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Our School Handbook outlines the school policies and procedures on most items of interest to parents and students. It contains guidelines for actions and decision making. Although it very detailed, it is not all inclusive. Thus, if you have any questions at all please call the school for more information.
Parent Handbook
INDEX
MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL
BELL SCHEDULE
STAFF MEETINGS AND EARLY DISMISSAL
REGISTRATION FORMS
STUDENT FEES
REPORT CARDS & PARENT TEACHER INTERVIEWS
SCHOOL REGULATIONS
DISCIPLINE
SCHOOL BEHAVIOR EXPECTATIONS
WEAPONS AT SCHOOL
ILLNESS AT SCHOOL
MEDICATION ADMINISTRATION
ACCIDENTS AT SCHOOL
BUSES
BUSES, BAD WEATHER & COLD WEATHER
DROPPING OFF & PICKING UP STUDENTS
TELEPHONE CALLS AND MESSAGES
REQUESTS FOR HOMEWORK
STUDENT ATTENDANCE
DAMAGE TO SCHOOL PROPERTY
CLASS PLACEMENT
MONEY & PERSONAL PROPERTY
LIBRARY POLICIES
LIBRARY ACTIVITIES
GRADE 5 AND 6 BAND
TEXT BOOKS
SCHOOL ADVISORY COUNCIL
FIRE DRILLS
PEANUT SAFE ENVIRONMENT
HALLOWEEN COSTUME
INSURANCE
SCHOOL PICTURES
STUDENT INTERNET ACCESS
CLOTHING
NOON HOUR EATING PERIOD
SWIM PROGRAM
SPEECH & LANGUAGE PATHOLOGY SERVICES
NOON SKATING DURING THE WINTER
BIKES, SCOOTERS, ROLLERBLADES
ALBERTA CHILD HEALTH BENEFIT
MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL
Welcome to Sexsmith Elementary School. Our hope is that your child will find our school an exciting, challenging place where they have the opportunity to acquire the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values they will need to have happy, productive lives. In order for this to happen, a cooperative effort is needed between students, parents, and staff to establish a positive and comfortable atmosphere that provides opportunities for continued growth. All of the school staff works to provide students with a wide variety of opportunities for academic achievement and personal growth. Parents can support their child’s education by setting aside a few minutes each day to:
* listen while your child describes school day activities
* read to your child
* listen while your child reads to you
* help with homework
* limit the viewing of television
* review and sign your child’s agenda
Communication is one of the major keys in having a successful school, and I encourage everyone to contact me with any questions or concerns they might have regarding any programs or policies in Sexsmith Elementary School.
Mr. J. Venhola, Principal , 568-3823 jimvenhola@pwsd76.ab.ca
BELL SCHEDULE
8:35 Entry bell
8:40 AM Homeroom
8:45 – 9:00 Reading
9:00 – 9:30 Period 1
9:30 – 10:00 Period 2
10:00 – 10:30 Period 3
10:30 – 10:45 Recess (warning 10:43)
10:45 – 11:15 Period 4
11:15 – 11:45 Period 5
11:45 – 12:15 Period 6
12:15 – 12:30 Eating period
12:30 – 12:50 Outside Recess
12:50 – 12:55 PM Homeroom Early Monday Dismissal
12:55 – 1:25 Period 7 12:55 – 1:18
1:25 – 1:55 Period 8 1:18 – 1:40
1:55 – 2:10 Recess (warning 2:08) 1:40 – 1:55 (warning 1:53)
2:10 – 2:40 Period 9 1:55 – 2:18
2:40 – 3:10 Period 10 2:18 – 2:40
STAFF MEETINGS AND EARLY DISMISSAL
Staff meetings are held the first MONDAY of each month, and on these days students are dismissed 30 minutes early at 2:40 p.m.
REGISTRATION FORMS
When children are registered in school, home phone numbers, address, emergency contacts, parent work numbers etc. are all recorded. Through the year, should any of these details change, please provide the office with particulars so student information can be kept current.
