Infant Curriculum - St. Cloud State University

Infant Curriculum
Lindgren Child Care Center
Philosophy of the Infant Program
The philosophy of the infant program is based upon these beliefs:
Infants develop trust when their needs are met quickly and
sensitively.
Infants are competent; they tell us what they need through body
language, crying, and gestures. It is our job to read what they are
telling us and be responsive to them.
We respect the babies’ interests, moods, and tempos.
It is important to provide age-appropriate opportunities for
learning in the 4 developmental domains: social-emotional,
physical, cognitive, and language development.
Decisions about curricula and care of the babies are based upon
knowledge of child development and developmentally appropriate
practice.
4 Developmental Domains of the Infant Curriculum:
The infant curriculum is based on the Early Childhood Indicators of Progress
(Minnesota Early Learning Guidelines for Birth to 3). The indicators are divided
into four domains which reflect the full range of child development.
Domain I: Social and Emotional Development
Domain II: Language Development and Communication
Domain III: Cognitive Development
Domain IV: Physical and Motor Development
This developmentally-based curriculum is carried out through the caregiving,
the environment, and activities in the infant program.
10/23/12 1

Caregiving:
We believe that sensitive, responsive care-giving builds the foundation
for the basic trust that every child needs for success throughout life. Our
primary goal in the infant curriculum is to help infants develop a sense of
trust and pleasure in their relationships with their caregivers and in their
new environment.
Individual Needs Are Met
Even though it is a group setting, we strive to follow each baby’s
individual schedule for eating and sleeping. A parent conference prior to
the baby’s entry to the program helps us get to know the baby’s needs
and preferences. The lead teacher maintains on-going communication
with the infant parents to keep abreast of changes that each baby is
undergoing in eating, sleeping and development.
Eating patterns are posted in the room to ensure consistency among
staff, and so parents know that the eating patterns at the center align
with the baby’s pattern at home.
Interaction
Trust is the developmental job of the infants. We strive to help babies
develop trust by training staff to interact with the babies in a respectful
and caring manner. Another way that we help the infants develop trust is
by giving them advance notice before transitioning to another activity.
Staff does this through telling what they are going to do, the use of
gestures, showing objects (such as a diaper before diapering time), and
sign language.
Crying is Communication
We view crying as one way that the babies communicate their needs to
us. Crying is not viewed as negative. We “read” what the babies are telling
us and try to comfort them as soon as possible.
The babies can feel what they need to feel. Our philosophy is that all of
their feelings are legitimate.
10/23/12 2

Environment:
The infants are free to explore the environment as they wish.
Areas of the Room
A variety of areas in the room serve to encourage and support
development in all domains:
AREAS
EXAMPLES OF EQUIPMENT
Large Motor Young Babies: Blanket on the floor for “tummy time”,
toys hanging from the frame, cloth blocks.
Older Babies: carpeted steps, push and pull toys,
riding toys, large blocks, large vehicles, plastic
shopping carts, and sensory tables.
Small Motor,
Manipulatives,
& Problem-
Solving
Toys with parts to manipulate and loose parts to put
in and out of, etc. Rattles, small balls, busy boxes,
accordion tubes, nesting cups, baby Duplos, shape
sorting, small vehicles. Some real objects are used for
example, measuring cups, plastic dishes, etc.
“Retreats”
Books
Sensory
Small, semi-enclosed spaces are provided in the room
where babies can get away from the group and have
privacy. In our room, there is a space behind the toy
shelves, the quiet corner, the “nest" and the foam
cube.
Cardboard books are on the shelf for the babies to
use with the staff and vinyl and cloth books are
available for the babies to explore independently. Our
books have realistic pictures, simple and interesting
language and textures, and include scenarios that are
part of a baby’s everyday world.
We provide a “sensorially rich” room. A variety of
textures are provided in the toys, rugs, pillows, and
items in the sensory tables.
10/23/12 3

Dramatic Play
Visual
Object
Permanence
Rocking Chairs
Telephones, scarves, real dishes, vehicles, plastic and
cloth animals, multi-cultural dolls and figures.
High contrast mobiles facing downwards for young
babies, realistic pictures, art reproductions, kites,
piñatas, lanterns, wall hangings, family pictures.
Tube and balls, peek-a-boo scarves, “now you see it,
now you don’t” toys, such as the jack-in-the-box.
Glider rocking chairs are provided for the socialemotional
development of the babies. They are good
places for cuddling, drinking a bottle, looking at
books and observing what is happening in the room.
Toys are Rotated
Toys are rotated according to the babies’ interests and developmental
levels. Each week, some of the toys are changed in order to maintain
interest of, and simulate the babies’ development. Some toys remain the
same because babies enjoy repetition, playing with the same toys in new
ways and the feeling of mastery of a toy.
Toys: Educational Value and Stimulation Level
The toys in our room are chosen for their play value to the children. The
toys are non-electronic for optimal development of the babies. The toys
we use encourage the children to make the sounds and do the
movements with their own bodies, instead of the toy doing it for them.
Also, non-electronic toys minimize noise in the room lower the room is
not over-stimulating. The toys we choose have varied functions and are
designed to encourage babies to experiment with cause-effect, object
permanence, etc. which are concepts they are working on at this age. We
do not use videos with the babies, because we believe interactive
experiences with things and people are better for all around
development. We follow the recommendation of the American Academy
of Pediatrics that children under 2 years do not watch television.
10/23/12 4

