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Deborah���s Tips for Choosing the Right Childcare You Want an Educated Director, Not Someone Who���s Really Young. Do a tour. America's Supernanny Deborah Tillman Area Mom and Childcare Provider Turned Author and Reality TV Star Dishes on Her Unexpected Rise to Fame by chris jones B ecoming a reality television star was the farthest thing from Deborah Tillman���s mind. The Woodbridge native and star of the Lifetime reality series America���s Supernanny was cast into the role due to the success of another role she didn���t plan to enter: childcare. An accountant by degree and trade, Tillman had placed her son in several daycares while she and her husband worked. After going through seven, she quit her job as an accountant to start a home-based school for her son and children in her neighborhood. ���I had gone through seven providers and one day I came [to the provider���s] a little early and found him in a bassinet. His bottle was empty and lying against a wall. It would have broken your heart,��� she recounted. She then took the required 25 hours of childcare provider courses needed to qualify to open her own daycare. Within seven months she had three children. Word about her refreshing approach to childcare spread and before long, she was handed over a center to own and operate. In 1998, with an ever-growing waiting list, Tillman was given a second center when an area provider decided to leave the post. ���I was like, ���Oh my goodness!������ exclaimed Tillman. ���I couldn���t believe I was given two centers just like that. You just do the best job you can and someone will recognize your hard work.��� Over time, she acquired a third center and in 2011, now running three successful and growing childcare centers, Tillman���s life changed again. This time from an unexpected email from Los Angeles-based television content creator ShedMedia. ���I was sent an email to audition for the American Super Nanny. They asked if I wanted to be considered. I said ���yes.��� They flew 12 Fredericksburg Parent and Family ��� January 2013 Narrow it down to five schools and visit each one. Some schools will give good customer service, but that���s not what you���re looking for. Keep an eye out on the teachers. Do they look happy? Do they look frustrated? How long have they been there? How long has the management been there? You want some sort of longevity. You want an educated director. Not someone who is really young. It���s not babysitting. You have to have someone who can exercise wisdom and discernment. Look at the curriculum. What is your child going to do all day? There should be something visible that shows what they are learning. IN-HOME DAY CARE CONSIDERATIONS. I would love for a child to be in a wonderful in-home provider from 0-12 months. They get a lot of nurturing, communication, one-onone eye contact, which is wonderful. In schools, they have routines. In home situations can better meet the needs of infants. You want to make sure they���re licensed. Visit without them knowing you���re coming. Make sure they���re feeding them, listening to instructions from their parents, they have MAT training, CPR certification and criminal background checks completed. Make sure they don���t have visitors coming in and out and get recommendations from other parents who have been there for a year or two.