Author Topic: Parents are not allowed to walk their kids to school and must be driven in a car  (Read 7501 times)

clarkfan1979

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My 3-year old is transitioning into face-to-face preschool on Monday. He was previously doing on-line preschool. We got an email from the principle on Friday that parents are not allowed to walk their kid to school, due to social distancing.

All parents are required to drop off children in a car. Their reasoning is that it will be easier to maintain social distancing. I'm all for social distancing, but does this really help? More cars?

We bought a house that is an 8 minute walk to the elementary school in which the preschool is housed, so this is very disappointing for us.


marty998

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What if you don’t have a car?

Cranky

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I would have to point out that I don’t drive, so if they wanted my tuition we’d be walking to school.

But I do realize that preschool drop off is pretty carefully orchestrated.

mrsnamemustache

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I would be emailing the principal back to find a work around.

Dicey

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Is riding your bike an option?

seattlecyclone

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Well that's just silly. Sure, if everyone's in a car they can just stay put in the car for a moment if another family is entering, to give them space. If you're walking you can hang out across the street. What's the difference?

TrMama

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This is the type of rule I just ignore.

zinnie

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Yeah, please push back on this. Ridiculous.

soccerluvof4

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Thats ridiculous! If anything maybe have folks wear a mask as they get within a certain distance of the school. My two youngest are in HS and play Soccer. For away games we have to drive them. Fortunately the older one has his license but they dont want kids taking a bus YET there are twenty two kids on the team and double that on the bus that would take them to school in the morning?!  So many of these things are just not thought out . As others have said I would push back and I bet you wont be the only one doing the pushing!!

former player

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How is the school proposing to enforce this "rule"?

Cassie

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This is really stupid. Not everyone drives or has a car available if it’s a one car family.

Cranky

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This is really stupid. Not everyone drives or has a car available if it’s a one car family.

At the school where I taught there was exactly one person who walked to school, and that was me.

charis

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Our school is in a residential neighborhood and a good percentage of families live close enough to walk or drive, and they do.  This type of rule would not be possible, and would have been protested mightily if attempted.

Zette

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Pre-pandemic preschool drop off you definitely had a crowded space in the area where you store the child’s lunch and coat and say goodbye.  I imagine they’re trying to streamline it so each kid is met by staff and walked in.  If there are multiple staff they could have had six foot lines on the pavement for the walkers. What will they do about kids who are reluctant to get out of the car and hold up the whole line?

SpaceCow

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This is the type of rule I just ignore.

I think this is the answer. I personally enjoy exercising my ability to ignore stupid rules.

MyAlterEgoIsTaller

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In my town the elementary school principal was worried about kids who were walking from a trailer park that's only about 1/4 mile from the school but requires walking on a busy road with a blind curve and no shoulder, so the current policy is that absolutely no children are allowed to walk to school, regardless of whether there is an adult with them or how close they live to the school - it applies even to the kids who live in the house directly across the street from the school.  They get in-school suspension and are banned from sports if they get caught walking.

Dicey

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In my town the elementary school principal was worried about kids who were walking from a trailer park that's only about 1/4 mile from the school but requires walking on a busy road with a blind curve and no shoulder, so the current policy is that absolutely no children are allowed to walk to school, regardless of whether there is an adult with them or how close they live to the school - it applies even to the kids who live in the house directly across the street from the school.  They get in-school suspension and are banned from sports if they get caught walking.
How can that even be legal?

Much Fishing to Do

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Yes, this is basically a dumb rule.  But I've give them a break, most schools are just trying to figure out how to make things work right now and they may have figured out it flows more smoothly and distanced with cars, so they call it a rule and hope that it changes enough peoples actions to help things. 

seattlecyclone

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In my town the elementary school principal was worried about kids who were walking from a trailer park that's only about 1/4 mile from the school but requires walking on a busy road with a blind curve and no shoulder, so the current policy is that absolutely no children are allowed to walk to school, regardless of whether there is an adult with them or how close they live to the school - it applies even to the kids who live in the house directly across the street from the school.  They get in-school suspension and are banned from sports if they get caught walking.
How can that even be legal?

