Take the survey to see 3 daycares that match your preferences, timeline, and what matters most to you. It’s free for parents & takes 5 minutes.Take the 5-minute survey to see 3 daycares that match your preferences & timeline.

Ms. Linda

Linda's Family Child Care

Licensed home daycare

Watertown, MA

6:30am–6:30pm, M - F

A warm and nurturing learning environment for children.

Great for parents who want...

Each daycare has its own approach and specialties based on the provider’s expertise. Take the survey to see daycares that match your preferences and work best for you.Each daycare has its own approach & specialties. Take the survey to see 3 good matches for you.

A Few Favorite Activities

Activities are designed to help children develop social, emotional and cognitive skills as they sing, dance, play, and learn in a small group setting.

Arts & crafts

Sensory play

Outdoor play

Music

Circle time

Reading time

Neighborhood walks

Cooking

Activities are designed to help children develop social, emotional and cognitive skills as they sing, dance, play, and learn in a small group setting.

Each program is led by a licensed child care professional. While they each have their own expertise and approach, they all share a genuine love for educating and helping young children grow & thrive. Being licensed also means they have done a series of state-required trainings and they’ve passed a government background check.

About the Provider

Licensed Family Child Care Educator

License #9042086

Licensing Requirements

Background record checked
Government-level CORI, SORI, and fingerprinting
Home inspected for child safety
Thorough assessment by a licensor from the EEC
Health & safety training
Includes annual professional development hours

Q&A with Ms. Linda

Tell us about your experience working with young children?

Before I became a child care provider and educator almost twenty years ago, I was an area sales manager for a large department store. Ready for a change and looking for a more meaningful career, I decided to pursue a career as an educator in the child care field. I had always enjoyed being around children, and I wanted a child of my own as well. So, in November of 2002, I was first issued my Family Child Care Provider License, and I opened my own family child care business. During those early years, I also worked part-time as an on-call substitute assistant teacher in various public, private, group, and family child care programs and preschools. I learned so much from those years of experience, and I realized how much I enjoy teaching children. I found that what I liked best about my job and working with children was seeing how much children, even at a very young age, thirst for knowledge, are eager to learn, and truly enjoy learning.

What are the key areas of focus at your daycare?

Since I opened Linda's Family Child Care in 2002, my mission has been to provide excellent, licensed child care for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers in a family child care home. I believe parents shouldn't struggle when deciding between a family child care and a center or preschool. Their children should receive the best of both worlds. So, I created a child care program that offers the closeness, attentiveness, and homeyness of a warm and nurturing home environment as well as the stimulation, learning experiences, and variety of a center or preschool.

Can you tell us a bit about your home environment?

Linda's Family Child Care, located on the first floor of a large home with a large fenced in yard, consists of spacious rooms, high ceilings, and large windows providing lots of sunlight. The physical size of my child care space allowed me to set up a variety of individual play and learning centers covering a wide variety of subjects and domains. In accordance with my philosophy as an educator that guided learning through play is the best way for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers to learn, I teach through play an age-appropriate infant, toddler, and preschool curriculum which includes: art, reading, music, manipulatives, sensory, cooking, circle time (calendar, seasons, weather), blocks, dress up/dramatic play, math, science, and free play.

Think Ms. Linda might be a good fit?

Find out if she has a spot for you. It’s 100% free and takes just 5 minutes.

“Play is the highest form of research.”

~ Albert Einstein

Reviews & References

Here’s the inside scoop from other parents that have worked with Ms. Linda.

Kelly

Linda cared for our son for 10 months while our family lived in the Watertown area. We felt immediately comfortable leaving him in her care. Linda cares deeply about the children in her care. She is very adaptable to your schedule and routine which is so helpful when both parents work long hours. Linda even extended her hours when a new family joined and needed additional coverage. She offered our family those hours too with no change in price. She has a structured curriculum that’s rooted in play, and at the end of the day she provides a “cuddle gram” summary of how the kids spent the day and what they were learning. We’ve really enjoyed our time with Ms. Linda - and we know our son has as well because he doesn’t leave without giving her a big hug at the end of each day!

Ida

Linda took care of my Grandson. During the day, she would feed him lunch, read stories, bring him to the library, and take him to the park. When I picked him up, she would give me a paper full of details from the day - she was unbelievable!

Rates & Openings

Daycare rates depend on how old your child will be and what your schedule looks like. 5 days / week might get a slight discount, and infant rates are usually more than toddlers’. Finding a spot also depends on age and schedule because each daycare has a limited number of openings for each age range.

to see if Ms. Linda has a spot for you.

Select an age range to get an estimate:

Location

Ms. Linda’s NeighborSchool96 Fayette St Watertown, MA 02472(857) 877-6180(857) 877-6180

There are 4 home daycares in Watertown. Most care for 6 to 10 children and take both infants and toddlers. All home daycares are licensed by the Department of Early Education and Care, just like preschool centers.

Let’s find a really good daycare for you

Get your own recommendations based on your preferences, daily routine, and what matters most to you.

FAQs

Your family is unique to you, but some of your questions might not be. 😉 Here’s what most parents want to know when starting out.

What is NeighborSchools?

Hey there, nice to meet you 👋 We’re a new-ish startup that helps new-ish parents find daycare.

We know how hard finding good child care can be - especially for first-time parents. But really good care is what gives you the peace of mind to go back to work and feel confident that your child is getting the stimulation, socialization, and support they need to learn and grow.

So we created NeighborSchools to make this piece of parenthood a whole lot easier. We say “easier” because, let’s be honest, it’s still a big thing to figure out, but working together we can help you find some good options, understand the whole process, and choose a program you’ll feel really good about.

How’s it work?

Most first-time parents don’t know exactly what they’re looking for, so we created a simple survey that will ask you questions about your lifestyle, your daily routines, and your preferences for child care. We’ll then share 3 personalized recommendations that we think might be a good fit. We’ll also give you a timeline that maps out when we would suggest you start touring programs, choose a daycare, and pay a deposit to secure a spot. Your timeline is based on when you want to start care - so you set the pace, and you decide when you’ve found the right match.

Is there a cost?

Nope. Our daycare recommendation service is free for parents. The other half of our business is helping these small-scale daycares with software and services that handle all their administrative tasks, like online contracting, payment processing, and licensing requirements. Before NeighborSchools, services like these were only designed for large corporate child care centers, and part of our mission is to level the playing field for small, independent child care programs. That’s why we picked the name NeighborSchools - we’re all about making child care more personal, more human, and more equitable for the incredible individuals who do this work and care for our children.

How do I know if I’m ready to take the survey?

Generally, if you’re here, you’re ready. The survey lets us give you 3 recommendations to consider, but it’ll also help you better understand what factors to consider, and what questions to be asking right now. It’s simple things like where you live, your child’s date of birth, when you want to start care, and if you have any preferences around program philosophy or language of instruction. If you’re planning 6+ months ahead, it’s a great way to get started, and if you’re hoping to start daycare in the next 2-4 months, it’s definitely time to get started. Click here to start the survey.

How do I know if a daycare has openings?

Each program has a limited number of spots for each age range, so we need to know your schedule and child’s age before we can share availability. The survey covers these basics, as well as factors like drop-off and pick-up times to make sure that recommended programs fit your daily routine. Once we know your child’s age and schedule we can share rates and costs as well.