PLANNING

In order for your business to run smoothly and efficiently it is important that you spend time planning. Some of your days will be repetitive, and you will have routines which you will have to follow time and time again, such as taking children to school or playgroup. You must organise your time effectively so that the children you are taking to school get there on time and that you are never late to collect them at the end of the school day.

Your day as a childminder is likely to start early and finish late, as you will be expected to fit in around the working hours of the parents whose children you are caring for. It is important that you are ready to start your day at the time you have agreed on your contract.

If your contracted hours are 7.30am then you must be ready to receive children, and begin working, at this time.

The busiest times of your working day are likely to be during the arrival and departure of the children to your setting. You may have several parents dropping their children off simultaneously and you must make sure that you are organised sufficiently in order that you create opportunities for the parents to communicate any important information with you, when necessary. It is difficult to give your undivided attention to a parent if their child is jumping up and down in front of you trying to tell you an exciting story about what they have done that weekend. However, if you prepare yourself for this hectic time, and have a suitable activity ready for the child on arrival, it will give you the vital couple of minutes needed to communicate with the parent before they leave your setting.

DAILY ROUTINES

There will be important times in your childminding day which you must be aware of, and you must plan your day around these times appropriately. Things to consider are:

• the arrival and departure of the children and their parents to your setting;
• times you have to take children to and collect them from playgroup, nursery and school;
• times for snacks and meals;
• feed times for babies;
• naps and rests;
• domestic activities;
• visits and outings;
• indoor play;
• outdoor play;
• toilet training.

Being on time

If you have parents who drop their children off near to the times that you need to leave home on your journey to school or nursery, it is important that they are made aware of your routine and ensure that they are not late as this may put your whole routine in jeopardy. They may have a six-month-old child and not realise the school start times, so you need to make them aware of the latest time they can drop their child off with you, allowing you plenty of time for your journey to school without rushing or compromising the safety of any of the children in your care.

If you agree to provide a school drop off and collection service you must ensure that you do this on time every day. There is no excuse for the children to be late to school unless in very extreme circumstances. It is not acceptable to take a child to school late simply because you have not organised your morning appropriately.

Mealtimes should be kept as much to a routine as possible. They should be enjoyable times for everyone and should not be rushed. It is important that you try to create a relaxed atmosphere and make mealtimes social occasions. The times you choose for meals should be arranged according to the times the children start their day with you and they must fit in with your normal day-to-day routines of school runs, naps and play times.

The chart on page 112 shows a typical childminder’s daily routine. It can be adapted to suit each individual childminder’s circumstances.

Young babies

Obviously your daily routine will differ if you care for a young baby who needs to be bottle fed every three to four hours, and you will need to make sure that the baby’s feeds fit in around other routines which you may have. It is important that you plan the baby’s feeds in agreement with the parent so that neither the child goes hungry nor do you turn up late to collect children from school.

Time	Activity or planned routine.
7.30 am	Arrival of children.
8.00 am	Breakfast.
8.45 am	Set off on journey to school.
9.00 am	Drop children off at school.
9.10 am	Arrive back home from school. Morning play activities.
10.00 am	Snack.
10.15 am	Outdoor play.
11.00 am	Visit to local library.
11.45 am	Prepare lunch.
12.00 pm	Lunch.
12.45 pm	Set off on journey to nursery.
1.00 pm	Drop child off at nursery.
1.10 pm	Arrive back home from nursery. Nap time and quiet activities.
2.30 pm	Play activities.
3.15 pm	Set off on journey to collect from nursery and school.
3.30 pm	Collect child from nursery.
3.35 pm	Collect children from school.
3.50 pm	Arrive back home from school and nursery.
4.00 pm	Tea or snack and drink.
4.15 pm	Afternoon activities, time for homework, etc.
5.45 pm	Start to tidy toys away and visit the toilet in time to go home.
5.50 pm	Parents start to arrive to collect children.
6.00 pm	Last child leaves setting after chat with parent about their day.