Even if it is, it seems like a mighty convenient way to dole out some extra punishment to the trailer park kids, whose parents all surely have flexible enough work schedules to permit them to be at school in a vehicle at the beginning and end of each school day.

YYK

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I vote for ignoring it while at the same time being careful to show that you're practicing social distancing, wearing a mask, etc. so they have little room to complain.

Zamboni

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This is the type of rule I just ignore.

I think this is the answer. I personally enjoy exercising my ability to ignore stupid rules.

I, too, would ignore this rule. I'd walk my kids to school and pretend I never got the message. Then, if I got confronted about it, I'd first apologize profusely for not knowing the rule, but then say "I'm sorry, but driving to school is just not going to work for me."

Them: "But you have to drive to school. You can't walk your child to school."

Me again: "I'm sorry, but that's just not going to work for me."

I guess they could kick you out of their school over this. But, if you stay relentlessly pleasant, and just refuse to acknowledge that you could possibly drive, then they will probably find a work around rather than kicking you out. Then again, my children attended a preschool for a year where the principal was just a totally unreasonable ass, so who knows what they will do?

Cranky

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Is this a private preschool or a public program?

A private school has a lot of leeway in their rules, but they desperately want your tuition dollars. A public ally funded program isn’t so interested in your $ but has many more legal constraints.

Confronting them legally is expensive and takes a long time. I think the best approach is to acknowledge that they are trying to maintain a difficult process with the drop off rules - which generally are structured around the idea that nobody but the child will get out of the car - but insisting that you can only walk to school and would they rather arrange for a bus?

Turnbull

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This is the type of rule I just ignore.

Correct. Just walk it. What are they going to do?

tthree

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Seems ridiculous.  Here's our school division's take on the situation.


x02947

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So... I'm from the south where a large number of people are actively defying any type of social distance rules.  I'm recoiling in moderate horror and how many of y'all are saying to ignore a social distance guideline, regardless of how stupid it is.  I try to be the example, both for the rest of society and for my children. 

I vote for cutting the school system some slack--let's be an adult and try to actually come to an agreement before ignoring the rule, flat out lying in front of your child (even if they don't realize it), and attempting to steam roller over whatever harried, poor soul is assigned to be the social-distance-bouncer that day. 

If the school system won't come to an agreement ahead of time, sure, bull your way ahead.  But I just think it sets a bad example and precedent to simply say "No, I'm gonna do what I want, no matter what," and not even give the system a chance.

EDIT:  I actually looked at the date and saw that today was the first day.  What did you decide, and how did it go?
« Last Edit: September 21, 2020, 12:00:39 PM by x02947 »

Shane

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+1 to the suggestions to just ignore the rule and walk your child to school, anyway. As long as you put a mask on when you get close to the school, in case you run into other pedestrians on the sidewalk, there are no *valid* social distancing concerns. You could also just stop short of the entrance of the school by a few hundred feet and let your 3 year old walk the rest of the way alone, while you stand there and watch to make sure he makes it okay. That way, technically, you wouldn't be walking your child to school, just part way.

Sibley

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+1 to the suggestions to just ignore the rule and walk your child to school, anyway. As long as you put a mask on when you get close to the school, in case you run into other pedestrians on the sidewalk, there are no *valid* social distancing concerns. You could also just stop short of the entrance of the school by a few hundred feet and let your 3 year old walk the rest of the way alone, while you stand there and watch to make sure he makes it okay. That way, technically, you wouldn't be walking your child to school, just part way.

Um, do you have an experience with 3 year olds? No, do not let them walk a few hundred feet by themselves.

