*The Norwell Women’s Club is always looking for Chaperones for the dance. Your help makes it a safer more enjoyable event for everyone. Any/All Middle School Parent(s) are welcome to help with dances, please contact Sandi or Donna. Below is some information for Chaperones.
Norwell Women’s Club Chaperones Information
Dear Chaperone:
We appreciate your volunteering your time and “hearing” to help us with these dances. The students certainly look forward to them every month and the club has consistently raised at least $7,000 a year from our sponsorship.
We thought it would be helpful to provide you with a list of the responsibilities we are asking you to share ahead of time, as things often get hectic on the evening of the dance. If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact either one of us.
v Although the dances start at 7:30 PM, we are usually in need of some help setting up 30 minutes ahead of time. We typically wrap up quickly, but on some occasions we have asked for volunteers to wait past 10:15 PM when parents have been delayed in picking up their children.
v At the start of the evening, we typically need more help outside the dance room than in it. Chaperones will be asked to verify student names to school lists, others will be needed to instruct the children to leave all of their belongings in the “coat room,” and we will also need assistance with ticket selling, hand stamping, concession manning and bathroom supervision.
v Also at the beginning of the dance, it is important that we monitor any student entering the dance room for a stamped hand and appropriate attire as well as prevent them from bringing in any bags, purses, hats, etc.
v Once the crush has subsided, we ask that the chaperones rotate between inside the dance room and outside. We know that your child would prefer you to stay outside the room. But to be fair to all the chaperones and all the children, we ask you to understand that “dance room duty” is part of the assignment.
v Inside the dance room, please walk among the dancers, stand on the chairs or lower steps of the stage, or do whatever else you need to monitor the activity. Some kids will congregate in groups, and it is hard to see what is going on in the center until there is a problem. Our kids are very well mannered, but sometimes an unintentional shove can lead to a fight or a flirty dance move can lead to a grind. If we step in before things get out of hand, we can avoid hurt feelings and embarrassment for all concerned.
v When the kids are “slow dancing,” please encourage our young ladies and gentlemen to keep their hands in the appropriate place.
v At the concession stand, we usually need 3 people, which can be done on a rotating basis. One to man the ice, one to man the sodas and one to man the candy. The price lists should be on the tables and posted on the wall. If it is possible, please save the soda bottles for recycling (we drop them in the Boy Scout bin on our way out). Try not to open a new bottle of soda during the last 20 minutes of the dance. Expect to sell a few drinks/candy items at the end of the dance when the weather is nice. When it is cold out, the kids will be looking to pick up their coats and probably not pass the concession table.
v Other areas for rotation are the bathroom and hallways. If you find any aerosol cans or cleaning materials in the bathroom, please remove them and place them in the slop room to be returned after the dance. Also, if you find any groups of kids “hanging out” please ask them to return to the dance room. They can sit/stand in hallways while they are eating or drinking, but they should not stay there for extended periods. Sitting on each other’s laps is not permitted.
v We will also need one or two chaperones to be stationed at the front entrance at all times to monitor any early exits (need parental pick-up) or late arrivals (must purchase tickets). Again, this job should be rotated.
v Report any suspicious behavior to the police detail on duty.
v If a student needs to make a cell phone call, please accompany him/her outside.
v As “Stairway to Heaven” starts to finish up, two parents should station themselves at the coatroom, two should be at the main entrance doors to the dance room and at least two should go outside. There will be a crush when the kids leave; try to direct those who do not have anything in the coat room to take the left exit. Also, limit the number of kids in the coat room at any one time to 6.
v Outside the dance, chaperones should station themselves on the grass in both the middle and left side of the driveway to ensure that no student leaves without an adult pickup. The police detail usually assists with this process.
v Parents have been told that pick-up time is to be promptly at 10 PM. Any student whose parent is late needs to call them. Although the police detail will stay until all students are picked up, someone from the club must wait as well.
v Once all the kids have left the dance, please help with the clean-up, picking up any items left behind and leaving them on the railing at the front, packing up the concession, throwing out the garbage, returning the cleansers, etc. to the bathrooms and providing any other assistance our custodian, Mike Lewis, requests.
