Child Guidance on the Bus

All children will be taught how to board, ride, and exit the bus safely. Staff will guide children’s behavior on the bus to ensure a safe ride to and from school.

1. Regional Managers (RM) will ensure that there are systems, schedules, and routines established by the Bus Driver, Teacher, and Bus Monitor to promote predictability and security for children.
   1. Staff will ensure that there is structure (pictures, rules posted, clear expectations, assigned seating) inside the bus environment to communicate to the children what to do and how to behave.
   2. teachers will include bus and pedestrian safety instruction in classroom curriculum plans within the first month of class and as needed throughout the year.
   3. Bus Monitors and Drivers will teach children how to safely board and leave the bus
      1. Regional teams will establish procedures for appropriately and safely transitioning children to/from bus and classroom.
      2. Child/staff ratio will be maintained throughout all bus transitions.
   4. Bus evacuation drills will be conducted three times a year with all children and reviewed monthly with bus riders.
2. Bus Drivers/Monitors will be expected to interact with children in a positive,friendly, and socially supportive manner using positive behavior support strategies and encouraging pro-social interactions among the children.
3. Monitors will provide developmentally appropriate, individualized ,and safe activities for children to engage in while riding on the bus.
4. The Bus Monitor will be responsible for behavior management on the bus. The Bus Driver may need to assist when children are loading or there is a substitute Monitor. The Bus Monitor will inform DST of behavior problems on the bus and work with classroom staff and ECE to ensure that strategies used for behavior management are consistent in the classroom/on the bus.
   1. Staff will follow Addressing Challenging Behaviors policy when managing challenging behaviors on the bus.
5. If more intensive support is needed, bus staff will follow the Behavior Referral policy.
   1. The Bus Driver, Monitor and parent will be included in the development of the bus behavior strategies and/or behavior plan if possible. If that is not possible the Bus Driver and Monitor will be informed of the plan by the Early Childhood Education Coordinator. If there is a substitute bus monitor, the bus driver will share the plan with him/her.
      1. Requests for accommodations on the bus will be documented using the Transportation Special Accommodation form and sent to the Transportation Manager for approval.

This policy complies with Head Start Performance Standard 45 CFR 1303.70 sub part F, 1303.72(a)(1-3), 1303.74(a)

Policy Council approved September 2013
Updated August 2017

REVIEWED: May 2021