Bus Riders Bus service is provided for children who live more than one mile from school or where walking is hazardous. Schedules for bus riders are mailed to each student before the first day of school. If no older child from the neighborhood is getting off the bus with the kindergartner, a parent, designated adult, or sibling needs to be present at the stop to receive the kindergartner at the bus stop.

Walkers
Walkers are encouraged to travel to and from school with older children from their neighborhood. The PTA student directory, available in the school office, is a resource should parents need to contact neighborhood families. Patrols in yellow belts are stationed in the hallways at school and on the buses that transport our students.

Car Riders
The driveway in front of the school is reserved for Kiss and Ride before and after school. Use that area for loading and unloading students. Do not leave cars unattended in the Kiss and Ride area. Please review the Kiss and Ride rules listed in the Centre Ridge folder issued to each child at the beginning of the school year.

• WAIT IN LINE TO UNLOAD/PICK UP YOUR CHILD. Follow the flow of traffic without passing vehicles in the Kiss and Ride lane.
• UNLOAD/PICK UP YOUR CHILD IN THE SPECIFIED AREA. Pull up as far as you can in the Kiss and Ride lane and follow directions provided by staff members.
• HAVE YOUR CHILD READY TO UNLOAD. Have your child gather his/her belongings then say your goodbyes so that he/she will be ready to unload when you pull into the Kiss and Ride lane.
• HAVE YOUR CHILD EXIT YOUR VEHICLE ON THE RIGHT ONTO THE SIDEWALK. After children unload, they should follow the " blue footprints" to the designated entrance on the side of the building. Kiss and Ride students do not enter the school using the main entrance.
• REMAIN IN YOUR VEHICLE WHILE UNLOADING/PICKING UP YOUR CHILD(REN). Do not leave your vehicle unattended, as this will impede the flow of traffic. If you wish to get out of your vehicle, you must park in a designated parking space (NOT IN THE KISS AND RIDE lane).Parking for our large staff is limited, you may have to park along New Braddock Road.
• COOPERATING WITH STAFF MEMBERS ASSIGNED TO THE KISS AND RIDE AREA. Staff members are on duty to supervise students' safe entrance to and exit from school and to monitor the flow of traffic in Kiss and Ride.
  

Changes in Transportation Arrangements
If a student is going home with a friend after school WRITTEN PERMISSION is required in advance from both families. Notify the office in advance if arrangements of this nature are necessary for your child. Remind your children that they will not be able to call home at the last minute in order to make after school arrangements to visit a friend.

Bicycles, Scooters and Skateboards
Students who live within walking boundaries are permitted to ride bicycles to school as long as the traffic and safety regulations are followed. Please bear in mind that the school is charged with the safety of all students. While the initial decision rests with the parents, it is recommended by the Fairfax County Police Department that kindergartners, first graders and second graders not ride bicycles. Information will be available in the fall regarding bicycle-riding privileges. The school cannot assume responsibility for missing or damaged bicycles. Once on school grounds, bicycles should be walked to the bike rack and locked while parked on school grounds. Please remember that it is the law that every child is required to wear a helmet while riding a bike.

Scooters and skateboards are not permitted to be ridden to and from school due to the large volume of pedestrian and car traffic.

Helping Your Child Find His Classroom in the Morning
All children will receive a nametag to wear during the first weeks of school. Upon learning the teacher's name and room number at the Kindergarten meeting (Thursday evening before Labor Day), parents should record this information. Staff members are stationed outside and throughout the building each morning to help children find their classrooms.

Helping Your Child Find the Right Bus at Dismissal Parents should record the child's dismissal arrangements (walk, car rider, bus number and stop, etc.) on their nametag. Teachers use this information to create a master list of transportation arrangements for the class. Prior to dismissing the older students, kindergartners are escorted directly to the correct bus or pick-up location. To help our youngest students learn to recognize their buses, each bus is assigned a number. A staff member continues to escort the group to the location until they have demonstrated they can do so independently.

Authorizing Others to Pick up Your Child
Be sure to list those persons who may pick up your child on the Emergency Care Form sent home on the first day of school or available online. This is especially important if your child becomes ill at school or misses the bus, or if you are delayed in traffic. Update this form throughout the year as necessary. The school cannot release your child to neighbors or relatives unless they are listed on the Emergency Care Form.

Centre Ridge Elementary 14400 New Braddock Rd, Centerville, VA 20121
703-227-2600
FAX 703-227-2697
www.fcps.edu/CentreRidgeES

Curator: Pat Wilson - pawilson@fcps.edu
Last Updated: September 2, 2008