good photos. Also, our teachers do not generally have their phones with them while on duty (which I think is great), so taking photos requires an active choice on their part to get a camera. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499507 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:22:51 +0000 regberadaisy 2499507@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Reese: my daycare does occasionally take pictures. Especially if there is something special going on. But you have to sign a release before they will take pictures of your child and/or post the pictures. As I've gotten to know the teachers better they will also direct email me the files if I asked so that I have it! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499503 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:19:27 +0000 avivoca 2499503@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Ours doesn't have a camera or send pictures and it doesn't bother me. It really helped me at work to NOT be able to see her whenever I wanted on a camera feed. I do get pictures printed out at the end of the month sometimes, but I like that they aren't sending them to me because I feel like it means that they are spending time with the kids rather than the camera. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499501 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:19:20 +0000 snowjewelz 2499501@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Adira: Good point! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499497 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:16:47 +0000 Rocker2014 2499497@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>LO's daycare doesn't have cameras or do pics, which was not an issue for us. More important to us was the "feel" of the place and reputation. We ended up choosing a center that is not as technologically advanced but where it is clear that the teachers really care about LO. We knew people who had used the center and really liked it, and the cost was better too.</p> <p>One thing to think about: our preferred (current) center didn't have availability until two months after we needed LO to start, so we chose a very highly rated national chain for LO's first two months in daycare. This chain provided email updates during the day with pictures. It was a great experience overall, particularly as this center was directly downstairs from my office. Because it was so close, I was able to drop in at various times throughout the day. I mention all this because there were quite a few times when I came in to LO's classroom and one of her two or three teachers was behind a laptop instead of caring for/interacting with the kids. It took a lot of time to create those emails (download and save photos, paste into emails, etc) and while I liked receiving them throughout the day, in seeing the process I would have preferred the teacher to be spending time with LO rather than the computer. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499490 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:12:31 +0000 Adira 2499490@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Ours doesn't have live streaming cameras and I don't care. They also rarely take pictures of our kids, which I PREFER! I want my kids to spend their days playing and doing activity (and eating and napping). I DON'T want their teachers to constantly have their phone/camera in their hand in order to snap pictures just to send to parents. The kids see me with my phone often enough - I don't want them to see their teachers with phones all the time too. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499488 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:11:32 +0000 Reese 2499488@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@catomd00: Fair point! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499487 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:10:44 +0000 Reese 2499487@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@regberadaisy: Very true. We are in a safe area but they do have a buzz in systems ratio is 1-5 but they are normally 1-4.</p> <p>@mediagirl: I should have asked if they would make the exception/do it if I asked. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499485 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:10:16 +0000 LulaBee 2499485@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>No streaming camera- don't think I would want that- but if I ask the teacher will text me a photo. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/cameras-daycare#post-2499483 Fri, 18 Mar 2016 11:09:09 +0000 T.H.O.U. 2499483@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our old center had an internal camera system that was nice. Parents could see their kids after drop off on the TV up front and the director could review "tapes" within a week. </p> <p>They said they dont stream outside the building because too many people shared passwords/accounts to other grandparents etc and it became a liability of other people watching other peoples kids. </p> <p>Our current daycare does not have cameras and its not a huge deal for me. </p>