(1) ONB providers must supply children in care with materials that are age and developmentally appropriate. For each age group of children in care, ONB providers must supply a variety of materials that satisfy individual, developmental, and cultural needs. ONB programs that choose to supplement abundant natural resources with additional manufactured materials in the outdoors must ensure those materials comply with the rules of this section. Materials must be:

(a) Clean;

(b) Washable or disposable;

(c) Accommodating to a range of abilities of children in care;

(d) Available to children in care appropriate to a child's age and developmental level;

(e) Nonpoisonous and free of toxins. If an ONB provider is using prepackaged art materials, the material packaging must be labeled "non-toxic" by the manufacturer and meet ASTM standard D-4236 as described in 16 C.F.R. Part 1500.14(b)(8)(i);

(f) In good and safe working condition;

(g) Accommodating to special needs of children in care;

(h) Removed from the ONB program space once an item has been recalled by CPSC; and

(i) ONB programs may provide natural materials to children to support the nature-based curriculum that, as organic matter, may not be able to meet the requirements described in (a) or (b) of this subsection, for example decomposing logs, leaves, or items in a mud kitchen. Such materials must be nonpoisonous and free of toxins; and when being used by the children, the children must be actively supervised.

(2) ONB providers must ensure a sufficient quantity and variety of materials to engage children in the ONB program such as arts and crafts supplies, various textured materials, construction materials, manipulative materials, music and sound devices, and books. ONB providers may choose to use natural materials for these purposes if sufficient in quantity and variety to engage children in the ONB program. Materials must:

(a) Encourage both active physical play and quiet play activities;

(b) Promote imagination and creativity;

(c) Promote language development, communication, and literacy skills;

(d) Encourage social skill development;

(e) Promote numeracy, math, and spatial ability;

(f) Encourage discovery, exploration, and reasoning; and

(g) Promote learning skills.