Shane

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+1 to the suggestions to just ignore the rule and walk your child to school, anyway. As long as you put a mask on when you get close to the school, in case you run into other pedestrians on the sidewalk, there are no *valid* social distancing concerns. You could also just stop short of the entrance of the school by a few hundred feet and let your 3 year old walk the rest of the way alone, while you stand there and watch to make sure he makes it okay. That way, technically, you wouldn't be walking your child to school, just part way.

Um, do you have an experience with 3 year olds? No, do not let them walk a few hundred feet by themselves.

As long as there are no streets to cross, a 3 year old should be fine to walk a few hundred feet alone. Beginning at age 5, I walked myself 1/2 mile to and from school everyday. There's no reason a 3 year old can't walk across the lawn to the front door of the school by himself. Not talking about letting them walk through traffic alone.

seattlecyclone

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So... I'm from the south where a large number of people are actively defying any type of social distance rules.  I'm recoiling in moderate horror and how many of y'all are saying to ignore a social distance guideline, regardless of how stupid it is.  I try to be the example, both for the rest of society and for my children. 

Social distancing is great! Preventing crowds from forming around the school door at pickup/dropoff time is a very reasonable and laudable goal. Requiring everyone to strap their child into a carseat and use a piece of heavy machinery to transport their child a short distance is not reasonably related to that goal. It's just as easy to stand too close to other people after stepping out of a car as it is to stand too close to other people after walking across a street.

Quote
I vote for cutting the school system some slack--let's be an adult and try to actually come to an agreement before ignoring the rule, flat out lying in front of your child (even if they don't realize it), and attempting to steam roller over whatever harried, poor soul is assigned to be the social-distance-bouncer that day. 

Oh, sure. I'd definitely raise the issue with the leadership of the school and point out what I said above: that social distancing is about staying away from other people, and that people who walk are perfectly capable of doing that. But if push came to shove and they refused to reconsider their position I don't think I'd start driving the half-mile distance to my kids' preschool. Teaching your kids to follow the rules is important, but so too is teaching your kids about standing up for other important principles such as leading an active lifestyle and protecting the environment from unnecessary pollution.

zinnie

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Seems ridiculous.  Here's our school division's take on the situation.

This is amazing! Love your school’s take 🙂

LetItGrow

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This is a tough one, as was pointed out, but I’d have to not drive. Practice social distancing of course. If asked, say you 'parked over there' and wave your hand in the direction of home.

Also curious what OP decided and how it went.

SauronHimself

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Make a cardboard cut-out of a car and carry it on the walk.

former player

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Make a cardboard cut-out of a car and carry it on the walk.
Park your car in your driveway and have your kid climb in one side of it and out the other so he's used the car for part of his journey to school.

LetItGrow

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Make a cardboard cut-out of a car and carry it on the walk.

Hood emblem on a chain around your neck. Do cars have those still? As I was typing that I realized I have no idea.


StarBright

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Seems ridiculous.  Here's our school division's take on the situation.

^ this is our's too. To make bussing safer they had to widen the "no bus service" zone. And they are encouraging folks within the mile loop to walk/bike if they can because now folks within the two mile loop are driving.

And the car line is absolutely nuts. At one of the other elementary schools the car line has backed onto the interstate!


Milizard

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During normal times, I might make a fuss over it, but these aren't normal times. Everyone's trying to figure out the best way to manage all these coronavirus precautions, so I'd play along and talk to the teacher and/or principal about it.  Often they are more flexible once they work out the details in action.

robartsd

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Make a cardboard cut-out of a car and carry it on the walk.
Bonus points if your cardboard cut-out is at least 12 feet long (6 feet in front of you and 6 feet behind you).

