Program

Program. (1) Program planning and scheduling. (a) A provider shall plan activities so that each child may be or do all of the following: 1. Be successful and feel good about himself or herself. 2. Use and develop language. 3. Use large and small muscles. 4. Use materials and take part in activities that encourage creativity. 5. Learn new ideas and skills. 6. Participate in imaginative play. 7. Be exposed to a variety of cultures. 8. Develop literacy skills. (b) A provider shall plan daily activities according to the age and developmental level of each child in care and shall include a flexible balance of all of the following: 1. Daily indoor and outdoor activities when a child is in care for more than 3 hours except that outdoor activities are not required during inclement weather or when not advisable for health reasons. 2. Active and quiet play. 3. Protection from excess fatigue and over stimulation. 4. Individual and group activities. (c) Television, including videotapes and DVDs, may be used only to supplement the daily plan for children. No child may be required to watch television. (2) Child guidance. (a) Each family child care center shall provide positive guidance and redirection for the children and shall set clearly specified limits for the children. A provider shall help each child develop self-control, self-esteem and respect for the rights of others. (b) 1. In this paragraph, “time-out period” means a break from the group that a provider offers a child to provide the child an opportunity to calm and regain composure while being supported by the provider. 2. A center may use a time-out period to handle a child’s unacceptable behavior only if all of the following conditions are met: a. The child is 3 years of age or older. b. The provider offers the child the time-out period in a non-humiliating manner. c. The time-out period does not exceed 3 minutes. d. The child is not isolated. e. The child is not removed from the room. 3. The procedures for time-out periods shall be included in the center’s written child guidance policy. (c) Actions that may be psychologically, emotionally or physically painful, discomforting, dangerous or potentially injurious are prohibited. Examples of prohibited actions include all of the following: 1. Spanking, hitting, pinching, shaking, slapping, twisting, throwing, or inflicting any other form of corporal punishment on the child. 2. Verbal abuse, threats or derogatory remarks about the child or the child’s family. 3. Physical restraint, binding or tying the child to restrict the child’s movement or enclosing the child in a confined space such as a closet, locked room, box or similar cubicle. 4. Withholding or forcing meals, snacks or naps. 5. Actions that are cruel, aversive, humiliating or frightening to the child. (d) A child may not be punished for lapses in toilet training. (3) Equipment and furnishings. (a) Safe indoor and outdoor play equipment shall be provided and shall be all of the following: 1. Scaled to the size and developmental level of the children. 2. Of sturdy construction with no sharp, rough, loose, or pointed edges, in good operating condition, and anchored when necessary. 3. Placed so as to avoid danger of accident or collision and to permit freedom of action. 4. Maintained in a clean and sanitary condition. 5. Used in accordance with all manufacturer’s instructions and any manufacturer’s recommendations that may affect the safety of children in care. (b) Various types of play equipment shall be provided to allow for large and small muscle activity, dramatic play, creative expression and intellectual stimulation. (c) Indoor play equipment shall be provided to allow each child a choice of at least 3 activities involving equipment when all children are involved in using equipment. (d) Outdoor play equipment shall be provided to allow each child at least one activity when all children are using equipment at the same time. (e) Trampolines and inflatable bounce surfaces on the premises shall not be in areas accessible to children and may not be used by the children in care. (f) Furnishings shall be clean, durable, and safe with no sharp, rough, loose, or pointed edges. (g) The furnishings shall include all of the following: 1. Table space and seating for each child. 2. Storage space for equipment, bedding, and children’s clothing and personal belongings. (4) Rest periods. (a) Children under 5 years of age in care for more than 4 consecutive hours shall have a nap or rest period. (b) A provider shall permit children who do not sleep after 30 minutes and children who wake up early to get up and shall help them to have a quiet time through the use of equipment or activities which do not disturb other children. (c) Each child one year of age or older who has a nap or rest period shall be provided with a sleeping surface that is clean, safe, washable, and placed at least 2 feet from the next sleeping child. The sleeping surface may be any of the following: 1. A bed. 2. A cot. 3. A padded mat.