SCHOOL FEES
Peace Wapiti School Board approves the use of school fees to offset, in whole or in part, the costs of books and materials used in the delivery of programs. Fortunately, for most families, this is not a problem. Your child’s school fees are due September 30th, of each year. Should these fees pose a hardship for your family, please call the school principal to inquire about alternate arrangements, including the possibility of installments, or waiving of such in extreme circumstances.
ECS fees are $80.00; Grade 1 – 4 fees are $85.00; Grade 5 - 6 fees are $110.00.
ECS fees include school supplies and various field trips. Grade 1 - 4 fees include all text books, school supplies, use of the Arena, and various Cultural events at the school and surrounding areas. Grade 5 - 6 fees include all text books, school supplies, use of the arena, swimming lessons and various cultural events at the school and surrounding areas.
REPORT CARDS & PARENT TEACHER INTERVIEWS
Formal written Progress Reports are made to parents in November, March, and June. Do take time to review this report card with your child to highlight and praise the many positives that are reported. As well, if areas of concerns are identified by either you or your teacher, please take time to develop strategies with your child and teacher to enable every chance of success. Finally, please sign the label on the report card’s envelope and return the envelope to your child’s teacher as soon as possible. Parents are invited to come to the school to discuss the progress of the child(ren) during parent/teacher interviews which are held in November and March . Your cooperation in keeping interviews to 10 minutes is greatly appreciated. Please watch calendars and newsletters for specific dates and times.
SCHOOL REGULATIONS
Most school regulations are designed to protect the students. Basic rules such as no fighting or running in the hallways are necessary to avoid accidents and injuries. Classroom rules are based on the rules of common courtesy and are in the best interests of all students. If students are courteous and respectful to other students and staff, very few problems should arise.
STUDENT BEHAVIOUR EXPECTATIONS
All schools should be a happy, secure, and generally enjoyable place that students like to attend. We expect students to listen to teachers or support staff, treat others with dignity and respect, and apply themselves to their work so that they are doing as well as they can in school. Our expectations are that students do not do things that endanger others, and that they behave in a sensible and reasonable manner.
If behavior is unacceptable, there are a variety of ways that we may deal with it:
* time in the detention room
* talking with a teacher about their behavior
* referral to administration to have their misbehavior dealt with
Should these occurrences become frequent or ongoing parents will be consulted to determine an appropriate course of action.
DISCIPLINE
Our school is concerned with the total development of our pupils. We consider the social growth of the child just as important as the academic growth. We therefore expect them to improve their ability to get along with other children; to respect themselves and the rights of others; to respect authority; to respect their own and other’s property, and generally to learn self-discipline and acceptable behavior standards.
In most cases, these standards will be met and exceeded. Occasionally, however, a student will have problems conforming with the school code. When instances of this nature arise and the teacher has not been successful in dealing with the behavior, the student will be referred to the principal’s office. A discussion of the student’s behavior and possible consequences will be outlined to the student. Should the unacceptable behavior continue, the parents will be consulted and possible actions to be taken discussed. Hopefully at this point the problem will be resolved. Should it not be, however, outside agencies may be consulted to make assessments and recommendations on possible courses of action. We do not anticipate events leading to measures of this nature, and feel that through contact and cooperation between the home and the school we can prevent problems from becoming this serious.
Student Code of Conduct: Alberta School Act – Part 1 – Section 12
A student shall conduct himself so as to reasonably comply with the following code of conduct:
* be diligent in pursuing his studies
* attend school regularly and punctually
* cooperate fully with everyone authorized by the board to provide education programs and other services
* comply with the rules of the school
* account to his teachers for his conduct
* respect the rights of others
ILLNESS AT SCHOOL
When a student becomes ill at school, the office will attempt to contact the parent and request that the student be picked up. If a parent or emergency contact cannot be reached, the student will be placed in the infirmary.