Shane

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For a month in early 2017, our then 8 year old daughter attended a public school in rural japan. There, the rule was that all children were REQUIRED TO WALK to school every day, all year long, even in the middle of winter when the streets were covered in snow and ice. Except in very unusual circumstances, like if a kid broke a leg or something, parents were NOT ALLOWED to drive their children to school. In our case, it was about 1.5 miles, each way. There was a designated place in each neighborhood where kids assembled at a predetermined time each morning before school. A 6th grade boy walked in the front of the line carrying a flag, and a 5th grade girl took up the back, also with a flag. All of the littler kids walked in single file in between the two flag carriers. Kids got exercise every day, and it was a good experience for them to be able to go back and forth to school on their own, instead of being chauffeured everywhere by their parents.

jpdx

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Shane, that story about Japan is inspiring, and the way a society should work. It must be great for the kids to get exercise and fresh air, and to learn responsibly and self-sufficiency from a young age (not to mention a sense of direction). Equally important, that system frees up the parent(s) time to work or accomplish other tasks. I'd love to hear more about how it worked out for your family.

chemistk

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+1 to the suggestions to just ignore the rule and walk your child to school, anyway. As long as you put a mask on when you get close to the school, in case you run into other pedestrians on the sidewalk, there are no *valid* social distancing concerns. You could also just stop short of the entrance of the school by a few hundred feet and let your 3 year old walk the rest of the way alone, while you stand there and watch to make sure he makes it okay. That way, technically, you wouldn't be walking your child to school, just part way.

Um, do you have an experience with 3 year olds? No, do not let them walk a few hundred feet by themselves.

As long as there are no streets to cross, a 3 year old should be fine to walk a few hundred feet alone. Beginning at age 5, I walked myself 1/2 mile to and from school everyday. There's no reason a 3 year old can't walk across the lawn to the front door of the school by himself. Not talking about letting them walk through traffic alone.

I think this is a YMMV situation. My current 3 year old is aloof and sometimes forgets that situational awareness is a thing. If I had him walk 300' by himself, he'd end up lost in the woods behind our house.

Our older son, when he was 3, would have walked the right way but forgot where or why he was walking and then would have just kept going.

Laura33

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So... I'm from the south where a large number of people are actively defying any type of social distance rules.  I'm recoiling in moderate horror and how many of y'all are saying to ignore a social distance guideline, regardless of how stupid it is.  I try to be the example, both for the rest of society and for my children. 

I vote for cutting the school system some slack--let's be an adult and try to actually come to an agreement before ignoring the rule, flat out lying in front of your child (even if they don't realize it), and attempting to steam roller over whatever harried, poor soul is assigned to be the social-distance-bouncer that day. 

If the school system won't come to an agreement ahead of time, sure, bull your way ahead.  But I just think it sets a bad example and precedent to simply say "No, I'm gonna do what I want, no matter what," and not even give the system a chance.

EDIT:  I actually looked at the date and saw that today was the first day.  What did you decide, and how did it go?

My motto since I was about 12 has been "question authority" (why yes, I am GenX, how could you tell?).  I absolutely abhor stupid rules, and I tend to comply only to the extent (a) I am forced to, or (b) they make logical sense and I agree with the underlying principle. 

I have a very strong negative reaction to the rule identified here, because it strikes me as a rule that is designed to create the impression the school is doing something, vs. a rule that is actually doing something.  Rules made by officious busybodies who love to make rules and establish processes are the sort of thing that I take great joys in subverting.  But the rules for show are my least-favorite rules of all, because they're cynical and Orwellian -- basically, "we aren't able/willing to do what we need to do to actually make people safe, so we're going to put on a big show to make them feel safe."  Like taking your shoes off at TSA.  That kind of rule inspires less joy in subversion and more compulsion to subvert whenever and wherever possible, purely as a matter of principle. 

I firmly believe that I deploy my talents for subversion for good, not evil.  I pay attention to what is going on, I take the time to understand the situation and the science, and I'm really smart, so I usually do understand.  And yet I recognize that the personality trait that drives me is exactly the same thing that drives people in the "masks are evil" camp.  So how can I give myself permission to flaunt a rule that represents an imperfect execution of a laudable goal, if I am going to argue that others don't deserve the same degree of individualism, the same right to decide for themselves whether a decree is good or bad?  Sure, I can argue that I'm the exception because whatever.  But I am just as limited in the scope of my knowledge as they are -- and I am just as susceptible to confirmation bias and to the desire to make self-serving decisions, even when I delude myself into thinking it's about the principle.  And my entire view of government is that there are some choices that require me to put aside my own hubris and trust the Powers That Be to make -- because they are the ones who have insight into all the different players and considerations, who have access to the experts, and who are entrusted with making the best decision for the community as a whole.   

