DAYCARE ASSISTANTS’ ROUTINE

a descriptive study

Abstract

The purpose of this  study was to record and categorize the routine activities  developed by daycare  assistants working in a daycare for  lowsocioeconomic status families located in a slum in the city  of  Rio de Janeiro. A total of 339 observational sessions were  conducted during fourand half months, in  different periods  of the day, in a variety of settings. Results indicated that the  daycare assistants  mainly engaged in assistentialist routines  directed to provide supervision, hygiene and food to the  children. The participants’ lack of satisfaction at work  place,augmented by diverse institutional issues,  seemed to  partially explain the lack of play and pedagogical routines. In  general these activities, rarely required from the daycare  directory, were viewed as extra tasks that were tiring, tedious  and  dependent on the assistant’s mood.