You can register anytime during the year, and your child is welcome to begin right away. You can sign up for Preschool and Junior Preschool at your convenience—you do not need to wait until the beginning of a school year or even the beginning of a new week.

We accept cash, Visa, and MasterCard. We also offer auto-pay secured by Tuition Express. We offer a 5% discount on all accounts enrolled in auto-pay.

Drop-In fees are due at pick-up. We offer prepaid blocks of hours for drop-in care at discounted prices. You have 6 months to use the prepaid blocks of hours, and we will deduct at pick-up the time for your child’s visit rounded to the nearest minute. 
 
Weekly enrollment is due at the beginning of the week. We assess late fees on all past-due accounts.

Early Learning Coalition (ELC) co-payments and Voluntary Prekindergarten (VPK) after-care payments are due at the beginning of the week. We will assess late fees and may suspend services on past-due accounts.

We do not offer refunds or credits for any circumstance. Please understand that we keep our facility fully staffed based on enrollment and reservations. We offer flexible care during standard and non-standard hours; therefore, due to the operational costs of labor, we are unable to offer refunds or credits.

Yes. PlanetKid has a toddler classroom, an older toddler classroom, a preschool classroom, a VPK classroom, and a summer camp room. Children are combined during early morning hours and then again during evening hours when the number of children in attendance is lower. Children are sometimes combined on weekends if attendance is low.

The PlanetKid teachers, director, and assistant director will gradually transition children from one age group to the next. Transition can be a difficult time for some children; therefore, we treat each child individually and work together to make classroom transitions comfortable for each child.

We understand that parents may occasionally run late when picking up their children. If you are going to be late, or even think you may be a few minutes late, call us immediately. In the event that your child is not picked up by closing, we will attempt to contact you first; however, if we do not reach you, our policy is to immediately contact people on your emergency contact list to ask them to pick up the child. If we cannot reach a parent or another emergency contact within 60 minutes after closing, we will contact the Department of Children and Families (DCF) and local law enforcement. A late charge of $5.00 for the first minute and $1.00 per each minute after will be charged to your account if your child is left after closing hours; all fees must be paid before you can use our services again.  

PlanetKid is a fully licensed and insured child care center. Our insurance coverage is based on our normal operating business hours, and we are subject to additional premium costs for extended hours of care. In addition, we are subject to overtime pay for employees working in excess of 40 hours/week.

It is important that you list any moderate or severe allergies your child may have. PlanetKid is a peanut-free facility, and we also do not serve shellfish of any kind. If your child has allergies to other foods, we will make sure not to give him these foods. We will permit your child to eat with the other children. In the event your child is prescribed an EpiPen, we will store the medication in a Ziploc bag at the front office with instructions and a signed medical form. 

PlanetKid staff will never force a child to sleep. DCF does require a 2-hour rest/quiet time during the afternoon for any child under the age of 5 or not of school age. Each child also must receive a nap mat, a blanket, and a sheet. We encourage children who do not want to sleep to rest, and we offer them quiet activities such as books or puzzles.  

Teacher/student ratios are governed by state guidelines and are based on age.
Infants — 1:4
Ages 1-2 — 1:6
Ages 2-3 — 1:11
Ages 3-4 — 1:15
Preschool age — 1:20
School age — 1:25

A reservation will help ensure that a space is available at your preferred time.

PlanetKid has 16 video surveillance cameras located throughout the facility recording all activity in the building. PlanetKid maintains a locked door separating the reception/front counter area and the designated child care areas. This door can only be opened by electronic release by the child care staff. PlanetKid staff members are required to obtain their 40-hour child care credentials through DCF. In addition, all staff are certified in CPR and First Aid. PlanetKid staff members are required to check IDs at pick-up if they do not recognize a parent or guardian. Even if you have previously picked up and shown your ID, you may be required to show it again if you are not recognized. If a guardian or parent comes to pick up a child and the child clearly recognizes the person, the child will NOT be released without an ID that matches the child’s enrollment paperwork. There are no exceptions to this policy.

Yes, you need to supply these items. PlanetKid can provide diapers, wipes, and formula for your child in emergencies but will charge a fee for each item.  You can find a list of fees in the parent handbook.

You are welcome to bring snacks and drinks for your child. Please label all items with your child’s first and last name.

Depending on the nature of what is occurring and the ages of the children involved, the PlanetKid staff uses methods such as talking it through, redirection, separation, reflection time, and time out. If a child is a safety threat to other children and does not respond to the teacher’s techniques to stop the threatening behavior, a parent will be called to come pick up the child. 

If a child becomes sick while in our care, we contact the parent or guardian and ask that the child be picked up within 1 hour. The state has a comprehensive policy on the guidelines for accepting ill children into our care, and it is available upon request for your review. Our parent handbook also outlines in detail our procedures for handling sick children.