Has Anyone Dealt With This?

[Country Kids]

Just found out my headstart children that ride the bus will be dropped off in front of my house but facing the opposite way. This means they will have to walk across the street to get to my house. The bus driver won't let them off unless I'm right at the bus door to get them.

Problem: They are being dropped off right at naptime. We will be finishing lunch and kids will already be laying down for nap. I can't go across the street to get the kids!

So do I rush through lunch, get shoes on, coats just to walk across the street or should I ask to see if the bus can come the other way. The thing is they know they are being dropped off at a childcare and what the laws are (no leaving children).

What would you do?

[daycare]

I would call the school district and speak to someone in transportation. Ask to speak to a manager and let them know the situation. I would not ask the bus driver, because they just might tell you NO....that is unless you have a good relationship with them....

I had to do this about 8 years ago when my own kids had to ride the bus to school....

[Country Kids]

Its not the school district it would be head start. Maybe I'll ask the mom if she minds if I call and ask.

[Blackcat31]

Most Head Start programs have what they call either "eye to eye" transfers or "hand to hand" transfers.

"Eye to eye" means the driver needs to watch the children get off the bus and walk over to you before he can legally pull away from the stop.

"Hand to hand" means that an adult must physically walk the children to the next adult.

I would check with your Head Start program to see what their policy is. A good majority of HS programs also have volunteer riders on the bus for the exact reason you stated....A majority of children attending HS are dropped off at a child care where there is no adult simply standing by to physically retrieve the child so the bus rider does it.

[daycare]

Its not the school district it would be head start. Maybe I'll ask the mom if she minds if I call and ask.

oohhh your headstart is not part of your school district??

[Country Kids]

oohhh your headstart is not part of your school district??

I don't think so. They have their own staff, building, bus drivers, teachers, etc. I don't think its has anything to do with our school district.

[MarinaVanessa]

How many children are you having dropped off at your DC that ride this bus? If you have more than one child ... this is better for you. I would find out who is in charge of the bus's route and drop-off areas and get the phone number ready. Then I'd give this info to the childs/children's parents and explain that it just isn't possible for you to leave the sleeping children alone in your home. Hand them the information and suggest that THEY call the number and request that the drop-off point be changed to the curb in front of your house and not across the street.

All in all I think you should shift the responsibility onto the parent's, it is their child afterall. And also the more calls they get the better. In all honestly unless you live on an amazingly long block I don't see the difficulty of making a slight detour around your block so that the bus stops in front of your house. If "they" (I don't know who "they" are) don't want to accomodate this request then you may just have to have the parent's make alternative travel or daycare arrangements.

[lovemykidstoo]

I haven't had any head start drop offs, but I did with the school district. I also did not want to leave the kids to walk to the street. We worked it out where I would stand in the open door and wave at the bus driver.

[Country Kids]

Great advice everyone once again! Many thanks-

I really don't want to rock the boat to much as HS seemed really put out they were having to drop them off here. They aren't wanting to do pickups from one place and drop offs at another. I thought that was real weird as they know that parents work. They almost weren't going to do it at first till the parents talked to them and then they said ok, but there will be no changing this year-this will be the set schedule.