CHCCN302A: Provide care for children
Settle new arrivals
Contents
Observe parents and children for signs of stress/distress on
arrival
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Settle new arrivals
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Parents’ stress
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Stress in children
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Begin interaction with the child while parents are still present to
minimise abruptness of separation
Security or transitional objects
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The arrival routine
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Encourage parents to take as much time as needed to have a
relaxed, unhurried separation from their child
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Establish routines to minimise distress at separation of parent
and child
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Policies for arrival and departure procedures
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Respond to child’s distress at separation from parent in a calm
reassuring manner
Strategies to minimise separation anxiety
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Certificate III in Children’s Services: CHCCN302A: Reader LO 9201
© NSW DET 2010
Observe parents and children for
signs of stress/distress on arrival
Settle new arrivals
There is no doubt that arrival times in child care can be stressful and require
careful management. Parents and children are usually in a rush after a busy
morning routine at home. They may both be tense about the impending
separation. Caregivers are sometimes still setting up morning activities while
greeting and settling children.
A new arrival may find the childcare centre intimidating
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Parents’ stress
I have often heard childcare workers complaining about the so called ‘unrealistic’
expectations parents have of staff in child care. Parents who are upfront in
expressing their concerns about their children and the care they receive whilst in
care are sometimes labelled as ‘picky’ or ‘over protective’. Let’s stop for a
moment and consider child care from parents’ perspective.
Handing over your most prized and precious possession to the care of a virtual
stranger is extremely difficult. To a parent, their child is the most important child in
your care. Their rational mind may allow them to understand that every child in your
care deserves premium treatment, but their emotional side insists that they would
prefer you to dedicate yourself to their child.
Certificate III in Children’s Services: CHCCN302A: Reader LO 9201
© NSW DET 2010
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I am sure this is true of every parent, both those who need to return to work for
financial reasons, as well as those who are pursuing a career. They may be using
child care for any number of reasons, but I believe that if there was a way for
parents to be in two places at the same time most parents would do it.
The emotional bond between infants and their primary carer (usually the mother)
is amazing. Most parents say they would literally die for their infants. Brushing
parents off with comments such as ‘Don’t worry, I’m sure they will be fine’ or
‘They’ll probably stop crying as soon as you drive off…’ will not fill the gap of
emptiness they feel as they walk out the door without their beautiful little baby or
child.
Even if the time of reuniting is just a few hours away, parents will have very mixed
emotions as they leave their infant or child and this will be increased if the child is
distressed as they depart. Feelings of guilt are not uncommon; mothers may be
pressured to stay at home with their children by grandparents or others who grew
up in an environment where working mothers were rare. Guilt can also occur if
the parents themselves have doubts about whether or not they are doing the
right thing. It has to be remembered that love and emotion are not always
rational.
Along with all these emotions, parents are dealing with the everyday stresses of
life, work pressures to perform, perhaps lack of sleep due to unsettled infants,
financial pressures and so on—the list goes on and on. It is no wonder that
parents may appear to be irrational; they need as much reassurance as the
children themselves that everything will be all right.
Strategies to alleviate parents’ stress
Let’s look at some practical strategies that can help ease the troubled minds of
parents as they leave their precious offspring in our care.
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Have an open-door policy so that parents always feel welcome to visit if
they are able and if they wish.
Encourage parents to phone throughout the day to check on their child
(perhaps offer suggestions of good times to call).
Ask parents about their child’s likes and dislikes and how they settle them
when they are distressed at home.
Certificate III in Children’s Services: CHCCN302A: Reader LO 9201
© NSW DET 2010
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Ask for parental input into the childcare program.
Guide parents as they settle their infants and children for the day by
having them participate in some sort of routine or ritual each day. This
will help the child feel more secure and will also help the parent get more
involved in the service. Nappy changing on arrival is a good way to start
the day for the infant, parent and staff members.
All of these things will help parents feel like they have some control over the care
their children receive while they are separated from them. You can probably think
of others.
Stress in children
Some of you may be wondering what on earth infants could be stressed about.
How about being rushed through your breakfast, having your morning floor play
at home interrupted to be dressed, strapped in the car at the speed of light and
rushed off to day care—when a morning in the security and familiarity of your
home was what you would really prefer? The infant who is used to this rush will
still go through stages where this routine stresses them, even those who enjoy the
carers and other children.
A childcare centre is a noisy and busy place, especially when compared to home
where often just the immediate family reside. As we strive to make day care seem
more home-like, we need to consider the fact that it’s highly unlikely that any
family has, say, 12 children under two years of age. Day care is still an unusual
situation for infants and toddlers because they are at a stage in their development
where cooperation and sharing a carer’s time, attention and centre equipment is
not only difficult, but sometimes just an expectation that is too high.
