Why preschools still print so much
Preschools and childcare centres in Singapore have moved a lot of parent communication onto apps. Daily photos, attendance, fee reminders and nap logs mostly arrive on a phone. Even so, a centre goes through a surprising amount of print in a year. Parents expect a handbook they can keep at home. Children need labels on every water bottle and spare set of clothes. Notice boards at the entrance still carry the menu and the term calendar. And the year-end concert or graduation ceremony needs programmes, certificates and a backdrop for photos.
This guide is for centre principals, operators and admin staff who order print for one or several centres. It covers the items most centres need, which materials make sense around small children, and how to time orders around the school year so the busy months do not catch you out.
Parent handbooks and enrolment packs
The parent handbook is the document parents read once carefully and then come back to when something goes wrong. It explains drop-off and pick-up times, sick child rules, what to pack, fees and refunds, and how the centre handles incidents. Because policies change from year to year, a handbook should be easy to update.
- Saddle-stitched A5 booklet: works well for handbooks up to about 32 pages. It is light, cheap to reprint and fits in a school bag.
- Wire-o binding: better for longer handbooks or ones that parents will keep open on a desk, since it lies flat.
- Loose fee schedule insert: keep fees and term dates on a separate printed sheet tucked into the handbook. When fees change, you reprint one page.
An enrolment pack usually adds a presentation folder, the enrolment form, a consent form for photos and outings, and a welcome letter. Print the forms on uncoated paper so parents can fill them in with any pen. If the centre takes photos for social media or a newsletter, the consent form wording matters, so have it reviewed by whoever handles your data protection. Signed forms with children's details are personal data under the PDPA and need to be stored safely.
Our booklet printing page explains binding options and page counts in more detail.
Name labels for bottles, bags and spare clothes
Every preschool parent ends up buying name labels. Centres that order them in bulk for new intakes save parents a job and cut down on the pile of unlabelled lost property at the end of each week.
Choosing the right label
- Waterproof vinyl stickers for water bottles, lunch boxes and cutlery. They need to survive daily washing, so ask for a laminated or dishwasher-safe vinyl.
- Iron-on or stick-on clothing labels for uniforms, spare clothes and towels. Check the wash instructions with your printer before ordering a large quantity.
- Bag tags on PVC or laminated card, with the child's name and class, are useful for school bags and nap bags.
Variable data printing makes this easy: you send a spreadsheet with each child's name and class, and every sticker sheet comes out personalised. Double-check spellings with parents before the run. A misspelled name is the most common reason for a reprint, and parents notice.
Notice boards, signage and the entrance area
The entrance of a centre is where parents spend the most time waiting, so it is worth keeping the notice board organised. Most centres display the weekly menu, the term calendar, upcoming events and any notices about illness going around. Some items may also be required by your licence, so check with ECDA guidance and your operator on what has to be displayed.
- Use a branded frame or board header that stays up all year, with A4 or A3 inserts that change weekly.
- Print the weekly menu on a standard template so the cook or admin staff can update it themselves.
- Laminate anything that sits near the hand washing area or the shoe rack.
Inside the classrooms, safety matters more than looks. Avoid signs with sharp corners at child height. Rounded-corner acrylic or PVC signs mounted above about 1.2 m are a safer choice for room names and emergency information. Wall decals for learning corners and murals should be printed on a low-tack wall vinyl that can be removed without peeling paint when you redecorate.
| Item | Suggested material | How often it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Centre name sign and room signs | Acrylic or PVC with rounded corners | Years |
| Notice board header | Foam board or PVC | Once a year or on rebrand |
| Weekly menu and notices | A4 or A3 paper, laminated near wet areas | Weekly |
| Learning corner wall graphics | Removable wall vinyl with matte laminate | Each year or theme change |
| Floor markings for queues at pick-up | Floor vinyl with anti-slip laminate | Rarely |
Concerts, graduation and year-end events
The year-end concert and K2 graduation are the biggest print jobs of the year for most centres, and they all land in the same few weeks of October and November. Every centre in Singapore wants programmes and certificates at the same time, so order early.
What a typical event needs
- Programmes: a folded A4 or a small saddle-stitched booklet with the running order, class performances and a thank-you page.
- Graduation certificates: printed on a heavier card, with each child's name added by variable data. Check every name against the enrolment list.
- Photo backdrop: a large banner or step-and-repeat backdrop with the centre logo and the year, for family photos after the ceremony.
- Invitations and tickets: if the venue has limited seats, printed tickets per family help with crowd control.
- Posters: A2 or A3 posters to announce the date to parents, covered on our custom and quick posters page.
Older students in primary and secondary schools need a different set of print, such as yearbooks and CCA banners. Our guide to printing for Singapore schools and student groups covers that side.
Timing orders around the preschool year
Preschool print follows a predictable calendar, and the crunch points are the same for every centre:
- October to November: concerts, graduation, certificates. Book print slots several weeks ahead.
- November to December: handbooks, enrolment packs and name labels for the January intake.
- January: notice board refresh, new class signs and room labels.
- Before festive events: Chinese New Year, Hari Raya and Deepavali celebrations often need small decorations, cards and craft templates.
Our festive print calendar for Singapore lists the busy periods across the whole year and how much lead time each one needs.
One habit saves a lot of stress: keep a single folder with every final print file from this year, labelled by item and date. When the next intake comes around, the admin team can send last year's handbook with a list of changes instead of starting from scratch, and the printer can match the paper and finish exactly. Centres that skip this step often end up rebuilding artwork from a phone photo of an old flyer.
Preschool printing with us
We print for single preschools and for operators running several centres across Singapore. A common setup is one shared design for handbooks, forms and signage, with each centre's address and contact details dropped in, so every centre looks consistent and reprints are quick. We handle personalised name labels and certificates from a spreadsheet, and we can keep your files on record for next year's intake.
If you are planning for next year's intake or this year's graduation, send us your list of items and dates. We will suggest materials that suit young children, flag anything with a long lead time, and come back with a quote. Reach us through our contact page.
