How Do You Divide Children Into Rooms?

[missbecky]

The center I am currently at has the following room set up. 2-9 months, 9-18 months, 18-24 months, 2 years, 3 years, 4 & 5 year olds. The problem with this system is that some 9 month olds can't crawl yet and some 13 month olds are running everyone else over and need to move. Not to mention that the parents get hung up on the number and get grouchy if their child has to move even a week 'early' or 'late' according to the age on the door.

We are trying to change it so it is more developmentally appropriate...especially in the infant and toddler rooms. I've seen centers that do infants, crawlers, walkers, 2's, etc.

What system do you use and how do you feel it works?

We have 3 rooms for under 24 months. We can have 8 in each legally. What do you suggest we try and why?

[jenboo]

what about something like 0- walking, walking to 18 months and 18 months-2 yrs

[Blackcat31]

I am not a center but I still have separate ages/stages in different rooms.

I separate them as non-mobile, mobile (either crawling or walking), 2-3 yr olds, 4-5 yr olds.

The only time I use age as a factor in moving them from one group to another is at 2 yrs (24 months) and at 4.

I do this because ratios change when a child turns 2yrs/24 months here and I do it because at 4 yrs old, the kids participate daily (verses whenever they want to) in school readiness activities.

I am hesitant to move a 3 yr old that is not toilet trained into my 4-5 yr group as parent's seem to push their child to be toilet trained too soon in order to "make the move" plus their definition of trained and my definition are usually very different.

[happymom]

My daycare center uses
infants (babies who do not meet the criteria to move to the ones room)
ones (must be at least 12 months, walking and down to 1 nap per day and off bottles)
twos (over 24 months, no other criteria)
threes (at least 36 months AND toilet trained)
four/five (they use the sept 1st cut off and move according to their age on sept 1st)
school aged (kindergarten +)

[flying_babyb]

we had the:
apple seeds birth to crawling
apple seedlings: crawling to early walking
apple buds: walking and toddling (all kids to two)
Blossoms: 2 year olds
Yellow apples:3-5
Red apples: 3-5
Green Apples: 3-5

right in the daycare contract it said that moving up was based on child development based on teacher input. Worked at another center that did looping (google it, worth a read). The 4 kids in each group would move up together, with there teacher, so it would be the birth to 4 months in one group and then 4-6 in second group and all those kids would move with there classmates and teacher till they hit preschool. was pretty cool.