Infants may show distress by:
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crying, whimpering and fussing
being clingy to their primary caregiver at the service as well as parents on
arrival and departure
crying on the approach of other children
being withdrawn
startling easily or appearing ‘jumpy’
disturbed sleep and/or feeding patterns.
Toddlers may show distress by:
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crying
being withdrawn
crying on the approach of other children
not playing
unusual levels of aggression
Certificate III in Children’s Services: CHCCN302A: Reader LO 9201
© NSW DET 2010
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physically clinging to and constantly following a particular caregiver
regression, eg, needing nappies again sometime after successful toilet
training.
Preschoolers may show stress by:
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crying and whimpering
refusing to talk or participate in the program
clinging to adults
watching other children playing and refusing to join in
uncharacteristic, inappropriate or undesirable behaviours.
Certificate III in Children’s Services: CHCCN302A: Reader LO 9201
© NSW DET 2010
Begin interaction with the child while
parents are still present to minimise
abruptness of separation
As each family arrives, we should always greet both the parent/primary carer and
the child by name. We then initiate a 3-way interaction where we can share
information about the child with the parent/carer as well as making eye contact
and smiling at the young child. At this point a transitional object, which is a
familiar item from home, can be used to comfort the child and ease the transition.
Security or transitional objects
Many older infants adopt an object to help calm them. Toddlers and preschoolers
may continue with the security items from infancy or they may adopt new ones.
The variety of possible comforters is almost endless. They can range from
‘purpose-built’ items, such as dummies (pacifiers) or manufactured security toys,
to pieces of satin on blankets, cloth nappies or a pillow. They can literally be
anything. These items are usually called security objects or transitional objects.
Some of you may remember the comic strip Snoopy. Linus, a little boy in this strip,
always carried a blanket - a typical transitional object.
Do you recognise these transitional objects?
Many infants become attached to items kept in their beds. The reflux baby who
has slept elevated with a cloth nappy under their head to catch any spillage, may
‘fall in love’ with the cloth nappy. Infants enjoy tactile stimulation so a common
security item is a blanket or a pillow with something special about the texture,
such as a satin edge. From birth, babies are comforted by sucking so the appeal of
dummies or thumbs is quite obvious in light of this.
Activity 1
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© NSW DET 2010
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As carers, we want our charges to feel secure and comfortable. We want them to
know that they can access the things they need to feel calm, things that remind
them of home or things that help them to settle. It is of paramount importance
that comforter items are not confiscated or withheld from them. Children should
be able to easily access them or to indicate when they need them. A responsive
caregiver allows the child to decide when they want to give up these items or sets
reasonable boundaries on their use.
It is important to understand that security or transition objects provide comfort
during the transition from dependence to independence, so these are the times
when they are needed most. Settling in to care is just such a situation.
Of course, parents may have other ideas. We need to be able to explain the value
of transitional or security objects, especially when children are settling into child
care. If parents are concerned with a child’s fixation for a particular item, we
should explain that these objects give children a sense of security and association
with their parents when they are absent. Special objects are a healthy and normal
way for children to provide self-comfort.
A further discussion about how to distract the child from their ‘adored item’ can
take place once the child has been settled into care for some months and seems
confident. Remember, most toddlers outgrow the need to have constant access to
these objects, and many preschoolers are able to save the special comfort
toy/object just for bedtime at home. The world becomes far too interesting to be
distracted permanently by a piece of satin binding off a blanket, or even a
dummy.
The arrival routine
Emotional wellbeing goes hand-in-hand with feeling that you belong. This is
important to children and allows security and trust to grow. Children need to feel
welcome and that they ‘belong’. Ways that we can do this is to ensure that we
greet each child and family on their arrival at the centre and that we make a point
of farewelling them at the end of the day.
Activity 2
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Certificate III in Children’s Services: CHCCN302A: Reader LO 9201
© NSW DET 2010
Encourage parents to take as much
time as needed to have a relaxed,
unhurried separation from their child
As childcare workers, we are aware of the need to ensure that the transition into
care is as secure and nurturing as possible for children, but it’s sometimes easy to
forget that parents also need to be settled into the care situation.
This is a very stressful time for many families. There is the uncertainty of the
unknown for first time users of child care and the worry of what might happen if
the infant experiences difficulty settling. Many parents also experience guilt at
leaving the child, worry that they will miss important milestones such as the first
step, worry about the child’s physical needs being met and about whether they
will be loved as before or become less important to their child.
A responsive caregiver will ensure that parents’ needs are also addressed and
met. To do this they will ensure that the centre has a settling in or orientation
policy as well as clear and appropriate arrival and departure routines for each
child and family.
