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Developmental care
It is essential that we offer developmentally appropriate activities that are tailored to the needs and developmental stages of each child. This means choosing activities that match what a child can already do and at the same time invite new challenges, so that they can grow at their own pace.
“Challenge drives growth – taking it one step further every day.”
By offering one activity every day that focuses on a specific area of development, we give children the opportunity to develop in a targeted manner in different domains, such as motor skills, language, social-emotional development or cognitive skills.
These activities are carefully selected and always fall within the zone of proximal development. This means that the activity is in line with what a child can already do, but at the same time is slightly above his or her current level, so that the child is challenged to learn new skills. It is important that the activity is challenging, but achievable, so that the child is not overwhelmed, but is stimulated to grow further.
By offering an activity each day that focuses on a different area of development, we ensure that children are broadly stimulated and given the opportunity to progress in different aspects of their development. It also provides a structured way for pedagogical employees to monitor each child’s progress and provide targeted support where needed.
At Daisy's Daycare we have a new theme once every two weeks. We strive to have all the activities that are thought up fit in with the theme. Every first Monday (or the next day that we are open) of the month the group receives an activity schedule for a month. All activity schedules are bound to each age group. This schedule contains approximately 30 activities that the pedagogical employee can choose from. A pedagogical employee member looks at the needs of the children and the course of the day and chooses a suitable activity from the activity schedule.
In this way we contribute to a balanced and holistic development of children, which enables them to discover and further develop new skills with confidence and pleasure.
Using screen time during activities is something that the pedagogical employee is very conscious about. Children under 2 years old do not have screen time, children from 2 to 4 years old have a maximum of 10 minutes a day. This screen time will only be used as an educational tool during activities. For example, think of a short film where you see a flower blooming at an accelerated pace or a sun passing by the earth.
“Free play is the engine of creativity, growth and self-confidence.”
The importance of free play
Many people think that you only work on a child’s development by offering developmentally appropriate activities. However, this is not true. Free play is essential for the development of children from 0 to 4 years old, because it gives them the freedom and space to explore, experiment and learn at their own pace. This type of play is driven by the child’s own curiosity and creativity. It is one of the most important ways in which young children explore their environment and understand the world around them.
Free play promotes children’s cognitive development. During free play, children learn through experimentation and exploration, which helps them develop problem-solving skills and strengthens their memory and concentration. Whether it’s building towers with blocks or creating stories through role-play, children develop important cognitive skills that help them understand the world around them.
In addition, free play is crucial for social development. It offers children the opportunity to interact, share, cooperate and resolve conflicts with other children. These social skills are essential for their emotional growth and for learning basic principles such as playing together, sharing together, working together and communicating.
Motor skills are also strengthened through free play. In activities such as running, jumping, climbing or building with small objects, children develop their fine and gross motor skills. This not only affects their physical health, but also their self-confidence and independence.
In addition, free play supports children’s emotional development. It allows them to express and process emotions, for example by playing a role (such as a doctor or a parent), which helps them to understand different situations and feelings. Free play provides a safe space for children to create their own world, which helps them to develop self-confidence and a sense of autonomy.
Free play is therefore essential for the overall development of young children. It stimulates their creativity, self-expression and self-confidence, and ensures that they grow both individually and socially. It provides a foundation for learning important life skills that will help them later in their development.
“Reading aloud opens the door to language, imagination and growth.”
To read aloud
The language development of a child from 0 to 4 years old is recognized as one of the most important areas of attention. At Daisy's Daycare we do everything we can to provide a stimulating and supportive environment that promotes the language development of every child. We do this not only by offering varied language activities in the activity schedule, which match the developmental needs of the children, but also by striving to read to the children at least twice a day in our daily routine. The pedagogical employee can do this by, for example, ending the 'Good morning conversation' with reading a book, reading before the children go to sleep or planning a moment of rest during playing or eating.
All these aspects together ensure that we can provide development-oriented care to children from 0 to 4 years old, at the highest possible level.