Arrival & Dismissal Procedures

Arrival Procedures

Arrival time is 8:30 am for students in kindergarten through 8th grade. Students should arrive in time to make their way to their classrooms by 8:35 am. Students arriving to their classrooms after 8:45 am will be marked tardy.

Students should be on time. Important work and routines at the beginning of each day set children up for success, and being on time helps children feel comfortable and secure.

All students and families of PS/IS 276 must enter through the main school entrance at the corner of Battery Place and First Place. The North Entrance (on Second Place) is used by P94M, the school with which we share our building, for arrival and dismissal. Please do not try to enter through the North Entrance. You will be told to go to the front of the building.

Lateness
Students arriving after 8:40 am are considered late and must get a late pass in the main office before going to their classrooms. Lateness is recorded in the Department of Education’s electronic record-keeping system and on your child’s report card. If your child is late and does not check-in at the office, it is possible that the lateness will be marked as an absence.

Driving to School
If driving to school or taking a taxi, please DO NOT drop children off on Battery Place. We have noticed children getting out of cars and crossing in the middle of the block or walking down the center of the road. This is especially dangerous as other drivers attempt to pass the cars that are double-parked to drop off students.

Drivers: Drive up Little West Street (in front of the Wagner Hotel), turn left on 1st Place, and drop off on 1st Place. 

Ubers & Taxis: Instruct taxi drivers to not stop on Battery Place between 1st and 2nd Place.


Dismissal Procedures

Dismissal Times

Lower School Dismissal

Lower school teachers dismiss each class outside at the designated spot in fair and inclement weather.

Please look for your child’s class number in the windows. Students will be escorted from their classrooms by their teachers to the front of the building. Students need to be dismissed by their teachers before they can be released to you. Please be patient with that process and teach your child the importance of saying goodbye to their teacher and pointing out who has come to pick them up. Please don’t be late for pick up. 

*5th graders may leave the school unescorted if a parent or guardian returns a completed Permission to Walk Home Alone form to their teacher. Additionally, with a completed permission form, siblings in grades 5 and up may pick up younger siblings. Reach out to the office to request these forms.

Middle School Dismissal

6th through 8th grades dismiss at 2:50 pm. These students self-dismiss.

Once dismissed, middle school students are expected to leave school or go to Manhattan Youth after-school programming. They are not allowed to remain at school unless they are attending after-school programming.

Dismissal Change Requests
If your child is going home with a friend after school, or is being picked up by a friend’s parent or caregiver, WRITTEN PERMISSION is required in advance from both families.

Remind your children that they will not be able to call home during the school day in order to make after school arrangements to visit a friend. Likewise, parent phone requests for last-minute changes at the end of the day cannot be accommodated.

Emails to teachers throughout the day requesting a change of plans cannot be accommodated.  Absolute emergency pick up changes must be made by calling and sending an email to the office as we must have these changes in writing.

Early Departure
The following procedures are followed to assure the safety of children who are released during the day. Please note, students leaving early must be picked up before 2PM and MUST BE SIGNED OUT BY AN ADULT (18+).