Purpose
Our purpose at Moonrise is to build better humans. Better humans, better world.
About us
Moonrise is a world where kids build things and learn together. It's not school or daycare. It's an entirely new way to learn. We’re open every day from 9am-6pm, including weekends and summer. We stay open until 9pm on Fridays.
we:
- Provide learning spaces, programs, content, and activities for kids ages 5-15.
- Have full-time professional leadership supplemented by full-time and part-time staff.
- Encourage responsible use, including limiting drop-ins to 4 hours per day and 10 hours per week.
- Are for kids of all races, religions, and ethnic cultures.
- Are building-centered.
- Are non-sectarian.
- Are a drop-in facility which operates under a Safe Passage Policy.
- Operate in a large group supervision format.
- Are guidance-oriented.
- Use an explanatory discipline strategy.
Statement of Policy
Moonrise makes no discrimination in admissions or enrollment on the basis of race, sex, religion, creed, national origin, sexual preference or any other protected group.
Affiliations
Moonrise is a private, for-profit company affiliated with Space To Learn, a private, nonprofit organization.
Who can join
Any child aged 5-15 may become a member at Moonrise.
How to register
To register, a guardian must complete the member registration form. We only accept credit cards. Registration is considered complete when a guardian submits the member registration form. Membership is renewed on a monthly basis with each successful payment.
Refunds and transfers
Membership fees are non-refundable. Members can drop-in to any location.
Transportation
Guardians are responsible for arranging transportation for their children to and from Moonrise.
Staff
Each Moonrise location is staffed by Guides and a Community Lead. Community Leads handle daily operations, ensure safety, and manage the location. Guides facilitate our member experience. All Moonrise staff are vetted, trained, and must pass a background check before they are hired.
Safe Passage Policy
The safety and protection of the children we serve is our highest priority. Moonrise is a drop-in facility, and our Safe Passage Policy is in place to protect your kids.
- Guardians must drop-in and pickup their children for each visit.
- By default, members must be picked up by a guardian. Only guardians will be allowed to pick up members.
- Guardians may authorize their children to enter and leave Moonrise unescorted.
- Because we are not a licensed daycare facility we will not physically restrain members who insist on leaving without a parent or guardian signing them out. Members who do leave in this manner may be subject to disciplinary action, such as temporarily suspending their membership.
- Ridesharing services like Uber and Lyft are not allowed to pick up members at Moonrise.
Member drop-ins and pick-ups
If our Guides DO NOT recognize your family: Ring the doorbell to let us know that you have arrived. You’ll be welcomed like this, “I don’t recognize you, are you new to Moonrise?” If you are visiting for the first time or doing a trial, please let the Guide know. Guides will check guardian ID and match with member profile in Circle. This will be under the guardian that originally signed up for Moonrise. Then, you’ll be let into the building. Riser(s) will be signed in with their arrival time and name on our Sign-In Sheet.
If our Guides DO recognize your family: Ring the doorbell to let us know that you have arrived. You’ll be welcomed warmly. Then, you’ll be let into the building. Riser(s) will be signed in with their arrival time and name on our Sign-In Sheet. Guardians may drop in and pick up members at their leisure, so long as they do not exceed 3 hours per day and 10 hours per week.
Late Pickup
Members must be picked up no later than 6:00 p.m. unless our hours of operation change for friday nights, special holidays, events, or circumstances. If your child is not picked up by five minutes after closing, you will be assessed a late fee of $5 and then $1 per minute thereafter up to $25. At 30 minutes after closing, your child’s membership will be suspended for a minimum of one day. At 1 hour after closing, either DFACS or the local Police Department may be notified (if no notification and staff has exercised all contacts). There will be an increased number of days suspended for habitual offenders.
Time guidelines
Moonrise is not a school or daycare. It’s something brand new - a colearning space. Kids learn best when they spend time in a variety of places, both indoors and out. Therefore, guardians should not use Moonrise as a full-time learning space for their member(s). Please limit your member(s) time at Moonrise to a maximum of 40 hours per month (10 hours per week). We reserve the right to suspend or terminate memberships when they are used beyond the recommended limit.
Emergencies
There may be occasions when Moonrise will have to close unexpectedly. Guardians will be notified immediately if such occasions occur via email, phone, or both. Some examples for emergency closings include, but are not limited to: inclement weather, crisis events, water main break, gas leak in area or extended power outage.
Medial and injury
Moonrise will administer basic first aid (i.e., band aids, ice, etc.) and emergency treatments (i.e. EpiPen for stings or inhaler for asthma) when needed. Moonrise will not administer medication. In case of an accident or injury, Moonrise staff are trained in basic first aid.
Additional information may be required, if your child has special medical conditions, in order to facilitate your child having the best member experience possible.
