Infant Program Policy

About the Program

We accept children between the ages of 3 months – 2 years for our infant / toddler program. Staff maintain a maximum 1:4 ratio (staff to children) at all times. We are licensed for 14 spaces, and maintain a waiting list.

Primary Caregiver

For most families the choice to put their child in a childcare setting can be overwhelming. To help make this adjustment as smooth as possible Sugar-N-Spice supports the Primary Caregiver System.

Each child will be assigned a caregiver who will “primarily” responsible for the majority of your child’s daily routine care (feeding, diapering, and napping). This caregiver will also be the contact staff for parents and will ensure that information about your child’s day is communicated daily.

Communication

Daily communication is a vital piece of your child’s well being. Sharing information is encouraged in a variety of ways.

“Daily Reports” – When you drop off your child we ask that you complete the report to tell us about your child’s night and/or morning as well as relay any messages for the upcoming day. Staff will also use the “report” to inform you about your child’s day and will include notes on things such as nap times, supplies needed, eating patterns as well as a brief description of the day’s happenings.

Personal Belongings and Lockers

Each infant will be provided with a locker to store their personal belongings.

Please label everything that is brought in for your child.

• Bibs
• 3 Changes of clothing
• Footwear for indoors and out
• Suitable outdoor clothing
• Bag of diapers
• Wipes
• Cream or powder (if required)
• Blanket and comfort toy (if needed) for rest times
• Plastic bottles (and liners if needed)
• Boxed Cereal or toddler foods (if needed)
• Soothers and clips (if needed)
• Tylenol or Tempra in its original container (labeled) – give directly to staff for storage

Daily Nutrition and Bottles

For infants / toddlers not eating solid food yet, parents will be responsible for providing their child with a morning and afternoon snack and a lunch. You can send pre-cooked food if you like as the infant room has a microwave available for re-heating purposes.

Please make sure that all food is precut into bite size pieces and all fruit is peeled; this will allow the staff the time to sit with your child and make meal time an enjoyable, relaxing experience.

Parents are asked to supply any beverage (breast milk, prepared formula) that their child drinks from a bottle. All bottles should be unbreakable and labeled. Please note: It is important to leave information about how much your child typically will drink as bottles will only be heated once and discarded within an hour of doing so.

Jarred foods can be brought in weekly and stored in the cupboard. Please ensure that it is labeled with your child’s name and instructions are left for the caregiver. All opened jarred food will be stored in the fridge after opening and unused portions will be discarded after 3 days or sent home for the weekend.

If your child is breast fed and it is convenient for this to continue during your work hours, we will certainly work with you to accommodate your schedule.

Toddlers will be encouraged to be seated in the kitchen. This will help prevent choking as well as contamination of the bottle or cup which could easily be left of the floor or picked up by another child.

All containers, cups or bottles must be labeled with the child’s name

As the children are able, we will provide them with a snack in the morning and the afternoon as well as start introducing the foods offered in our hot lunch program.

Rest Times

Each infant/ toddler under 18 months of age will be provided with a crib for resting. When your toddler begins the transition to the toddler/preschool program we will discuss with you their readiness to rest on cots. Sugar-N-Spice will provide sheets for all cots and cribs, which we will launder weekly. Parents are responsible for supplying and laundering their child’s bedding weekly.

Please note: For safety reasons, caregivers will not put infants/toddlers in their crib or on their cot with a bottle. (This is to prevent choking and other health concerns such as tooth decay)

Your infant’s sleep schedule will be respected by the centre. As your child gets older we will work with you towards one daily nap.

Please note: A staff member is in the nap room at all times when there is a child sleeping.

Soothers

We understand that some children who enter daycare are still attached to soothers. Soothers (provided by parents) will be given to the child, if necessary, at naptime only.

Diapering and Toilet Training

Diaper checks / changes are done frequently throughout the day and are recorded for your information. Once a child is ready for toilet training, we will work with you to make it a positive experience for your child.

We ask that parents check their child prior to leaving them at the centre. This ensures a dry, comfortable start to their day. Please follow the posted diapering procedure. Any questions please let us know.

Parents are asked to supply all items your child requires for diapering. This includes diapers, wipes, creams, powders, etc.

Illness and Medications

The most common illnesses in children are respiratory infections (colds, croup, and strep throat) as well as ear infections. Because they haven’t yet developed immunity to most infections that they are exposed to, younger children are at a greater risk of becoming ill. To make things worse, infants and young children frequently put toys in their mouth, which only increases the spread of germs from one child to another.

Please see the Illness and Injury and Medication sections for more detailed information about illnesses and administering medications.

In the case of infants (a child under 2 years of age) the staff will administer Tempra or Tylenol if the infant’s temperature rises above 101.0 degrees F- taken by ear thermometer AND the centre has on file the parent’s signature authorizing this. We will always try to contact the parent for authorization prior to administering any medication. This is to ensure that the infant’s temperature does not rise to a dangerously high level while the staff is trying to contact the parent. As infant fevers can mask a multitude of issues parents will be expected to pick up their child in an expedient manner.

Parents are expected to supply the Tempra or Tylenol for their child to be kept at the centre.

Moving Up

We are pleased to offer a gradual transition to the preschool program for your child via our toddler – young two room. This room cares for children ages 18-30 months and provides an opportunity for your child to gain some independence in a developmentally appropriate setting.

Your child will move into the toddler – young two room as soon as space becomes available. Until such time they are welcome to stay in our infant program and the staff will adapt the program to ensure their needs are being met.

As their move up date approaches, your child will have the opportunity to visit for short periods of time so that the environment, staff and other children are familiar to them. Your child’s primary caregiver will communicate with you throughout this process.

We hope that you and your child have a wonderful experience at Sugar-N-Spice. Feel free to talk to any of the staff if you have any questions.