Working Together
For A Safe and Secure Lakewood
For the children


In trusting us with your children, we feel a
bit like they are “our” children and like you
we want them to have a safe and
comfortable place to learn.
We are passionate about keeping them
safe, promoting their academic
achievement, and teaching them to be
good citizens of a diverse community
The all-important morning
routine




Learning starts when children wake up.
Having a trustworthy routine in the
morning helps children learn timemanagement.
Students learn to manage time by
following your example.
Learning at school begins with either
on-time bus arrival or car arrival.
“Reliable expectations and
routines encourage your child’s
trust and make for easier
transitions from home to school”
Morning Arrivals
Driving to Lakewood

Lindley Terrace is really a circle and comes
out onto Wooton Parkway at two places.
Avoiding Grid-lock


Knowing this, when traffic turning left out
of Lakewood becomes crowded, you can
turn right and come out at Wooton
Parkway just a block away
Note: If more students rode the school
bus both ways, we would have fewer cars
and less traffic.
Special Morning Limits

Only Buses are allowed in the Bus lot between
8AM and 4PM
The Lakewood Parking Lot
Please show your respect for
our limited parking



On days when large-scale events are
taking place, we try to alert parents to
park in the neighborhood or in the church
parking lot
At times we will block spaces for staff with
the traffic cones
Please park elsewhere on these busy days
(Field-trip chaperones, Book Fair days,
etc.)
Misuse of Handicapped Spaces
It can get
expensive!

Parking Lot Expectations
Be patient with children /& other drivers
 Sometimes it is slow and frustrating
 Watch for people of all ages
 Cones are there to protect the children by
guiding drivers. Please respect them.

The first lessons of the morning

As you pull in to Lakewood you join a line
of people and your child sees that it is
important to take turns, and that they are
given time to get out of the car and walk
toward the school.
Lessons about respect




Staff are in place at 8:40 to welcome and
guide your children through a safe and
orderly arrival.
Children remain on the school bus until
school opens.
Car riders are required to do the same.
Help us teach your children to respect
Lakewood’s rules and schedules
My child is upset and needs time!


If your child is upset and has difficulty
saying good-bye, does not want to get out
of the car, and/or needs more time with
you, pull ahead and out of line and park
until they are ready.
HOWEVER ………….


RETURN TO THE DROP-OFF LINE!
This is important! It reinforces the
message that you expect your child to get
out independently and that you trust he or
she will walk into the school.
Lessons learned from arriving late:

“The school routines don't apply to me;”

If I say I am “in a hurry” I can break the rules


“I am special and I don’t have to follow the
rules.” or “I don’t have to take turns”
“It’s okay to cut into the front of the line.”
Late Arrivals

After the second
bell, students are
late. He or she
needs to sign in
at the front office
and get a “Tardy”
slip to give to his
or her teacher.

Some parents have developed the habit of
dropping a child at the church parking lot
by Glen Road. This is a dangerous option
putting children at risk crossing the busy
bus entry and should be avoided.

Hold your child’s hand to cross this busy
street or have them follow the side-walk
which leads to the main entrance.
Procedures for visitors
All who are not daily staff at Lakewood are
required to sign in at the front Office and
display their MCPS identification or a special
visitor badge issued to them.
The Badge is for a specific purpose. It is not
permission to visit or peek-in on classrooms
and disrupt instruction.


Visitors – Friends and
Strangers


While none of us want to be considered
“strangers” at our child’s school and many are
no strangers to the staff. HOWEVER, to all the
children who do not know you, you are an
unknown – a stranger.
MCPS requires everyone who works or visits a
school to wear identification. The badge reflects
to all that you have signed-in and are respectful
of Lakewood’s rules and expectations.
“Just-” is not an excuse!






“I just have to take his lunch box to him”
“I just have to run this to the cafeteria”
“I just have to tell Mr. or Mrs. ____
something”
“I just have to give him his inhaler”
“I just want to tell my child something”
“I just have to give her the permission slip
left in the car”
Please follow the rules at Lakewood!
Visitor Sign-Out
Anyone who signs in – is expected to sign
out in the office and surrender their
identification before leaving.
 While some parents may consider this an
inconvenience, these procedures are in
place as an effort to keep your child safe.

Contact with Teachers






E-mail (As arranged with each teacher)
Phone messages
Notes sent home with students
Notes in their assignment calendar
Scheduled meetings when requested
Teachers are not prepared for “Drop-In”
conferences. Make an appointment so
they have the time to prepare to answer
your questions
Parking Lot Departure


Children belong in one of only three
classifications for dismissal:
Bus – Riders
Walkers


Car-Riders
Departure Groups

Bus riders are supervised by staff and patrols
and are called as buses arrive. Students stay in
class and are dismissed when their bus is
called.
If your child misses the bus


He or she will wait in the office while staff
contact parents to arrange pick-up.
It is important to keep your contact
information current.
Car pool / Car Riders

Car-riders meet in the main hallway and
are escorted outside to the car pick-up
circle.
Walkers

Walkers Supervision of
walkers ends once they
leave the school
entrance. Walkers are
considered able to leave
the school grounds and
walk directly home.
Picking your child up early