Should a parent request that a child not have to go out at recess and noon due to a recent illness, the child will go to the room where detentions are being served and will either be assigned school work or expected to read a book. This ensures that all children are being supervised.
MEDICATION ADMINISTRATION
There is a provision in PWSB #76 Policy whereby medication can be stored and administered at school, but it is the responsibility of the student and the parent to ensure that medication is taken. The school will try to remind students but it remains the responsibility of the student to come to the office to take the medication.
Before any medication may be administered to a student, a consent form must be completed, signed and filed in the office.
ACCIDENTS AT SCHOOL
In cases of serious accidents, where a doctor is urgently required, the injured child will be taken to doctor’s office in Sexsmith or the Emergency Department at the Queen Elizabeth II Hospital in Grande Prairie. Parents will be contacted to meet us at the hospital. If the school feels the situation warrants an ambulance, one will be called, and parents should be aware that they are responsible for any ambulance charges.
BUSES
Bus students are reminded that the driver is in full charge of the school bus at all times. The driver may also report any misconduct to the Principal. Parents will be notified by the bus driver of f the misconduct.
In an effort to prevent accidents, town students are instructed to avoid walking though the parked buses when they are loading or unloading.
If students happen to miss the bus, emphasize to your child that they are to go to the SCHOOL OFFICE where they will be taken care of. Stress that they will NOT be in trouble and that they MUST NOT LEAVE THE SCHOOL AND GO to a friend, relative or babysitter until arrangements for this have been made by the office.
If your child comes to school on the bus in the morning, and they are not going on the bus in the afternoon, you must inform their teacher and their bus driver. If you cannot contact your bus driver, you can call the bus shop at 532-7734 and they will relay the message to the driver by radio.
BUSES and INCLEMENT WEATHER
Decisions to cancel bus runs are made jointly by Danny Patterson, Director of Transportation, and contacts in various areas of the division. Decisions to cancel are made by 5:45 a.m. and radio stations are contacted so that the cancellation message can reach parents as well as bus drivers by 6:35 a.m. Bus cancellations are updated on a regularly basis on the PWSD website.
Should a winter storm blow in after students have been transported to school, the practice of our transportation department is to keep the students at the school and send them home at the end of the day.
Please be aware that the RWZ School remains OPEN TO STUDENTS regardless of whether the buses run or not.
If you require further information regarding buses please call 532-7734.
DROPPING OFF & PICKING UP STUDENTS
If you are dropping off your children before school or picking them up after school, we ask that you park in the middle of the arena parking lot. Please see the attached parking and traffic flow map for more detailed information.
For added safety, please park so that when you leave, you can proceed forward, eliminating the danger of backing up with smaller children in the area. Even better, meet your child at the school gate and not at your vehicle.
If you should pick your child up from the school during or at the end of the day, please be sure to inform either the bus driver or the Transportation Department (532-7734).
TELEPHONE CALLS AND MESSAGES
If there is a matter of urgent concern that you wish to contact your child about, you may call the school at 568-3823. These should be kept to a minimum as interruptions during class time are disruptive to both teachers and students. Students may also use the classroom phone when they have a permission note from their teacher. If it is necessary to get a message to your child, please let us know as early in the day as possible. If we get a message after 2:00 p.m., we cannot guarantee that your child will get your message. If your grade five or six student is in BAND, please call the Sexsmith Secondary School (568-3642) with your message on Band days.
If your child is away and you would like homework for them, please make this request prior to 10:30 a.m. This gives the teacher an opportunity to get the homework put together for the end of the day.
STUDENT ATTENDANCE
The Alberta School Act and Peace Wapiti School Board policy requires that all school aged children attend school on a regular basis unless excused for illness or other extenuating circumstances. Regular attendance is very important if a child is to achieve their potential. When a child is absent, we need a note or phone call explaining the reason. Also, if a parent is aware beforehand that a child will be absent for an extended period, they should contact teachers ahead of time to arrange for assignments. With our Safe Arrival Program, parent volunteers will call home when students are absent and the school has not been contacted. If your child will be absent, call 568-3823.
