Hi, my name is Laura Hopkins and I have lived in the Algonquin area since 2001. I have three children ages 11, 8 and 5. I have been a stay-at-home mom for the past 11 years. Being a full-time mom has given me the experience of taking children with me to places like the grocery store, dentist/doctor appointments, nail/hair appointments and to the mall during the holiday shopping season. Good thing there were no reality-TV cameras anywhere near those scenes. If someone would have told me that there was an affordable drop-in child care center where I could feel secure leaving the children and where they would have loads of fun at the same time, I would have left a smoke trail from the burning rubber of my minivan tires going there! Unfortunately, there was no center like that available. Sensing that I could not possibly be the only parent longing for this kind of service, I began to research the idea of opening a child care center that could offer the type of hours, rates and services that would have been most helpful to me. This research resulted in a business relationship formed with the DropInChildcare.com Network and a new child care center located in beautiful Lake in the Hills, Illinois called Sprouts About! About Sprouts About: Sprouts About is a DCFS licensed facility devoted to providing you with top notch, dependable child care for both spur-of the-moment and scheduled full-time/part-time care needs. We can offer convenience and flexibility to you in addition to first-rate fun for your child. Whether you need weekly scheduled blocks of time (including evenings or weekends) or you get a call for a last minute meeting, whether you need back-up for your usual child care arrangement or you decide to go see that movie opening tonight, Sprouts About is here to meet all of your child care needs! Our facility has been designed for optimum safety. A front door lock system allows only parents and guardians of children into the center. The door is locked at all times. Background checks are done on all staff members. Center Design: The Sprouts About facility has been carefully designed to provide optimum safety and a secure environment for children and peace of mind for parents. The center is designed in two halves with one side being for preschool and school age children and the other being for the infants and toddlers. The infant and toddler side is further split to keep the infants and toddlers separated to provide for age appropriate toys and caring supervision for each age group. The preschool and school age side also includes age appropriate toys and games with interaction and supervision by our highly trained staff. Children are free to choose an activity they find interesting or participate in a group activity. Parents are always able to see their children as they play and participate in exciting activities because the center is designed with an open floor plan with windows on all walls and doors. Core Values: Clean – Safe – Play - Learn CLEAN - Maintaining an extremely clean facility is a vital component of Sprouts About’s core beliefs concerning child care. Children are required to wash their hands upon entering and exiting the Sprouts About facility and regularly throughout their visit. The daily toy cleaning system at Sprouts About is thorough and strictly enforced. Sprouts About sanitation practices meet and/or surpass the requirements set forth by Illinois DCFS and McHenry County Health Department. In addition, sick children are not permitted to stay at Sprouts About. Staff members are trained to check children for signs of illness at arrival in order to keep Sprouts About a healthy environment for all. SAFE – Monitoring the safety of the children in our care at Sprouts About is paramount. The Sprouts About philosophy is rooted in preventative care and all necessary steps are taken to ensure the safety and security of the children entrusted to our supervision. Safety measures include a policy of keeping all doors locked at all times. A door lock system is for allowing only parents and guardians of children to enter the center. Staff is trained to constantly monitor their areas of the center to ensure that only developmentally appropriate, safe toys are available to each particular age group. Staff is also trained to execute vigilant monitoring of children by keeping the child-staff ratios low, by use of clip boards constantly monitoring attendance and the use of two-way radios for staff to stay in contact with each other. As per Illinois DCFS guidelines, fingerprinting and background checks are done on all staff members as well as CPR, choking and first aid certification. PLAY – A carefully structured free-play environment is an integral component of child development. While Sprouts About caregivers are trained to direct and encourage children to explore different activities, the children are given the freedom to choose how they spend their time. Activities at Sprouts About include: arts and crafts, board games, reading books, dress-up play, video games, computer software, G-rated movies, air hockey, play structures, snacks and meals. LEARN – Learning takes place in everything that children do; from social interaction with peers in a play environment, to a more structured and planned learning experience. Both types of interaction are necessary parts of early childhood development. Sprouts About is proud to offer a structured Early Learning Program for all children that are in attendance during the daytime hours (9am-4pm). This program is designed to introduce children to various topics and school readiness through themed units.