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School Procedures
If it is not possible for your child to eat lunch at home, he or she can eat his or her lunch at school. Send the kind of food that your child is accustomed to eating at home although it may not be possible to heat the lunch. The lunch should include a juice or water rather than sugary drinks like pop. Some parents also send snacks. Write your child’s name on his or her lunch box or container.
After lunch, students go outside to play until class resumes. School staff will supervise them in the school yard.
Some students have severe allergies to nuts and will get very sick if they eat or are exposed to food containing even small amounts of nuts. To ensure the safety of these students, many schools adopt a “nut free” policy. If your school is “nut free”, please do not send any food containing nut products to school with your child.
To make sure that students arrive safely, parents are expected to call the school when students will be absent. If your child does not arrive by 9:00 am and you have not phoned the school, someone will contact you. When your child is going to miss school, please phone the school by 9:00 am.
Some schools have a message machine for recording absences. Please call each day that your child is absent.
If your child becomes sick or has an accident while at school, someone at the school will call you at the phone numbers on the school records. You or the emergency contact person must pick up your child as soon as possible. Most schools have a staff member with first aid training. If the accident or illness is serious, the school will call an ambulance and a staff member will accompany your child to the hospital.
Tell the teacher if your child has any health problems or allergies. If your child needs to take medication during the school day you and your child’s doctor will have to fill out a form.
Sometimes in the winter, when there is a heavy snow storm, schools may be closed and bus transportation cancelled. When there is bad weather, listen to the radio for announcements of schools that are closed or buses that are cancelled.
In bad winter weather or rain, students are kept indoors at lunch time and at recess.
If your child is in a special program or if you live a long distance from the school in your attendance area, school bus transportation may be available. Ask the school office staff for information.
The Public Health Department requires all children in Ontario to be immunized against serious childhood diseases in order to attend school. The school maintains an immunization record for each student.
If your child has not received all of his or her immunizations or if the school record is incomplete, you will get a warning letter from Public Health. Your child will not be permitted to attend school if you do not comply.
Your doctor will give you a yellow card listing your child’s immunizations. Take it to the school to make sure the records are up to date.
For more information, contact the Public Health Department in your community or http://www.health.gov.on.ca/english/public/pub/pub_menus/pub_immun.html
When you registered your child for school, you listed your home and work phone numbers as well as the name and numbers of a friend or family member who could be contacted in case of an emergency.
Teachers use these numbers to call you about your child’s school work or in case of an emergency. If these numbers change, please notify the school.
Before classes begin, one or more teachers will be in the schoolyard for at least 15 minutes before school starts and 15 minutes after school ends. During recess your child is also supervised in the schoolyard. Students are not supervised at other times and you should not leave young children in the school yard early in the morning or late after school.
If your child stays at school for lunch, the school will supervise your child.
Some schools have a dress code that describes what students may wear to school. During the winter or on rainy days, it is a good idea for all students to keep an extra pair of shoes at school. Throughout the year, young students should keep extra clothes at school.
The school may require students to wear running shoes, shorts and t-shirts for physical education classes in the gym. If you have a concern about your school’s dress code, speak to your child’s teacher.
Students are expected to play outdoors at recess and before and after school, except when it is raining. Make sure that your child is dressed for the weather.
Kindergarten students are expected to dress themselves although the teacher will help students who are still learning.
From time to time, the teacher will arrange for students to visit a museum, park or a theatre to see a play. The field trip is an important part of the classroom program and in the days before and afterwards, children work on material connected to the trip.
The school requires your written permission for your child to participate in a field trip. Your child will bring home a letter for you to sign. Please sign the form and return it as soon as possible. You may be asked to pay an admission fee for your child to participate in some field trips.
Teachers usually welcome parents who wish to accompany students on the field trip.
Your home address determines the school that your child attends. Each school has an attendance boundary or zone around the building that defines the streets and homes that belong to that school.
In some school boards, schools that are not full will enroll students who live outside of their attendance boundary. Speak to your school office staff for more information.
To help children should become bilingual in English and French, the two official languages of Canada, some school boards offer French Immersion programs. French Immersion is an optional program for children whose first language is not French.
In French Immersion, students learn most of the curriculum in French, but as students get older, they take some subjects in English. The starting point for French Immersion is decided by your school board and the program continues through secondary school. For more information, speak to the school office staff.
Your school board may offer a variety of weekend or after school international language classes for children. For more information, speak to the school office staff.
If your child is observing a religious holy day and will not be attending school, please call the school in advance to let them know that your child will be absent.
The school will make reasonable efforts to accommodate the religious and faith practices of your family. Speak to the teacher or the principal for more information.
From time to time, you may receive a letter from the School Council requesting a financial contribution to support school activities that are not covered by the regular school budgets. Donations are voluntary.
When planning the classes for the next year, the school often mixes students from different classes. As a result, your child may not be with all of the same classmates during the next year of school.
As your child goes through school, his or her report cards, educational documents and teacher comments will be stored in the Ontario Student Record (OSR). Teachers read the documents in the OSR to learn about your child and to plan his or her learning activities. The OSR is confidential but parents can request to see it.
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