The morning rush is the most chaotic time in any nursery. Parents arriving, children settling in, information to capture, and ratios to maintain. The last thing you need is clunky software slowing you down.
The old way
Traditional nursery systems treat check-in like data entry. Find the child in a list, click multiple buttons, fill in forms, confirm, save. Repeat for every child.
Meanwhile, a queue forms at the door. Parents are late for work. Staff are stressed. And that important handover information? It gets lost in the rush.
The Early Tree way
We rebuilt check-in from first principles. What if it took just a tap or two?
Quick search - Start typing a child's name and they appear instantly. No scrolling through lists.
One-tap check-in - A single tap marks a child as present with the current time.
Smart defaults - The system remembers regular patterns. If Isla always arrives between 8 and 8:30, she's suggested first during that window.
Optional details - Need to record who dropped off, or capture a handover note? Those fields are there when you need them, hidden when you don't.
Real results from real nurseries
Beta partners tell us they've cut check-in time by more than half. But more importantly, the process feels calmer. Staff can focus on greeting children and parents rather than fighting with software.
One nursery manager told us: "I actually have time to chat with parents now. I'm not just rushing to get through the queue."
It's the little things
Good software anticipates what you need. Some examples:
- Late arrivals are flagged but don't interrupt the flow
- Absent children can be marked with one click from the expected list
- Today's overview shows who's in, who's expected, and current ratios at a glance
These aren't revolutionary features. They're just obvious ones, implemented thoughtfully.
See it in action
The best way to understand how Early Tree handles check-in is to try it. Request access to our beta and experience a calmer morning routine.