Is the half door low enough to lift kids over it? If not, you might consider a walk through gate. Either have your aide keep the kids occupied while you handle parents (since you have information to pass on), or start some kind of daily activity sheet that tells the basics (how/ what they ate, how/ when they napped, what they learned or did, etc). Pick a time when most of the parents start picking up, have the kids ready, messes cleaned up and when parent comes, say "hey, we'll be right there!... Timmy, Mom's here!", grab child's hand, walk them to the door. A quick message and goodbye and turn back to the group. Be friendly, but resist the urge to talk more than necessary, it will eventually teach them to shorten things--unless they're attention hogs, I've had those. It's fun... Lol...

I would start a single file setup--1 parent in the room picking up at a time. Tell them you've had issues with the door being left open, so you're making changes. I would also suggest that you use the furniture to create an entrance way that divides just inside the door from the rest of the room. Once you've walked a child to their parent, they're not allowed to return to the play area. If you have a lingerer, you can either so, "oh! Looks like Susie's mom is here. We'll see you tomorrow, Tommy!" or if no one is there, "well, I'll let you get on with your evening, I need to get these blocks put away / Susie's coat on, etc"

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