No child will be allowed to remain at Moonrise if they are ill, have been ill and not fully recovered, or if there is a reasonable assumption that they are ill. For any accidents that soil clothing (incontinence, vomiting, etc.), we will do our best to lend clothing and notify guardians of the accident. Parents should use the utmost discretion when considering whether or not to send their child to Moonrise.
A Medical Release is included in our Enrollment Form authorizing Moonrise to seek treatment for your child in case of serious injury or illness.
Guiding Principles
At Moonrise, staff, guardians, and members come together to set the standard for how we treat each other. Listed below are guiding principles that set the foundation for how members behave in our spaces. We’ll dive into each principle and explain how it is empowered at Moonrise. All staff, guardians, and members are expected to uphold these principles both inside and outside of our spaces.
Freedom. You are free at Moonrise, but you cannot limit the freedom of others.
Wellness. Take care of yourself. It’s good for you and good for the world.
Exposure. Engage with reality. It’s the best teacher.
Curiosity. Find things that interest you and follow them.
Play. Do things just for fun. You never know where it may lead.
Creativity. All progress comes from creativity. Build things and add to reality.
Freedom
Our most important and foundational principle at Moonrise is freedom. Historically, nothing has limited progress and learning more than coercion. Kids are learning machines, and when given the freedom to explore reality, they progress much faster than adults. At Moonrise, kids are free to make their own choices as long as they don’t limit the freedom of others. We respect them as individuals, honor their choices, motivate them to push past limits, and guide them to resources. More than anything, we develop their autonomy.
Wellness
Humans learn better when we are happy and healthy. But beyond our own individual well-being, healthier humans also make for a healthier world. A longer life means more time spent with loved ones. Sleeping better makes us less irritable and more joyful to be around. Eating nutritious local foods shrinks our carbon footprint and lowers our burden on the healthcare system. The better we feel, the better others feel around us. At Moonrise, kids are free to arrive when they are most ready to learn. They can move independently through a space designed just for them, read in comfortable nooks, and learn about whatever interests them. They are free to engage with people of all ages, eat healthy snacks, exercise, play with toys, take online classes, make music, or start a project. And since safety is a prerequisite for wellness, our spaces are secured with keycard entry, staff undergo rigorous training and background checks, and our learning guides are always available to demonstrate proper usage of tools and resources.
Exposure
Kids are born as blank slates. The environment and culture they are immersed in shapes who they become and what they believe. All too often, kids are seen as fragile beings who must be sheltered and coddled. They are withheld from the real world for the formative years of their life. This is so pervasive that the shock of entering the “real world” as an adult has become a rite of passage. At Moonrise, we believe reality is the best teacher. Safely and responsibly exposing kids to the real world makes them smarter, more independent, and anti-fragile. We take each other seriously at Moonrise, from the common language we use to the respect we show one another. We understand that humans, especially young ones, don’t know what they don’t know. It’s our job to illuminate reality, introduce new concepts, and explain the world around us.
Curiosity
We now live in a world of infinite information. From the palm of their hand, kids can watch the moon landing on YouTube, take an astronomy class from Harvard, and listen to a podcast with Buzz Aldrin. Anything they could want to learn, fromSpanish to quantum physics, is waiting for them online in an engaging format led by passionate teachers. And it's mostly free. At Moonrise, we believe curiosity is a prerequisite to learning. Here, kids are free to explore their interests using all of the tools and resources at their disposal.
Play
Play is so important to a child's development that the UN recognizes it as a fundamental human right. Among other things, play empowers kids to define goals, solve problems, gain skills, take risks, push through failures, work with others, make things, and change their environment. It is linked to growth in memory, self-regulation, oral language, social development, and literacy. When children play, they become more focused, have greater attention spans, and perform better academically. Moonrise restores a child's human right to play. Our spaces are filled with creative tools, learning materials, and toys which empower them to explore freely and manipulate their environment. Lacking a formal curriculum, members here can follow their curiosities, engage in trial and error, reflect, collaborate with others, work on projects, develop skills, and solve problems.
Creativity
Creativity is what sets humans apart from animals and machines. It's what has enabled us to cure diseases, build the Sagrada Familia, conceive of the internet, and understand our place in the cosmos. As automation advances and the power of each individual grows with technology, creativity is what will empower us to fight terrorism, ensure human economic relevance, and transcend the confines of our planet. At Moonrise, we design our spaces to maximize creative output. Everything from the textures of our couches to the scents we diffuse in the air is designed to increase cognitive performance. There is a science to the conditions in which creativity arises, and Moonrise is modeled on its key tenets.
Technology Guidelines
Technology is a part of life, an enabler of progress, and a force for good in the world.At Moonrise, we want our members to develop healthy attitudes and behaviors with technology so they can express themselves, create value, and make progress.Therefore, we encourage members to bring personal devices such as laptops, tablets, smartphones, wearables, and headphones.
