John Reith Elementary School

JOHN REITH ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

A California Distinguished School

Student & Parent Handbook

2014-2015

Elk Grove Unified School District

Steven M. Ladd, Ed.D., Superintendent

Members of the Board

Jeanette J. Amavisca

Priscilla S. Cox

Carmine S. Forcina

Steve Ly

Chet Madison, Sr.

Anthony “Tony” Perez

Bobbie Singh-Allen

Elementary Education

Donna Cherry, Associate Superintendent for PreK-6 Education

Bob Roe, Director, PreK-6 Education

Fawzia Keval, Ed.D., Director, PreK-6 Education

Louise Roachford-Gould, Principal

Wendy Nosenzo, Vice Principal

of the

Elk Grove Unified School District

Adopted by the Board of Education on June 18, 2001

Dear Students and Families:

Welcome to John Reith Elementary School home of the "Jaguars – one smart bunch of cats!" Our staff is very excited and we are looking forward to working with you during the 2014-2015 school year.

John Reith will operate according to the district’s modified traditional calendar for the 2014-2015 school year. Parents please view the calendar regularly as it will highlight special events taking place this year as well as dates of school closures, holidays, and minimum days. Students in the third, fourth, fifth and sixth grades will receive assignment agendas. Please check these nightly for classroom assignments and activities, sign and have your child return to school with it daily.

The key to each student's success is for the home and school to work together helping our students understand school rules and policies. Please go over this handbook with your child and know what is expected. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call the school between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. at 399-0110.

Parents we encourage you to participate in your child's education by volunteering or attending parent/family meetings. Remember, you are your child's first teacher and will always be a very important part of his/her education. We look forward to seeing and working with you throughout the year.

The John Reith Elementary School Staff

REGULAR DAILY SCHEDULE

Kindergarten

A.M. Kindergarten 7:40 – 11:00

P.M. Kindergarten11:00 – 2:20

Grades 1 – 6

8:00 – 2:10

Daily Instructional Schedule

Please Note: Classes will not be interrupted during instruction time (except in the cases of emergency):

Arrival & Dismissal

Students should arrive NO EARLIER than 7:45 a.m. unless they are receiving breakfast, which begins at 7:10 a.m.

• Parents are requested to drop off their children in front of the school (Valley Lark Drive) on the school side of the street. Parents may also drop their students off on the north side of the school (Cockle Bur Drive) on the school side of the street.

• Busses will drop off and pick up students in the bus zone in front of the school (Valley Lark Drive). Please leave the Bus Loading Zone clear at all times. Cars are never to park in the red Bus Loading Zone.

• Students who are picked up from school are asked to wait in front of the school (Valley Lark Drive). Parents, please follow the instructions of staff members out on supervision duty.

• Students are required to cross the street utilizing the CROSSWALKSonly. We encourage parents to park and walk to pick up student(s) or please pick up student(s) near the crosswalks.

• After School: Students should leave school grounds immediately after dismissal time unless granted permission to stay by their teacher and parents. NO SUPERVISION IS AVAILABLE AFTER SCHOOL.

Please do not ask students to wait for you any amount of time after their dismissal. If there is an emergency, please notify the school office.

Visitors

All visitors must sign in and obtain a visitor's pass from the office before going onto campus.

Parents are invited and encouraged to visit classrooms at any time. However, as a courtesy to teachers, we ask that all parents arrange a time for visits. Questions or concerns regarding your child must be discussed with the teacher at an agreed upon parent conference time and not during the class instruction time.

Attendance

One of the most important elements of successful learning is regular, on-time attendance at school. If an absence is necessary, a telephone call to the school’s office on the day of the absence is required before 9 a.m., and a note upon return is essential for three consecutive days or more. The note should include the dates of absence and the reason for the absence.

State Law Permits the excuse of an absence for the following reasons:

Illness

Quarantine, as directed by the Health Department.

Medical, Dental, or eye appointment. Parents are strongly encouraged to schedule medical appointments before or after school; however, please submit a doctor's note when appointments interfere with school.

Attendance at funeral of immediate family member.

Religious Holidays.

TRUANCIES are absences that do not have valid excuses. If your child receives three or more, the principal, vice principal, school attendance clerk or other designated staff may report it to the School Attendance Review Board (SARB).