Real Objects and Representations Are Used
Real objects are part of the environment, to help the baby learn about the
real world about them, and babies are usually very interested in the real
objects of the world.
Likewise, the pictures used in the room are real representations of our
world, as opposed to cartoon pictures to show that we respect that
babies are competent and can learn about real things. Visuals in the room
include people in loving relationships and show babies as competent and
lovable.
Diversity
Diversity is interwoven into the environment in the toys, activities and
visuals. Thus our room is a “mirror” to the child and also a “window” to be
exposed to people and objects of various cultures. Multi-cultural
pictures, dolls and puppets are included in the environment. Scarves and
the small pillows of various skin tone colors show that all skin tone colors
are valued and beautiful. Multi-cultural colors are used in crayons and
paint for creative activities. We also invite parents to bring items of their
culture to be part of our room.
Nature and Beauty
Nature is part of the babies’ world every day in our room. We feel it is an
important feature of the room because it adds beauty, serenity and a
feeling of renewal and joy to the room. Plants, fish, fresh flowers,
pictures of animals, and nature scenes are a part of our environment. We
also play pleasant CD’s, which incorporate the sounds of nature. The
babies also enjoy watching the birds at the bird feeders in the toddler
room.
Outdoors provide firsthand contact with nature, and we go outdoors with
the infants as weather and individual schedules permit.
Music
Calming music is played periodically throughout the day to lend a
calming atmosphere and a feeling of well-being to the room while
10/23/12 5

children are playing. Relaxation music is often used to help a baby calm
down and go to sleep. Sometimes we play lively music to dance to, which
is good for large and small motor coordination, as well as auditory
development. A variety of music is used, with different beats and tempos,
and reflective of various cultures.
Activities:
Activities are offered on a daily basis include singing, books, sensory
activities, and outdoor time. Creative activities are offered to the older
infants when they are able to experience them safely.
Singing
Language development, social development and movement are
encouraged when we sing together every day. Repetition of favorite songs
and actions encourage auditory and motor memory. Doing actions with
the words is a precursor to reading; it is the beginning of associations of
a symbol (action) with the spoken word.
Puppets encourage visual tracking and keep the babies’ interest. Musical
instruments encourage movement and coordination.
Books
Cloth and vinyl books are always available to the babies; they can explore
them independently at any time. The cardboard books are looked at oneon-one
with a caregiver with the babies show interest. Many times the
books are used with the babies before naptime to help them to relax. Our
“library” includes books which are multi-cultural, show non-stereotypical
gender roles and are inclusive of people with differing abilities and ages.
Our books have realistic pictures to reflect the world as it is.
The books also contain interesting sounds of language (rhyme and
repetition) and many have interesting textures to touch. Some are
wordless and some have a few words and simple language which
encourages language development. Social and emotional developments
also are promoted through the warm interactions between the baby and
caregiver as they look at the books together.
10/23/12 6

Outdoor Time
The younger babies enjoy sitting/lying on a blanket with staff and small
toys in the fenced in outdoor infant area. At times we give them stroller
rides through the playground or on campus, or staff carries the babies
around the playground so they can observe nature and the older children.
Activities for the older babies include playing with the large motor
equipment in the outdoor infant area, such as riding and push toys, the
sandbox and tunnel.
Sensory
We provide a “sensorially rich” room; a variety of textures, visuals, and
sounds are integrated into the room’s environment. These experiences
encourage the babies to be explorative. It is through interaction with
these materials that they construct knowledge of the world. For example,
they can learn about spatial relationships (math learning) and properties
of materials, such as, what is the same and different (pre-reading).
Sensory activities are offered, such as water play, crinkle paper, feathers,
cotton balls, etc. These are done under close supervision for safety, and
are offered to babies according to their ability to play with them safely.
Sensory activities also promote balance as children use their hands while
standing, and practice in eye-hand coordination and problem-solving
opportunities.
Creative
Creative activities are offered to the older babies.
Examples of creative activities which we offer are play dough, painting
and putting objects onto contact paper. In addition to giving babies
experience with media, these activities promote eye-hand coordination
as well as large and small motor development.
10/23/12 7

Assessment
The infants are assessed by observation and by the Creative Curriculum
Gold Assessment and Indicators of Progress, according to their
enrollment. Assessment is an on-going process throughout the year and
the assessment results are shared with the infant parents.
10/23/12 8