If you’re a working parent with children in daycare, you may have received your fair share of judgment from those who think that kids should only be cared for by their parents. However, daycare is a reality for many parents who must work to support their families — not to mention the fact that plenty of parents want to work.

There are actually many proven benefits for kids who go to daycare. So if you’re ever experiencing mom guilt about this decision, check out these five perks for your child that come from going to daycare and stop apologizing for this perfectly acceptable — and positive! — parenting choice.

1. Daycare prepares kids for school.
Sooner or later, your little one will have to leave the nest for school. If they’ve already been going to daycare for a while by the time preschool or kindergarten rolls around, the transition of leaving home for the day will be easier.

Not only that, but children who attended daycare perform better when they get to school. A 2016 study found that by age 5, kids who attended formal childcare programs had stronger reading and math skills compared to kids who attended informal, home-based care programs.

2. Daycare makes kids better communicators.
Daycare offers a great opportunity for your kids to socialize at a young age, and in turn, it can help them learn communication skills as well. A study in 2013 found that kids in daycare have an improved ability to “adjust their non-verbal communication to take into account the age of the person they are playing with,” according to Science Daily, likely because they’ve been more exposed to kids of different ages.

3. Kids in daycare are more likely to go on to earn college degrees.
A 30-year study led by the FPG Child Development Institute at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found that adults who had been enrolled as infants in a high-quality childcare program were four times more likely to have earned a college degree, and were also more likely to remain consistently employed.

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