Acclimatization

In the crib of the asc-Kin­der­be­treu­ungs gGmbH faci­li­ties, we place great empha­sis on the gentle inte­gra­tion of the child­ren ent­rus­ted to us, dra­wing on the insights of attach­ment theory. During the inte­gra­tion period, we adhere to the “Ber­li­ner Ein­ge­wöh­nungs­mo­dell” and incor­po­rate the pedagogy of Emmi Pik­ler into our prac­ti­ces. Inte­gra­tion is fun­da­men­tal to avoid detri­men­tal effects on children’s deve­lo­p­ment and to fos­ter bonds with the care­gi­vers, wit­hout com­pro­mi­sing their attach­ment to par­ents. The day­care envi­ron­ment pres­ents a com­ple­tely new set­ting for the child, with unfa­mi­liar adults, unknown child­ren, and new spaces. Wit­hout the pre­sence of a trus­ted indi­vi­dual, the child could feel over­whel­med. This unders­cores the signi­fi­cance of the inte­gra­tion period, during which each child builds a rela­ti­onship with their care­gi­ver. The child needs to feel secure in this new envi­ron­ment. Only when par­ents model trust in the care­gi­vers can their child deve­lop and rein­force trust them­sel­ves.

For the inte­gra­tion of new child­ren in the nur­sery, we have deve­lo­ped a pedago­gi­cal gui­de­line based on the work of our spe­cia­list groups (Depart­ment of Nur­sery Pedagogy and Depart­ment of Kin­der­gar­ten Pedagogy).

After the con­tract is signed, there will be an intro­duc­tory and con­sul­ta­tion mee­ting held at the day­care cen­ter. Addi­tio­nally, par­ents will be invi­ted to an intro­duc­tory parent evening before the start of the new kin­der­gar­ten year. During this evening, the inte­gra­tion con­cept will be explai­ned, and docu­ments for the initial days at our day­care will be dis­tri­bu­ted. Fur­ther­more, par­ents will have the oppor­tu­nity to visit the day­care cen­ter as part of a trial day. Appro­xi­m­ately two weeks before the start of the inte­gra­tion pro­cess, there will be an intake mee­ting to dis­cuss the cur­rent situa­tion of the child and the family.

„Lasst mir Zeit!“ (Emmi Pik­ler)

The dura­tion of the inte­gra­tion pro­cess (3/4 days) typi­cally aver­a­ges about 3 to 4 weeks. The period bet­ween the start of inte­gra­tion and the return to work should the­r­e­fore not be too short, as par­ents are also invol­ved in the inte­gra­tion pro­cess. Inte­gra­tion into the after­noon sche­dule occurs sub­se­quently or by arran­ge­ment, with an expec­ted inte­gra­tion period of at least one week. In cases of ill­ness, absence, or non-accep­tance of the initial sepa­ra­tion, the inte­gra­tion period may be exten­ded. It is important to note that the start of the con­tract is not auto­ma­ti­cally the first day of inte­gra­tion. The start date of the inte­gra­tion pro­cess will be com­mu­ni­ca­ted to you sepa­ra­tely.

„Ohne Eltern geht es nicht.“ (Hans-Joa­chim Lae­wen)

The inte­gra­tion pro­cess is a signi­fi­cant chall­enge for every child. Unfa­mi­liar adults and child­ren, unknown spaces, a chan­ged daily rou­tine, and being sepa­ra­ted from par­ents for seve­ral hours can be stressful. While very young child­ren are capa­ble of mana­ging this situa­tion, they can be over­whel­med wit­hout the sup­port of their par­ents.

How can par­ents sup­port their child’s adapt­a­tion?

This sup­port occurs when the mother or father accom­pa­nies the child during the first days in the group. It’s not about actively struc­tu­ring the time; sim­ply being pre­sent in the room suf­fices. This pro­vi­des the child with a “safe haven” (a place of retreat). Under these cir­cum­s­tances, a child can more easily become fami­liar with and detach from the new envi­ron­ment.

<h3I’m New Here – The Adapt­a­tion Pha­ses in the Nur­sery

Pro­ce­dure of Adapt­a­tion Accor­ding to the Ber­lin Adapt­a­tion Model:

1. The three-day initial phase:
   • One parent accom­pa­nies the child for a trial visit
   • Careful estab­lish­ment of cont­act bet­ween the care­gi­ver and the
     child
   • During the basic phase, no attempt to sepa­rate takes place!
2. The first sepa­ra­tion attempt:
   • At the end of the fourth day, the first sepa­ra­tion attempt is made.
   • Through obser­va­tion of the child during the initial phase, sepa­ra­tion, and return pha­ses, it is deter­mi­ned to what ext­ent the child needs the pre­sence of the accom­pany­ing parent.
   • The edu­ca­tor dis­cus­ses with the parent the approach for the next few days, adjus­ting the time frame accor­din­gly.
   • If the child does not yet accept the sepa­ra­tion from the parent, a lon­ger adjus­t­ment period is nee­ded, and ano­ther sepa­ra­tion attempt will occur only in the second week.
3. The sta­bi­liza­tion phase:
   • Deve­lo­p­ment of a brief fare­well ritual
   • Under obser­va­tion of the child, the period bet­ween sepa­ra­tion and return is gra­du­ally increased daily, indi­vi­du­ally and by agree­ment. (The par­ents remain nearby.)
4. The final phase:
   • The sett­ling-in pro­cess is essen­ti­ally com­ple­ted, and the edu­ca­tor is accepted by the child as a “secure base.”

At the con­clu­sion of the sett­ling-in phase, which can vary in dura­tion depen­ding on the child, a joint dis­cus­sion takes place bet­ween the par­ents and the edu­ca­tor. This is an oppor­tu­nity to address any remai­ning ques­ti­ons and dis­cuss sug­ges­ti­ons for the child’s fur­ther deve­lo­p­ment.