Now that you have decided to put up shop and become a daycare provider, you must be aware that you have taken on a lot of responsibilities. A daycare center is much like any other business. You have to be legal and legitimate to begin with. Being a legal business requires that you register with the right government agencies, get the necessary licenses and accreditation. To become legitimate you must provide the professional services that your patrons expect from you. To be able to do this you have to continuously educate yourself. That includes attending the proper seminars, affiliating with the right organizations and being up to date and compliant with the laws and statutes regulating daycare centers.

It is understandable that if you are a neophyte in this kind of business you will need more than just formal training to know how a daycare center really works. A very good businessman is someone who also learns from the experiences of other business owners. Likewise, to become an reputable daycare provider, you must affiliate yourself with an organization that can provide you with the knowledge and connections you need to become efficient. Another advantage of being a member of a reputable daycare organization is that it adds prestige and gives your business more credibility in rendering this specialized kind of service.

There are several daycare associations that you can join and you can easily look them up on the internet. You do have to look into their credentials, see if it is worth joining into their network and if you will benefit a lot from it. There are 3 noteworthy daycare organizations that you must affiliate with. They are recognized by the society for their professionalism and credibility. These organizations are NAFCC (meaning National Association for Family Child Care), NACCP (or the National Association of Child Care Professionals) and NAEYC (or the National Association for the Education of Young Children).

NAACP focuses on the improvement, enhancement and in strengthening the leaders credibility in the daycare profession. Members of this organization benefit from their services by having access to various daycare resources. The members are also given discounts on their professional training, from the Daycare Information Exchange such as publications, online education units and workshops.

NAFCC, a non-profit organization, dedicates itself in the promotion of quality daycare in strengthening the daycare profession. NAFCC is the sponsor of Family Daycare Accreditation System, the only one that is recognized by the country. As a member you can benefit from their trainings and the technical support that they give for local and state associations, and with discounts on the conferences, products and publications that you need.

NAEYC, the largest not-for-profit association in the US, dedicates itself to the improvement of the youngsters well being focusing primarily on the quality of development services and the education of children below the age of 8. NAEYC is the host of the largest conference in early education in the world. NAEYC employs an accreditation system wherein early learning programs voluntarily evaluate themselves with regards to their educational standards as well as in their safety and health standards. When you become a member, you become entitled to 6 electronic issues of the Young Children publication, 5 printed issues – Teaching Young Children for the Preschool Professional, or 6 printed issues of Young Children. You can also get discounts on books and videos as well as the exclusive NAEYC seminars and conferences.