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In a rush? Here's a quick breakdown:
“We don’t want our teachers to have their phones or tablets out in front of the children. It’s too much of a distraction and they should be engaging with the kids!”
Sound familiar? We hear this concern all the time from preschool and childcare directors.
But here’s the thing: just because you're cautious about tech in the classroom doesn’t mean you should be stuck spending hours doing everything manually with pen and paper. You still deserve to have your tasks streamlined. You shouldn’t have to choose between efficiency and quality care – you deserve both.
With Famly, you don’t have to pick.
Our childcare management software helps you streamline and automate essential tasks and increase the quality of care. Because guess what?
Less time doing those mundane, but tasks means you get more time in your day to interact and engage with the children (and if I were to guess, that’s exactly what you do best, and probably what you enjoy most about working in early childhood education).
If you’re skeptical about tech in the classroom but exhausted from battling a never-ending to-do list—logging daily activities, writing observations and assessments, messaging parents, tracking attendance (and that’s just scratching the surface) - then it’s time for a change.
Here are 10 reasons why Famly is the game-changing digital tool you and your childcare staff need to take back your time and energy, and to spend more time doing what you love - helping the kiddos grow and develop into fun, curious, kind, intelligent, unique individuals.
Oh and! - some of these tips come directly from customers who were tech-resistant until they learned about Famly.
"There have been several times that she said ‘Oh this was so easy, this was so simple…I just had to push a button and it happened!'”
Caren Crow, Director @ Angel Land Preschool
One director shared her trick: her staff use nap time to update the Famly platform. This way, they’re still in the room, keeping an eye on the kids, while making productive use of quiet time – when everyone’s snoozing peacefully or resting - hopefully!
She even lets parents know that most responses and updates will come during nap time. This small change has really improved communication with families; parents know when to expect updates, so they’re not left wondering or following up repeatedly on the same questions.
Famly’s flexibility with permissions and roles is a huge hit with directors. Don’t want staff messaging parents or sending photos at certain times? No problem – you’re in control.
One customer sets these permissions so that staff can only send photos, videos, and updates during a specific two-hour window on Fridays. This way, teachers can share highlights and observations from the week all at once, making it simple and streamlined for both staff and parents.
There isn’t just one example here, but many of our customers, who once hesitated about tech in the classroom, now can’t imagine looking back to their pre-tech days. We’ve heard countless times just how easy it is to use from many directors and teachers.
So what are the specific ways Famly streamlines your to-dos so they get done and you don’t have to worry about taking your eyes off of the children?
Whether you’re in the classroom, or the office, Famly helps you do hours of tasks in just a few clicks. Like:
Ok, you get the idea. Those tedious tasks that are essential to a successful childcare business quickly add up. Before you know it, you’ve spent 2 hours just planning and completing admin work.
Famly cuts that time down significantly, without jeopardizing the accuracy – in fact, it consolidates and organizes all that information.
We don’t encourage you to be working or available to your staff or families all the time, but we want you to feel confident that when you need to communicate – or handle an emergency – you’ve got a simple, accessible way to do it.
With direct messages, parents can message you if they need to pick up their child early, or if their child won’t be making it due to an illness.
Or maybe a staff member can’t leave a classroom because they’ll be out of ratio. No problem, that teacher can send other staff a quick message to let them know they’re “stuck” in the classroom.
No more trying to track down the Director or another teacher somewhere in the center, or leaving a sticky note and hoping they see it in time. It can be done from wherever you are.
Want to remind families of your upcoming field trip or event? Easy, just post an announcement to the NewsFeed for everyone to see. Plus, you can see who has read it with “Read” receipts, so you know who saw the announcement, and who you should give a heads up to at pick-up time.
No more juggling WhatsApp groups, Facebook posts, email chains or any other communication method – it’s all in one place, anytime, anywhere!
“If you add it up, it's quite significant…I mean that would be 15 minutes here, you know, 10 minutes there, another 10 minutes, you know, so it adds up throughout the day."
Caren Crow, Director @ Angel Land Preschool
Famly saves all information to the cloud. So, what does that really mean? Well, it means that any updates or new information or changes you make will automatically and instantly update across all devices.
