How to keep your Daycare organized

Organization is the key to keeping any business operating smoothly and efficiently. A daycare is no different, requiring lots of organization. As such, here are some incredible tips for keeping your daycare organized to prevent you from losing your head.

4 Tips to help keep your daycare organized:

1. Adopt a digital payment system
2. Downsize your toy collection
3. Create an effective filing system
4. Make your space count

Adopt a digital payment system

With the new technology of today, adopting a digital payment system is a fantastic way to keep your funds organized.

We are no longer living in a time where payment for our services is limited to cash or checks.

Instead, we can now receive payment at the touch of our fingers through our phones.

This digital payment system is also a fantastic way to remain organized, as, with digital technology, there is no chance for you to lose the payment itself, and is also a great way to prove that no payment occurred if you haven’t received it.

What are some good digital payment systems to use? 

• Square Payment System

Square Payment System allows you to use your phone and a small attachment to accept credit and debit cards

By using the Square Payment System, you no longer have to deal with physical currency which is easy to lose and requires you track who has paid and who hasn’t by hand.

But by allowing people to pay with a card, you can allow the app to automatically track your payments for you without the risk of losing any money.

• PayPal

PayPal has been on the most common players in the e-payment game for a very long time.

PayPal allows mobile transfers between users, which can be perfect for someone running a small business.

PayPal is free to download and can be linked to your bank account to make transferring money easier.

• QuickBooks

Quickbooks is a little different than both PayPal and Square Payment system, as Quickbooks is not only a mobile transfer app but can also serve as an accounting software package.

Acting as an accounting software can be a major bonus for any small business, as it can help you organize your funds without the need for a professional accountant.

Downsize your toy collection

When operating a daycare, it’s incredibly tempting to just hold onto as many toys as you possibly can so your kids never run out.

But when doing this, you’re probably going to run into the issue of no longer being organized as you run out of room for your massive toy collection.

Instead, you should focus on downsizing your toy collection to help you save space and remain organized.

Now you may be wondering, how do I know what to keep and what to throw away?

Luckily enough, we’re going to discuss some tips to help you decide what to keep and what not to.

• If they haven’t been played within 3 months, throw them out

Three months is a long time for a toy not to be played with. As such, if you have toys in your collection that haven’t been played within a few months, then it’s safe to say you can throw them out.

• Get rid of replicas

As silly as it may seem, plenty of daycares have so many toys that they have replicas of their toys. Thus, if you go through your toy collection and you find replicas, throw out the replicas!

This will ensure that you still have some of your kid’s favorite toys, but you can still downsize your numbers quite a bit.

• Get rid of worn-out toys

Some toys that we decide to keep are worn-out beyond belief. Getting rid of these toys will not only help you shrink your continually growing collection, but it will also make your overall collection seem fairly new.

Create an effective filing system

Operating a daycare can come with a lot of paperwork, ranging from parent consent forms to licensing paperwork and everything in between.

As such, it can be a bit of a hassle trying to keep all of this paperwork around you organized, but once you do have a system that allows you to remain organized, you can help yourself greatly.

One of the best ways to create an effective filing system is to get a filing cabinet that either has pre-built folders/dividers or to find one that can fit these folders and dividers in its drawers.

By taking these folders/dividers and labeling them to fit the needs for your paperwork, you can make organizing all of your paperwork that much easier.

Filing cabinets are also fantastic because they are usually fireproof, meaning that if something were to happen and your building caught on fire, all of your important paperwork will remain safe and undamaged.

Another fantastic way to help you organize all of your important work is to implement a color-coding system

Employing a color-coding system based on the use of colored tabs or some other colored designation tool can save you plenty of time and pain trying to search for specific items.

The most effective way to do so is to use colored tabs, with each file type having a designated color, and then sticking a tab of designated color on every piece of paperwork.

You should then place the paperwork in a file or file cabinet with the tab visible, allowing you to distinguish it from the other papers, and thus allowing you quick access when need be!

A third and perhaps most effective way to keep filing organized is to digitize your files.

With the technology available today, file digitization has never been easier.

By digitizing your files, you save space because you no longer need to worry about the physical copies, and you can also search for said files by keywords instead of having to physically look through your files.

This can save you plenty of time and space, both of which are crucial goals of organizing.

Make your space count

When operating a daycare center, you only have so much space.

As such, it’s important that you make your space count as much as you possibly can.

Thankfully enough, here are some fantastic tips for making your daycare space count as much as possible! 

• Utilize small crates and bins

Instead of putting all of your toys into one massive toy box, try spreading them throughout smaller crates and bins.Crates and bins are stackable, allowing you to go vertically with your space instead of constantly having to go horizontally.

This can save you plenty of floor space, and overall will everything look less crowded and chaotic.

• Organize books by type

Books are incredibly important to any daycare center, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they have to take up too much space. Organizing your books by book type is a fantastic way to keep them from taking up too much of your limited space. For example, smaller hardcover books can go be placed in boxes with the toys where the kids can reach them.

Smaller paperback books can be placed on shelves, and larger chapter books that the teacher reads to the class can be placed higher up on the shelves. By splitting these books up into their size and type, you save yourself some shelf space and ensure that only those who the books are meant for can reach them

•  Treat art supplies like toys

For organization purposes, art supplies can be treated just like toys. You can place them in labeled bins so kids know where to get such supplies and where to put them after they are done.

This will allow you to save space instead of placing art supplies out or in their drawers, as bins can be placed on shelves throughout the room.

Related Questions

• What toys are essential for any daycare?

Daycares are places for children to learn and grow with caring people around them.

But they’re also places for children to play and have fun, which can help their emotional and physical development just as much. As such, toys are an essential part of any daycare.

Today, we’re going to take a look at some of the all time favorites and must haves for any daycare. 

1. Dress up clothes and props.
2. Kitchen pretend play items
3. Puzzles
4. Toy vehicles
5. Soft/plush balls

These toys have all persisted for generations, remaining some of children’s favorites forever.

As such, having these toys in your daycare center is a no brainer.

They will help keep the kids active and busy without ever being bored.

These toys also fit a wide range of children, making it perfect for a daycare of numerous age groups.

• How much space do you need for a daycare?

Although the law may change depending on the state which you are operating out of, generally, a daycare is required to have at least 35 square feet of usable indoor space and 75 square of usable outdoor space.

The indoor space is used for any variety of activities, ranging from learning to playing, to painting and coloring.

However, no matter what you plan to use that space for, you do have to 35 square feet of it in the building you plan to operate out of which you can use for these activities.

This is part of the reason that organization is so important.

If you can keep your daycare organized then you can maximize your usable space and allow yourself to meet the minimum requirement without having to expand to a larger space.

The outdoor space is used to help children develop motor skills and give them a chance to be outside and enjoy the fresh air around them.

Please note: This blog post is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Please consult a legal expert to address your specific needs.

Keep your new Daycare Business organised with these tips and more in our startup course and documents.