Pedagogical plan
This plan has been drawn up in line with the Dutch government requirements that take effect on 1 July 2026. It describes who I am, how I work and what my pedagogical vision is.
The childcare
Who are we, which children do we care for, and what are our core values?
At Home Gastouderopvang is a small-scale, professional childminding service in a warm, homely setting. The care takes place in our own house, which has been arranged specifically to offer children a safe, rich and stimulating environment.
Our family consists of our twins, Logan and Naomi, dad Bill and mum Melanie, together with our dogs Riley and Toby and our cat Jimmy. We welcome several children throughout the week, except on Wednesdays. Dad is often out during care days and our own children are at school, though they are frequently around in the afternoons. During the day there are at most four day-care children aged 0 to 4. On some days up to two after-school children join from 14:00.
We work from two fixed starting points: the Reggio Emilia approach and the four pedagogical goals set out in the Dutch Childcare Act (Riksen-Walraven, 2004; see section 6). Together they form the basis of everything we do.
Independence and self-confidence
Independence
We encourage children to do for themselves whatever they are able to do. Whether it is getting dressed, pouring a drink or resolving a disagreement: we do not step in straight away, we encourage. That is how children build real skills that stay with them for life.
Self-confidence
Encouraging children to do what they can do themselves builds independence, and it grows their confidence too. Every child who manages something it tried on its own grows a little. We believe in the child, even when the child does not quite believe in itself yet.
How we work
What our day looks like and how that supports children's development. How we help new children settle in.
Our day consists of a number of fixed moments that give children structure and predictability. These moments are announced by playing music or singing a song: a hand-washing song, a song before the meal, a cheerful tidying-up song. Because of this even the youngest children quickly know what is coming, and moving from one activity to the next becomes far easier to accept.
Alongside a fixed structure I also believe strongly in following each child's own rhythm. At first that sounds contradictory, but in practice it works well. With babies and young children I watch closely for the signals the child gives and follow them. What I learned from my specialist baby training and my years of experience on the baby group is that if you notice those signals and respond to them, you create a happy baby. The child feels seen and heard, and its needs are met. That makes a baby feel safe, and the stress it experiences is minimal. Babies who feel good can concentrate fully on developing skills such as language, motor control and social ability. The older a child gets, the more its needs settle into a regular rhythm, and in a group setting that gradually merges with the rhythm of the day.
And when an older child is simply having an off day, or is a little unwell, it may not be able to follow the group rhythm, and there is room for that. Every child is seen and heard, because the group is small and there is room to be flexible.
For new children it is very important that both the parents and the child feel safe before long days begin. Besides an introduction and an intake, during which I ask whether the child can already be present to get a feel for being with me, I ask a parent to be present at least once more during the settling-in period. A parent's presence creates a safe situation for the child, so that it can start to explore. After that we build up the hours until they make a full day. For some children that takes two steps, for others it takes longer. This is a process we look at and discuss for each child and family, with the child as the starting point. As soon as the child feels comfortable, we build up further.
For a full overview of the daily rhythm, see below.
Listening and observing
We follow the children attentively. We record what they say and do in photos and short videos. Together with notes and small stories we send this to parents daily and use it to tune the care further to their interests and needs.
Fixed structure, room for rhythm
We work to a fixed daily routine that gives children something to hold on to, while leaving room for each child's pace. Sleeping, eating and care are matched to the needs of the individual child.
Doing it yourself, with guidance
We help at the moment help is needed, and step back as soon as the child can carry on alone. That applies to getting dressed, laying the table, tidying up and crafting. You learn the most when you are allowed to get back up by yourself after a fall.
Mixed age group
Our group is made up of children of different ages. Younger children learn from older ones, and older children learn by helping and explaining. That is the strength of a mixed group.
Real everyday activities
Cooking, doing the shopping, hanging up the washing, watering the plants: everyday activities are rich learning moments. Children take part in real life around the house and the neighbourhood as much as they can.
Working together with parents
We see parents as partners. We share what we see and hear, and we ask about what parents experience at home. That way the care fits the home situation as closely as possible.
Activities
I work with themes that grow out of the children's own questions and interests. I develop these through the Startblokken early years programme, for which I am certified.
If a child is fascinated by snails, earthworms or shadows, I build a theme around it, for example 'we are forest rangers'. This is known as project-based work, inspired by the Reggio Emilia approach. I follow the children, facilitate their discovery and document what I see.
I am trained in Félice van der Sande's Muziekkwartier method, which brings music, dance and singing into our daily rhythm. I also use the Monkey Moves method to integrate movement, sport and games into activities. These methods keep me inspired and keep the activities varied.
All activities are chosen carefully and matched to the children's developmental stages. For this I use the Startblokken early years method, which lets me devise activities within a theme that suit the various stages of play and development the children are in. I look for each child's zone of proximal development, so that it is encouraged to take that one small step further.
