Infant
Parent
Handbook
Parent
Handbook
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| Children from birth to 15 months develop at a rapid and varied pace! The Infant Classroom caregivers have a unique curriculum plan to accommodate the needs of each child in their care. |
We want to work with you and your child to make you both feel very comfortable in our Center. To make your child's first day as easy a transition as possible, we suggest you write down any special routines that would comfort your child. If you do plan on visiting with your child on his or her first day, we recommend a time period of no more than two hours. This gives us an opportunity to get to know your child and lets the child gain trust in us as caregivers. Again, we want to work with you and your child to make his or her transition to our Center a positive one. |
As children grow, they will enter different developmental stages of separation. A very young infant may not notice a parent leaving. Between the ages of 6 to 9 months, children enter a stage of stranger anxiety where new faces are upsetting. By the age of 12 months, your child's natural curiosity means that he or she can be easily distracted by playing with toys when you leave. Sometimes separation is harder on the parents than on the child! The following are some suggestions to help ease their time for both:
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We feel it is important for families and teachers to maintain open communication at all times. We will be using a journal to keep parents informed about their child's day. Teachers record feeding, diapering, and sleeping information, as well as daily activities and your child's general mood. Parents can bring their child's journal home to read and update the staff on any relevant changes at home that the teachers should be aware of (a difficult night, slight cold, alternative pick-up, etc.) |
We encourage the "Back to Sleep" campaign. This is a safety program aimed at reducing the risk of SIDS in infants. Please click the link above for more information on this campaign. |
Infant's diapers are changed approximately every two hours and checked on a regular basis. Sanitary and safety procedures are followed. See the Health Care Policy for any further information. |
As your begins to teethe, you may find that he or she drools more and will want to chew on things. Frozen or chilled teethers, hard or frozen finger foods such as frozen bagels or teething biscuits can be soothing to a teething child. Some infants find sucking is painful during teething. For babies, experiencing extreme discomfort, consult your physician. |
The Infant Room is a shoeless enviroment. Teachers, parents and all visitiors are asked to remove their shoes or cover them with booties privided in the lobby upon entering the room. Since infants spend most of their day on the floor, we need to assure the cleanest environment possible. Teachers will remove their shoes before entering the classroom or change into a pair of shoes worn int he classroom only. Walking infants need a pair of "inside shoes: or remain in their socks or slippers. BARE FEET ARE PROHIBITED IN THE INFANT CLASSROOM AT ALL TIMES! |
As infants get older and start discovering their bodies, they may not be aware of how strong they are becoming. Sometimes acts of affections can seem aggressive. When it becomes a safety issue, redirection and distraction are used as discipline. On occasion, a child may bite another child or adult. This is done for a variety of reasons, such as teething, oral exploration, baby kisses, tiredness, overstimulation, or as a means of communication. If biting occurs, we tent to the bitten child by comforting him or her and caring for the bite, and a firm "No Biting" is said to the child who did the biting. If the child is teething, we will provide something for him or her to chew. When biting occurs, the parent of the child who was bitten will be informed, but the identity of the biter will be kept anonymous. Records of such events (injuries, bites, scratches, etc.) are kept to monitor patterns and any possible reoccurring problems. |
When your child nears toddler age (15 months), he or she will begin transitioning to the Toddler One Classroom. Your child's caregiver will discuss an individual plan for your child's move, which will include plans for visiting the new classroom, transitioning from the crib to a cot, from the sassy seat to a toddler chair, and from two naps to one. Your child also needs to be weaned from daily bottles. Your caregiver will introduce you to the toddler teachers so that you may get to know them before your child enters the classroom. In particular, you will have an opportunity to meet with your child's new caregivers prior to the transition to share information about your child's development, interests, and to learn more about the Toddler One classroom and curriculum. |
Each baby's daily schedule is unique. It is important that you share your baby's schedule and any changes that evolve with your child's caregiver. Please fill out the infant schedule in the enrollment form, noting your baby;s special preferences for eating, sleeping and comforting. The daily schedule includes activities designed especially to meet your baby's needs and abilities. Routine care giving activities, such as feeding and diapering are used as opportunities for language interactions and for nurturing on a one-to- one relationship with the caregiver. The following is an example of a typical daily schedule. It is an approximation of what happens suring the day. Infants do not always follow a schedule therefore, this is subject to change depending on the sleeping, feeding and diapering needs of each child on any given day. |
While we will be feeding your child based on the schedule you provide, we will also provide bottles for your child when he or she indicates a need. Bottles are kept in the refrigerator and heated in a crock pot. We will not reheat bottles as this increaseds the chance o contamination. PLEASE DO NOT PUT MEDICATION IN BOTTLES! At around eight months of age, infants enjoy feeding themselves. Teachers will initiate conversations around self-feeding when they feel the child is showing signs of readiness. Please see the suggested list of finger foods below: |
Gross Motor Activities - Supporting head, tummy time, rolling over, kicking legs, creeping, crawling, walking, pushing and/or pulling toys, sitting alone, pulling self up to standing position, walking, riding on wheeled toys, climbing, outdoor walks, or playground activities. Fine Motor Activities - Eye tracking skills, hand grasping and releasing skills, finger and thumb grasping, hand skills, stacking blocks, eye-hand coordination skills. Language - Practicing beginning sounds, listening to adult's verbalizations, repeating sounds and words, mimicking, naming familiar items and objects, practicing first words, reading and looking at books and pictures. Cognitive - Exploring environment, developing object permanence, exploring cause and effect, imitating simple games and movements, responding to own name, displaying simple matching skills, mimicking simple functions. Beginning Self-Help Skills - finger feeding, holding a spoon and/or fork, drinking from a cup, sitting in a small chair at a small table, pointing out or asking for things desired. |
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