Arrival and Departure

We begin our day with a Community Meeting at 9:15am, and learners are welcome to be dropped off between 9:00-9:10am. We end promptly at 3pm and learners will only be dismissed into the care of their parents/guardians or those the parents/guardians authorize, in writing, to do so.

 

Safety

All our staff and volunteers undergo a criminal background check yearly. For the safety of our entire community, we enforce some boundaries regarding our physical space:

• When outside, children must be supervised by an adult.

• Children are not permitted to go down to the creek without an adult, and shoes must be worn in the creek at all times.

• All community members must stay on MRFM property while participating in our programming.

 

Clothing and Shoes

Please ensure your child comes in weather-appropriate clothing or has appropriate clothing to change into if their comfort level changes during the day. Learners should wear comfortable clothes they can get messy in. 

We encourage closed-toed shoes everyday, as we will often be outside and active. During warmer weather, learners should also wear/bring shoes appropriate for wading in the creek.  In the indoor environment, students may choose to go barefoot or can wear a pair of indoor slippers with treads they keep at school. 

 

Lunch and Snacks

Please provide your child with a lunch and snacks they can eat throughout the day. Learners will have access to a refrigerator and microwave for storing and preparing food. While we eat lunch all together, learners may eat snacks when they are hungry. Please send your child with a labeled water bottle each day.

 

Health

Please keep your child at home if they have the following symptoms: 

• A temperature registering over 100 degrees. Your child’s temperature must be normal, without the use of fever reducing medication, for 24 hours before returning to HMLC

• An unidentified or contagious rash 

• Conjunctivitis/pink eye 

• Sore throat, persistent cough, or difficulty breathing

• Too ill to play outside 

• Two or more bouts of diarrhea 

• Vomiting

• Any type of illness that is contagious 

 

Conflict resolution

Misunderstandings and disagreements between friends are a natural part of life. Clear, candid, and kind communication is the best way to resolve our differences.  When members of our community, including learners, facilitators, and family members, find themselves in conflict with another community member, we ask them to do the following:

1. Pause, breathe, and decide how to communicate to the other person. Sometimes the pause will be a few seconds, hours, or even days later.

2. Try talking to the other person, assuming the best of others and showing goodwill in how we speak to each other. Do not let disagreements or concerns fester.

3. If that doesn’t work, ask a third party to help them talk to the other person. In the case of our learners, they should usually ask a trusted adult for help.