In one survey by Children’s Ministry magazine, children’s programs ranked third in families’ decisions to attend a church, only marginally behind “the church’s emphases” and the pastor’s preaching, and 2/3 ranked the children’s ministry as “very important” in their search for a church home. So how do you make a strong first impression on parents? It starts outside the Sunday School room, with child check in systems for churches. The combination of [a] friendly registrar and fail-safe technology lets parents know that you’re as serious as they are about both nurturing and protecting their children.
Choosing from all the child check in systems for churches that are available can be overwhelming, but there are a few features that are especially helpful in setting parents at ease. Here’s what to look for in your child check-in system:
Child Check in Systems for Churches
1. Support for multiple check-in stations
No parent wants to miss the first few minutes of the service because of bottlenecked lines, or worse, stand in a sea of impatient kids like a playground climbing pole. Multiple stations allow for a more orderly and calm check-in, as well as personalized attention from an unhurried greeter.
2. Barcode or RFID scanners
It’s true. For decades, we made do with handwritten sign-in sheets, or smiled and waved as teachers released our kids while we were still yards away. But no first-time parent is going to be reassured to see kids zooming out from the room in all directions. Even a system where kids and parents have labels with matching numbers requires a visual check to ensure safety — a check dependent on a teacher who’s likely just starting to relax after a busy, noisy hour. You can skip the human error altogether with a simple swipe of a badge. This checkout makes a record of which guardian picked up the child and (for the church’s protection) logs the precise time the child left the church’s care.
