10A NCAC 09 .0508         ACTIVITY SCHEDULES AND PLANS

(a)  All centers shall have a current schedule and activity plan for each group of children posted for reference by parents and by caregivers. The schedule and activity plan may be combined in a single document.

(b)  For each group of children in care, the activity plan shall include activities intended to stimulate the following developmental domains, in accordance with North Carolina Foundations for Early Learning and Development, available on the Division's website at http://ncchildcare.nc.gov/providers/pv_foundations.asp:

(1)           emotional and social development;

(2)           health and physical development;

(3)           approaches to play and learning;

(4)           language development and communication; and

(5)           cognitive development.

(c)  When children are in care and weather conditions permit, there shall be outdoor time, either as part of a small group, a whole group, or individual activity, for no less than the following durations:

Program Operating Hours	Ages of Children	Minimum Daily Outdoor Time
All Programs	Under 2 years	30 Minutes
Less than 5 hours	0-12 years	30 Minutes
5 hours or more	2-12 years	60 minutes

(d)  When children three years old or older are in care, the schedule shall include the following:

(1)           blocks of time assigned to types of activities, including periods of time for active play, quiet play, or rest;

(2)           times and activities that are developmentally appropriate for the children in care; and

(3)           daily opportunities indoors and outdoors for:

(A)          free-choice activities; and

(B)          teacher-directed activities.

(e)  For children under two years old, interspersed among the daily events shall be individualized caregiving routines such as eating, napping, and toileting.

(f)  When children under three years old are in care, the schedule shall include regular daily events such as the arrival and departure of the children, free-choice times, outside time, and teacher-directed activities.

(g)  The activity plan shall:

(1)           identify activities that allow children to choose to participate with the whole group, part of the group, or independent of the group;

(2)           reflect that the children have four different activities daily, at least one of which is outdoors, if weather conditions permit, as listed in G.S. 110-91(12) as follows:

(A)          art and other creative play;

(B)          children's books;

(C)          blocks and block building;

(D)          manipulatives; and

(E)           family living and dramatic play; and

(3)           include a daily gross motor activity that may occur indoors or outdoors.

History Note:        Authority G.S. 110-85; 110-91(2),(12); 143B-168.3;

Eff. July 1, 1988;

Amended Eff. July 1, 2010; July 1, 1988;

Readopted Eff. October 1, 2017.