Program

Program. (1) Program planning and scheduling. (a) Each group child care center shall have a written program of daily activities posted that are suitable for the developmental level of each child and each group of children. The program shall provide each child with experiences that will promote all of the following: 1. Self-esteem and positive self-image. 2. Social interaction. 3. Self-expression and communication skills. 4. Creative expression. 5. Large and small muscle development. 6. Intellectual growth. 7. Literacy. (b) The program schedule shall be planned to provide a flexible balance each day of: 1. Active and quiet activities. 2. Individual and group activities. 3. Indoor and if the center is in operation more than 3 hours per day, outdoor activities. (c) Television may be used only to supplement the daily plan for children. No child may be required to watch television. Other activities shall be available. (d) Routines such as toileting and eating and intervals between activities shall be planned to avoid keeping children waiting in lines or assembled in large groups. (e) The program shall provide all of the following: 1. Reasonable regularity in eating, napping and other routines. 2. Daily periods when a variety of experiences are concurrently available for the children to select their own activities. 3. Protection from excess fatigue and over stimulation. 4. If a center is in operation for more than 3 hours per day, daily outdoor activities except during inclement weather or when not advisable for health reasons. (f) Child care workers shall give children individual attention. (g) A center that is open in the early morning and late afternoon shall have a written plan for activities which meet the individual needs of the children during those time periods. The plan shall include: 1. Provision of opportunities for the children to rest and eat. 2. Use of materials and engagement in activities which for the most part do not duplicate materials or activities planned for the major part of the program. (h) The program as implemented shall reflect the center’s written policies. (2) Child guidance. (a) In this subsection: 1. In this subsection, “time-out period” means a break from the large group that a child care worker offers a child to provide the child an opportunity to calm and regain composure while being supported by the child care worker. 2. “Redirection” means directing the child’s attention to a different program activity. (b) Each child care center shall develop and implement a written policy that provides for positive guidance, redirection, and the setting of clear-cut limits for the children. The policy shall be designated to help a child develop self-control, self-esteem, and respect for the rights of others. (c) A center may use a time-out period to handle a child’s unacceptable behavior only if all of the following conditions are met: 1. The child is 3 years of age or older. 2. The child care worker offers the child the time-out period in a non-humiliating manner. 3. The time-out period does not exceed 3 minutes. 4. The child is not isolated. 5. The child is not removed from the classroom setting. 6. If the child care worker needs additional adult support, another child care worker comes to the classroom setting. (e) 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. 2. Verbal abuse, threats or derogatory remarks about the child or the child’s family. 3. Physical restraint, binding or tying to restrict movement or enclosing 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, frightening or humiliating to the child. (f) A child may not be punished for lapses in toilet training. (3) Equipment and furnishings. (a) Indoor furnishings and equipment shall be safe and durable. The equipment and furnishings shall be: 1. Scaled to the developmental level, size and ability of the children. 2. Of sturdy construction with no sharp, rough, loose, protruding, pinching or pointed edges, or areas of entrapment, in good operating condition, and anchored when necessary. 3. Placed to avoid danger of injury or collision and to permit freedom of action. 4. Placed over an energy-absorbing surface, when equipment is 4 feet or more in height. 5. Used in accordance with all manufacturer’s instructions and any manufacturer’s recommendations that may affect the safety of children in care. (b) A center shall provide equipment and supplies according to the following criteria: 1. Child development shall be fostered through selection of a variety of equipment that will: a. Provide large muscle development. b. Provide construction activities and for development of manipulative skills.