Wij vergelijken de kinderopvang bij het kinderdagverblijf.

Yes. Wij and we both mean we.

• we is the more common unstressed form in everyday speech.
• wij is the stressed form, often used for emphasis or contrast.

So:

• We vergelijken de kinderopvang bij het kinderdagverblijf. = neutral, everyday
• Wij vergelijken de kinderopvang bij het kinderdagverblijf. = slightly more emphatic, like we are comparing it

At the beginning of a sentence, Wij may also simply appear because it is capitalized there, not because it must be emphatic.

Vergelijken is the verb to compare.

In this sentence, it is the present tense form used with wij/we:

• ik vergelijk
• jij vergelijkt
• hij/zij vergelijkt
• wij vergelijken
• jullie vergelijken
• zij vergelijken

So Wij vergelijken means We compare or We are comparing, depending on context. Dutch simple present often covers both meanings.

Because in Dutch, the infinitive and the present plural often look the same.

For this verb:

• infinitive: vergelijken = to compare
• plural present: wij vergelijken = we compare

This is very common in Dutch:

• werken = to work / we work
• leren = to learn / we learn
• kijken = to look / we look

So the form is not confusing to Dutch speakers because the subject tells you how to read it.

Dutch nouns have two common articles:

• de
• het

Unfortunately, you often have to learn which noun takes which article.

Here:

• de kinderopvang = the childcare
• het kinderdagverblijf = the daycare center / nursery

A useful detail: in compound nouns, the article is determined by the last part of the compound.

• opvang is a de word, so kinderopvang is also de
• verblijf is a het word, so kinderdagverblijf is also het

Usually kinderopvang refers to childcare in a general sense: the care/service itself, not necessarily one specific building.

By contrast, kinderdagverblijf refers to a daycare center or nursery, the place/institution.

So in this sentence, a learner will often notice a difference like this:

• de kinderopvang = the childcare
• het kinderdagverblijf = the daycare center

That is why the sentence can sound like We compare the childcare at the daycare center.

Not usually in the English sense of by.

Here bij means something more like:

• at
• with
• in connection with

So bij het kinderdagverblijf most naturally means at the daycare center.

This is a very common Dutch preposition, but its English translation depends on context. It can mean:

• bij de dokter = at the doctor’s
• bij mijn ouders = at my parents’ place / with my parents
• bij school = at school / near school, depending on context

So do not translate bij mechanically as by every time.

This is normal Dutch main-clause word order.

The basic structure is:

• Wij = subject
• vergelijken = finite verb
• de kinderopvang = direct object
• bij het kinderdagverblijf = prepositional phrase

Dutch main clauses follow the V2 rule, which means the finite verb usually comes in the second position.

So:

• Wij vergelijken ... is normal
• if another element comes first, the verb still stays second:
  • Vandaag vergelijken wij de kinderopvang bij het kinderdagverblijf.

That word order is very important in Dutch.

Because Dutch forms compound nouns by writing them together much more often than English does.

So:

• kinder + opvang → kinderopvang
• kinder + dag + verblijf → kinderdagverblijf

English often writes similar ideas as separate words, but Dutch usually combines them into one word.

This is extremely common:

• huiswerk = homework
• treinstation = train station
• ziekenhuis = hospital

So if an English speaker expects spaces, Dutch compounds can look long, but they are completely normal.

That -er- comes from kinderen (children), but in compounds Dutch often uses a linking form.

So:

• kind = child
• kinderen = children
• kinderdagverblijf = literally something like children’s day-stay

You do not always need to analyze these linking sounds too deeply when learning a word. Often it is best to learn the whole compound as one vocabulary item.

Still, it helps to recognize that kinder- is a very common compound element meaning something like child-/children’s-:

• kinderboek = children’s book
• kinderarts = pediatrician
• kinderopvang = childcare

It is singular here, but it behaves a bit like an uncountable noun in English, similar to childcare.

So de kinderopvang usually means the childcare as a general service or concept, not the childcares.

If you wanted a plural, that would only make sense in special contexts, for example when talking about different childcare providers or types of childcare. In ordinary usage, learners will most often meet it as a singular concept noun.

Sometimes, but the meaning changes.

• bij het kinderdagverblijf = at the daycare center
• van het kinderdagverblijf = of/from the daycare center

So:

• de kinderopvang bij het kinderdagverblijf focuses on the childcare at that location/institution
• de kinderopvang van het kinderdagverblijf focuses more on the childcare belonging to / provided by that daycare center

Both can be possible in the right context, but they are not identical.

A few parts are especially important for English speakers:

• Wij: the ij sound is a Dutch vowel sound that does not match English exactly. It is often approximated somewhat like the vowel in eye, but do not assume it is identical.
• vergelijken: the g is the Dutch guttural sound in many accents, not an English g as in go.
• kinderopvang and kinderdagverblijf: long compounds are pronounced as one word, not with big pauses between the parts.

A rough learner-friendly approximation might be:

• Wij ≈ vay / why depending on accent and approximation
• vergelijken ≈ ver-GUH-lay-kuh(n), but with a Dutch g
• kinderdagverblijf ≈ KIN-der-dakh-ver-blijf

These are only approximations. If pronunciation matters, it is best to hear native audio.

Only because it is the first word of the sentence.

If it appeared later, it would normally be lowercase:

• Vandaag vergelijken wij de kinderopvang bij het kinderdagverblijf.

So there is nothing special about the capitalization here beyond normal sentence rules.