Ms. Elisa

I went to college for psychology and afterward began working with senior citizens first. Over time, my positions took me to younger and younger people until I was working with children who had gone through trauma. I worked with these children for four years before nannying for two years while I had my own children. By 2011, I was ready to have something of my own and continue in the child care field that I loved. Having a family child care program allowed me to not only work with children but also have the consistency that my family and the families I work with needed. I’m so glad I did because it is the most rewarding job anyone could have! We also just received an award for Best Child Care in Peabody in 2019, which is a huge affirmation of the work we’re doing.

I work with many special needs children and I so enjoy helping them achieve milestones and meet higher levels of development. My favorite part is when we’ve been working very hard to advance the child to the next stage and then something clicks. Parent’s relief in that progress and the role that I get to play in helping the children grow is a huge motivator for me to the best provider I can. I want to see as many kids as possible come through my program and leave as strong as they can. Education, particularly learning through play, and socialization are huge in my program. The first day of kindergarten can be difficult and starting the process of socialization beforehand makes a huge difference. I want to make the kiddos and their parents’ whole journeys as easy as possible.

We utilize two floors in my home and separate activities and expectations based on where we are in the home. When we’re upstairs in the living room and kitchen, the kids learn to behave with a little more restraint. For example, we bring up activities like arts and crafts and blocks one at a time to the living room, so to help with the children’s focus. Downstairs we have the playroom, where the whole floor is theirs! It is fully carpeted so that the kids can roam around in safety. We have the bean bag room, a dramatic play area, blocks and balls, and a little kitchen set among many other toys and fun activities. It’s important for the children to learn that different behavior is okay in different environments, and that there is a when and where for everything. We’ve also got the most colorful orange walls, with yellow accent walls, and clouds painted all over the upstairs area. Nowhere is just white! For outdoor space we have a fully enclosed yard with a little playhouse castle, a box-slide, a sand table, a water table, and gardens. Gardening is a huge part of my program. Every age group participates as much as they can with watering, putting the seeds in the ground, etc. We grow produce, which encourages those children who don’t usually eat their veggies to do so because they’ve watched it grow and they want to taste it! We go outside every day, weather permitting. Because I have an assistant, we can keep outdoor time to age-appropriate children only if it’s a little too chilly for the younger kids.