mrs.christie
New member
Sorry this is so long, but I could really use some advice!
I started as a preschool teacher this past fall and until recently when I started researching car seats for my baby due this fall, car seats were foreign to me. After learning about car seat safety on this board, I am now deeply troubled by my school's use of car seats.
The daycare I work at uses two methods for transporting children on field trips. Parents who drive their child and another kid or two in their own car and/or the daycares bus. Both methods seem to have problems.
Car seat installs can be tricky and it doesn’t seem likely that a parent installing another child's seat will end up installing it properly. The parent drivers usually spend just minutes installing the other child seat and I know they aren't checking any manuals.
The school's van doesn't seem any safer. The van is outfitted with boosters that look identical to the ones I rode in during the 80's. I'm not sure what they are called, and perhaps they are still considered safe, but the backless boosters did not seem appropriate for the 3 yr olds we were transporting on our last field trip. On top of the inappropriate seat, I'm pretty sure the seats had a mfg date of 2001. Don’t all seats expire after 6 years?
I plan on bringing this up to the director, but I'd like to have my facts straight before I do. Any links to basic car seat safety websites would be great. Also, how do most daycares safely transport children? It seems like it would be almost impossible? Thanks!
I started as a preschool teacher this past fall and until recently when I started researching car seats for my baby due this fall, car seats were foreign to me. After learning about car seat safety on this board, I am now deeply troubled by my school's use of car seats.
The daycare I work at uses two methods for transporting children on field trips. Parents who drive their child and another kid or two in their own car and/or the daycares bus. Both methods seem to have problems.
Car seat installs can be tricky and it doesn’t seem likely that a parent installing another child's seat will end up installing it properly. The parent drivers usually spend just minutes installing the other child seat and I know they aren't checking any manuals.
The school's van doesn't seem any safer. The van is outfitted with boosters that look identical to the ones I rode in during the 80's. I'm not sure what they are called, and perhaps they are still considered safe, but the backless boosters did not seem appropriate for the 3 yr olds we were transporting on our last field trip. On top of the inappropriate seat, I'm pretty sure the seats had a mfg date of 2001. Don’t all seats expire after 6 years?
I plan on bringing this up to the director, but I'd like to have my facts straight before I do. Any links to basic car seat safety websites would be great. Also, how do most daycares safely transport children? It seems like it would be almost impossible? Thanks!