COVID-19 Childcare Supplies List for Parents
As childcare centers are beginning to reopen, extra precautions like more cleaning, sanitizing, hand washing, and personal protective equipment are part of what the ‘new normal’ looks like.
While these may be important measures to take, they do come at a significant financial cost — and when centers are operating with less enrolment, more staff and additional supplies, any financial support from parents is welcome.
As parents begin to return, now is the perfect time to update supplies lists to include items that help with the new health and safety requirements. By sending a few extra items, parents can do their part to help their center significantly reduce their expenses and prevent more drastic measures like increasing tuition.
See the list below for items that parents can provide centers to help during these challenging times!
Supplies Lists
Cleaning & Protection
- Paper towel
- Lysol spray or wipes
- Toilet paper
- Facial tissues
- Hand sanitizer
- Hand soap
- Dish soap
- Sponges
- Disposable gloves
- Face masks
Infants
- Diapers
- Diaper cream
- Wipes
- Pacifiers
- Teethers
- Bibs
- Bottles
- Food (milk/formula, baby food)
- Sippy cup
- Feeding utensils
- Washcloths
- Bedding
- Sleepsack
- Extra clothing
- Sunscreen
- Sun hat
- Medication
Toddlers
- Diapers
- Wipes
- Underwear
- Extra clothing
- Bibs
- Indoor shoes
- Sippy cup
- Lunch and snacks
- Sun hat
- Sunscreen
- Sleeping bag
- Yoga mat or nap mat
- Medication
Preschoolers
- Indoor shoes
- Extra clothing
- Water bottle
- Lunch and snacks
- Hat
- Sunscreen
- Sleeping bag or blanket
- Yoga mat or nap mat
- Medication
General Tips
Label everything
Make sure that nothing gets mixed up, especially while teachers are trying to keep items separated to prevent cross-contamination.
Keep items organized by activity
This makes it SO much easier to find everything you need when getting ready for an activity.
Keep everything easily accessible in the bag
Try to not have everything piled on top of each other. Ideally, teachers should be able to open the bag and see every item that’s inside at a glance.
Want even more tools to better manage your center? Download our free ‘New Normal’ kit!
What are other items can parents provide to help their center? Let us know in the comments!
Michael writes for HiMama's early childhood education blog and ECE Weekly newsletter. When not developing content for early childhood professionals, he can usually be found out and about with his wife and daughter exploring all that Toronto has to offer, or playing music with his karaoke band.
More by Michael
