School Day

View and download the primary school handbook as well as other important documents on this page.

ARRIVAL TIME

All students may arrive starting at 8:00 AM. The school day begins at 8:30 AM sharp.

ARRIVAL LOCATION

All students should use the plaza entrance. Primary school students should go to their designated morning meet-up area upon arrival and walk to their classrooms with their teachers.

PRIMARY SCHOOL DROP-OFF ZONES

• Parents and guardians of Early Years children who arrive by car may park in the garage and walk their child to their teacher at the Early Years playground gates by the plaza entrance.
• Parents and guardians of students in Years 1 through 6 who arrive by car may use the turning circle as a drop-off zone.

LATENESS

We expect all students to be in class on time at 8:30 AM sharp. Children who arrive after 8:30 AM must sign in late with the front desk team. Frequent tardiness is a serious matter, and we record it in the school's attendance record. The classroom teachers and Head of Primary may follow up with individual families to promote punctuality.

DISMISSAL TIME

For primary students, the school day ends at 3:20 PM. We kindly ask parents and guardians to retrieve their children promptly. This is especially important for primary students, who may become anxious if they do not see their parents or guardians immediately after school.

PRIMARY SCHOOL PICK-UP ZONES

Parents and guardians may retrieve their children from the turning circle.

EARLY DISMISSAL

If a child has an early dismissal from school, the parent or guardian must send an explanatory note or email to the classroom teacher directly. The student must get a note of acknowledgement from the classroom teacher at the time of the early dismissal and give it to the front desk team before signing out.

ABSENCE CATEGORIZATION

We carefully monitor student attendance. We can categorize absences two ways:

• A school-authorized absence includes times when a student is out to represent the school or take examinations, family bereavement, and illness. A doctor's note must accompany a medical absence that extends beyond three days.
• An unauthorized absence is an absence for any reason not sanctioned by the school. We must include all unauthorized absences in a student's statistics.

ABSENCE NOTIFICATIONS

If a child is unable to attend school, please complete the following:

• Email the classroom teacher with as much advance notice as possible.
o Copy in the Head of Primary on notifications of a lengthy absence.
o Copy in the School Nurse on notifications of a medical absence.
 If you cannot send an email notification, please call 202-829-3700.
• Complete a Request for Absence form at this link.
• Provide a doctor's note for a medical absence that extends beyond three days.

The front desk team, classroom teachers, and Head of Primary may follow up with individual families to ensure the daily attendance record is accurate.

CONTACT DETAILS OF PARENTS AND GUARDIANS

Parents and guardians must share correct and functional contact details for themselves and any other parent or guardian whom we might reach in the event of an emergency.

View and download the secondary school handbook as well as other important documents on this page.

ARRIVAL TIME

All students may arrive starting at 8:00 AM. Secondary students should be in their form group classroom for attendance at 8:20 AM. The school day begins at 8:30 AM sharp.

ARRIVAL LOCATION

All students should use the plaza entrance. Secondary school students should go directly to their form group classroom upon arrival.

SECONDARY SCHOOL DROP-OFF ZONES

Parents and guardians of secondary students should use Wisconsin Avenue or a designated location of your choosing as a drop-off zone. Refer to the school campus map in section 2 of the secondary handbook on this page to select a spot that works well for your family.

Please do not drop-off in the Whitehaven turning circle. We reserve this location for families of our youngest learners. Instead, use a designated location of your choosing as outlined above. This approach will reduce traffic on Whitehaven, leave space in the turning circle for primary school families, and help secondary students reach school safely and efficiently.

LATENESS

We expect all students to be in class on time at 8:30 AM sharp. Children who arrive after 8:30 AM must sign in late with the front desk team. Frequent tardiness is a serious matter, and we record it in the school's attendance record. The form group teachers, Assistant Heads, and Head of Secondary may follow up with individual families to promote punctuality.

DISMISSAL TIME

For secondary students, the school day ends at 3:40 PM. We kindly ask parents and guardians to retrieve their children promptly.

SECONDARY SCHOOL PICK-UP ZONES

Parents and guardians of secondary students should use Wisconsin Avenue or a designated location of your choosing as a pick-up zone. Refer to the school campus map in section 2 of the secondary handbook on this page to select a spot that works well for your family.

Please do not retrieve secondary students from the Whitehaven turning circle. We reserve this location for families of our youngest learners. Instead, use a designated location of your choosing as outlined above. This approach will reduce traffic on Whitehaven, leave space in the turning circle for primary school families, and help secondary students meet their rides safely and efficiently.

EARLY DISMISSAL

If a child has an early dismissal from school, the parent or guardian must send an explanatory note or email to the classroom teacher directly. The student must get a note of acknowledgement from the classroom teacher at the time of the early dismissal and give it to the front desk team before signing out.

ABSENCE CATEGORIZATION

We carefully monitor student attendance. We can categorize absences two ways:

• A school-authorized absence includes times when a student is out to represent the school or take examinations, family bereavement, and illness. A doctor's note must accompany a medical absence that extends beyond three days.
• An unauthorized absence is an absence for any reason not sanctioned by the school. We must include all unauthorized absences in a student's statistics.

ABSENCE NOTIFICATIONS

If a child is unable to attend school, please complete the following:

• Email the form group teacher with as much advance notice as possible.
o Copy in the Assistant Head on notifications of a lengthy absence.
o Copy in the Head of Primary on notifications of a lengthy absence.
o Copy in the School Nurse on notifications of a medical absence.
 If you cannot send an email notification, please call 202-829-3700.
• Complete a Request for Absence form at this link.
• Provide a doctor's note for a medical absence that extends beyond three days.

The front desk team, form group teachers, Assistant Heads, and Head of Secondary may follow up with individual families to ensure the daily attendance record is accurate.

CONTACT DETAILS OF PARENTS AND GUARDIANS

Parents and guardians must share correct and functional contact details for themselves and any other parent or guardian whom we might reach in the event of an emergency.