Missing Child:

In the event of a lost child, caregivers will check all areas of the center.  If the child cannot be
found, the child's parents and / or emergency contact and the police will be notified immediately.
Greenhouse Nature School will notify the Department within 24 hours after the occurrence.

Fire:
To insure readiness in case of a fire, fire drills will be conducted monthly. The records of all drills
are kept on file. In case of a fire, it will be the responsibility of the caregivers to take the
emergency backpack, take a head count and then evacuate all of the children out of the building
safely through the nearest safe exit using emergency exit maps posted in each room. Once they
have reached the far corner of the property by trail, the caregivers will take a second head
count and call 911. Parent, guardian or emergency contacts will then be notified unless the
caregivers are given the all-clear by the fire department.

Tornado:
To insure readiness in case of a tornado, tornado drills will be conducted monthly from April to
October. In the case of a tornado, children will be taken to the lower level of the building away
from all windows. A weather radio and flashlight with extra batteries for both are kept in the
shelter area.

Power Outage:
Caregivers will get flashlights, keep children together in one area and contact Alliant Energy to
inquire about/report outage. If the outage lasts more than 30 minutes, parents or guardians will
be notified of the situation. The caregiver will keep children occupied/cared for as usual.

Hazardous Conditions, Natural Disasters and Other Emergencies:
If there is potential for severe weather (hurricane, blizzard), the center will not be open for
business. If severe weather or natural disaster occurs during business hours, caregivers will
keep a radio on to monitor potential severe weather complications. They will inform parents or
guardians if the center will need to close early to ensure children can be picked up and return
home safely.
If the center has no heat or water, extreme heat or cold inside the building, threat to the building,
flash flood, etc., there will be an emergency closing of the center. Parents will be contacted
immediately and will be expected to pick up their child within one hour of being contacted.  In
the event that parents cannot be located, the emergency contact person will be contacted.
Inside building temperature will not be less than 67 degrees F.

Special Evacuation Considerations:
In the event that evacuation is necessary and Greenhouse has any children or staff members
with physical or mental disabilities on site at that time, the staff member present with the highest

level of authority will take responsibility to ensure their safe exit of the building.

Contacting Parents:
In the event of an emergency, we will have our cell phones with us and turned on. All of the
children’s’ emergency cards and the attendance sheets will be transported via backpack and we
will be able to contact the parents of the children in our care once all children are safe.

​

Inclement Weather & Emergency Closings:
Greenhouse Nature School is open when the North Freedom, Reedsburg, and Baraboo schools
are open. When schools are closed due to SNOW, Greenhouse will automatically be closed.
When schools are closed due to COLD weather, Greenhouse will remain open and we will stay
indoors.