Reviewing and Drafting a Guidance and Touch Policy

1. Ask your coach, trainer, or family child care administrator for copies of Guidance and Touch Policies used in other family child care settings.
2. Read them carefully. As you read, consider these quality standards aboutPositive Disciplinefrom the National Association for Family Child Care Foundation (2013):
   • Positive guidance, appropriate for the developmental abilities of each child, is used to help children gain self-control and take responsibility for their own behavior.
   • The provider clearly explains to children in a positive way what is expected of them.
   • The provider minimizes toddlers' frustrations through redirection.
   • The provider frequently lets children experience the consequences of their own misbehavior, if this is safe, rather than punishing them.
   • The provider avoids power struggles with children. Children age 3 and older have opportunities to assert their power by taking responsibility as leaders and helpers.
   • No form of physical punishment or humiliation is ever used. The provider does not criticize, shame, tease hurtfully, threaten or yell at children, and is not physically rough with the children.
3. If you do not yet have a policy on guidance, discipline, and touch, what would put in your family child care policy? If you already have one, how would you update your current policy based on the examples you read and the material in this lesson?
4. Write or update your policy on guidance, discipline, and touch. Share it with your coach or trainer for his or her feedback. Once finalized, place it in your family child care handbook (the one you share with enrolled families and your back-up provider, and any assistants). Make sure that families and anyone else who helps you provide care are aware of these policies and any updates you made.