I am a home provider but my dck are infant/toddler and then school age. I am open until 5:30 and most parents pick up about 5:15. We have free play from after snack until 4:50 and then clean up everything and I bring out a group activity that everyone does together for the last 30 minutes so clean up at the end of the day is simple. If the weather is nice we are likely still outside but lately the weather has been extremely cold (-30's and colder) so inside at the end of the day we will have dance parties, bring out large blocks and build (because the toddlers love knocking it down and the building again), use a small parachute and cotton balls to make it snow and then have a snowball fight with them, have the big kids read to the younger kids, draw at the table or bring out the big roll of paper and work together on a large picture. I usually don't try to have too much chaos going on during pick up times but I also want the kids engaged right until pick up time. If it was me, I would schedule free play with a teacher-led station that they can come and go to during that time.

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