Using such devices comes with an understanding that many software applications, including social media and entertainment platforms, are designed to capture and monetize attention. Therefore, when we notice our members diverting their attention to such applications, we encourage them to direct it elsewhere. Since guardians are entrusting us with creating the best learning environments for their children, we honor that trust by notifying guardians when their members are habitually distracted from learning activities (specifically, those listed in our guiding principles).
Members are responsible for appropriate behavior on their own devices, and are advised never to access, keep, or send anything that is inappropriate which includes but is not limited to content that is sexual in nature, abusive, or offensive. Members may only use their own devices, and the sharing or loaning of devices is prohibited.Moonrise may have community devices which are available to members in our space. Members should never download or install commercial software, shareware, or freeware onto community devices or disks. They should also never store their own files on community devices.
Profane, abusive, or impolite language should not be used to communicate while atMoonrise, nor should materials be accessed which are not in line with our guiding principles. Members are encouraged never to view, send, or access materials that they would not want their parents or Moonrise staff to see. Should members encounter such material by accident, they should report it to the staff immediately.
Discipline
At Moonrise, we follow an explanatory approach to discipline. Rather than punishing children for making mistakes, we ask them to explain the reasoning behind their behavior. If we find mistakes in their reasoning, we help them to see the mistakes and understand the issue better (although sometimes, they will be right). Making mistakes is part of learning, and improving on them is how we make progress as humans.
In cases where mistakes are serious enough to infringe upon the freedom of other members, Moonrise staff will intervene to preserve that freedom. In such cases, or when mistakes become habitual, harmful, or serious, we will notify the member’s guardian(s) and consider suspending membership without warning.
Some examples of serious mistakes include, but are not limited to:
- Fighting
-Behavior that endangers the member or others
- Leaving the premises without guardian approval (if required).
- Stealing/Vandalism/Destruction of Property
- Inappropriate Touching/Inappropriate Sexual Behavior
- Gang Activity
- Bullying
- Drug and Alcohol use/possession/distribution
Please note, these are only guidelines. Actual consequences are determined on a case-by-case basis and are at the discretion of the Learning Guides or Moonrise Leadership Team. If a pattern of ongoing behavior (i.e.: continuous verbal warnings or time-outs for the same offense) is noticed, consequences may be given with or without documentation, and regardless of the severity of the offense. The length of a suspension is determined by the severity of the offense and the number of previous offenses.
Suspensions must be approved by the Moonrise Leadership Team.
Incident reporting
When an incident happens at Moonrise that involves member safety or disciplinary action, our Leadership Team will notify the guardians of the member(s) involved as quickly as possible. When necessary, we will contact emergency services prior to contacting guardians.
Staff and members
We strive to maintain an average ratio of 1 staff per 10 members. At least two staff are always present at Moonrise. We maintain an open-door policy when staff are inside a room with members, and specifically forbid closed door 1-on-1 meetings. Relationships between staff and members are monitored by the Leadership Team.
Special needs
Children with special needs are welcome at Moonrise. We ask that guardians of children with special needs email us at team@moonrise.com with a detailed description of their needs. If there any special needs we cannot accommodate for member, we will notify the guardian(s) as such.
Video cameras
To ensure the safety of our members, Moonrise has security cameras located throughout the building.
Partners
Moonrise maintains an active community of partners to broaden the learning experiences of our members. A Moonrise learning guide is always present for learning experiences occurring outside of our spaces. Partners who visit our spaces for events, workshops, speaking arrangements, and other activities must comply with our guiding principles outlined above. Partners who fail to comply with our principles will be suspended or removed from our community.
Creative tools and materials
Moonrise colearning spaces are stocked with creative tools and materials. Learning guides are required to supervise members while they are using tools, and are trained to demonstrate safe and proper usage.
Photography and media
Moonrise is a community that grows through organic word of mouth. Nothing conveys our member experience better than sharing photos, videos, and stories of members learning in our spaces. Therefore, we take and share such media so we can grow Moonrise and advance our mission to build better humans.
A media release is included in our Enrollment Form.
Dress code
Moonrise considers clothing a form of free speech and respects the rights of our members. And as free speech, we must also respect the freedoms and rights of all members, staff, and guardians - which includes the ability to feel safe at Moonrise.
The following types of clothing are prohibited:
- See-through or mesh clothing, unless worn over other apparel.
- Garments or accessories that display emblems, symbols, or content relating to abusive substances, sex, gangs, profanity, obscenities, or offensive material.
Personal items
Members are responsible for their personal items. Please label all belongings to increase the potential of lost items being returned. Moonrise is not responsible for these items and will not provide any reimbursement in the event that personal property is lost or stolen.
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GUARDIAN ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
By signing the Enrollment Form, which is timestamped and stored securely by Moonrise, I acknowledge that we (my child(ren) and myself) are responsible for reading and understanding this information.