DAMAGE TO SCHOOL PROPERTY
We do not experience a great deal of damage to our facilities, and we like to see the students have pride in their school and help take care of it. However, there are occasions where damage to the school or equipment is caused by gross carelessness or is done intentionally and in cases such as this, parents should be aware that they are responsible for the cost of repairs.
CLASS PLACEMENT
There are occasions when parents wish to request a certain class for their child and we will try to accommodate these. If you wish to make a request, please do so in writing before June 1st. We try to balance the classes so that there are approximately equal numbers of male/female students at the same academic and behavior levels with similar attitudes in each class. Attempting to make changes in the classes often results in unbalanced numbers and abilities and this is not fair to the other students or the teacher. Therefore, we cannot guarantee requests will be fulfilled.
MONEY & PERSONAL PROPERTY
There are occasions when students bring money or personal property to school. The school cannot be responsible for the security of these items. If money is brought to school, under no circumstances should it be left in desks or in a jacket or lunch box, but rather turned in to the homeroom teacher for safekeeping.
LIBRARY
Students are allowed to take out two books at a time and they may keep them for one week. Books may be exchanged or renewed during library class periods, and also at the following times:
8:45 – 8:55 a.m. Monday – Friday
3:15 – 3:30 p.m. Monday – Thursday
Recently we have found the number of overdue books growing alarmingly. We provide a variety of positive incentives to encourage students to return their books.
For books that are lost, the cost of the book plus processing fees will be charged. Grade Six students are asked to pay a fine of 5 cents per day per book for books that are overdue. The students will be required to work off the fines if they remain unpaid after one month.
There usually 2 book fairs held during the school year, where parents and students can purchase books and such at nominal costs. Please watch school newsletters for those dates.
GRADE 5 AND 6 BAND OPTION
Students have the opportunity to take Band in Grade 5 and 6. If they choose to participate in band, they are allowed to try it out and see if they actually enjoy it. After the 15th of October, all band students will have to remain in band for the remainder of the school year. Offered at the same time as band is a combination of regular music and drama.
TEXT BOOKS
All text books are tracked by the library through the course of the year. Sometimes students leave material at home and take a spare book from the shelves and then forget to bring the original back. Please try to ensure that students return all books to the school, otherwise we have to replace them at a significant cost. Lost or damaged books are the respond
SCHOOL ADVISORY COUNCIL
The School Advisory Council is an organization of parent and school personnel who meet regularly to discuss school matters and provide feedback to the school on items that the parents feel should be addressed or considered.
We invite all interested parents to attend the organizational meeting which will be held near the end of September.
Agendas and notices for the monthly meetings (which parents are very welcome to attend) will be sent home in advance with the youngest student in each family. If you would like an item placed on the agenda, please contact either the Chairperson or the School. Meetings are normally held on the third Wednesday of 6 school months.
FIRE DRILLS and SCHOOL LOCKDOWN DRILLS
We are required to run a number of fire drills and school lockdown drills each year. Students are aware of their designated exits and are expected to use the exits in a quiet orderly manner during fire drills. Students are also prepared in advance of any lockdown drills so as not to create any anxiety amongst children.
PEANUT SAFE ENVIRONMENT
Often students attending school may have a life-threatening allergy to peanuts and peanut products. Thus, we request that parents not send food to school that contains peanuts or traces of peanut oil. With everyone’s cooperation we can strive to make the school a reasonably safe place for these children to attend.
HALLOWEEN COSTUMES
Classroom activities for Halloween will vary according to the age appropriateness of each classroom. We also ask that parents help choose appropriate costumes for school. Please choose costumes that are positive, festive, humorous and gentle. Things to avoid:
· Fake blood
· Violence or violent characters
· Extreme or disfiguring injuries
· Fake plastic or wooded weapons
· Gory or repugnant themes
SCHOOL PICTURES
Individual and class pictures for ECS through Grade 6 are taken early in the school year. All students are required to have their picture taken, however parents are under no obligation to purchase the picture packages.
