Best Daycare Plan Example for Infants, Toddlers, and Preschoolers (2023)

Creating a daily daycare schedule is no small feat. As a daycare owner or daycare manager, your day-to-day life can be hectic. Daily routines are the key to maintaining order. That goes for daycare workers, children, and even families. In this guide, we'll teach you how to create a daily schedule for toddlers, toddlers, and preschoolers that perfectly balances structure and flexibility.

The basics of a daycare schedule

Creating a daycare schedule can be a challenge. You will need to consider available resources, license requirements, development needs, and space limitations. While each day care center has different rules and program offerings, there are some general guidelines to follow when creating a day care schedule. Regardless of the age group, your daily schedule should incorporate ways to meet all of your children's needs.development milestoneswhile ensuring the safety and well-being of your children and employees.

There are four main areas to consider when creating a schedule that works for your center.

1. License requirements

respect your statusnursery and nursery licensing regulationswhen creating a schedule for your center. They vary depending on your location and will give you a framework to start with. Are you obligated to provide 30 minutes of daily exercise for your three-year-old? What are the rules regarding the ratio of staff to each age group at your daycare? Do you need to document your babies' health checks every morning? Are there rules about cleaning tasks during the day? Do your due diligence to make sure you create both therequired and recommended componentsin your daycare schedule template.

2. Development needs

Consider that 80% of brain development occurs in the firstthree years of life. More than1 million neural connectionsare formed every second during these years. Not to mention the rapid physical development that occurs at this stage of childhood. The good news is that there are easy-to-follow recommended guidelines to meet the daily needs of every age group, whether it's hours of exercise per day or types of play activities. As such, all daycare schedules should be designed to support developmental milestones for each age group and prepare each child for the next.development stageand classroom. Your schedule will contain blocks of time dedicated to supporting physical, social, and cognitive growth through routines and structured activities. It will also consider the necessary physical needs of each age group, such as naps, feeding/meals, and diapering/potty training.

3. Installation logistics

Depending on the daycare and the resources available, the daily schedule can become a puzzle. Different age groups may need to use your outdoor facilities at staggered times. If you have a multipurpose room for special events or guest activities, you will need to include the availability of that space in your child care schedule template. If toddlers and preschoolers share a wall between rooms, you can schedule some quiet activities while the kids nap. If you offer flexible options likenoon morningsor in the afternoon, you may have programs that share a room, so you will need to build transition time into your daily schedule.

4. Equipment logistics

Another basic component of your daycare schedule will be staffing needs. Your child care team will need regular breaks throughout the day. Will you schedule a floating team member to provide these breaks throughout the day? Or will they be incorporated into the daily schedule of each classroom, according to the block of activities? Staff will also need time to perform all other non-supervisory tasks in their rooms, from set-up and clean-up time to record-keeping and assessments. Another common practice is to consolidate classrooms at the end of the day, since children are picked up at different times. This helps maintain proportions, keeping personnel costs low. Some daycare centers plan to call out a teacher in the afternoon when students leave to perform unsupervised cleaning or administrative duties. For example, you may want to schedule outdoor time at the end of the day for toddlers and preschoolers so groups can be combined as needed based on each day's ratios.

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Creating daily lesson plans will help you organize and stick to your daycare schedule. Download our free daily lesson plan template and customize it to your teaching style and the needs of your children.

children's schedule

Childcare programming for children is generally designed to meet the needs of children between the ages of six weeks to 18 months (or when they begin to walk). Creating opportunities to engage with babies one on one will help foster their progress in alldevelopment milestones.

To inform your schedule, you will need to understand the behaviors and benchmark skills in this age group.

Developmental Milestones for Four-Month-Old Babies

• reaching for toys

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• Holding their heads without support

• starting to roll

• face recognition

• returning smiles

• imitating facial expressions

• babbling and imitating sounds

Developmental milestones for nine month old babies

• sitting without support

• Pulling yourself to your feet

• starting to crawl

• Playing peek-a-boo

• Showing favorite toy preferences

• Show the onset of separation anxiety

• Understand the "no"

• Copy sounds/gestures

Developmental milestones for babies from one year to 18 months

• speaking some words

• Repeat words/try to say words

• saying goodbye

• Work standing/walking

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• knock objects together

• drink from a cup

• Cry when one of the parents leaves

• Responding to simple requests

Children's Programming Guidelines

Babies need a lotinteractionpossible as they learn about the world around them. they also need a lotexercise- even newborns! The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends several minutes oftummy timea day since they come home from the hospital.