Whether you’re messaging a parent from your computer or checking notifications on your phone, you’ll be connected wherever you go. No more dashing back and forth to the office just to check emails!
Got a few minutes between activities? Running back to the office to quickly check emails in 5 minutes adds stress and chaos. Just do a quick glance on your phone and see if there is anything urgent, and what can wait until you actually have time.
Do you get nervous that you or your staff aren’t communicating with parents in the best way? Maybe they are too casual, or too aggressive, or just make a ton of spelling and grammar mistakes.
In literally two clicks, that is checked and fixed for you with our Sidekick Writing Assistant. You can triple check punctuation and spelling and choose what tone of voice - more polite, more conversational, more friendly, to name a few.
And with Famly’s in-app Live Translation, communication can be translated to each family’s preferred language. Say goodbye to language barriers and hello to stronger parent-teacher relationships - with just a tap!
Don’t you hate it when you try to remember something you needed to do? It’s on the tip of your tongue but you just can’t remember.
While we do make everything easy and accessible so you can get it done quickly and get back to the children, we know that some things do take a bit more time. That’s why everything in Famly can be saved as a draft.
Got an idea for an observation, message, or announcement but no time to finish it? No problem - save it as a draft! Whether it’s a quick note about Sarah stacking blocks or a reminder to a parent to bring more diapers, you can start it now and finish it when you’re ready.
Another late payment? Sending reminders and chasing down payments is a) not fun for anyone and b) time consuming.
With Famly’s automated reminders, families always know when payments are due. Plus, families can opt in to auto payments, so automation works both ways, and is a win-win.
Famly integrates with the tools you need, making it easy to stay compliant and meet regulations without adding more to your plate.
Like for our Texas customers, we integrated with KinderConnect, so meeting attendance requirements is simple and easy, and can be done all in one place. No more juggling multiple passwords or switching between platforms. And as a result, it reduces the time you spend using technology - every little bit counts!
We know how important it is for you to stay compliant – and we also know how difficult it is with ever-changing regulations. Famly wants to help any way that we can, so you can focus on what matters most - the children.
“Half the time that it was before,” and Caren jumps in, “It was magic!” Although Caren said it as a joke, Julia reiterated, “Well it really is! Compared to what I was doing before, oh yes, it takes me half the time or less for me to do things.”
Caren Crow and Julia Mason, Director and Office Manager @ Angel Land Preschool
Learning technology can be daunting, especially when you are so used to the more traditional pen and paper. Every Famly customer has their own account manager so that you can get questions answered quickly and personalized support for you, your staff and the parents.
Have a question about the software? Quickly search the entire help center right in the app by asking your question to Finn, our chatbot. Can’t find the answer? You’ll be connected directly to a Famly employee.
With our one-to-one support, your questions will be answered quickly. No need to worry about wasting time sitting around waiting for a response. Because after all, you can’t save time if you’re blocked by a question, and we’re all about saving you time.
Famly’s platform is robust and has lots of features, but we do also know that there are some other things that may be helpful for you in spending less time on tasks and getting more time with the kiddos.
We have created many templates that you can easily download and edit for free. Don’t want to make a whole new Parent Handbook? Just download our template and make it fit your center best. Progress reports time, staff evaluations or parent-teacher conferences coming up? Just download and print our templates, all for free!
Do you have any other templates that you think would be helpful? Just let us know!
Plain and simple - everything having to do with your childcare business is all in one place. One dashboard, one platform, one app. Consolidated, organized, streamlined and simply just a time saver and stress reliever.
It’s just an added bonus that parents also absolutely love when everything having to do with their child’s care is all in one place.
Guidance from the Danish Health Ministry, translated in full to English.
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The full recommendations from a working group of over 70 nursery chains in the UK.
Please note: here at Famly we love sharing creative activities for you to try with the children at your setting, but you know them best. Take the time to consider adaptions you might need to make so these activities are accessible and developmentally appropriate for the children you work with. Just as you ordinarily would, conduct risk assessments for your children and your setting before undertaking new activities, and ensure you and your staff are following your own health and safety guidelines.
Get top tips from a preschool just like yours. Hear from Reynolda Preschool on why and how they use Famly - and why they’ve never looked back.
Read their story
