As a daycare provider, you not only have to keep your kiddos happy, but their families as well. After all, word of mouth is one of the top ways parents find a childcare facility.

Research suggests that family engagement is the number one key to keeping parents happy! 💕

Here are a few ways to make your parents feel welcome and keep them singing your praises!

1. Greet with a warm smile- Take the time to look at them in the eyes and say “good morning” when they drop off and “how was your day?” when they pick up.  Being friendly and showing a genuine interest in their day speaks volumes. Instruct your teachers to do the same. No one likes to interact with grumpy people or be railroaded with all the behavior issues their child has when walking through the door.

2. Have an open door policy- Sure, it can be disruptive sometimes, but your families should have the right to drop in and visit anytime they’d like. Encourage parents to come and visit for lunch with their child, or to read a book at circle time. Don’t worry, you won’t have parents hanging out all day. They have jobs. Having this policy just creates a since of openness and trust with your parents.

3. Invite frequent family participation- Have a few class parties or celebrations throughout the year and invite families to attend. For example, we have class Christmas parties every year on a Friday in December from 9-10am. Santa visits each class and gives out candy canes, the kids participate in a book gift exchange, and parents volunteer to bring light snacks for everyone to enjoy.

Holding a few annual school events is a great way to get your families together and show off the community you’re building or the progress of your students.

4. Strong Communication- From daily verbal communication to weekly or monthly newsletters, parents want to hear from you as much as possible about the progress of their child. Hold parent conferences as requested or as necessary, but also communicate on a daily basis. Communicate about their child's progress and development, as well as small details.  Use daily activity logs for infants and toddlers to communicate about their day. Telling parents what and how much their child ate, their mood, and the cute little things they did or said will make parents feel that you truly care about their precious little one!

5. Show Appreciation-We all know how important it is to show our teachers appreciation, but showing our parents appreciation is also important. Parents are the lifeblood of our center. Without parents enrolling their children and paying us tuition, we do not have a business.

Consider having an annual Parent Appreciation Week. Offer coffee, fruit, & donuts every morning during the week. Post a sign or flyer announcing the special week. Have a daily drawing for parents to win a movie or restaurant gift card or a free week of childcare if you have a large center and can afford it. You can get my FREE Parent Appreciation Donut Flyer here!

6. Go the extra mile- Take time to try to find the lost pacifier. Comfort the mom leaving her child for the first time. Listen to the concerned parent.

It is important to have policies in place and expect parents to abide by them, however, there may be times that you can allow some leniency. For example,  if your policy is that a child must arrive by 8:30 to eat breakfast and you have a parent who is always on time, but had a rough morning and arrives at 8:40 with a starving child, please feed the child breakfast. Say to the parent “We have an 8:30 cut off time for breakfast, but you are normally here early. I understand you had a rough morning. I’ll make the exception today”.

Parents feel appreciated when they feel your genuine concern for their child’s well-being. Consider operating by the “spirit of the law” rather than the “letter of the law”.

Just decide in advance which policies you can allow some leniency with and which ones are non-negotiable.

Most importantly, make sure your parents feel the love and support you have to offer and they will never want to leave.