If you need to pick your child up early,
remember that the end of the day is difficult
for both children and teachers.
For this reason MCPS has a policy that
children are not paged to the office after
2:30PM. Pick them up before 2:30 or wait for
your child to exit the school following his or
her usual routine.
If we need
to change the departure plan

Without written permission, the child will
be sent home in the usual way.
Half-days / Early Dismissal







These are listed on the MCPS calendar
Arrival remains the same
Morning instruction is shortened
Lunch is served early
There is no recess on half-days
Students return to class after lunch
Dismissal is at 12:55pm
Early closing




Parents are notified by phone
Alerts go out to local TV and radio media
Parents who pick their children up will be
asked to come directly to the school
Children who ride buses take their usual
bus and should be met at their bus stop
Late Opening




When bad weather is upon us, MCPS may
decide that a late opening is the best
option to keep students and staff safe.
Information regarding late opening is
available on the MCPS web-site
There will also be alerts on local TV and
radio stations
Such decisions are usually made by 6AM
In case of severe weather


We at Lakewood have detailed plans in
place to protect your child’s safety as well
as methods for reuniting you and your
child following a storm or other event.
Just as with fire-drills, we take emergency
preparedness very seriously and practice
evacuations and sheltering several times
during the year.
The Discipline Model
(not punishment)







A disciplinarian has to do 4 things:
1. Teach the child what is expected
2. Practice success while coaching the child
3. Observe success and praise the child’s
accomplishment
4. Acknowledge to the child that they can be trusted
to do it well on their own
This leaves the child with a feeling of accomplishment
and confidence. It also establishes the adult as a
person who is a resource for their success.
When you know how to do something well, and you
do something else, you made a poor choice.
The Punishment Model




If you are not certain how to do something correctly,
and someone is constantly “catching you” doing
wrong, that person is someone you want to avoid.
The punisher is energized when they witness “wrongdoing.” They are “finding fault.”
De careful not to turn this into a philosophy with
dangerous consequences and say: “Don’t let me catch
you doing that!” This neither tells them to refrain from
doing it, nor does it tell them what to do instead.
As one student said to another: “I’ve never been
caught!”
Health Issues



Illness – Children are in close contact with their
classmates. This makes it easy for children to pass
germs along to others
Frequent hand-washing is the best way to minimize
the transmission of germs
To protect other students and teachers, it is vital that
you keep your child home when he or she is sick. We
understand this may be difficult, but it is necessary to
insure a healthy environment for all.
Children with Allergies

Because food allergies can be so severe,
we stress that students keep their lunch to
themselves and refrain from sharing food
Health Room Procedures




Students sent to the health room are
signed in and examined by the school
nurse
In most cases treatment involves an ice
pack or a bandage.
In more severe instances a parent is
notified.
If warranted, the school will call an
ambulance while the nurse notifies the
parents
Special Days








Halloween – Costume parade
Valentines Day – Classes may have parties
Field Day – Outdoor & In-door sports
Evening Concerts – Family and guests are welcome
Book-Fair days – Special morning book sales
Major Field-Trips – May require parent chaperones
Career Day – Invited guests describe their professions
5th Grade Graduation – 5th Grade achievements are
honored with family and friends
Special Lakewood Vocabulary
Ask your child about them













Self to self
In-door/out-door voices
Hurt feelings
Bad language
Lunch bunch
SOS
Nertz
LSA
Wednesday Folders
Specials
Manager’s Choice
In for recess
Birthday pencil
Things to Practice
with your child





Your
Your
Your
Your
Your
address
phone numbers
name (if different from your child)
child’s school computer Login & Password
child’s cafeteria account number
Alert us to your child’s life-changes








Parent travel
Death of a pet
Illness of a close relative
Parental conflict
Medical scare (cancer) you think
you are hiding from your child
Pending surgery
Pregnancy
Etc.
Help us keep Lakewood
a safe and secure place to learn!

Your cooperation with the staff and other
parents will provide real-life examples of
how we work together at school for the
safety and well-being of all.
A final request








In the same way your children need your help
practicing things they learn in school, Lakewood staff
needs your help to maintain a reliable and positive
educational experience
Be familiar with your child’s routines
Communicate with your child’s teacher
Review Lakewood expectations with your child
Set an example of participation & cooperation
Value what your child shares with you from school
Sign and return permission forms promptly
Respond to teacher messages to collaborate in
success
Discipline - Coach




Children thrive on guidance in terms of how to
succeed.
When our children fail to succeed, parents and
educators must strive to provide basic tools for
success ….. AND
Give opportunities to practice success with adult
support
Both of these components are required for a
child’s sense of self and self-confidence.
Lakewood – Eagle Expectations



The expectations handout provides
examples of what we are looking for
once a child has achieved some selfdiscipline
You will notice that there is a section
of Level 1 through 3 behaviors
which outlines some behaviors
which require us to act so as to keep
Lakewood a safe and successful
place for learning
Please note that our first response is
always to “re-teach” the expectation
and describe the correct behavior in
whatever situation arises
When we call parents for help




In the event we contact you for help with your
child’s behavior, please use the Lakewood
Expectations handout as a home guide.
Our intent when reporting an incident is to add
practice at success, not embarrass or punish
students.
This provides students with feelings of success
both at home and at school, and you witness
their effort.
This promotes the feeling that all adults expect,
appreciate, and enjoy the success of our
Lakewood community members.