OCFP Office of Child and Family Policy	Department of Children and Family Services
	Index No: 2001.11	Issuance Date: October 19, 2001
	Origin of Request: Central Office of Licensing
	Distribution: Licensing Staff, Administrative Staff, Office of Child and Family Policy (A,L,P)
	Key Words: Supervision, Naptime, Sleep.
	Approved by:

Interpretation

Question: Can daytime caregivers sleep during children’s naptime considering that it is not required for night time caregivers to be awake when children sleep?

Applicable To: Licensed Day Care Homes

Policy Citation: Section 406.16 Activity Requirements

3) Regularity in routines such as, but not limited to, eating, napping, and toileting, with sufficient flexibility to respond to the needs of the individual shall be provided.

8) Children shall not be left unattended and supervision shall be provided at all times.

Section 406.23 Night Care

g) Caregivers and children receiving night care shall sleep on the same floor (level) of the residence.

Discussion: There is a fundamental difference between day napping and nighttime sleeping. Naps are short time rest periods for children, but not all children nap as a form of rest period. The National Health and Safety Performance Standards state: “Most preschool children in all-day care benefit from scheduled periods of rest. This rest may take the form of actual napping, a quiet time, or a change of pace between activities. The times of naps will affect behavior at home.”

Not all children nap at the same time for the same duration of time. Children are easily awakened during naptime, thus children shall not be left unattended and close supervision is

required when children nap. If a daytime caregiver desires to rest while children are napping, a change of activity or sitting near the children would provide sufficient opportunity for rest.

There would be a serous concern of sleep deficiency on the part of the caregiver if the caregiver needs to sleep during the children’s naptime.

Children, who sleep in a night care facility would normally go into a more deep and prolonged sleep that usually lasts several hours, and a caregiver must be nearby. Here again the National Health and Safety Performance Standards state: “That no child shall be left alone or unsupervised while under the care of the child care staff. Caregivers shall supervise children at all times, even when the children are sleeping (a caregiver must be able to both see and hear infants while they are sleeping). Caregivers shall not be on one floor while children are on another floor.”

Response: Daytime caregivers shall not sleep during children’s naptime.