(Above:  Washintong Elementary sign welcoming ATDP families during last years orientation.)

We can't wait to see you at the Elementary Division orientation! Orientation for Elementary Division students and families will be held on Saturday, July 12, in the Multi-Purpose Room at Washington Elementary School. At the Orientation, you will hear about program procedures, meet your teacher, familiarize yourself with the school, and have a chance to visit with other students. Although not mandatory, attendance at Orientation Day is recommended, especially for new students and their parents. However, if you are unable to attend, you do not need to notify the ATDP office.

The orientation will be in two parts: a half-hour large group meeting in the Washington School Multi-Purpose Room (MPR) and a smaller half-hour meeting with the student’s teacher and classmates in the student’s regular classroom.  Some families are invited first to the MPR and then to the classroom.  Others are invited to the classroom first.  Please look for your class below to know which group you will be in.

Dear ATDP Parents,

Welcome to the ATDP elementary program at Washington School! It is a pleasure to have you and your student here for what promises to be an exciting and productive three weeks of hands on learning.

It is important to remember that the ATDP elementary summer program is a school session and not a camp. Because it is a school, the same rules and policies that apply in the regular school year will apply during this program. So here are a few things to keep in mind as you attend Washington:

• Attendance is important. The ATDP classes are fast moving and students who are absent can fall behind quickly. However, if an absence is unavoidable, please be sure to call the school at (510) 231-1417 and inform the office of the reason for  the  absence and when your student is expected to return.

• Emergency Forms are essential. Please make sure that you have completed an emergency form prior to the start of the program. It is important to have alternate phone numbers listed as well as everyone listed to pick up your student. This information would become vital in the case of a serious emergency and is frequently used when students are not picked up on time.

• Medications on campus. If your student routinely takes medication or has a severe allergy and needs to have medication on site, please complete the medication forms (with a doctors signature) prior to the start of the program. The office will keep medications in the office should they be needed. They can be picked up at the end of the program. Under no circumstances should a student carry medication in a pocket or in a backpack. Medications not picked up at the end of the program will be sent to the ATDP office on the Berkeley campus and may be picked up there.

• Parents / Visitors on campus. We welcome your presence on campus and invite you to visit or stay during the session if you like. All visitors to the campus MUST enter through the main doors and sign in at the office and receive a visitor’s sticker.  If you plan to visit or volunteer in a classroom, then you must make arrangements with the teacher prior to the visit. Parents wishing to wait at the school during their student’s session may sit in the library, or the teacher’s lounge (except during recesses and lunch). There are also several chairs in the lobby. Parents may not wait in the hallways or outside classroom doors. This can be very distracting for students and may disrupt instruction. Please remember that internet access is limited and not dependable. If you would prefer to explore rather than wait at school for your student, the town of Point Richmond is just a few blocks away with many nice places to eat or have a cup of coffee.

• Recess. Students may have a snack that you send for them during recess. They must sit at one of the tables on the schoolyard while they eat.

• Dress Code. The student dress code for the ATDP program is basically just clothing suitable for school. All students must wear closed toe / closed heel shoes for reasons of safety on the yard. Girls may not wear tops with ‘spaghetti’ straps or short shorts. Boys may not wear saggy pants. Please be aware that the weather here is variable. And can change rapidly. We often have cold, overcast mornings in the summer months and then the afternoons will be sunny and hot. It is a good idea to wear clothing that can be layered, so that students may add or shed layers with the weather. Please remember to label all your student’s belongings.

We look forward to see you and your students during the summer 2014 program!

      Sincerely,
      Lisa Levi and Steve Kirby
      ATDP Site Administrators

(Above:  A map showing the flow of traffic for drop off and pick up at Washington Elementary School.)

All students should be dropped off and picked up at the Red Gate, located on East Richmond Avenue, where there is supervision by school personnel. The ATDP program creates quite of bit of traffic in the immediate neighborhood so please be patient and allow for a few extra minutes. There will be a pickup lane established for those of you who do not plan to park and walk into the school to meet your student. Please enter the pick up lane on Wine Street (in the front of the school) and follow it around to the East Richmond side of the school. At pick up time, all students will be walked either to the Red Gate or the Cal Sports Program, if they are enrolled in that as well.  Students may get into their waiting cars as soon as it is on the East Richmond Avenue. If you do not see your student when you first get to that side of the school, please drive around the school in a clock-wise direction and re-enter the carpool lane (see map above). This helps to keep the line of cars moving and makes it faster for everyone. Under no circumstances should parents park in the pick up lane and leave their cars. This disrupts the pickup lane and can back up traffic on to Cutting Avenue.  For those parents who wish to park in the neighborhood and pick up their students that way, please be respectful of the school’s neighbors and refrain from parking in driveways or blocking some of the very narrow streets nearby.

Parents may park on the east side of Wine Street, across from the front of the school. There is limited parking in the neighborhood surrounding the school but please be mindful that Washington School works hard to be a good neighbor and be understanding that this area is their home. There is also parking on Cutting Avenue, alongside the school play yard and the adjoining park.  We ask that you do not park in the following areas: the staff parking lot, the white and yellow zones around the school, the parking lot for Great American Hamburger Company (unless you plan to have a quick lunch there) or the business lot across from the school. They need parking for their employees just as the staff needs to be able to park in the school lot.