While every baby is unique, they all share the common need for consistency and responsiveness in their caregiving. At Mayfair Christian Daycare, our infants control their own daily schedule based on their particular preferences and patterns.
The caring and nurturing teachers at our Grand Rapids daycare center closely monitor each individual infant’s eating, sleeping and play patterns to determine the most appropriate and non-stressful daily schedule for your child. Between three and six months of age, most infants will start to establish a more consistent daily schedule that suits them best. For infants who are six to twelve months, we aim to provide them with a smooth routine that balances active and quiet play to reduce stress and avoid drastic changes.
Each infant has a primary caregiver who spends the most time with him or her, records activities in their daily journal and communicates daily with our director and with parents during drop-off and pick-up times as desired. Although all of our infant room teachers will share care of all the infants, each child’s primary caregiver represents a familiar, comforting presence for both children and parents. The teacher-to-child ratio in our infant rooms is 1:4. For younger infants, we strive for a 1:3 ratio whenever possible.
Playtime Activities
Tummy time, supported sitting and free movement with access to bright, colorful and safe toys help to complete your infant’s day. In addition, fingerpainting, dancing and simple musical instruments add excitement and new joys to their playtime. Infants will also be taken outside every day, as do children in all our programs except during extreme or unsafe weather conditions.
Sleep
Your infants will have their own crib in an attended room. We follow Safe Sleep practices as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Our cribs do not have bumper pads and infants are always put on their backs to sleep. Sheets are washed weekly or more frequently, if necessary.
Diapers and Feeding
While we do allow cloth diapers as needed, certain stipulations are required. Please contact us or talk directly with our staff for additional information on using cloth diapers.
We are happy to feed your child your breastmilk at Mayfair Christian Daycare Center. Please contact us for more information or call us directly at 616.458.1009 to learn more about the specific guidelines regarding feeding your child breast milk at our facility.