You’ll know from previous blogposts, that I’m particularly interested at the moment in how babies show self-determination and agency – how they make choices for themselves and how they make things happen in the world around them. I wonder how this focus on self-determination and agency might change the way we see personal hygiene and care in the baby room.
When it comes to changing nappies in the baby room, what I see in practice is a kind of spectrum.
At one end of the spectrum there is a baby room with a clear rota of nappy changing duties. There is likely to be one member of staff responsible for changing all of the babies’ nappies over a given period of time. They have a list and they work through that list to get all of the nappies changed. Because the educator is thinking a lot about getting through that list, they tend to prioritise efficiency over communication and responsiveness. They don’t worry too much about what babies were doing at the time when they need to have their nappy changed – the nappy change takes priority. And the nappy change itself is as quick as possible, perhaps with a little song to keep the baby happy, but essentially this is a task to be ticked off the list. The list matters because (understandably) baby room educators don’t want to be ‘caught out’ that when parents or carers come to pick up their baby, they will find that their nappy hasn’t been changed in a while.
At the other end of the spectrum, there is a baby room that aims to be more responsive with nappy changing. Different members of staff take responsibility for nappy-changing because it is seen as an integrated part of the learning and care that goes on in the baby room. That means that if an educator playing with a child notices a smell, they see if it’s possible to attend to it at that moment – asking the child what they would prefer. At the same time, if a baby is particularly engaged with an activity or toy and happily playing, they might delay a nappy change in that the babies’ actions are demonstrating that they are busy with something else. When the nappy change happens, because it is part of the learning and care, it can be done without a rush. There can be a conversation with the baby on the way to the nappy changing area and lots of play, talk and singing while the nappy is changed. The baby might be invited to help with the nappy change however they can or want to – holding the fresh nappy maybe, or holding the tube of cream. The responsiveness means that there isn’t such a clear list and no guarantee that a baby’s nappy will have been changed recently when a parent or carer arrives.
Is it fair to characterise baby room practice around personal hygiene and care in this way? Are there other ways that baby room educators can respond to babies’ self-determination and agency when it comes to changing nappies? Is it feasible to work without a list or a rota of nappy changes and to prioritise responsiveness instead?
I’m so excited to dig deeper into all of these ideas and questions with baby room educators on Wednesday 22nd November when our course about rights-based learning and care in the baby room begins. If you’re interested in the course, please do take a look – there are still a few places left and it isn’t too late to book.