TARDINESS interferes with success in school. Students are expected to be at school and in class on time! If your child arrives late (after 8:00 a.m.) he/she should report to the office first to receive a tardy slip. Children who are late and arrive after 8:00a.m. will not be admitted to class without a tardy slip.

Food and Nutrition Services

EGUSD participates in the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs through Food and Nutrition Services.

Breakfast and lunch is available to all students. If all of our families fill out a Lunch Form, then the school will qualify for the Universal Lunch Program where breakfast and lunch is free to all students.

Questions regarding the school nutrition program may be addressed by calling 686-7735 or refer the district website.

Library Books

Students visit the library once a week to receive instruction and to check out books. Before books are checked out, each child must return a library responsibility card signed by a parent or guardian. The student and parent will agree to handle library books carefully, return them promptly, and pay for any loss or damage.

• The checkout period is one week.
• Overdue notices, with information about the title, author and price of the book are first given to the child when the book becomes past due.
• Report cards may be withheld from students who lose or damage books until the record is cleared.

Please ask the librarian if you need help in locating books to read with your child.

Textbooks

Each student is issued a numbered copy of the textbooks for his/her grade at the beginning of the school year. He/she is individually responsible for their books for the year. If a book is lost or damaged, the student will have to pay the full or partial price, depending on the original condition of the book when issued to the student.

• Tell your child to check at the end of each day for his/her textbooks. If a book is missing at that time, the class and the teacher can assist with locating the book.

Allowing a considerable amount of time to pass before alerting the teacher decreases the chances in finding the book.

Title 1 Intervention Services

Title 1 is a funding service allocated by the Federal government.The funds are allocated by districts to schools based on numbers of low-income students according to free/reduced price meals and/or CalWorks (formerly known as Aid toFamilies with Dependent Children). With Title I we are able to provide supplemental assistance to students in Reading and/or Math. It enables us to provide additional instruction to our students in 1st through 6th grades. This special assistance does not take the place of the regular program, but is a supplement to the regular program.

English Language Development

All teachers are trained to work with children whose first language is not English.

The CELDT (California English Language Development Test) is administered to new students within 30 days of enrollment in school to determine their English Proficiency. All students who are still identified as English Learners are reassessed annually by October 31st. In addition, a 30 minute ELD block will be added to the beginning of the school day so that English Learners will receive skills/leveled instruction.

Learning Center/Special Education

A Learning Center model is used for meeting the needs of students. Any student who has an active Individualized Education Plan (IEP) and is receiving resource program services or any student with an active IEP for Special Day Class will be served through the Learning Center. These students are in regular education classrooms and receive services in the following ways:

• In the classroom with the Learning Center teacher or teaching assistant coming into their class.
• Student is serviced in the Learning Center to receive special instruction to meet the goals of the IEP.

Qualification for special education services is based on diagnosis, screening, and teacher/ parent referral through the Student Study Team (SST) process. All students are assigned to a regular classroom, but may be assisted with small group instruction in the Learning Center or regular classroom.

For more information regarding these services, please call the school office, or Special Education Programs in the district office at 686-7780.

Student Study Team (SST)

The Student Study Team meets at the request of a teacher or parent for a concentrated problem solving meeting. This meeting is held to formulate an action plan with recommendations in an effort to resolve problems with student academics, attendance, and social/behavioral concerns.

Follow up meetings are held to assess progress, make further recommendations and evaluate success and resolution.

Student Study Team Meetings may be scheduled during the school day to accommodate the large number of meetings needed.

Psychologist

Our psychologist is on campus approximately two days per week. The three main functions of the psychologist are to:

Assess students for special programs and serve on the Student Study Team to assist with program planning.

Provide counseling for special situations.

Provide classroom instruction to support student mental/social health and well being.

Speech, Language, Hearing

A speech and language specialist is assigned to our school to assist students with identified needs. To qualify, students must be assessed by the specialist and meet certain qualifying criteria. The specialist also works closely with the Learning Center and the Student Study Team.

Health and Nursing Services

The district nursing services are administered by a qualified school nurse who provides:

• vision and hearing screening
• updating medical information
• supervision of the maintenance of appropriate records for each student.
• Elementary schools in the Elk Grove Unified School District do not have a full-time nurse. Nurses are on-site visiting each campus at least twice a month. Nurses are available on an on-call basis.

