Ala. Admin. Code ch. 660-5-26, official text read 8 Nov 2026 · Draft v0.2 · Example room values shown; replace them with the Center's counts.
Rule Readings
r. .04(1)(a)1–3. The table lists 18 months up to 2½ at 1 to 7 and 24–36 months at 1 to 8; the bands overlap for 24–30 months. Option C has no basis in the text and is shown for comparison only.
r. .04(1)(b)8 (nap: 2½ and older at 1 to 36); r. .09(3)(a)1 (sleeping: 2½–4 at 1 to 18, 4 and older at 1 to 25); r. .09(3)(b)3; nighttime care begins 7:00 PM, r. .01(9).
r. .04(1)(b)9 (two, all hours); r. .09(3)(a)3 (one, nighttime). Nighttime rules apply in addition to day rules (r. .09 preamble).
Center Facts
Day care begins no earlier than 5:00 AM; nighttime care begins at 7:00 PM (r. .01(9)). Center hours per Family Handbook: 5:00 AM to 3:00 AM.
Adds the school-age bands (1 to 21; 1 to 22) to the room grid.
Age 18 or older Current pediatric CPR and First Aid
Aides are not counted toward ratio (r. .01(2); r. .06(1)(c)). Enter counted staff per room in the grid below.
Ratio Reference
Every regulatory ratio below is read from the official text of Ala. Admin. Code ch. 660-5-26 (read 8 Nov 2026). The numbers differ because three different paragraphs govern awake care, daytime naps and nighttime sleep, and because the age bands overlap.
Awake care, r. .04(1)(a)1, sets the classroom ratios.
Daytime naps, r. .04(1)(b)8, loosen the ratio for children 18 months and older (1 to 14; 1 to 36 at 2½ and older).
Nighttime sleep, r. .09(3)(a)1, applies from 7:00 PM (r. .01(9)) and is tighter than the day nap ratio for children 2½ and older (1 to 18; 1 to 25).
The 24–36-month band (1 to 8) overlaps the 18-months-to-2½ band (1 to 7). Reading D-03 sets how the overlap is applied.
Mixed-age groups take the ratio of the youngest category when it is more than 20 percent of the group; otherwise the next category applies (r. .04(1)(a)3).
At least one commercial summary states toddlers at 1 to 6. The official figure for 18 months up to 2½ is 1 to 7 (conflict log D-00).
The relocation guide provided by the Center states toddlers at 1 to 8. The 1 to 8 figure applies only to a group of 24–36-month children (conflict log D-13).
The Family Handbook classroom ratio table matches the official text. It omits the nap and nighttime sleeping ratios.
Center Staffing Policy
Set the Center's internal ratios. A policy ratio may be the same as the regulation or stricter. A ratio looser than the regulation is marked red; the regulation still governs. Rooms that meet the regulation but not this policy show amber.
Family Handbook, Staffing paragraph: "a minimum of two teachers during core learning time." Set 0 to switch off.
Summary
Rooms
Enter the number of children in each age band and the counted staff assigned to each room. Status is red when counted staff fall below the regulation under the reading selected above, amber when they meet the regulation but fall below Center policy, and green when they meet both.
Scenario Record
Copy this record into an email or the Center's planning file so the Heads of School compare the same scenario.
This planner shows how each reading of the rule changes the staff a room and the building require. It is a planning aid, not a compliance determination. MPG recommends the conservative reading in each case; the Center confirms any other reading with the Department of Human Resources before relying on it. Staff schedules must also observe the 8-continuous-hour limit (r. .04(1)(b)11) and same-caregiver assignment (r. .04(1)(b)2; r. .09(3)(a)4(ii)), which this planner does not calculate.