Just in time for Back to School, we’re sharing our top tips to get the year off to a great start! We know Back to School may feel daunting but don’t worry! Our easy-to-use software and helpful team are here to assist. Time savings, cost savings, and happier staff and parents are just around the corner.
Here are our top 5 tips for back-to-school success:
1. Manage your program's roster and database record
Gather and input all your roster data into brightwheel.
Gather you room list, student information (at minimum their name and room assignment) and parent information (at minimum their name and email). We then recommend you load it into a program management tool, like brightwheel, to have a central information and communication platform.
If you are using brightwheel, you can upload your roster (if you’re a premium customer or have more than 20 students) by filling out and submitting our form (recommended) or exporting your roster from another system and submit it to be uploaded. Then, enter information through your account.
- Suggested training materials:
- VIDEO: How to Add Students
- ARTICLE: How to Add Rooms
- ARTICLE: How to Add Students
- General best practices
- Track enrollment status & schedule
- Track food program & allergies
- Track immunization records
- Manage approved pick-ups & emergency contacts
2. Customize your operations to meet your needs
Pick the experience that’s right for your program.
Tailor your operations to fit your programs needs by making choices that make sense for your business, your staff, and your classroom community.
- Check-in method: Choose codes or signatures
- Devices: Decide whether to use tablets or phones or both
- Learning standards: Determine whether to use pre-loaded state learning standards
- Menus: Track food menus and eating activities
3. Train your staff to get most out of your systems
If you have staff helping at your program, be sure to train them on your tools and processes so that staff save time and spend more time focused on the children.
If brightwheel is part of your toolkit this year, train your staff to ensure they get the most of out of it. You can invite staff here: schools.mybrightwheel.com/teachers.
- Suggested training materials:
- VIDEO: How to Add Staff
- ARTICLE: How to Add Staff
- VIDEO: Teacher Training
- General best practices
- Track multiple activities at once for time savings
- Log actions at the end of day using timestamp
- Log staff only activities for admin approval so to control what and when you share information with parents
4. Communicate with your classroom community
Stay in touch with families by sending messages, notifications, and reminders right to their phone.
- Invite parents and track sign-ups here: schools.mybrightwheel.com/parents
- Suggested training materials:
- VIDEO: How to Invite Parents
- PRESENTATION: Editable presentation to share with Parents
- EMAIL: Editable email to send to Parents
- General best practices
- Establish two way communication between teachers and parents
- Share daily activity reports with parents and guardians
5. Manage your business effectively
Embrace features that boost efficiency in order to manage your business effectively to save time and money.
- Use staff check-in and out to track staff hours, view timecards, and make sure your ratios are set up appropriately
- Setup paperless and automated billing to collect tuition and fees
- Leverage your data to optimize your operations and maximize efficiency by utilizing brightwheel reports internal use or compliance
Looking for others tips and resources?
- Getting Started Hub: even more videos, guides, and live training to help you get the most out of brightwheel.
- Teacher Resources: emails, and more to onboard teachers and parents.
- Case Studies: real life stories of businesses around the globe who use brightwheel to manage their programs and communicate with families.
Need further assistance? Reach out to at support@mybrightwheel.com. We’re here to help!