Going to clubs and activities

In addition to taking and collecting children from playgroup, nursery or school, you may also be asked to take school-aged children to various clubs and classes such as dancing class, gym club, swimming club, language or music lessons and you should consider very carefully whether this is something you can accommodate. Remember that taking and collecting from lots of schools and clubs can be very tiring and time consuming and it is not always something that younger children appreciate having to do. You must also bear in mind the times that parents collect their children from your setting and ensure that you are back at home in time for this.

Getting ready to go out

Apart from the actual travelling time needed to take and collect children from a variety of schools and clubs you must also bear in mind how much time is needed to get yourself and the children ready. You will need to ensure that everyone has waterproof clothing available when necessary or sun cream and hats in hot weather. You need to make sure you have ample time for safety procedures such as strapping children into the car or buggy and making sure that children have visited the toilet prior to setting off. You will need to anticipate how long your journey will take and make time for unexpected delays such as heavy traffic.

Changing routines

You must adjust and change your routines as and when the children in your care grow and develop. A child’s sleep patterns will change as they grow from being a baby into a toddler and the need for frequent toilet routines will be necessary when a child is beginning to start potty training. Any changes to the usual routines will need to be discussed and agreed with the parents so that you can adapt your times to fit in with the families of the children you care for as much as possible. Obviously if you care for several children it will probably be necessary for a certain element of flexibility to be introduced and all this should be discussed with the parents.

Meeting parents’ wishes

You must try, whenever possible, to meet the parents’ wishes. A parent may request that their child does not have a long nap during the day so they can get off to sleep easier in the evening, giving the parents time to themselves. Alternatively, a parent may request that their child does have a long sleep in the afternoon so that they can spend time with them in the evening. You must, whenever possible, adhere to these wishes. Of course, no one can be expected to make a child go to sleep if they are not tired and likewise you should not be expected to refuse a tired child the opportunity of rest. If you are finding it impossible to carry out parental wishes then you must notify them immediately in order for a compromise to be found.

Spontaneous play

One of the luxuries of being self employed is that you can often decide what you do and when you do it. After you have dealt with the necessary routines, you will be left with parts of your day when you can choose the activities or outings you wish to take part in. There should always be room in your day for ‘spontaneous’ play; for example if a beautiful summer’s day clouds over and there is a sudden shower, try to find the time to pull on waterproofs and take the children splashing in puddles and looking at rainbows. Going for walks should be part of your routine in all weathers and, providing the children have suitable clothing, these walks should be enjoyable. It is important that children are allowed to explore their immediate environment during unhurried walks. Trips to the park, walks in the snow and kicking up the leaves in autumn all provide interesting learning opportunities.

Domestic chores

Working with children at home will provide you with certain opportunities to carry out domestic chores. Many parents choose childminders over a nursery setting because they like the idea of their child spending time in a home-based setting doing the sort of things they would probably have been doing if they were at home with their parents.

That is not to say that parents would be forgiving if they discovered that you had taken their children on a monthly shopping spree at the supermarket or stuck them in front of the television for hours whilst you did a mountain of ironing or a spring clean of the house. These types of domestic activities should never be undertaken whilst you are caring for someone else’s children.

A trip to the shops to purchase a small number of items or for the children to choose a birthday present for someone special will be beneficial. Unlike a tiring supermarket shop, these purchases can be done at a time when the stores are quiet and it can be an excellent source for learning.

Learning through participation

Try letting the children choose which birthday card to buy. Talk to them about the things you are purchasing and why. Encourage them to pay for the goods with the money you give them. Older children can count out the coins and try to work out how much change they should receive.

Domestic activities such as setting the table, weighing and preparing food, watering plants etc are all necessary everyday activities which can be beneficial to children’s learning if they are allowed to take part.

It is very important, when planning your daily routines, to be realistic about the length of time needed to carry out certain activities. Setting the table and clearing away after a meal may take you a couple of minutes if you are doing it yourself, but if you allow the children to help it can increase to 15 minutes. When you allow the children to help with the domestic activities it is important not to rush them or have unrealistic expectations of their achievements. Children will flourish in a relaxed atmosphere and will learn if given the time and opportunity.