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Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>How Do You Do The Bus?
Shell 05:17 AM 09-16-2014
Weird title- couldn't think of a way to phrase. Anyway, dcb 3 has autism and attends public preschool for services. He is picked up daily by a bus, with a monitor. The past few weeks I have brought all the kids out to greet the bus on arrival and drop off. With naps/lunch, this doesn't always work, so I have been walking him 1/2 way down my driveway and letting him get on himself- the aid meets him on the bus steps and buckles him in. He's getting great at going without any hesitation. I just don't know what I should be doing- is it ok to let him go (my driveway is short). The aid doesn't budge much to help, but it's probably because I have been bringing him out. I'm also nervous to have the aid come get him at the door because what if she trips and gets hurt on my property (winter). Any ideas?
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Blackcat31 05:23 AM 09-16-2014
Does your (or his) bus department have specific rules about transferring kids?

For example, I have a little DCK that gets off a bus here three times a week. The bus requires eye to eye contact. Meaning I have to make eye contact with the driver and either wave or indicate that I see the child and am taking over.

I've had situations before that required hand to hand where the child must be physically handed to me before they are allowed to leave.

I've also had kids just dropped off with no contact or even a wave to the driver.

Sometimes I was not able to bundle up all the kids and take them to meet the bus for whatever reason so the bus had to have the aide walk the child in.

I won't leave several kids inside or bundle up several kids just for the sake of one child so if it's something I can not easily accommodate I leave it up to the parents, school and bus department to figure out.

HTH
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Second Home 05:47 AM 09-16-2014
Our bus will not drop off a K child if there is no adult present to meet the bus . I do not have to be at the top of my driveway for them to be allowed off the bus but I must be outside waiting where the driver can see me.

In the winter I have the kids inside the garage waiting all bundled up but at least sheltered from the weather if it is bad or extremely cold . When the bus pulls up I walk out into the driveway so she can see me and she will let the kids off .
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DaveA 05:50 AM 09-16-2014
I have 2 busses drop off kids- one from elementary & one from middle school. Middle school one (my kids) drops off at the driveway & I just step out on front porch or garage depending on weather. They won't consider the children transferred till they see an adult with the child or until kids are inside.

The other one (10-15 minutes earlier) drops off at a stop a couple of houses down. That one I load up the stroller (or car in bad weather) & head down to pick up there.
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GKJNIGMN 07:33 AM 09-16-2014
As long as licensing and the parent are ok with it I wouldn't see a problem.

My son went a special education preschool starting when he was 3 and his provider sent him out the door and watched to make sure he got to the bus but I would have never expected her to take all the other kids out to walk him to the bus or to leave them unattended to do it. Same thing when he came back, the bus driver just needed to see that someone was there waiting for him.

I was actually so nervous that he wouldn't cooperate and just walk to the bus that for the first few days I had my mom go over there at drop off and pick up to make sure he understood what he needed to do lol
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hope 08:06 AM 09-16-2014
Did you ask the bus driver or aide? Explain the situation to them and see what they say.
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Shell 09:56 AM 09-16-2014
Originally Posted by hope:
Did you ask the bus driver or aide? Explain the situation to them and see what they say.
Yep, I just asked the driver today. She said at his age, I must come get him She was very nice about it all, and said she had done FCC for years, so she understood it being a hassle. My licensor is due out next month, so I will see if she has any clever ideas. This is becoming a bit of a hassle with the ones that are napping. Thanks for all the responses to my post!
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KSDC 10:02 AM 09-16-2014
I think I would double check with the school district on the policy. Just because the driver said this is the policy, it doesn't necessarily mean it is the policy.
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Shell 10:19 AM 09-16-2014
Originally Posted by KSDC:
I think I would double check with the school district on the policy. Just because the driver said this is the policy, it doesn't necessarily mean it is the policy.
Good idea, thanks!
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Play Care 10:46 AM 09-16-2014
I will only do SA (5+) kids who take the bus. Unless EI is door to door, I couldn't do it. My SA families know that I do NOT take kids to/from the bus stop for public school, and if their child has issues at the bus stop or to/from, the parent has to make other arrangements.
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SignMeUp 10:54 AM 09-16-2014
I actually dread having my next child with special needs preschool. I used to have my kids all set up at the table with toys or markers & paper, babies in a crib or pnp, and I'd run out to take the child to or from the bus.

Here, neither the aide or the driver is allowed to get off the bus, so they will not come to the door, or meet half-way. The adult is required to bring the child directly to and from the bus door. And with the current supervision guidelines, there is no way I am "allowed" to take the child all the way to the bus door.

