Getting There

We encourage all students to walk or bike to school, but if you need to drop off or pick up your child by car, please note the following.

When you drop off or pick up your children, please do so as quickly and as safely as possible. For our children's safety, please do drive very cautiously and slowly, even when you're running late. (We have seen too many instances of inattentive or impatient driving.) Please do not let your child out of the car in the middle of the road.

We request that you do not drive up to the main parking lot or the driveway in front of the main office. Only school personnel and parents of handicapped children are allowed there.

The school has four entrances:

Main Office entrance, at the end of Acton Street, near the upper parking lot.
Acton Street entrance, at the end of Acton Street, near Appleton Place, usually accessed from Appleton Place.
Quincy Street entrance, at the corner of Quincy Street and Appleton Place.
Benjamin Road entrance, at the end of Benjamin Road, off Quincy Street.

The main entrance is open while the students are entering the school in the morning; all entrances are locked the rest of the time. (They can always be opened from the inside.) Only students can use these entrances. If you are a parent or guardian wishing to visit the school, please read instructions on how to visit the school.

We recommend that you do not use Acton Street to drop off your child in the morning - the street is too small and the resulting traffic congestion creates a dangerous situation.

The best places to drop off or pick up your child are along Appleton Place, Appleton Street, Quincy Street, and Massachusetts Avenue.

CAUTION: There are a lot of people on bikes and walking in the drop-off area. Always move slowly and look carefully.

Ottoson Middle School

63 Acton Street

Arlington, MA 02476

Tel. 781-316-3745

Fax 781-641-5436