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Tour checklist · South Carolina

Daycare tour checklist for South Carolina

Take these questions on every South Carolina daycare tour. The first ones come from what South Carolina inspectors cite most often; the rest apply to any daycare.

To print, use your browser's print command: the checklist prints on its own, without the menus.

From South Carolina's records

Questions from South Carolina's inspection records

These rule groups make up the largest shares of the rules South Carolina inspectors cited since October 2023.

Ratios in South Carolina centers

  • Count the adults in the baby room. South Carolina's rule for centers: 1:5, one adult for every 5 babies.
  • In the toddler room, the rule at 18 months is 1:6, one adult for every 6 children. How many children and adults are in it today?

Supervision and ratios: 26% of cited rules

  • How do staff keep every child in sight during outdoor play and nap time?
  • How many adults and children are in my child's room at drop-off and at pick-up?
  • How many adults are in my child's room, and how many children?
  • How do staff keep track of every child during outdoor play, nap and pick-up?

Health, medication and illness: 14.5% of cited rules

  • Do all staff have current health records on file before they start working with children?
  • How do you store and give medication, and who signs the log?
  • What is your plan for a child with a food allergy?
  • When must a sick child stay home, and when can they come back?

Staff training and qualifications: 13.8% of cited rules

  • How many hours of training do your teachers complete each year, and what does it cover?
  • How many staff hold current CPR and first aid training?
  • What training does a new teacher get before working alone with children?
  • How long have the teachers in my child's room worked here?

Records and paperwork: 11.8% of cited rules

  • How do you keep my emergency contacts and pick-up list current?
  • Can I see your parent handbook and your policies in writing?
  • How do you keep my emergency contacts up to date?
  • Where is your license posted?

What South Carolina inspectors cite explains each rule group. Look up the daycare's own record from daycares in South Carolina before you go.

Before you go

Before the tour

  • Look up the daycare's license and inspection record before the tour.
  • Ask for a tour while children are there, not only after hours.
  • Bring this list and write the answers down; compare daycares the same evening.

Ask and look

Who watches the children

  • Has every staff member and volunteer cleared the state background check?
  • Who else is in the building during the day, and are they checked too?
  • In a home daycare: are the adults who live in the home checked?

Ask and look

Health, safety and sleep

  • Where are cleaning products and medicines kept?
  • How often do you hold fire drills, and where would the children go?
  • What is your plan for a lockdown or a weather emergency?
  • Where do babies sleep, and is the crib bare except for a fitted sheet?
  • Are babies always put down on their backs?
  • How often do staff check on sleeping children?

Ask and look

Food, play and the day

  • Can I see this week's menu?
  • How do you label and store bottles and breast milk?
  • Who prepares the food, and where?
  • Can I see the playground and the rooms my child would use?
  • What is under the climbing equipment outside?
  • How do you check toys and equipment for damage?
  • What do teachers do when a child hits or bites?
  • Is time-out used, and for how long?
  • Can I see a typical daily schedule for my child's age?
  • What does a normal day look like for my child's age?
  • How will you tell me about my child's day?
  • What are your hours, and what happens if I am late?
  • Can I visit or call during the day?

Ask and look

Getting there

  • Does my child ride in a vehicle for school pick-up or field trips?
  • Who drives, and what car seats do you use?
  • How do you make sure no child is left in a vehicle?

Ask and look

Paperwork and the license

  • Has the daycare had any cited rules in recent inspections? What changed after them?
  • Is the license current, and for how many children?
  • Who do I talk to if I have a concern?

Money

Cost and the contract

  • What is the weekly or monthly rate for my child's age, and what does it include?
  • Is there a registration fee, a supply fee or a deposit?
  • Do you charge for holidays, sick days or our vacation weeks?
  • Do you accept child care assistance?
  • How much notice do I need to give before leaving?

What daycare costs: daycare cost in South Carolina.

Why ask in person

What daycare websites rarely say

post a staff-to-child ratio
3.8%
give a class size
4%
mention cameras or live video
3.3%
describe a secure entry
5.2%

Share of the 40,114 daycare websites we read, across the US, that state each fact. A website that does not say it is not a daycare that does not do it: ask.

We are a directory, not the daycare. A good answer on a tour is one the daycare can show you, not only tell you.

Questions: DaycarePal, from the rule groups state inspectors cite. South Carolina figures: South Carolina Department of Social Services, Division of Early Care and Education inspection records since October 2023; ratios: National Database of Child Care Licensing Regulations (ACF), 2025 tables.