Sacramento START (Students Today Achieving Results for Tomorrow)

This is a public/private collaboration that is working to build the capacity of children to succeed academically and socially while reconnecting families and neighborhoods with school. The program is held after school daily from 2:10 to 6:00 p.m. The main components of the program are: Literacy, Recreation, and Enrichment. The following are examples of the types activities student engage in at START; Reading, Literacy, Sports, Games and Enrichment Activities. Enrollment is on a first come, first serve basis. If you have any questions regarding the START Program please call 826-7803.

School Site Council

The primary role of the John Reith School Site Council is to assist in the planning, implementation, and evaluation of our School Improvement Plan (SIP).

Personal hygiene contributes to good health and a positive personal appearance for all students. The dress code at John Reith School has been developed to set a standard that is in the best interest of students and is considered appropriate at the elementary level. All students are expected to be neat, clean and to wear apparel that does not draw undue attention to the wearer. Although John Reith is currently not a school that has chosen to wear uniforms, you may send your child to school in a blue and white uniform. The following items are to be considered when making decisions regarding personal appearance:

• Clothing is to be worn in the intended manner (buttoned, fastened, tied, tucked in, etc.).
• Pants are to be worn at the waist with a belt. Pants are not to be worn at the hips, without a belt, or in sizes which are excessively too large for the student.
• Shoes and socks are to be worn at all times to provide protection for the students' feet. Shoes must be the type to allow the student to participate fully in an appropriate developmental physical education program. Sandals must have a back strap. The following shoes ARE NOT TO BE WORN at school: Clogs, flip flops, high heels, cleats, spikes, rollers, open backs, and slippers.
• Dresses, skirts or shorts are to be no shorter than extended arms down to the fingertips while arms are held at sides.
• Clothing needs to conceal undergarments at all times. Halters, tube tops, see-through net shirts, tank tops, mid-drift shirts and muscle shirts are not to be worn at school.
• Slogans and or pictures with alcohol, tobacco, drug endorsements, sexual innuendoes, gang related symbols or phrases will not be allowed.
• Hats, caps, bandanas and other head coverings (except in the case of religious observations) are to only be worn outside for protection from weather elements.
• Sunglasses are not to be worn inside unless prescribed by a physician.
• The school will not be responsible for lost or stolen hats or sunglasses.
• Appropriateness of new fashions will be reviewed and authorized by school administration.

Consequences for Not Following the

Dress Code

Students who come to school in violation of the stated dress code will call home or parent/guardian's work place immediately and make arrangements to change into appropriate attire.

If students repeatedly continue to break the dress code, other disciplinary consequences will occur.

Final decisions will be made by the school principal.

Lost and Found

Most children keep good track of their clothing; however many coats, lunch pails, etc. remain unclaimed each year. At the end of each trimester we donate unclaimed items to charity. Children can check lost and found before and after school to claim lost articles. To help avoid this, please mark your child's possessions with his/her name.

ADMINISTRATION OF MEDICATION FOR PUPILS

• Procedures for administration of medications at school are listed in the Education Code 49423; it sets forth procedures which must be followed if school staff are to accept the responsibility for administration of medication: Notwithstanding the provision of Section 49422, any pupil who is required to take during the regular school day, medication prescribed for him by a physician, may be assisted by the school nurse or other designated school personnel if the school receives (1) a written statement for such physician detailing the method, amount and time schedule by which such medication is to be taken, and (2) a written statement from the parent or guardian of the pupil indicating the desire that the school district assist the pupil in the matters set forth in the physician's statement. (E.C. 49423)
• No medication (prescription or non-prescription – including aspirin, cough drops, etc) will be dispensed to students or allowed on the school site without the appropriate for being completed and on file in the school office. Student requiring medications at school shall be identified to the school by parent/guardian and physician. Students observed by school personnel administering unauthorized medications to themselves, or other students, will be reported to their parent/guardian (A.R. 4141.21 (a))
• All student medication must be in the original container.
• Students may not carry medication on their person.
• The "Authorization for the Administration of Medication by School Personnel" must be updated annually or when ever any changes are made in the treatment plan.

Head Lice Policy