All I can come up with is that it will be the parents' problem. I expect the child will end up leaving here to go to a center, or a home that doesn't follow the rules, which is a sad situation if you ask me. I have always run an inclusive child care home.
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itlw8 08:08 PM 09-16-2014
Here the aids can not get off the bus unless the child needs the wheel chair lift. I had to stop taking the special needs preschoolers unless the parents could transport. I used to be able to run out and meet the bus but I have had friends written up for sitting in the door way talking to their neighbor during nap. butt in the house and feet out with the door open. so meeting the bus is out now.
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Cradle2crayons 01:22 AM 09-17-2014
Where I live, the kids are let off even if an adult isn't present at the end of my driveway. My driveway is 200 yards long and winds into the woods. My house can't even be seen from the road. The kids walk to my house. Now if my son is on the bus alone I go meet him at the end of the driveway because it's a busy road and I don't necessarily trust him to come straight to the house.

I'm not sure what they do for special needs though.

If I have any SA after school drop ins and they are past clients, I still let them walk to my house if my daughter is present on the bus.
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coolconfidentme 04:11 AM 09-17-2014
Does the bus stop in from of your house? Can you watch though the door & when it stops, step outside for a second to get the child?
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Blackcat31 05:41 AM 09-17-2014
Why is it the child care providers responsibility to figure this out?

I've had situations before where the parent needed/wanted a child to be dropped at my daycare via bus but the bus driver would not allow the child to get off the bus unless I physically met the bus (with all my other DCK's in tow).

When I told the parent that I would no longer accommodate this, she felt that it was part of MY job and that if a child was brought to MY house, then I had to figure out how to make it work.

Bottom line is (after talking with licensing) we came to the conclusion that it is not MY issue. It is the PARENTS issue to figure out.

I told the parent that thy needed to find a bus rider, an aide or they themselves would need to work something out with the bus because I refused to allow ONE child's need to affect the other kids' need for continuity of their daily schedule.

Personally, I would not get in the middle of this and I would let the parent figure it out between the school and the bus
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craftymissbeth 05:50 AM 09-17-2014
I'm having a similar issue too. My preschooler gets into a van that pulls in my driveway, but if he has trouble with his seatbelt I have to go out there. The driver says she can't even turn around in her seat and buckle him. I can't leave the kids inside to do it and she can't step out of the van to do it.
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Crazy8 07:56 AM 09-17-2014
I have a few SA children that I put on the bus. Bus stop is on my corner. I would not take a child who could not walk from my house to the corner and even wrote in my contract that while we will all go to the bus stop as a group when weather permits there will be times where I will just watch from front steps and the child must be capable of getting on and off bus alone. If it required me walking child onto the bus I would not do it.
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toriskids 09:07 AM 09-17-2014
I have only experienced this with my own child attending morning kindy. Her schedule was pick up at 7:45 am and drop off at 11:47 am. I did have to call the transportation department of the school district to have a spot put in at my driveway for the pick up, because we were having to walk 1 block (with 6 other kids sometimes) initially. We have a double stroller, baby ergo, and a wagon, and I tried to preplan what would be the most effective and fun (snacks help too). Lots of times we had to take the car or van though, which I had to load with seats early am or the night prior to.
I would speak to the parent of the child and explain the situation though. Maybe there are other options available for you as I used to have one PreK DCK have another mom for the school offer to drop off the child, so I only had to deal with the pick up in the am.
Is there anyway also to have flexibility in nap/activity/meal times? If you are really wanting to take on this responsibility, maybe some schedule rearrangement can be done?
Overall what is most important is the well being of all the children, and also you don't need anymore stress on top of running a daycare!

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Unregistered 10:21 AM 09-18-2014
I would be careful with letting an autistic child off by himself without supervision (i.e., physically bringing him to you.)

I was walking my own kids from school when I suddenly saw a 9-year-old boy tearing off between the houses. Then a couple of cop cars swerved in and the cops started chasing him. It turns out the autistic boy had gotten off at an early stop and the aide didn't catch him in time. The bus driver had left the door open a little too long, and he saw his opportunity!

They were able to find him, but it took about 30 minutes as we don't have fences in our back yards.

I would not be responsible for his safety, especially when towing along a whole household of kids with you. The parents and the school need to figure out a solution - not you!
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DaisyMamma 09:25 AM 09-19-2014
Originally Posted by Shell:
Weird title- couldn't think of a way to phrase. Anyway, dcb 3 has autism and attends public preschool for services. He is picked up daily by a bus, with a monitor. The past few weeks I have brought all the kids out to greet the bus on arrival and drop off. With naps/lunch, this doesn't always work, so I have been walking him 1/2 way down my driveway and letting him get on himself- the aid meets him on the bus steps and buckles him in. He's getting great at going without any hesitation. I just don't know what I should be doing- is it ok to let him go (my driveway is short). The aid doesn't budge much to help, but it's probably because I have been bringing him out. I'm also nervous to have the aid come get him at the door because what if she trips and gets hurt on my property (winter). Any ideas?
IME people are extremely accommodating for things like this. Talk to the aide and I bet he or she will come meet him at the door.
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