Spending time allaying parent concerns and fears is time well spent. It also allows
you to gather more information on each child, their particular needs and specific
routines and rhythms.
Many childcare services review their enrolment forms on a regular basis to ensure
that the information collected meets the requirements outlined in the
regulations. However, many are now looking to these forms as a way of collecting
detailed information about individual needs, routines and rituals. The more the
caregiver knows about the child, the more personal, appropriate and responsive
the care becomes which flows over into the quality of care provided by the
centre.
It is now standard practice that infants, toddlers and their parents spend time in
the centre and the room getting to know the caregivers and becoming familiar
with the surroundings; we are less afraid of things that we know about and so are
parents and infants. Many centres also do this with older children as well.
Parents need to be reassured that they have chosen well and their child will
receive the best care and attention. By allowing them to spend time in the centre
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© NSW DET 2010
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they gain first hand experience at seeing this. Centres that exclude parents and
keep what happens there ‘under wraps’ encourage feelings of mistrust in the
service and staff.
Clear and public policies on settling children encourages a sense of trust.
Providing parents with copies of centre policies creates a feeling of openness and
care.
This open approach to child care also encourages parents to be involved in their
child’s care on a regular basis and many parents spend time in the room
interacting with their own and other children. Parents need to be made to feel
welcome in the room at any time. Parents who feel secure and comfortable with
the choice of care will result in more settled, happy children in the room.
We need to work in partnership with parents to provide good quality care. After
all, they are the parents and ultimately are responsible for the child.
In these early days, you are building the foundation for an ongoing partnership of
care with the new parents. This partnership will be crucial to the successful care
experience of the child.
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Certificate III in Children’s Services: CHCCN302A: Reader LO 9201
© NSW DET 2010
Establish routines to minimise
distress at separation of parent and
child
Policies for arrival and departure
procedures
Below are sample policies to guide staff in handling the arrival and departure of
children and family members each day.
Sample policy on arrival procedure
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Arrival time experiences can set the tone for the whole day for children
and their parents. It requires special attention because both staff and
parents can be rushed at this time of day. Childcare staff are often setting
up the room while greeting new arrivals and may still be settling children
who arrived earlier.
The parent or other authorised person brings the child in to the centre
foyer and signs the child in on the attendance record.
The parent takes the child to the locker area and assists them to store
their belongings. If the child wears a nappy, the parent takes them to the
change area and puts on a centre nappy.
The parent takes the child to a carer, and information is exchanged
between carer and caregiver. Caregivers make every effort to greet each
parent and child warmly and to spend a few moments with each arriving
family.
The child is taken to a morning activity or play area by the carer and
assisted in saying goodbye to the parents.
If the child is distressed, carers are encouraged to take the child to a
window to wave goodbye, and are comforted in a manner appropriate to
each child.
Certificate III in Children’s Services: CHCCN302A: Reader LO 9201
© NSW DET 2010
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Sample policy on departure procedure
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Child must be collected by their parent or other authorised person.
Parent or other authorised person signs child out on the attendance
register in the foyer before collecting the child. The parent or other
authorised person collects the child’s bag from their locker.
Childcare staff to greet parents and information is exchanged about the
child’s day. ‘Good news’ should be given about the child.
If child wears a nappy, parent changes the child out of the centre nappy
and into their own nappy.
If staff are unsure about the authorisation of a non-parent collecting the
child, they should check the child’s enrolment form, the message book, or
seek verbal permission from the child’s parent. Staff must then chec3 the
identification of the non-parent.
If a person is authorised, the child may be released. If a person is not
authorised, staff members should take whatever reasonable measures
they can to keep the child at the centre and notify the custodial parent of
the situation. However, at no time should staff members endanger
themselves or other children at the centre.
Parent or other authorised person is responsible for the child as soon as
the child leaves the front door of the centre.
Rituals in the arrival routine
One of the first things caregivers need to establish for a new infant in care is a
positive arrival routine. This routine should be worked out in consultation with the
family as establishing a ritual or pattern of behaviour that reflects the infant’s
needs is helpful.
The ritual will allow the infant to know what’s coming next and not be subjected
to daily surprises. The infant begins to gain a sense of what’s going to happen and
when a similar event occurs everyday the infant begins to not only expect it but
trust the situation as well. He or she will become aware that the parent will return
after the day’s activities.
Think carefully about the ritual and routine you wish to establish. Make sure that
you consider the infant’s transitional or security objects. If there is a favourite toy
or item ensure it’s included as part of the ritual.
Remember the attachment curriculum? As part of the ritual, include a handle for
attachment. In the case study below, the infant has such a handle for attachment.