Our regular activities are:
- Painting and crafts
- Building and construction play
- Playing outside and exploring nature
- Reading aloud and telling stories
- Cooking and baking
- Singing and moving
- Role play and imaginative play
- Puzzles and sorting
- Gardening and caring for animals
- Water and sand play
- Music and rhythm
- Tidying up and laying the table together
The play space
We offer a rich, stimulating and safe environment. The space and the play materials are used deliberately as the "third teacher", in keeping with the Reggio Emilia approach. The living room is the main care space, with a large dining table where we eat and make things. There is a big open floor area where a variety of play materials can be laid out and where the play kitchen stands. Several cupboards are within the children's reach so they can fetch materials themselves, and a large sofa invites reading together. There is also a quiet corner where children can withdraw for a while. The garden is set up for play as well, with a sandpit, a playhouse and an outdoor kitchen with a table and chairs. There is a range of play equipment so that children can play in many different ways.
Creative table
At the big table we work with all sorts of creative materials that the children can take from the cupboard themselves. Children create freely, with no prescribed outcome. Sometimes there is also a creative activity that fits the chosen theme. Children remain free to join in or to fetch other materials themselves.
Reading sofa
On the sofa we sit snugly together to read a book or be read to. We crawl under a blanket and enjoy the stories together. Reading aloud and leafing through books together is part of every day. Books are kept on a shelf the children can reach, so they can always take one and settle on the sofa or in the quiet corner.
Building
Wooden blocks, loose parts and open-ended materials children can use to build, balance and practise spatial thinking. We have several tubs of materials the children can fetch themselves and play with on the living room floor.
Play kitchen
The kitchen is a real learning space: in the play kitchen the children act out how cooking happens at home and how I cook. They make breakfast and make me coffee, and together we pretend to eat it. They also help for real: laying the table, cutting fruit and vegetables. We bake as well, and whatever they can do themselves, they are allowed to do themselves.
Outdoors
We go outside every day: into the garden, to the playground or exploring the neighbourhood. Nature, movement and fresh air are a fixed part of the day. Outdoors we find all kinds of things to look at, play with and smell. We turn it into an adventure. The playgrounds nearby offer motor and cognitive challenges for a range of developmental stages.
Sleeping room
In the separate bedroom every child has its own cot. It is a calm, safe place to sleep for babies and toddlers, matched to each individual child's sleep rhythm. Air conditioning means I can always keep the temperature comfortable.
Following development
Every day we take photos and short videos and send them to parents on WhatsApp with a brief account of the day. During the first year of life we also keep a notebook recording each child's individual sleeping and feeding times. Beyond that I follow your child's development with the KIJK child-monitoring method. This is an observation method completed at set moments and handed to you. It means I can spot any possible developmental delay and advise you on the steps that might be taken.
How do I see what children are learning?
Through observation during free play, meals and activities I see what children do. Because the groups are always small and I am always the same familiar face, I know the children through and through. I notice what a child initiates, what it avoids and when it takes a new step. Special moments I record, either in a photo or a video, or I pass them on at handover.
How do I observe development?
I observe informally and continuously, simply by being present. Notes and photos help me recognise patterns and see a child's growth over time. I also use the KIJK child-monitoring system: a booklet in which I record observations at set moments in a child's life.
How do I share this with parents?
Every day I send photos and videos of the day on WhatsApp with short general stories. Personal information I share daily at pick-up. For babies, up to around one year, I keep a booklet with exact sleeping and feeding times. I also track development in the KIJK booklet. The booklets belong to the parents and go with them when the child leaves the childcare.
Pedagogical approach and core goals
We work from two fixed starting points: the Reggio Emilia approach and the four pedagogical goals set out in the Dutch Childcare Act (Riksen-Walraven, 2004). Together they form the basis of everything we do.
The four pedagogical core goals
Dutch law requires childcare to work towards four core goals. Below is how I meet each one in practice, together with the corresponding GGD inspection question.
Emotional safety
As soon as a child joins the childcare, my first priority is that it feels safe. By adapting the settling-in period to what the child needs, and by paying attention to how the parents feel about it, I can already take a big step towards creating a safe environment. I also make sure children feel at home and feel seen and heard, by responding to what they tell me in words and without them. I communicate at eye level as much as I can and give them the love they deserve. Only once they see and feel that I listen to them can I expect them to listen to me. Once I have earned their trust, they can start to focus on their development.
Personal competence
Once a child feels safe it can start to focus on its personal development. When working out a theme I choose activities that stimulate the various areas of development for the different stages the children are in. I always look for the zone of proximal development: what can the child not quite do alone yet, where does it still need a little help, and what will it manage entirely by itself after a few attempts? There are several areas we look at: motor development, cognitive development, sensorimotor development, and speech and language. All of these come back in the Startblokken early years method, which stimulates every one of them through different forms of play.
Social competence
Alongside all the personal areas of development there is social and emotional development. What do we feel, and how do we treat others? In our mixed age group children learn from and with each other. Playing together, dealing with differences and respecting others are everyday themes. We learn to talk to one another and to listen to one another, and they learn that because I set the example. I also guide interactions between the children when I see that it is needed. I put words to what I see happening between them, which gives a situation context and makes it easier for the children to understand.
Norms, values and culture
We pass on values such as respect, honesty and care for our surroundings with real attention. Daily habits and real everyday activities are the best moments to learn them. We learn how to treat each other respectfully, we look after the dogs together and learn how to stroke the animals. We tidy up before starting the next thing. We learn from disagreements by resolving them together. The childcare is a small society in which everything comes up, in a playful way.
Curious about our approach?
Would you like to know more about the pedagogical plan, the day-to-day approach, or simply come and have a look? Please get in touch. We would be glad to tell you more.