How
to Make Changes in Dismissal PlansWe appreciate the efforts you make to let us know ahead of time if there will be changes in your child's regular dismissal plan.
If you need to make a change to the regular dismissal plan that we have on file, please:
NEW
PROCEDURE if you have an emergency or an unexpected
event occurs and you were not able to provide a note, please:
I ask that you reserve calls to the office for emergencies or unexpected occurances. Please understand that we can't make playdates or other nonemergency/nonessential changes. I have asked the office staff to keep me posted about how this new procedure is working.
Even though we will work hard to get the message to your child and his/her teacher, with 521 children, there may be glitches from time to time. The school has back-up safety procedures in place just for this purpose. We keep lists of which children are being picked up and walking home each day, and these are checked by the staff on duty. That is why it is essential that you sign your child out ONLY after you actually see your child.
Staff members make sure that every child on the list was signed out, and if there are children not signed out on the list, they follow up. Likewise, they take in hand children who are not on the list and make phone calls to teachers and parents. Staff members check on every child on the walker's list to ensure that those children do, in fact, leave the school walking.
If you planned to pick up your child but do not see him or her, let one of the staff members on duty know. They can quickly have the office contact the staff at the buses with a walkie-talkie. You do not need to walk over to the bus area.
A number of parents have volunteered to work on a committee to see how we can improve the dismissal process, and some staff members are eager to be involved in this process as well. One of our lead teachers will be contacting parents about a first meeting time to get started. In the meantime, I ask for your help by following these procedures to keep your child safe and dismissals going as smoothly as possible.
If you have any questions about this or a concern about dismissals that I haven't addressed, please feel free to email or call me. Thank you!
Sincerely,
Joni Jay
Even the best made plans go awry at home in the mornings! If you child has forgotten an essential item (e.g. lunch money, lunch, boots, dismissal note, etc.), following is the procedure for getting it to your child:
1) Put the item in a bag clearly and securely labeled with your child's name and teacher's name.
2) Bring the item to the office.
We are working on a "delivery" system so that student helpers will make "rounds" twice a day to deliver these items. In the meantime, our Mrs. Collins or Mrs. Galliardt will make sure these items get to your child.
Homework deliveries: Homework deliveries: Please note that following the same practice as in past years, 3rd, 4th & 5th grade teachers will again expect children to bring in homework on their own. (“There are three parts to homework: taking it home, doing it, and bringing it back.”) Therefore, we will not make deliveries of homework for 3rd-5th grades. Teachers will inform you of their homework policies on Back to School night.
If you have any questions about this procedure, please feel free to contact me.
Joni Jay