STUDENT INTERNET ACCESS
Students have access to the Internet with teacher permission and direct supervision. The school district uses a computer program that hides sites with inappropriate content. Parents must sign a school district network access form giving permission for students to use the internet.
CLOTHING
A standard of dress, cleanliness and grooming appropriate for being in public is expected of all students. Students are requested to avoid wearing t-shirts with design or word motifs that are suggestive, indecent, or contain profanity. We ask for parental cooperation in this regard.
Occasionally accidents happen at school and clothing gets soaked, muddy, or wet. Thus all students are encouraged to have a secondary set of dry clothes available to them at school. Teachers of primary students will help them store their extra clothes, while upper elementary students can simply put the spare clothing in a labelled bag and store in their lockers, cubby-holes, or classrooms.
NOON HOUR EATING PERIOD
Students eating their lunch at school are required to stay in their homerooms and eat their lunch from 12:15 to 12:30. If they are not finished eating by 12:30, teachers may give them permission to stay in their classroom until they do finish.
Milk is sold at the office every noon hour and costs 75 cents per carton. Ice cream is sold on Tuesday, Wednesdays, and Fridays at noon and these items also cost 75 cents.
Hot dog sales take place on the last school day of each week, and they are priced at $1.50. Proceeds from these activities are used to provide various benefits for the students, such as helping to pay for performing arts groups. A variety of items are also purchased with these funds, including computer programs, playground equipment, support for various charitable organizations and funding for the year end picnic.
All students are required to stay on the school grounds during noon and recess breaks, and if a parent wants them to leave the grounds for some reason, a note must be sent to the school authorizing the student to leave the grounds. Students who normally go home for lunch daily must also have a note on hand with the teacher.
Individual classrooms will occasionally have a bake sale or pizza lunch to raise money for class projects. These sales are publicized well in advance and are usually noted on the calendar sent home every month.
SWIM PROGRAM
Every school year, the Sexsmith and District Recreation Board and Peace Wapiti School Board helps fund swimming lessons for students in Grade 5 and 6. Swimming is a component of the Physical Education curriculum, and by the time students have gone through the two grades, they should have basic water skills that will enable them to enjoy swimming in a safe manner.
SPEECH & LANGUAGE PATHOLOGY SERVICES
The Peace Country Health Unit provides speech-language assessment and treatment services within all Peace Wapiti schools. A Speech-Language Pathologist provides these services to our school. This consists of pull-out individual and group therapy, classroom therapy and consultation and collaboration with teachers. The program takes students on a referral basis. If you feel your child could benefit from this program, please contact your child’s teacher, principal, or the Peace Country Health Unit at 568-5387.
NOON SKATING DURING THE WINTER
Parent volunteers are welcome to come to the arena to tie skates and supervise noon skating. Information regarding dates will be sent home in the school newsletter once the arena schedule has been finalized.
Students who want to skate are to bring their lunch to the arena immediately at 12:15, put their skates on while they eat, and they will be able to skate until about 12:50. All Noon skaters are required to wear a helmet.
BIKES, SCOOTERS, ROLLERBLADES
Many students come to school using this equipment and for the sake of their own safety, we ask that they follow the guidelines outlined below.
Take bikes to the bike racks and leave them there until you go home.
Bikes, scooters, and rollerblades are not allowed to be used during the school day on the school grounds.
Bikes must be walked across the crosswalk to the sidewalk or parking lot.
ALBERTA CHILD HEALTH BENEFIT
The ACHB provides children in families who qualify with:
Free dental care
Free prescription drugs
Free eye glasses
Free emergency ambulance services
Free essential diabetic supplies
More information and application forms can be obtained by called the ACHB call centre at
780-427-6848 (for toll free access, use the RITE Line and call 310-0000).