Kindergarten & Special Needs

The start of kindergarten is a very exciting and nerve-wracking experience for students and parents. We would like to share some information to help the beginning of the year be as successful as possible for your family.

• Register to Ride the Bus — Register your kindergarten student to ride the bus and then check your SMART tag account for assigned routes. Registration processing may take up to 10 school days.
• Bus Stops — Bus route information is not posted on our public-facing website. Bus route times and information are accessed through a SMART tag account. 
• Day Care — If your student will be attending day care at any point during the day, you will need to check the box for daycare on the bus registration form. If the daycare is within the school boundaries, students will be routed there. See child care facilities by school boundaries. 
• Must Be Met Policy — We require each bus driver to release students ONLY to an identified adult at the bus stop. If no adult is present, the student will be returned to their school or the NTPS Transportation Department to await parent pick-up. We do have a waiver that is available if you wish for your student to be let off the bus without an adult (see above). 
• SMART tag ID Tags — All kindergarten students are required to have their SMART tag ID when they ride the bus. The school will provide the tags.
• Notifications — Please keep your school contact information current. When there is a transportation emergency, a student is sick or injured on the bus, or students board the wrong bus, we use that information to contact you.
• Plan of the Day — Please remember it is important for both you and your student to memorize: Your bus route number, your bus stop location, and your regular pickup and drop-off times. Please share the plan for the day with your child. Your child can help remind school staff and the driver if they are supposed to be picked up from school or go home on the bus.
• Special Needs Kindergarten Students — Each student who requires specific accommodations is looked at and routed individually. Once a transportation request for special needs transportation is received, you will be contacted with the route information and the start date for your student.