Baby's daily schedules should contain a lot of flexibility and variation, as you'll likely have to deal with a variety of needs throughout the day. Children's programs often have a higher staff to child ratio to handle all the physical tasks that accompany caring for a group of babies. You may also face somestrict licensing guidelinesaround documenting naps, feedings or diaper changes, so these activities may need more extensive planning than provided in our example below.

Many centers choose not to post babies' daily schedules, given the variety of needs and how quickly they change. However, it is still good practice to have a guide to work from to ensure they get the support and interaction they need to grow and learn.

Sample Child Care Schedule

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children's schedule

Infant day care hours are generally designed to meet the needs of children ages 18 months to three years. This group is newly mobile and works hard to communicate verbally. Plenty of time to work on language and gross motor skills will form the foundation of a toddler's daily schedule as you help them progress in all their activities.development milestones.

Developmental Milestones for Two Year Olds

• walking confidently

• playing a ball

• holding a crayon

• Experiment with challenge and independence.

• copy others

• Take part in a simple cooperative game

• Simple vocabulary of names, everyday objects and parts of the body.

• Speak in sentences of two to four words

• You can follow simple instructions

Developmental Milestones for Three Year Olds

• Show affection and concern for friends.

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• turns in games

• Participate in joint activities with a common goal.

• Follow multi-step instructions

• starting to chat

• It can be understood by most adults.

• Run

• jumping

• pedaling a tricycle

• Climb ladders and play structures

Baby Schedule Guidelines

Young children need plenty of group play time to explore early cooperative play. Your schedule should encourage interactions during activities or in classroom recreation centers. Younger children will benefit from watching older children begin to play and interact with each other. Imitation is key as they begin to develop a real understanding of how to work with other people around them.

Example of a child's daily schedule

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Preschool Daily Schedule

The preschool's daily schedule will meet the needs of the older children in your center, typically ages three to five. The shift to this age group will focus more on fine motor and language/cognition and other skills.kindergarten readiness skills. The construction of more structured activities and with an increasing academic focus will stimulate the learning progress of this group.development milestones.

Developmental Milestones for Four Year Olds

• skip

• catch and throw a ball

• walking backwards

• using scissors

• copying shapes

• get dressed

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• Engage in imaginative play

• cooperate with others

• Has interests/likes/opinions

• Follow some basic grammar rules (using "he/she" and "over/under" appropriately)

• telling simple stories

• Sing songs like "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and "The Wheels on the Bus"

• write capital letters

Developmental Milestones for Five Year Olds

• Hop

• doing somersaults

• using the swings

• Draw shapes and people.

• Tell the difference between what is real and what is imaginary

• showing more independence

• Want to please your friends and be like them.

• speaking very clearly

• Use future/past tense and more sophisticated grammar

• Tell stories with complete sentences

• write letters and numbers

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Programming Guidelines for Preschoolers

This is the age when the afternoon nap begins to fall, so nap time can also become quiet reading time for those who can't fall asleep. The other big shift will be toward more cognitive and literacy skills in preparation for kindergarten. Their daily preschool schedule should include more desk- and homework-focused activity blocks to ensure they leave their center fully equipped to handle the transition to school.

this age groupThey still learn a lot through make-believe and imaginative play as they build a stronger sense of identity and cooperative relationships with one another. According to the AAP, they also need more physical activity, includingtwo hours a day. This group will work to improve balance and coordination in gross and fine motor activities.

Sample Daily Schedule for Preschoolers

final reflection

Whatever your variance in these schedules, it is important to post your daily class schedule and share it with your families to keep everyone informed. Following the child care schedule structure will ensure that the developmental needs of each age group are met, helping to build trust with their families. Stick to your daycare routine as closely as possible and allow for flexibility as special events or opportunities arise.