Outdoor Science School Rules

LACOSS Behavior System

Outdoor Science School Rules

  1. Be Safe

  2. Be Respectful

  3. Be Responsible

Examples

  • Respect Everyone and Everything

  • No rough-housing, horseplay or fighting (including pillow fights & snowball fights!)

  • Always stay with your group (students must always be in groups of at least 3 people)

  • Always walk (No running)

  • No food, gum or candy (we feed students well at meals and have snacks on the trail as well)

  • Stay on pathways (walk in lines to protect yourselves, plants and soil--no trail shortcuts please)

  • Wear shoes at all times (even in cabins--protect your feet!)

  • No walking sticks (they can cause injuries in groups)

  • No throwing anything (including snow!!)

  • Phones and electronics for students are prohibited!

POSITIVE OUTCOMES FOR FOLLOWING RULES

Being Safe, Respectful and Responsible will help students have a great time at LACOSS, including making friends, learning a lot, feeling respected and being safer. Naturalists, Teachers and Cabin Leaders always strive to recognize helpful behaviors when students follow the rules.

Consequences for Breaking the Rules

Number System

Adults use the number system when students break rules. The numbers are additive - if a student gets a "1" for throwing and later they a 1 for talking out of turn equals a "2."

Each Day is a New Day - Unless the transgression occurred in the evening, each student will start fresh each day.

  1. Verbal warning, restatement of rule

  2. 10-minute time-out

  3. Referral to classroom teacher, miss an activity (such as cabin time)

  4. Miss activity/call home

  5. Go home - call your parents to come pick you up

Cabin Group Color System

Green = everything's okay

Yellow = verbal warning (caution)

Red = 10-minute time-out, everyone on their bunks or referral to teachers (stop)

Automatic Referrals

  • Throwing food

  • Fights

  • Invading other people's personal space

  • Touching emergency equipment

  • Cabin Raids (Don't go into other cabins--stay in same gender areas)**

  • **Cabin Raids are at least a 3, and can be a 4 or 5 based on the circumstances.

We exercise discretion about sending students home.  Some things cannot be tolerated at all: e.g. running away, violence, any behavior that could be dangerous to self or others.