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How to Evaluate Childcare Software

Printing Attendance For Record Keeping

For many preschool programs, attendance isn’t just a daily routine—it’s documentation you may need for licensing, funding, audits, staffing justification, and year-end records. If you’re still printing paper sign-in sheets, exporting spreadsheets, or filing daily logs by hand, you’re likely spending more time proving attendance than using it to run a smoother program.

This guide helps preschool program leaders evaluate tools and workflows for attendance record keeping—so you can reduce paper, improve accuracy, and stay ready for inspections without adding complexity.

The challenge: Why printing attendance becomes a recurring burden for preschool programs

Printing attendance often starts as a “simple fix,” but it can quickly create recurring work and risk, especially in preschool programs with part-day schedules, school-year calendars, and frequent classroom transitions.

Common pain points include:

  • Time lost to daily and weekly printing: Preparing sheets, distributing to rooms, collecting them, and re-filing adds up fast.
  • Missing or incomplete records: A forgotten signature, illegible handwriting, or a misplaced page can become a compliance headache.
  • Hard-to-answer questions during audits: “Who was present?” and “When?” can take hours to reconstruct if records live in binders.
  • Inconsistent processes across classrooms: Different teachers may track attendance differently, making records harder to standardize.
  • Limited visibility for administrators: Paper records make it difficult to spot patterns (chronic absences, staffing needs) in real time.

Evaluation criteria: What to look for in attendance record keeping for your preschool program

When you compare options (paper-based processes, spreadsheets, or an all-in-one platform), use these criteria to guide your decision.

Record completeness and audit readiness

Ask:

  • Can you produce attendance records quickly by child, classroom, and date range?
  • Do records include clear timestamps and edits history where needed?
  • Can you store records securely for the retention period your program follows?

A strong system makes it easy to retrieve documentation in minutes—not hours—when licensing or administrators request it.

Ease of daily use for staff

Attendance tools only work if staff can use them consistently.

Look for:

  • A simple check-in and check-out flow that works during busy arrival times
  • Minimal training time for new teachers and floaters
  • A mobile-friendly or tablet-friendly experience (if you plan to use devices)

Flexible scheduling support

Preschool programs often have part-day schedules, enrichment rotations, and school-year attendance patterns.

Evaluate whether the system supports:

  • Multiple classrooms and changing daily rosters
  • Attendance by session (AM and PM) if needed
  • Easy updates when children shift schedules mid-year

Centralized access for administrators

To reduce printing, administrators need reliable access without chasing paper.

Look for:

  • A single dashboard or view for directors to confirm attendance is complete
  • Quick exports or reports for internal review
  • Permission controls so the right team members can access the right records

Secure storage and data protection

Attendance records include sensitive child information.

Confirm:

  • Data is stored securely
  • Access is role-based
  • The provider can explain how records are protected and retained

Reporting and documentation outputs

If printing is required for certain scenarios (inspections, internal files, or backup), prioritize tools that offer:

  • Clean, consistent reports
  • Export options (such as PDF-ready formats or CSV exports)
  • Date-range filtering and classroom-level reporting

If you are not using software today: Two requirements that matter no matter your pain point

If your preschool program is evaluating software for the first time, prioritize these two non-negotiables:

  • Ease of implementation: A tool should fit naturally into arrival and dismissal routines without a long ramp-up.
  • High-quality customer support: Responsive onboarding and ongoing help can make the difference between consistent adoption and reverting back to paper.

Even the best feature set will fall short if staff cannot adopt it quickly or you cannot get help when questions come up.

Options overview: Three common approaches and how to compare them

Option 1: Paper sign-in sheets and manual filing

Best for: Very small programs with minimal reporting needs

Tradeoffs:

  • Low cost, but high ongoing time cost
  • Higher risk of missing records
  • Difficult to standardize across classrooms

Option 2: Spreadsheets and manual exports

Best for: Programs that need basic digital storage but can manage process consistency

Tradeoffs:

  • Often still requires printing for signatures and files
  • Prone to version control issues
  • Reporting can be time-consuming and error-prone

Option 3: All-in-one childcare management software with digital attendance records

Best for: Preschool programs that want consistent documentation, faster retrieval, and less paper

Tradeoffs:

  • Requires initial setup and staff training
  • You should confirm reporting outputs match your compliance and record keeping needs

How brightwheel fits: Attendance record keeping without the daily printing loop

Brightwheel is an all-in-one childcare management solution designed to streamline operations for educators and families. For attendance record keeping, it can be a strong fit if your preschool program wants to reduce manual paperwork while improving consistency and readiness for documentation requests.

How brightwheel aligns to the criteria above:

  • Time efficiency: Brightwheel reports administrators and staff save an average of 20 hours each month across workflows.
  • Better communication and coordination: 95% of users say brightwheel enhances communication with families, which can help reduce attendance-related back-and-forth.
  • Staff experience: 66% of teachers prefer working at programs that use brightwheel—helpful if you’re looking to reduce repetitive admin tasks like printing and filing.

What to validate during evaluation:

  • Whether the attendance reporting format meets your specific record keeping requirements
  • How quickly staff can complete daily attendance steps
  • What exports and documentation are available when you need to share or store records

Frequently asked questions

Do I still need to print attendance if I use software?

Some programs still print for specific circumstances (such as a requested format during an inspection or internal backup). A good solution reduces printing as the default, while still making it easy to generate clean reports when needed.

What should I bring to a software demo to evaluate attendance record keeping?

Bring:

  • Your current sign-in and record retention process
  • Any licensing or funding attendance requirements you follow
  • Examples of the reports you are asked for (monthly totals, child-level logs, classroom rosters)

How can I tell if a solution will work during busy arrival times?

Ask the provider to walk through the exact steps staff will take at the door, how long it typically takes, and what happens when staff are covering multiple classrooms.

See how brightwheel works in real life

If printing attendance for record keeping is the main reason you’re evaluating childcare software, the fastest way to decide is to see how brightwheel works in real life and confirm it matches your preschool program’s attendance routines and documentation needs. Schedule a personalized demo with a brightwheel specialist and have your attendance record keeping priorities addressed.

A helpful resource if you are still comparing options

If you want a broader checklist for evaluating platforms beyond attendance, download A Practical Guide for Selecting Childcare Management Software. It’s a useful reference for building your requirements list and comparing vendors side-by-side.

Select the best childcare software that addresses your priorities

Your preschool program may have other priorities. Learn how to evaluate childcare software that suits your various needs with the following resources: