1. (a) Programs shall provide and implement a written schedule of typical daily activities offered to the children, which shall include opportunities for individual and group activities for each child, time for meals, snacks, sleep, or rest, and indoor and outdoor activities, and which shall be available for review by the department and parents or guardians.

2. (b) Program staff shall:

   1. (1) Provide prompt attention to the individual physical needs of each child, such as diapering, toileting, feeding, sleeping, washing, and first aid; and
   2. (2) Provide a variety of hands-on, developmentally appropriate activities, opportunities, and experiences for each child that foster and support cognitive, physical, social, and emotional development, and approaches to learning.
3. (c) Child care staff shall not allow children to provide care to other children, such as feeding infants, picking up infants or toddlers, changing diapers, assisting with toileting, or supervising children.
4. (d) Programs shall provide opportunity for at least 60 minutes daily of gross motor activity, whether inside or outside, for children, except preschools operating 5 or fewer hours per day shall provide at least 20 minutes of inside or outside gross motor activity daily.
5. (e) When taking children outside, staff shall assure that children are appropriately dressed for the weather conditions and shall monitor the children regularly for comfort in both hot and cold weather.
6. (f) Child care staff shall not allow a child to go outside when the child has a health concern as documented on their allergy care plan or as documented by the child's licensed practitioner limiting time outdoors.
7. (g) Child care staff shall adhere to instructions from the child's parent or guardian related to protection from sun exposure and apply sunscreen per manufacturer's instructions.

8. (h) Center-based programs shall not combine children younger than 24 months in a mixed age group which includes children older than 47 months, except:

   1. (1) For time limited, specific activities, including but not limited to meals, snacks, naps, or rest time, and special occasions such as birthday or holiday celebrations or visitor presentations;
   2. (2) When there are 17 or fewer children present in the program, including 5 children enrolled in a full day school program, and a maximum of 12 preschool children, of which no more than 4 children shall be younger than 36 months of age; or
   3. (3) With a department approved plan for multi-age classrooms.

9. (i) Child care staff shall:

   1. (1) Not confine awake infants and toddlers in restrictive equipment such as infant seats, seated infant carriers, car seats, swings, highchairs, stationary activity centers, strollers, cribs, or playpens for more than 15 minutes in any 2-hour period, unless necessary to provide for the physical safety of the infant or toddler when staff are otherwise engaged in the care of another child, such as changing a diaper or providing first aid;
   2. (2) Allow infants and toddlers to remain in a highchair for more than 15 minutes when they are actively engaged in eating during snack or meals, in strollers for walks, or for non-ambulatory infants only, in cribs or playpens when outside;
   3. (3) Provide stimulating activities such as age-appropriate toys or books to infants or toddlers while they are in equipment specified in (1) above; and
   4. (4) Not leave infants or toddlers unattended in seating, carrying, or other devices placed on countertops, tables, or other elevated surfaces.
10. (j) Programs that are authorized by license or permit to care for children as young as 6 weeks of age may care for a child younger than 6 weeks of age for a maximum of 12 hours per week per child with prior approval from their local fire officer and notification to the department.
11. (k) In a family or family group child care home licensed to care for children 6 weeks of age, the restriction specified in (j) above shall not apply to the family child care provider’s own biological, adopted, or foster care infant younger than 6 weeks of age or an infant younger than 6 weeks of age who resides in the provider’s home, provided that, in doing so, it will not result in exceeding the limits specified in He-C 4002.33(m) through (o).

Source. #4871, eff 7-24-90; ss by #5203, eff 8-16-91; ss by #6558, INTERIM, eff 8-16-97, EXPIRED: 12-14-97 New. #6719, eff 3-25-98; ss by #7294, eff 5-26-00; ss by #9160, INTERIM, eff 5-26-08; ss by #9310, eff 11-23-08 (from He-C 4002.21); ss by #12046, INTERIM, eff 11-19-16; ss by #12174, EMERGENCY RULE, eff 5-17-17; ss by #12415, eff 11-6-17; ss by #13373, eff 4-22-22; ss by #14356, eff 9-22-25, EXPIRES: 9-22-35 (formerly He-C 4002.19)