The software program that we use, School Leader (www.schoolleader.com) is absolutely fantastic. We tried around 15 different software programs from Camp Brain to random pre-school software and found that, without a doubt, SchoolLeader was the best.
Most of the software programs have the same basic functions, but the "extras" can make all of the difference.
Some feature we find really useful:
We use the "Check Point" feature which allows either staff of parents to sign children in. We have parents sign children in with a touch-screen monitor. They type "their password" (drivers license, whatever) and are presented with a screen where they can verify their addresses, check their balance and of course, Sign a child in or out.
SIGN IN: Whey they click "sign in", a list of children they are authorized to sign in pops up. They simply select the children and say "done". We have activiated a feature that most camps probably won't need, but we won't live without. Once they say "done", a label printer (dymo.com) spits out a label with the childs name, date & time and either their grade or group name. It does the same for check-out, only it says "OUT" in big letters for security purposes.
We are a day camp with around 120 children per day. This feature allows us to concentrate our staff on being very welcoming to the parents & children. By the 2nd day, the parents are pro's and hardly need any help. In addition to the process being very quick and efficient (not messy either!), it provides a blanket of security for us. We can quickly check #'s, ratios, medical info, pick-up, etc. It also doesn't allow for someone who is not authorized to pick up a child.
MEDICAL INFO: We can quickly print a list of all campers that are signed in followed by their medication/health information. We can also print a list of all campers and their info. Of course, we can print a basic list of all kids signed in.
FORMS: The forms are extensive...financial information, authorized check-in/out, group & activity information, and more more more.
In a nutshell, this software program used at our day camp has made our life so much easier. It was a bit of a pain entering the camper data in the first summer, but with many returning campers, life is quite easy!
I am happy to talk more about this program.
David Hughes
Camp Doodles, Inc.
david@campdoodles.com
(415) 215-4760