So for me, I'd probably roll my eyes, suck it up, and comply.  If I really couldn't, I'd talk to someone and make other arrangements.  And if I thought the rule was stupid or counterproductive (and I actually cared enough), I'd probably talk to the people in charge of making the rules and suggest alternatives.  Because at some point, it's important to signal that you are putting the good of the community first, even if you think the way the community has chosen to implement things is really fucking stupid.

In fact, come to think of it, that's exactly what I did:  our school decided that it would be a brilliant idea to make all the parents drive to the school at the same time and line up, in cars, all through the parking lot (and of course backed up onto the road) to pick up necessary books and stuff.  I live a half-mile from the school and would normally have walked over.  But I realized they probably wanted people in the cars, with the windows rolled up, so they could keep THEIR people farther away (they basically put stuff on the backseat through the rear window).  So I did my part and spent a full freaking hour going 0.1 mph to get a couple of things that should have taken 30 minutes including the walk.  I considered skipping it; I mean, what are they going to do, tell my kid he can't get his stuff because I "just couldn't make it" to their designated time.  But it was a fairly innocuous request that required minimal sacrifice on my part, so I rolled my eyes and complied.

Freedomin5

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+1 to the suggestions to just ignore the rule and walk your child to school, anyway. As long as you put a mask on when you get close to the school, in case you run into other pedestrians on the sidewalk, there are no *valid* social distancing concerns. You could also just stop short of the entrance of the school by a few hundred feet and let your 3 year old walk the rest of the way alone, while you stand there and watch to make sure he makes it okay. That way, technically, you wouldn't be walking your child to school, just part way.

Um, do you have an experience with 3 year olds? No, do not let them walk a few hundred feet by themselves.

As long as there are no streets to cross, a 3 year old should be fine to walk a few hundred feet alone. Beginning at age 5, I walked myself 1/2 mile to and from school everyday. There's no reason a 3 year old can't walk across the lawn to the front door of the school by himself. Not talking about letting them walk through traffic alone.

I think this is a YMMV situation. My current 3 year old is aloof and sometimes forgets that situational awareness is a thing. If I had him walk 300' by himself, he'd end up lost in the woods behind our house.

Our older son, when he was 3, would have walked the right way but forgot where or why he was walking and then would have just kept going.

My 3 year old would’ve refused to walk the last couple hundred feet unless I walked with her. Or unless a teacher came and picked her up and carried her away from me kicking and screaming. Especially during the first week of school.

In fact, most three year olds need an adult holding their hand all the way into the classroom. How do I know? I‘ve been watching it happen here in Shanghai for the past month, where parents are only allowed to drop their children off at the gate of the school campus, and teaching staff have to walk the children into the school building, two or three at a time, due to pandemic procedures.

I think everyone is doing the best they can, and some of the rules may be annoying and may not make sense to you, but you still need to follow them because you don’t know what other factors influenced the rule. Besides, it’s not like this rule is going to last forever. It’s just temporary. For school administrators who are already dealing with a billion and one other bigger problems, the last thing they need is to be arguing with a stubborn, non-cooperative parent. I mean, it’s one thing if you don’t have a car or can’t drive because you’re blind or don’t have a license or whatever, it’s another thing if you won’t follow the rule just because you think it’s stupid, don’t have all the facts, and just don’t feel like complying because Reasons.
« Last Edit: September 22, 2020, 06:54:27 AM by Freedomin5 »

slappy

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My son's preschool is doing the same, and yes, I think it helps. It's a pain, because we wanted both kids on the bus this year, but we just suck it up and deal because...pandemic. Last year, there was quite the crowd of parents at pick up and drop off. This year, we drive up, the teacher takes the kid out of the car and walks him in. This is in combination with a hybrid school approach, so there are less kids anyway, so it doesn't take long. I was actually impressed with how well they were handling it. Like Laura, said, I'm all about questioning authority, but this is a temporary inconvenience, presumably for the greater good. So we are dealing with it for now. Have you talked to the principal and asked for an exception? I feel like your situation could be accomodated. Maybe not let the three year old walk the last hundred yard, but certainly the last 6-10 feet, so that the teachers could be properly distanced from you.

