Schedule and Car Line Review

Drop off and Pick up review

I need to review and update the safety procedures for dropping your child/children off at carline.  A teacher will be waiting at the north and south playground gates from 8:30 – 8:45.  If you come outside that window, a teacher will come out to get your child.

Some of our families are getting in line early and that is perfectly fine.  If you are a full day family, and you arrive at 8:15 and there is already a line; you can walk your child to the front door and ring the bell.  The teachers cannot tell who our FD families are when you are in the car in carline.  

The teacher at the gate can only take care of one child or one family at a time.  Please do not get your child out of the car during carline unless you are in the front of the line.  If you want to expediate the drop off you can get your child unbuckled and ready to go, so when you pull up to the front everyone is ready.

For those families that walk up (or anyone that wants to park and walk your child up):  South side families can wait near the dumpster.  The teacher will waive your child over when she is ready.  North side families, please walk up from the church parking lot.  The teacher will waive your child over when she is ready.  

On busy days, we can send two teachers out, depending on the day. The teacher that gets the child out of the second car will hold his/her or their hand/s until they enter the playground.  Children sometimes want to go back for something they forgot or to get one extra hug. Running back can cause an unsafe situation.  The teacher will communicate with you if your child needs something prior to you pulling away.

 

School Schedules:

  • Morning is 8:30 – 11:30
    • Drop off at 8:30-8:45am
    • Pick Up at 11:30am
  • Half Day is 8:30 – 12:30
    • Drop off at 8:30-8:45am
    • Pick Up at 12:30pm
  • Extended Day is 8:30 – 3:00
    • Drop off at 8:30-8:45am
    • Pick Up at 3:00pm

THERE IS CARLINE FOR all 3 of these schedules
The 8:30 carline starts forming by 8:15; the teachers will not be going out to greet those families until the 8:30 carline starts 

  • South Playground Gate for SW and SE students
    • Inclement weather will be from the front doors for the south (not the north)
  • North Playground Gate for NW and NE students
    • During inclement weather we will watch for you from our perspective coatrooms and walk the children out
  • Full Day is anytime between 7:00 – 6:00 p.m.
    • Full Day Parents do not have to wait in the carline. You can walk your child to the front door and ring the bell without waiting in line.
    • Pick ups: CALL ABOUT 5 MINUTES before you are due to arrive,  so we have your child ready to go.
      • The teacher will bring your child out the front door. 

 I will keep you up to date on how things are going and what things we are changing as we navigate these new protocols.  I would rather make changes for the better whenever possible.  

 Thank you very much for your flexibility!   ~Lori

Car Line Rules

As I was researching how other schools handle this situation, I came upon an article written for the Today Show.  I altered this article slightly to fit the needs of Montessori School at Lone Tree.  This article makes it clear that we are not the first, nor will be the last to have this issue.  It is also written with some humor, which is always a plus.  Here is the link if you’d like to read the original article

Rule #1: If you are in the carpool lane Do NOT get out of your car EVER except to buckle your child in… Not to “quickly grab” your kid, wave “come on” to your child over the playground fence, or just say “hi” to your friend in line behind you to tell her how much fun you had at Girl’s Night Out. Stay in your car. And when the car in front of you moves, you move.  When your child and a teacher arrive at your car, please sign him/her out, and then quickly buckle him/her in, unless the child has mastered this skill already.

Rule #2: Put down the cellphone. Don’t text or type emails. Waiting for your child in your empty (and wonderfully quiet) car seems like the perfect opportunity to catch up on work – but it’s also a distraction. People on their phones don’t notice the car in front of them has moved, and as we learned in Rule #1, you know what to do next. More importantly, it’s dangerous. People on their phones don’t see children darting out between cars to the parents breaking rule #3.

Rule #3: Move swiftly. Once the teacher brings you your child, get them into the car and get going. Don’t sit there in line and have the “how was your day?” discussion with them.

Rule #4: Park your car on the street or in the parking lot if… your child has forgotten something in school that he/she or you cannot live without until the next school day.  Please hold hands whenever crossing the parking lot or the street. 

Rule #5: DON’T cut the line. It doesn’t matter that there is a gap the size of the one in Lauren Hutton’s smile in front of that BMW ten cars up. We’re all waiting for them to get off their phone and move up (pop quiz: “What do you do when the car in front of you moves?”). Zipping into that gap is like cutting the line at a cupcake shop. You wouldn’t pull that $#*% at Sprinkles, would you?

Rule #6: Leave the PDA at home. You love your little one and want to send him on his way to school with a kiss. That’s lovely. You’re cute. But if little Johnny won’t get out of the car or he’s not ready to say “goodbye,” go park your car and walk him in. Even better? Install an ejector seat. People are waiting, folks.

Rule #7: The rules of the car drop-off lane apply to everybody, no matter what kind of car you drive. So move your Maserati to the back of the line, dude. You’re giving the 1 percent a bad name.

In short, a little politeness goes a long way in the car lane (and beyond). Remember, being behind the wheel of a car doesn’t make you invisible. We see you. We all see you. Including our children. So let’s try to set a good example. Now put the phone down… the car in front of you just moved up.