Birthdays

Students with birthdays during the school year will be the Star Student of the Week. A poster will come home at the monthy pick-up with all the instructions for your child to complete. Birthdays are celebrated informally, but we will sing to the birthday student and recognize their special day.

Birthdays are celebrated informally in class and kept low key. Our district has adopted a health & wellness policy, please refer to the Sandpiper website and look under School Handbook and click on Health & Wellness from the drop down menu. We are asking parents to not send in any food items or goody bags. However, your child could contribute a gift to the classroom such as athletic equipment, a book, or a board game. Please, do not pass out party invitations at school unless every child in the class is included.


District Health and Wellness Policy

As part of the state and national effort to curb childhood obesity, improve children’s health, and enhance student learning, new state and national legislation has created stronger standards for food and beverages sold or provided at school. The new legislation impacts all districts. Please adhere to our health and wellness policy listed below:

Birthday Celebrations: Each class celebrates a bit differently. If you would like to bring something for your child’s class it will need to be a non-food item and packaged individually for distribution at the end of the school day. If you choose to provide goody bags, please make arrangements with your child's teacher.

Classroom Celebration: Classroom celebrations can only occur during or after the lunch period, with no more than one celebration per month. Food at all celebrations must be commercially prepared and meet the nutritional standards below:

  • Not more than 35% of total calories from fat

  • Not more than 10% of total calories from saturated fat

  • Not more than 35% of total weight is composed of sugar, including naturally occurring and added sugar

  • Its total calories should not exceed 175 calories per serving

Group Snacks: All food provided to a class for snack recess must be commercially prepared and follow the nutritional guidelines stated above. Healthy food ideas:

  • Dried Fruit (raisins, cranberries, apricots, banana chips)

  • Fresh Fruit (fruit and cheese kabobs, fruit salad)

  • Frozen fruit (frozen bananas, frozen grapes)

  • Vegetable Tray with a low fat dip (carrot sticks, cucumber strips, etc.)

  • Whole grain crackers with low-fat cheese, string cheese or hummus

  • Low-fat yogurt (squeezable yogurt, yogurt parfaits, yogurt topped with fruit)

  • Low-fat breakfast or granola bars (Cliff Bars, Luna Bars, fruit bars)

  • Nuts and seeds (pumpkin seeds, almonds, walnuts)

  • Ready-to-eat, whole grain cereals such as toasted oat cereal.

  • Whole-grain snack chip, such as baked tortilla chips.

  • Popcorn, a whole grain, can be a healthy snack with little or no added salt and butter.

  • Low-fat trail mix

  • Fruit juice must be less than 50 percent sugar

  • Drinking water should have no added sweetener

  • Milk should be nonfat or low fat.