DadJokes

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For a month in early 2017, our then 8 year old daughter attended a public school in rural japan. There, the rule was that all children were REQUIRED TO WALK to school every day, all year long, even in the middle of winter when the streets were covered in snow and ice. Except in very unusual circumstances, like if a kid broke a leg or something, parents were NOT ALLOWED to drive their children to school. In our case, it was about 1.5 miles, each way. There was a designated place in each neighborhood where kids assembled at a predetermined time each morning before school. A 6th grade boy walked in the front of the line carrying a flag, and a 5th grade girl took up the back, also with a flag. All of the littler kids walked in single file in between the two flag carriers. Kids got exercise every day, and it was a good experience for them to be able to go back and forth to school on their own, instead of being chauffeured everywhere by their parents.

I love this! I walked/biked to school up until high school.

It wouldn't work terribly well in a large chunk of our very sprawled out country. The elementary school our kid will go to is 10 miles away. That'd be quite a walk! I'd like to move closer to it, but property values are ridiculous there.

Barbaebigode

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In my town the elementary school principal was worried about kids who were walking from a trailer park that's only about 1/4 mile from the school but requires walking on a busy road with a blind curve and no shoulder, so the current policy is that absolutely no children are allowed to walk to school, regardless of whether there is an adult with them or how close they live to the school - it applies even to the kids who live in the house directly across the street from the school.  They get in-school suspension and are banned from sports if they get caught walking.

I don't get how it's easier to disallow walking than building a sidewalk. I mean, land of the free and all.

Shane

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+1 to the suggestions to just ignore the rule and walk your child to school, anyway. As long as you put a mask on when you get close to the school, in case you run into other pedestrians on the sidewalk, there are no *valid* social distancing concerns. You could also just stop short of the entrance of the school by a few hundred feet and let your 3 year old walk the rest of the way alone, while you stand there and watch to make sure he makes it okay. That way, technically, you wouldn't be walking your child to school, just part way.

Um, do you have an experience with 3 year olds? No, do not let them walk a few hundred feet by themselves.

As long as there are no streets to cross, a 3 year old should be fine to walk a few hundred feet alone. Beginning at age 5, I walked myself 1/2 mile to and from school everyday. There's no reason a 3 year old can't walk across the lawn to the front door of the school by himself. Not talking about letting them walk through traffic alone.

I think this is a YMMV situation. My current 3 year old is aloof and sometimes forgets that situational awareness is a thing. If I had him walk 300' by himself, he'd end up lost in the woods behind our house.

Our older son, when he was 3, would have walked the right way but forgot where or why he was walking and then would have just kept going.

Totally agree with the bolded above. My suggestion that a preschooler be allowed to walk the last "few hundred feet" up to the entrance to the school was based on our experience with our particular daughter and the preschool and two elementary schools she attended. Our daughter's schools were all surrounded by hundreds of feet of manicured lawns, where it would've been easy, once she got used to it, to let her walk across the grass up to the front of the school on her own, thus avoiding the crush of parents all dropping their children off at the front of the school by car. Feel free to adapt my suggestion to local conditions and your particular child and change it to 100' or 50' or 20' or 6', or whatever makes sense in your particular situation. The intent of my suggestion wasn't to start an argument about how many feet a 3 year old can safely walk on her own. It was just an attempt at respecting the spirit of the school's rule, which appears to be based on valid concerns of trying to promote social distancing, which I totally respect, while at the same time ignoring the letter of the law, so to speak.

