How to Introduce ChildFriendly to your Staff & Families

Implementing a new childcare management system is smooth when everyone knows what to expect. Follow this 4-step guide to train your team, onboard your families, and launch ChildFriendly successfully.

Last updated 23 days ago

📋 Step 1: Host an Admin & Leadership Training Session

Use the video courses below to train your administrative and leadership team. We recommend everyone watch the videos on their own time first, then come together in a meeting to align on workflows and ensure a smooth rollout.

✉️ Tip: Use the Admin Team Email Template in the Appendix below to introduce these training links to your leadership team.

Core Admin Training Course:

🔗 Watch Course Playlist: ChildFriendly Masterclass: Center Admin & Daily Operations

💡 Recommended Additional Training:

In addition to the core admin course, we highly recommend that Center Directors and General Administrators also complete:

  • 👶 Room Educators & Classroom Staff Training: So they understand the exact daily classroom workflow your teaching staff experiences.

    👉 Watch Room Educators Course

  • 💰 Financial Administrator Training: If their role includes handling billing, parent payments, subsidies, or payroll.

    👉 Watch Financial Administrator Course

⚙️ Special Note for Organization Owners & System Administrators:

If you are the Organization Owner responsible for completing the one time set up of your centers, spaces, rates, and system, make sure to watch 🔗 ChildFriendly’s Masterclass: Organization Setup

⚠️ IMPORTANT SETUP INSTRUCTION: The videos in the Organization Setup course are in strict sequential order. We strongly recommend watching one video at a time and following along directly in your ChildFriendly setup module—completing the tasks shown in each video before moving on to watch the next one!

📋 Step 2: Host a Room Staff (Educators) Training Session

The video course linked below is designed specifically for classroom-level staff and ECEs. We suggest emailing this link to your staff first and then scheduling a team training session where you watch the videos together and answer any of your staff’s questions.

🎓 Certificate of Completion: Let your room educators know that once they complete the training course and submit the quick completion form, they will automatically receive an official ChildFriendly Certificate of Completion to turn into leadership for their staff training and compliance files!

✉️ Tip: Use the Room Staff Email Template in the Appendix below to announce this training to your educators.

📋 Step 3: Introduce ChildFriendly to Your Families

Help families feel confident using the Parent App by announcing the transition using the Family Announcement ✉️ email template in the Appendix below. This template includes a link to our quick Parent Orientation (In Under 5 Minutes) to walk parents through downloading the app, setting up banking, and viewing daily journals.

📋 Step 4: Final Steps to Support a Smooth Transition

  1. Authorize Shared Classroom Devices:

    Make sure to authorize any tablets or devices you wish your room staff to use for logging into ChildFriendly. For privacy and security reasons, room staff cannot access student information from unauthorized devices. An admin must log in on each approved center device and click "Authorize Device" under the profile icon in the top right corner. (Note: Devices only need to be authorized once. Admin users can log in from any device without authorization).

  2. Disable Set Up Mode & Send System Invites:

    Once you’ve confirmed that all system settings are complete, children are registered, staff are trained, and parents have been notified, you’re ready to launch!

    • Go to Set Up → Center → Configuration and toggle off Set Up Mode.

    • As soon as Set Up Mode is turned off, all families, center admins, office admins, and room staff will automatically receive an email invitation to log into their portal with a temporary password.

  3. Designate Onsite Support:

    Designate a point person on standby (e.g., an admin or room lead) to support questions and issues that arise from staff and parents during the first week.

💡 Launch Tip: Be patient through the first few weeks—it’s a learning curve for everyone. Focus on progress over perfection, and take time to acknowledge small wins, like staff successfully logging attendance or receiving positive feedback from a parent about the new app!

📬 Appendix: Email Templates

Email Template 1: Introduce to Admin Team

Subject: Get Ready for Our ChildFriendly Launch – Admin Staff Instructions Inside!

Dear Admin Team,

As we prepare to officially transition to ChildFriendly, you have been designated as a key system administrator for our center! Because parents and teaching staff will look to our leadership team for guidance, it’s critical that we are all confident navigating the platform beforehand.

