How healthy is your child care center?

See how many best practices your daycare, preschool, or in-home provider is already using

Children play with their caregiver in a child care room
Children engage in active play with their caregiver in a child care classroom

Here are some—but not all—of the documented best practices for nutrition and physical activity in child care centers. How many are embedded in your provider’s daily routines?

* Does your child care provider offer at least 120 minutes of physical play for all children age five and under every day?
* Does active play include structured activities led by adults?
* Does active play include unstructured activities determined by children?
* Does at least 60 minutes of each day’s active play take place outdoors when weather permits?
* Are balls, hula hoops, wagons, bicycles, and similar physical activity equipment visible and accessible to children?
* Are teachers and volunteers dressed for movement and active play?
* Do teachers and volunteers actively participate and encourage movement?
* Does your provider serve meals and snacks “family style,” allowing children to serve themselves with appropriate tools?
* Does your provider serve water or age-appropriate unflavored milk with meals and snacks?
* Is fruit juice or vegetable juice limited to just one serving per day or less?
* Is a fruit and vegetable served at lunch (and dinner if appropriate) for all children over one year of age?
* Is at least one of the two components of every snack a fruit or vegetable?
* Does your provider offer two servings of whole grains every day?
* Does your provider reward children with extra opportunities for physical play and avoid food rewards such as sweets?
* Does your provider offer wellness education to families, including tips in newsletters, hallway signs, or extracurricular events?

Dad and son on tricycle outside

Don’t be discouraged if you didn’t check off as many items as you would have liked. Many child care providers are just getting started on their wellness policies. You can encourage your childcare to create and enforce a wellness policy. If you’re an early childhood education administrator employee, Jump IN for Healthy Kids can connect you to resources to address the items you’d like – or even to assess more thoroughly which goals may be the most attainable given where you are now. Start by visiting our Resource Hub for dozens of free, downloadable tools. You can search by subject. Can’t find what you’re looking for? Contact us for help.