Case study: Bella
Bella, nine months, has recently begun to display a little separation anxiety
on arrival at the centre each morning. She has a favourite sheepskin that
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Certificate III in Children’s Services: CHCCN302A: Reader LO 9201
© NSW DET 2010
comes to the centre with her each day. Mum has told you that whenever
Bella gets upset she uses the sheepskin, affectionately known as laa-laa, to
cuddle and it helps her to settle.
To aid Bella’s separation each morning you have worked through a small
ritual with her mum. On arrival mum will pass Bella to you and also pass
over the sheepskin saying, ‘Here’s laa-laa to cuddle. Mummy will come back
later. You have a lovely day with Nicole.’ You then walk mum to the door
carrying both Bella and laa-laa and say, ‘Bella, let’s wave goodbye to
mummy at the front window.’ You carry Bella over and wave.
If Bella gets a little upset you encourage her to cuddle laa-laa. You both then
go into the playroom and sitting on the sofa, nursing both Bella and laa-laa
you read a book until Bella settles. Once she is settled you help her to
choose a toy to play with and place her on the mat.
Bella’s transitional object is ‘laa-laa’ and the story reading becomes the
handle for attachment. By following this ritual everyday Bella will become
more familiar with the pattern of each morning and begin to settle more
easily. It not only reassures Bella but also her mother.
Activity 3
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© NSW DET 2010
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Respond to child’s distress at
separation from parent in a calm
reassuring manner
Strategies to minimise separation
anxiety
Gradually introducing the child to the care situation is one important strategy that
can help alleviate separation anxiety. Parents should visit the centre at least once
with their child before they begin. Start off with short stays and gradually increase
the time spent where this is possible.
Personalising the situation for the child is also a positive way of introducing the
child to preschool or child care. Rather than just contacting the parents when a
vacancy occurs, centres can send a special letter or invitation to the child, perhaps
with some photos of other children and staff and a simple description of some of
the things that happen at the centre.
No child should be allowed to be left in a strange place with new people for a
lengthy period without some preparation.
Strategies for children two to six years old
There are also a number of other strategies you can put into place to minimise
separation anxiety for children aged between two years and six years.
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Have a predictable arrival routine and personalised goodbye ritual.
Encourage parents to have a predictable morning routine before the child
actually gets to the centre.
Have activities available at arrival that the child particularly enjoys so that
you or the parent can settle the child at an activity.
Ensure familiar adults greet both the child and the parent on arrival and
are available to assist with settling the child.
Encourage the child to bring a security toy, comforter or photo of their
family from home that acts as an emotional link.
Have a personalised space where the child can keep their bag and
personal items.
Certificate III in Children’s Services: CHCCN302A: Reader LO 9201
© NSW DET 2010
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Be involved in the goodbye ritual so you can support both the parent and
the child and so that is a positive transition from parent to carer.
Ensure that parents say goodbye. If parents sneak away to avoid the
separation ordeal or leave in an abrupt manner the child’s trust in them
and you can diminish and later separations can become more stressful.
Parents should tell the child they are coming back and indicate, in a way
the child understands, when they are returning.
Allow children and parents to develop their own personal goodbye ritual.
Cuddles and kisses are usually part of this and children often like to wave
goodbye from a window, door or back fence.
Once the parent needs to or decides to leave, don’t vacillate and don’t
prolong the departure. Parents should complete their goodbyes and leave
even if the child is highly distressed.
Develop a positive relationship with the parents as well as the child.
Children will be far more settled with an adult whom they feel their
parents know and trust.
As suggested earlier, parents themselves will often feel anxious and distressed at
leaving their child. The above strategies will also help to alleviate parents’
anxieties as well.
Strategies for parents
Some other things you can do to help parents are:
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Explain that separation anxiety and stress are normal and healthy.
Separation and goodbyes need to be as unhurried and relaxed as possible
but if the parents or child are anxious tell them to limit their arrival and
goodbye routines to about 10 minutes. Don’t prolong the agony!
If they are anxious and upset when they leave suggest that they spend
some time to calm down. The drive to work, a cup of coffee or time with a
friend can put things in perspective.
Discourage parents from returning to their child after saying goodbye.
This affects trust and confuses the child.
Encourage them to phone and check how their child is doing later in the
day.
Take photos of the child engaged in activities through the day to share
with the parent.
Whatever the situation may be carers and parents need to talk about the best
ways to settle individual children into the child care or preschool environment.
Implementing appropriate arrival strategies and dealing with separation in a calm
and reassuring manner will do much to minimise the anxiety of both the children
and their parents.
Certificate III in Children’s Services: CHCCN302A: Reader LO 9201
© NSW DET 2010
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