Grantham Buses
Please complete this 24-25 Bus Survey to sign your student up for transportation.
GVS ONLY - Make any changes to your student's Transportation plan using Pickup Patrol!
Bus Transportation:
- Space permitting, students will ride no more than two per seat, though we recognize that there are certain periods (e.g., between sports seasons) when there are occasionally three to a seat.
- Any misbehavior for safety protocols may result in losing the privilege of riding the bus.
Except when identified above, all families and students are expected to follow our Regular Bus Policies:
FOR LEBANON MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL PARENTS ONLY - If GVS is closed due to inclement weather and Lebanon is open, Grantham buses will not be transporting to Lebanon. Grantham students will be given an excused absence at LMS or LHS but will still need to make up the missed work. All school closings and delays are posted at www.wmur.com. You will also be alerted through the ALMA system.
Transportation Guidelines
- PickUp Patrol is the web-based system we are using to manage GVS students’ default transportation calendars and for parents to communicate changes to their student’s regular dismissal plans. Parents will also use this portal to alert GVS staff of absences, early dismissals, and late arrivals. Changes can be entered from a smartphone or computer and may be made in advance up until 2pm on the day of the change.
- After 2pm, changes will not be accepted except in the case of an emergency. The end of the school day is a busy time. To ensure the safety of all students, please plan accordingly and limit these exceptions to emergencies ONLY.
- If you are a first-time user of Pick Up Patrol, we will send you an email with instructions for how to register. If you have used PickUp Patrol in the previous school year, your login credentials remain the same. Before the school year begins, we will alert all parents to update their default transportation calendars for their children inside the system. On a given day, your child will either be a car rider, a bus rider, a walker, or if applicable they will head to an afterschool program (such as AfterSchool Program, Math Group, Music Group, etc.)
- In the event of an early dismissal, please ring the doorbell at the front door, and a staff member will connect you to your child.
- If you pick up your LMS or LHS student off the bus at GVS, you will need to arrive at school in time for your middle or high school child to walk directly to your car.
Buses
- Bus riders arrive at school around 8:30 AM and are dismissed at 3:15 PM. Please plan to arrive at the bus stop 5 - 10 minutes early (for both drop-off and pickup).
- Your child will be assigned to a bus depending on your bus stop location. Please refer to the bus schedule posted on the GVS website to confirm your child’s bus stop location. Bus transportation will only be permitted for students who have an assigned seat in advance.
- Parents are responsible for their children during the time they wait for the bus in the morning and after they have exited the bus in the afternoon. If no parent, or designated adult, is at the stop in the afternoon, K-3 students will be returned to school once the driver completes the route. Students in 4th grade or higher may be dropped at the bus stop without an adult present. Younger siblings of a student who is in 4th grade or higher may be dropped with their older sibling.
- Please do not allow students to run from the back of the bus, along the blind side, to board. The bus driver cannot see students approaching from the back of the bus.
Car Rider Drop Off and Pick Up at GVS; including Early Dismissal
- Car riders may arrive at school for morning recess at 8:10 AM, but not earlier. Students will enter the building at 8:30. Students will start being dismissed at 3:15 PM and will continue until all students have been picked up.
- Parents should not line up for pick-up more than 15 minutes before dismissal.
- We ask that parents/guardians remain in their cars and not walk child(ren) into the building unless they need to speak to the front office or have an appointment with a teacher.
- At drop-off, your child should remain in your car until you have reached the designated drop off area. Visibility is difficult at our busy times, and it’s important to keep every child safe!
- Car riders will be dropped off/picked up curbside.
- Curbside procedure: Drivers travel counterclockwise around the parking lot.
- Form a single line to drop off and pick up your children at the main entrance by the gym, backstop and dugout. The line begins at the edge of the covered part of the sidewalk.
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- Morning curbside procedure: children should be dropped off along the sidewalk area between the dugout and the main entrance. Do not drop off your child in the lane alongside the gymnasium.
- The goal is to keep the children safe, so:
- Only pull away from the line when the car ahead of you has cleared, and
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- Idling in front of a school affects the indoor air quality for all children and staff. In order to keep our HVAC system working to its full potential, especially now, please turn off your car engine based on the following parameters:
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- if you are waiting for more than 2 minutes when the temperature is above freezing (32 degrees Fahrenheit);
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- If you are waiting for more than 15 minutes when the temperature is below 32 and above -10 degrees Fahrenheit).
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- Note: There are no idling recommendations for temperatures below -10 for safety reasons.
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- If you are waiting from the stop sign back to the Grantham Village School sign on the building, your child(ren) may exit the car once you see a staff member on car duty. If your car is backed up beyond the Grantham Village School sign, please keep your child in the car unless a staff member asks you to unload.
- The goal of the line is to keep it moving, so:
- Drivers stay inside their car, and
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- Move from the pick up area when cars in front of you have cleared.
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- If your child needs help getting out of the car (drop-off) or in the car (pick-up), please use the center lane so that you do not hold up traffic.
- All deliveries and pick-ups should follow the curbside procedure.
Please adhere to the instructions of staff members about when to move your vehicle.
Walkers
Students may arrive at school at 8:10 AM for morning recess and not earlier. Students will enter the building at 8:30. At the end of the day, walkers will be dismissed to walk home at 3:15 PM. It is important for walkers to avoid the car line area and parking lot.