Our official go-live date is [Insert Go-Live Date], and you can expect your email invitation to log into the platform by [Insert Date].

💡 Why Watching These Training Videos is Essential:

  1. Lead a Smooth Transition: Pre-watching these videos ensures our daily operations (attendance, parent communications, health reporting, and billing) run without disruption on Day 1.

  2. Support Room Staff & Families: Parents and educators will have questions during the first few weeks. Completing this training equips you to troubleshoot issues quickly and support your team.

  3. Maximize Meeting Time: Watching the training on your own time allows us to spend our upcoming meeting focusing on workflow decisions and launch strategy rather than basic navigation.

📚 Your Required Training Links:

Please complete the training courses below that correspond to your role prior to our meeting on [Insert Date]:

Please review your applicable video playlists and come prepared with any questions for our team review meeting on [Insert Date].

Thank you for leading the charge in making this launch a success!

Best regards,

[Your Center Name] Team / Leadership

Email Template 2: Introduce to Your Room Staff (Educators)

Subject: Welcome to ChildFriendly – Staff Training Starts Now!

Hi Team,

We’re excited to announce that we’re launching ChildFriendly, a powerful new system that will streamline daily tasks, simplify classroom management, and improve communication with parents!

Our go-live date is [Insert Go-Live Date], and you’ll receive your welcome email to access the platform by [Insert Date].

Please watch the training videos linked below prior to our staff meeting on [Insert Date], where we’ll review classroom workflows together and answer any questions:

🔗 Watch Training Course: ChildFriendly Masterclass: Room Educators & Classroom Staff

🎓 Earn Your Certificate of Completion:

Upon finishing the video training, you will be prompted to fill out a quick form to receive your official ChildFriendly Certificate of Completion. Please download your certificate and email/submit it to [Insert Director/Admin Name or Email] so we can add it to your file!

If you have any questions or need additional support before then, don’t hesitate to reach out!

Thanks,

[Your Center Name] Team

Email Template 3: Introduce to Your Families

Subject: Exciting News: Introducing Our New Parent Portal – ChildFriendly Pro!

Dear Parents,

We’re excited to announce an important upgrade to our daycare operations! Starting [Insert Go-Live Date], we will be transitioning to ChildFriendly — a modern, user-friendly app designed to help our educators spend more time with the children and less on paperwork, while enhancing communication and supporting your child’s growth and development.

✅ What You Need to Do:

  1. Download the App: Search for ChildFriendly Pro on your Android or iOS app store.

  2. Log In: Watch for your email invitation by [Insert Date] and follow the prompts to log in and set your password.

  3. Complete Your Profile:

    • Digitally sign required agreements (e.g., Parent Handbook).

    • Update your child’s medical info, emergency contacts, and allergies.

    • Choose Your Preferred Payment Option: We want billing to be as convenient and flexible as possible for your family!

      • 📱 For In-App Convenience: You can conveniently pay tuition or set up automated, hassle-free billing directly inside the app. (Standard third-party processing rates apply: 1% for Pre-Authorized Debit/PAD and 3.75% for Credit Cards).

      • 💵 Fee-Free Payment Options: If you prefer traditional payment methods without processing fees, we continue to accept [Insert Fee-Free Methods, e.g., Interac e-Transfer to accounting@center.com, Cheque, or Cash].

✅ Need Help Getting Started?

Please take a moment to watch this Parent Orientation (In Under 5 Minutes) video to ensure a smooth transition!

✅ What You’ll Have Access To:

  • 📸 Daily photos and journal updates

  • 📋 Medication and incident/illness reports

  • 📊 Development reports and direct messaging

  • 🗓️ Attendance records & family profile management

  • 💳 Billing history, account balances, and annual tax receipts

⏰ Important Deadlines:

  • Please complete your account setup by [Insert Date] to ensure uninterrupted care.

  • Download and save any past records or tax receipts from our previous system before [Insert Portal Shutdown Date].

We’re confident you’ll love the streamlined experience and real-time updates ChildFriendly brings! Learn more at www.childfriendlypro.com.

Warmly,

[Your Center Name] Team