Shane

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Shane, that story about Japan is inspiring, and the way a society should work. It must be great for the kids to get exercise and fresh air, and to learn responsibly and self-sufficiency from a young age (not to mention a sense of direction). Equally important, that system frees up the parent(s) time to work or accomplish other tasks. I'd love to hear more about how it worked out for your family.
Our experience was only for one month in the winter of 2017 when our daughter was in 2nd grade. It was part of our post-FIRE, 20 month, round the world family trip. The walking to school thing worked out fine for us. Since we were only in Japan temporarily, we didn't own a car, so driving our daughter to school wasn't an option for us, anyway. At the time, it seemed to me that the experience of being the only foreigner in a rural Japanese elementary school was kind of overwhelming for our daughter. She seemed tired at the end of the day. Our daughter sometimes described to us scenes of her, basically, being mobbed by children, who all wanted to talk and play with her at the same time, but none of them could really speak much, if any, English, and our daughter spoke no Japanese when we first arrived. In hindsight, though, our daughter now tells everyone that her favorite part of our round the world trip was her experience of being an exchange student in rural Japan...

facepalm

  • Bristles
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I work in education.

Short answer: The principal lacks the legal authority to determine or dictate your method of travel. Your right to travel is spelled out in the Constitution.

I'd drop a short letter to the school board, and email the superintendent at the district office. That will solve your problem.

x02947

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So... I'm from the south where a large number of people are actively defying any type of social distance rules.  I'm recoiling in moderate horror and how many of y'all are saying to ignore a social distance guideline, regardless of how stupid it is.  I try to be the example, both for the rest of society and for my children. 

Social distancing is great! Preventing crowds from forming around the school door at pickup/dropoff time is a very reasonable and laudable goal. Requiring everyone to strap their child into a carseat and use a piece of heavy machinery to transport their child a short distance is not reasonably related to that goal. It's just as easy to stand too close to other people after stepping out of a car as it is to stand too close to other people after walking across a street. 

I agree that this is an unmustachian rule, but in my head it can be related to the social-distancing goal.  I imagined a line of cars, and only two or three allowed to discharge their kids at a time, and the kids would be escorted inside.  This would prevent the clumping after stepping out.  I also assumed the school has other effective social-distance guidelines in place.  That being said, I'm fine with people not obeying the rule-- my issue is with the manner in which it is broken. 

I vote for cutting the school system some slack--let's be an adult and try to actually come to an agreement before ignoring the rule, flat out lying in front of your child (even if they don't realize it), and attempting to steam roller over whatever harried, poor soul is assigned to be the social-distance-bouncer that day. 

Oh, sure. I'd definitely raise the issue with the leadership of the school and point out what I said above: that social distancing is about staying away from other people, and that people who walk are perfectly capable of doing that. But if push came to shove and they refused to reconsider their position I don't think I'd start driving the half-mile distance to my kids' preschool. Teaching your kids to follow the rules is important, but so too is teaching your kids about standing up for other important principles such as leading an active lifestyle and protecting the environment from unnecessary pollution.

I agree 100%.  I'd also add that it's important to teach your kids about conflict resolution, empathy, and working towards a mutual agreement :p.  Hence (part) of my issue with walking up, unannounced, on day one and forcing others to your will.


joleran

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As tempting as it is to pull the "I actually have nothing else better to do all day every day than make this my personal crusade" card, it should always be a last resort (this isn't targeted at anyone here, just my thoughts).  I'd be doing something like this if they didn't let me walk with my preschooler.

Teachers need to be treated extremely kindly throughout though, the administration screws them over enough already and they are not the creators of the rules.

1. "It's not going to work for us, how can we reach a reasonable compromise?"
2. Show up walking and let them bring the fight to you. 
3. "This is not a reasonable request, and if you continue to push back on this I will have no choice but to escalate"
4. Escalate to superintendent, threaten media attention and lawsuit
5. Personal crusade time