Does Your Toddler's Daycare Have Padded Flooring in the Outside Area?

I have never heard of outdoor padding. Kids fall down and skin their knees. When a baby is crawling around I can understand a padded floor, but not as a walker.

4 moms found this helpful

Concrete or wood chips are the norm. Rubberized playground padding or mulch costs a fortune, and honestly, just how much do we want to overprotect our kids? They NEED some bumps, bruises and scrapes on childhood! My two year old has come home twice with knots on his head and usually has scraped and bruised shins and knees from the playground at his preschool. My 5 year old just doesn't bruise easily at all, because he's rough and falls while playing all the time. Kids have to learn to afapt to the world -we don't need to adapt it all for them.

4 moms found this helpful

I've never seen padded outdoor flooring at any daycare here in Austin. I would think that, once the child starts to wear real shoes (not soft soled shoes), it would be difficult to keep it sanitized (usually the health code says you have to take shoes off on padded floors, right?) The daycare our children attend has a grass and concrete area for the toddlers.

Are you referring to a rubberized outdoor sports area? Haven't seen those in daycares either. They're expensive...

3 moms found this helpful

In MN, at least in Home Childcare, when a child turns 2, they are considered a preschooler for our ratios. I do believe its a little different for center based care ratios.

I don't mean to be the nay-sayer here...but really? Do you really think they need to have a padded ground outside? Here in MN it just could never be maintained so I would be super surprised if it was code in centers (I mean maintained as far as changing weather conditions). I know in a home daycare, nothing like that is code. Supervision is key and sometimes 2 year old just fall down.

My 2 year olds are pretty independent. Most potty train right at the 2nd birthday (I support and encourage a "3 day potty training" regiment as a guide and most parents do this..starts at home on a long weekend as close to the 2nd birthday...most are fully day trained within a week or 2 at the longest). They drink from a cup with no lid, wash hands almost alone, use utensils, etc. I would never expect this sort of independance if I bubble wrapped all of their environments.

Sorry, Just my opinion.

3 moms found this helpful

There only needs to be a cushion, rubber mat, mulch, ect. under structures from which children can fall, so if the only toys available are ride ons and other such things, no swings or climbing equipment, then it's perfectly fine.

2 moms found this helpful

From my experience, not having padding on the ground is pretty common. Personally, I would rather have the concrete or bark chips. Bark chips are often collected/scooped up and played with. Rubber contains lots of toxic chemicals, and I'd rather my child not be scooping those rubber chips up. By toddlerhood, though, they are usually more adept at getting around.

2 moms found this helpful

If the kids are outside, there will be outside outdoor surfaces.
Either:
concrete
wood bark chips/mulch
grass
Just like at any public park.

Or, a rubber matting.

But is it not, a requirement nor mandatory.
Yes, children fall.
Especially toddlers.
Kids.

Now, any daycare should have normal protocol on how they handle 'injury' and informing you, and covering the wound etc., and having a first aid kit and trained personnel.
That is, important. So to me, that is more important.

Like Hazel W. said below: it is common to have concrete. And I find wood bark chips more dangerous as well.

2 moms found this helpful

Is your driveway padded?
I don't mean to sound facetious, but you can't pad everything everywhere.
My son took a header running too fast for his feet in our driveway. His very first portraits taken at daycare/preschool document the huge garf on his forehead. It happens.
He was in a lovely private school with a totally kid-proof and safe play area. But there was concrete between the class and the play area.
If my son biffed it at school, I would have felt terrible about it, but I wouldn't expect them to have a padded path.

There's only so much anyone can do to prevent injuries. Little kids fall down. I live in a rural area and you would faint if you knew how many fundraisers it can take to get new playground equipment even in the public schools. It's painfully expensive. You can talk to the director about it. You can even spearhead fundraisers. Your son may well be in kindergarten by the time the money is raised, but you can set things in motion if you have enough other parents in support of the idea.
Safety regulations differ greatly depending on many things. It's impossible to know if your daycare is up to code unless you ask.

I'm sorry your little one got an ouchie. I really am. Mine always got more scraped up at home and I was worried the school would think something about ME.

Best wishes.

1 mom found this helpful

I can see having the padding for the One's area, since those kids are new walkers & still very clumsy unsure of themselves.

At 2, they are pretty steady. Padding under a play structure? It's the law. Padding on every surface they walk on outdoors? Not likely. Do you have your garage/driveway/patio/walkway padded? Are you kitchen & bathroom (s) padded? I'm guessing not.

Kids fall & get scraped/bruised knees at daycare, at the park, at home. You could be standing right there & it will still happen. It's normal & not anything to get worked up over. Unfortunately, the world is not padded. Unless you keep your kid in a bubble, he will get hurt from time to time.

It's not something you can really complain about to the director since it's a normal/acceptable occurrence. It's like complaining that the 2's room is too noisy & the kids are too active. I am all for complaining WHEN APPROPRIATE, but please don't be that overbearing, overly paranoid mom who makes a big deal of things that can't be prevented.

1 mom found this helpful

Just because daycares are doing it everywhere, doesn't mean its right. Believe me, if enough kids wind up with concussions or worse because the schools are too cheap to put in better flooring, that will change.

Just recently, cities across the country came under fire for putting in playground equipment and the surrounding turf that didn't diffuse heat during the summer months and kids everywhere were being hospitalized in burn units after getting third and fourth degree burns. It was a 20/20 investigation if I remember correctly...about 2 years ago.

If you think the floors need to be made safer with padding or whatever, say something to the school about it. They may label you a whiner etc. but if anything happens to your kid afterwards, you'll have one heck of a case against them!

A swollen and bruised knee can be a big deal if it's serious enough. I don't think it's good that the school is discounting your concern. I'd be looking elsewhere and not rely on the replies of moms you don't know. Have you seen their daycares? They might be sending their kids to a bad facility for all you know. If you think your kid's school can do better, say something. The school probably needs to hear it. JMO.

Wood chips. And they get in everything -shoes, hair etc. I even found some in his diaper once! (and of course talked with his teacher).

His current daycare has a mixed outdoor area: some concrete, sand/woodchips and wood. Important thing is not to have hard surfaces below play structures. Otherwise, you have concrete floors everywhere you cannot avoid.

the entire play yard that at our daycare is padded. Perhaps this b/c the play yard is on Government property?.

No outdoor padding at my child's daycare - however, its not concrete, either. Its grass and bark mulch.

I'm not crazy about the idea of a play area that is all concrete, for any age group. As a former elementary school teacher, all kids run and and play and so they all fall down at some time and concrete isnt a great thing to fall on. At our school, it was also grass and bark mulch on the play ground, and then asphalt on the courts.

I think I would look for another day care with a more appropriate play yard.

I have a family daycare and in Michigan and if the play structure is higher than 30 inches they cannot be placed over concrete, asphalt, or any other hard surface, such as hard packed dirt or grass. Out here a lot of places have sand, mulch or small pebbles to absorb contact. I am not sure what your state requires but you can probably find out online.

you might want to ask the director. I know in NV all daycares have to have it to be in code.