Summer scheduling in childcare looks calm on the surface and is wildly inconsistent underneath. Families travel. Older siblings have different schedules. Vacation weeks stack up. Some weeks you’re at 50% attendance. Other weeks you’re at 95%. The week-to-week unpredictability is what makes summer staffing and budgeting hard.
Here’s how programs handle it.
Parent trust grows through regular, two-way communication. NAEYC family engagement guidance emphasizes that educators and families should maintain ongoing communication through conversations, conferences, phone calls, texts, emails, and other methods that fit each family.
This is why the goal is not more messages. The goal is clearer communication that helps families feel included without overwhelming teachers.
Get attendance forecasts from families. A short request, sent in May: ‘Please let us know what weeks your child will be on vacation between June and August. We’re planning staffing and want to make sure we have everyone covered.’ Most families will respond if asked directly. The information lets you plan ahead.
Be clear about tuition expectations. Most California programs charge regular tuition during vacation weeks because rent and payroll continue. Confirm this in your handbook and gently reinforce it in your May email. Sample language: ‘Tuition runs at the normal rate during family vacation weeks. We continue to hold your child’s slot and cover our operating costs during that time.’ Brief. Clear. Not apologetic.
Some programs offer a partial-credit option for vacation weeks (e.g., 50% credit for two weeks per year with advance notice). If your math supports it, this can be a relationship-builder. If it doesn’t, hold the line politely.
Adjust staffing weekly. Look at the next week’s expected attendance every Friday. Adjust schedules accordingly. If Monday is going to be 50% attendance, two teachers can run the program instead of three. Give the third teacher the day off, with pay if she’s salaried, or with a scheduled day off built into her weekly hours. Don’t carry full staffing on a known low day.
Cross-train for room flexibility. Summer is when you may need to consolidate two half-empty rooms into one larger combined group for an afternoon. Teachers need to be comfortable working with mixed-age kids and with kids who aren’t in their usual room. Plan this in advance, communicate it to families before it happens, and don’t let it become chaotic.
Plan for low-attendance days specifically. They aren’t ‘lost’ days — they’re opportunity days. Deep cleaning. Reorganization. One-on-one observation. Curriculum prep for fall. Teacher planning time. Build a ‘low-attendance day’ menu so nobody has to invent how to use the time.
Watch the family that consistently fades. Some families take June through August off and reappear in September. Some do this every year. Decide whether that’s a relationship you want to keep, and on what terms. A clear conversation in early May — ‘we hold your slot, you pay tuition, see you in September’ — works for many families. For others, you may need to let them go.
Communicate with families through the messy weeks. A short Friday email: ‘Next week we’ll be running with combined rooms in the afternoons due to lower attendance. Mornings will run as normal. Please let us know if your plans have changed.’ Calm, factual, professional.
And take a breath. Summer is not the time to engineer a perfect schedule. It’s the time to keep the program steady through real fluctuation. The calmer you are about the chaos, the calmer your team and families will be too.