Connecting through care
Moments of care can be rushed through or they can be honored. At POTA we know how pivotal moments of care are to development. Infants learn through their interactions with adults and the world around them. Feeding times, diaper changes and other moments of care are viewed as valuable opportunities to nurture infant development. Our infant educators are trained in the RIE approach; Resources for Infant Educarers. The term “educarers” highlights the philosophical approach which requires that educators build on the relationship teachers form with infants and children.
Our focus is connecting with infants during moments of care and elevating those moments to include mindful interactions that promote the development of age appropriate skills. During diaper changes and feeding as well as during play, our educators establish eye contact, smile and speak with children, promoting awareness of physical, social, and emotional self as well as beginnings of language. They provide infants many opportunities to engage with their thoughtfully curated environment. This allows their natural independence to emerge and flourish, all with the support of their teachers and in connection with their peers.
Babies are carefully observed and their learning and experiences are documented and reported to parents, thereby maintaining a consistent home-school connection.
Program Features
- Connecting through moments of care
- Infants are respected as individuals and self-motivated learners
- Babies are initiators and explorers
- Environment is physically safe, cognitively challenging
- Approach is emotionally nurturing
- Time for uninterrupted play with time to explore
- Sensitive observation and understand their development and needs.