Responsibility for children's sun protection is shared between parents and childcare providers. Proper use of sunscreen, protective clothing, hats, and sunglasses are important considerations when children are playing outside. Another obvious approach to protection is to limit children's time in the sun. Caregivers should be conscious of this responsibility while the child is present and in planning or modifying the childcare environment.
Outdoor play is an important part of a child's daily schedule and is included in national criteria for quality childcare (NAEYC Accreditation and HS Performance Standards). However, children can spend too much time in the sun. A recent survey of Connecticut childcare centers reported that more than half of the children spent 2-3 hours outdoors each day. All but one of the 25 centers surveyed held activities outdoors during the hours when the sun is most intense. Limiting children's time in the sun is a practical sun protection strategy for childcare centers to adopt, while still offering children daily outdoor play time. Childcare centers can adopt the following simple measures to help reduce children's exposure to the sun's harmful rays.
Avoiding peak sun intensity hours. This is an ideal strategy for limiting time in the sun. As the sun moves higher in the sky, the sun's rays become more intense and damaging to the skin and eyes. This is because the ultraviolet (UV) light travels a shorter, more direct distance to reach the earth. The peak sun intensity hours, when UV light is strongest, are between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. standard time or 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. daylight savings time. When possible, plan children's outdoor activities for early morning or late afternoon when the sun's rays are less intense. By avoiding sun exposure during peak hours, sun exposure may be reduced by as much as 60 percent. If outdoor activities during these peak times are unavoidable, encourage the use of protective clothing and sunglasses, suggest playing in shaded areas, and, of course, always use sunscreen.
Provide adequate shade. Shade can help protect children from the sun, but not all shade is created equal. The quality of shade an object provides depends on the sun's position in the sky, the size of the object making the shadow, and how much sunlight can penetrate the object. Look at the size of the shadow (shade) that an object, such as a tree or building, provides at different times of the day. Shade is related to peak sun intensity hours. When the sun is low in the sky, the rays hitting an object make longer, larger shadows. When the sun is high in the sky, during peak sun intensity hours, shade areas are usually small. The best time to find large areas of shade is early in the morning or late in the afternoon.
The amount of sunlight that passes through an object also affects shade quality. Dense shade provides the most protection. It is solid with very few or no patches of sunlight. Buildings, picnic shelters, porches, and large, leafy trees provide dense shade. Roofed playground equipment and small or sparse trees provide scattered or limited shade. Fabric shade canopies or tarps provide dense or scattered shade depending on the size of the holes in the weave of the fabric. The smaller holes of tightly woven fabric allow less UV light to pass through and provide better shade protection. Childcare programs can assess whether their facility provides adequate shade in areas that are accessible to children. Programs should strive to have enough shaded areas for all children to be able to safely play and have fun outdoors at any time of day.
Indirect sunlight can cause sunburn, too. Many outdoor play surfaces such as sand, cement, water, and snow reflect much of the sun's UV rays. Sunlight can bounce off of reflective surfaces onto children sitting under an umbrella or tree, for example.
Follow these same precautions on overcast days! Remember, up to 80 percent of the sun's UV rays can pass through clouds.
To limit children's time in the sun, childcare programs can:
Review sun safety with the children using the following questions:
Take the children outdoors for the game. Make sure it is not during peak sun hours! Follow these directions:
Find a place that can be established as a home base. Have the children gather around home base in a group. When you say, "Find Shade," they are to find something on the playground that makes shade and get in its shadow. Give the students 20-30 seconds to locate a source of shade and then blow a whistle or clap your hands for them to stop where they are.
Go to each shaded group and discuss the choice made. Is there enough shade to cover each child? Can they play in the shade safely? After reviewing with the first group, have those children follow you to the next shady place. Continue with the questions.
Play the game a few times so the children have a chance to find several different sources of shade. Instruct the students to look for different sources each time.
When the game is complete, quickly review the shady places that were found and remind children to play in the shade.
By the American Medical Center's Cancer Research Center