Reference check questions for childcare workers

In a child care classroom, good work is mostly invisible: every child is counted at each transition, every bottle is labeled, every infant goes down to sleep the way the center’s policy says, and every child leaves with an adult on the pick-up list. A candidate can describe these routines in an interview. A director or lead teacher who worked beside them can tell you whether they followed them on a Friday afternoon with a full room.

The required background checks show whether certain records exist. They do not show how the candidate responds to a toddler who bites, whether they stay down on the floor with the children or on the bench with a phone, or how they tell a parent their child was hurt. Those are questions for references.

Who to ask

• The center director or assistant director, who saw the candidate across classrooms, licensing visits and conversations with parents.
• The lead teacher the candidate assisted, or a co-teacher who shared a room with them.
• A practicum supervisor or early childhood instructor, for a candidate new to the field.
• A family who employed the candidate as a nanny or sitter, alongside a center reference, not instead of one.

Questions to ask, by competency

Choose the competencies that matter most for the position and two or three questions from each. Ask every reference the same set, and when an answer is a rating, ask for the example behind it.

Supervision and head counts

Transitions are when supervision is hardest: lining up, going outside, coming back in and handing children to another teacher.

1. How did the candidate keep track of every child during transitions, such as going out to the playground or a fire drill? Did you ever see a count missed?
2. Where would you usually find the candidate during outdoor play, and what would they be doing?
3. How would you rate the candidate’s supervision of children, from 1 to 5, and which moment in the classroom are you thinking of? (rating)

Health and safety routines

Diapering, handwashing, safe sleep, allergies and medications follow written procedures. A busy room is when steps get skipped.

1. How did the candidate follow the plan for a child with a food allergy or a medication on file?
2. If the candidate worked with infants, how did they put babies down to sleep and check on them while they slept?
3. How did the candidate handle an adult who arrived for pick-up and was not on the child’s authorized list?

Guidance and behavior

Biting, hitting and tantrums are part of working with young children. How the candidate responds teaches the child something either way.

1. Tell me about a child who was biting, hitting or having frequent tantrums. What did the candidate do in the moment and over the weeks that followed?
2. Did you ever have to talk with the candidate about raising their voice, using time-outs or taking something away from a child as a consequence?

Learning and development

Even with the youngest children, the day is full of chances to talk, read and play with a purpose. Good staff plan for them and notice each child’s progress.

1. What did the candidate add to lesson plans or activities, and how did they adapt an activity for a child who was not ready for it?
2. How did the candidate record observations of children’s development, and were their notes useful at parent conferences?

Parents and the classroom team

Parents hear about their child’s day from the staff at pick-up. Co-teachers depend on each other to keep the room in ratio, so one late arrival affects everyone.

1. How did the candidate tell a parent about a bump, a bite or a toileting accident at pick-up? Did a parent ever complain about how they were told?
2. How reliable was the candidate’s attendance and timekeeping, given that the room could not stay in ratio without them?

Close the reference

End every reference the same way: ask whether they would hire or work with the candidate again and why, what support would help the candidate do their best work, and whether there is anything else you should know. The general question bank explains why the first of these matters most.

Checks a reference does not replace

• The background checks your state requires. Under 45 CFR 98.43, part of the federal Child Care and Development Fund rules, states must require background checks for child care staff, including prospective staff, at licensed, regulated or registered providers.
• What those checks cover. The rule lists fingerprints, sex offender registries, and the criminal and child abuse and neglect registries of each state the person lived in during the past five years. Your state sets how they are run.
• Staff qualifications in your licensing rules, such as age, education and training, confirmed from records rather than from a reference.

Warning signs to follow up

• A reference who cannot say which age group or classroom the candidate worked in.
• Hesitation when you ask whether the reference would want their own child in the candidate’s classroom.
• Descriptions of discipline that involve shaming, yelling, isolating a child or withholding food or outdoor time.
• A job that ended soon after an incident, a licensing visit or a parent complaint, and a reference who will not say more.

One warning sign is a reason to ask another question, not a verdict. Reference check red flags covers how to check a concern fairly.

Questions to leave out

Ask only about the work. Before an offer, the EEOC’s guidance says an employer may not ask a third party, such as a former employer, any question it could not ask the candidate directly. Leave out health, medical leave, age, family plans and other protected characteristics. What to leave out has the full list.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Confirm the requirements that apply to your organization, and in your state, with your counsel or HR policy office.