One of the biggest growing pains for new parents is sending their little ones to daycare or preschool. It’s bittersweet: there’s relief in having someone to care for their child while they go to work, but it’s also emotional being apart from their child for so many hours.
As a childcare provider, you have the opportunity to strengthen families by providing the care their child needs every day. You’re also obligated to remain open and communicative with parents as they typically want to hear about the moments they missed during their child’s day. This is why preschool daily reports are so important.
To learn how to improve parent-teacher communication and everyday reporting, here’s what to include in your students’ daily reports.
Examples of Daily Reports for Preschool
Parents entrust their child’s care and safety to you as their preschool teacher every day. Letting them know how their child behaves, feels, and learns is important to maintaining trust between you and your customers. Daily reports also keep families updated on the precious developmental milestones their children experience during their time apart.
What should you include in these reports?
Daily Behavior Updates
Because preschool is a time of social development, learning, and fun, behavior plays a big role in a child’s overall experience. Families want to know how their child felt, what went well, and what their child might have struggled with on any given day. These reports give them a glimpse into how their child adjusts and adapts to new environments as he or she grows into a more independent, well-rounded individual.
Behavior reports often include details on:
- Social interactions (positive and negative)
- Emotional regulation
- Decision-making
- Listening and rule-following
- Any behavior that may seem odd or concerning
A preschool daily behavior report helps parents understand what their child is experiencing, which empowers families to make informed decisions as they continue raising their child at home. It can also help families identify early warning signs of emotional, cognitive, or behavioral conditions so they can get their children the proper support they need.
Learning Assessment Reports
Similar to behavior, learning updates keep parents aware of some of the crucial developmental milestones their child experiences day to day.
Learning assessments and reports can include special activities the entire class did that day, such as outdoor playtime and learning to identify letter sounds. Reports can also include achievements the class made, such as presenting their “show and tell” items in front of the class or helping each other clean up toys on the floor.
For individual learning reports, include highlights of the child’s education. For example:
- The child learned how to write their first name
- The child discovered they like to name the plants in the garden
- The child learned how to tell time
- The child quickly picked up the nursery rhyme today
Even if there seem to be no significant lessons a child learned that day, share at least one learning experience you observed. You can also reframe a child’s struggle in a learning report, such as, “Sarah tried her best after getting frustrated with the matching game.”
Meal and Snack Tracking
Keeping track of what a child eats and drinks while at preschool informs parents that their child is getting the proper nutrition they need throughout the day. Reporting meals, snacks, and the child’s reactions to new foods is also important for monitoring their developmental health and preferences.
Details to include in a food and drink report can include:
- Breakfast and lunch times
- Snacks eaten
- Portion sizes
- Notes on likes, dislikes, or eating struggles
- Updates on allergies or dietary restrictions
Preschool meal and snack reports are also useful for your staff as they need to know about any off-limit foods for a child. They also communicate if a child is not eating enough, overeating, or experiencing allergic reactions to certain foods.
Real-Time Photo and Video Updates
In the past, preschool daily reports have been written on sheets of paper or duplicated for filling records. Today, there are ways to make daily reporting digital. One of the main benefits of going digital is the option to include photo and video updates.
You can send families photos and video updates of their little ones as they complete art projects, make new friends, or exhibit good behavior. These real-time updates give parents little glimpses of their child’s experience in the classroom, providing a sense of comfort and reassurance while they’re away at work.
Child Preschool Portfolios
In addition to photo and video updates, another benefit of digital preschool reports is the ability to share child portfolios with family members. Preschool portfolios are online pages that chronicle a child’s progress in the classroom.
Portfolios allow families to track their child’s developmental milestones, schoolwork, special projects, and fond memories all in one place. It’s a place for parents and preschool staff to celebrate the child’s achievements and offer positive reinforcement throughout the year.
Setting Up Digital Daily Reports for Preschoolers
Digital childcare software makes recording and delivering daily preschool reports easy. It equips you, your staff, and families to stay updated on an individual child, improving overall communication and care.
Going digital with childcare reports is a smart move because it lets you access past reports quickly and securely, adding another level of convenience to your business.
You can set up digital reports with the preschool management software, Daily Connect. The app’s user-friendly features help parents feel like they’re more involved with their children throughout the day thanks to live notification updates.
With Daily Connect, you get more reporting features:
- Meal tracking
- Direct messaging with parents
- Photo/video updates
- Naptime updates
- Incident notices
- And more
Streamline daily reporting for the kids in your class and improve parent-teacher communication. Set up your digital preschool reports today! Download the Daily Connect childcare app and get started with a free trial.
