Classroom Policies and Procedures
Behavior System
Every student will have a clip on the class chart. The chart ranges from Great Job, Good Job, Ready to Learn, Think about it, Teacher’s Choice, Parent Contact
Great Job- Blue – this is a student who has gone above and beyond the expectations for the entire day.
Good Job- Purple- this is a student who has gone above and beyond for parts of the day but maybe not the entire day.
Ready to Learn - Green- this is where all students begin their day and are ready to learn.
Think about it- Yellow- This is a student that has had to move their clip down for breaking a rule, or not changing behavior after a warning has been given
Parent Contact- Red- this is a student who has repeated warnings with no change in behavior, they may be sent to the office to talk to an administrator,, a parent will be notified by either a phone call or a note sent home.
**Students are able to move up and down on the clip chart system. If a child struggles with a behavior at the beginning of the day they can make better choices and move their clip back.**
Any behavior that may seriously harm ANY student is considered a serious offense and may also result in a student being taken to an administrator or a phone call home immediately.
Treasure Box-
Students who remain on Green (ready to learn) or higher for the entire week will be able to go to the treasure box!
**If behavior becomes a problem in the classroom you may be called in for a conference to discuss the behavior and set up a plan for home and school.
Behavior Calendar-
Students will receive a monthly behavior calendar to stay in their HERO binder. Students will color in their daily clip color (purple, blue, green, yellow, orange, red) at the end of each day. This is how we keep track of behavior and how parents receive a daily update about behavior. Please check and initial next to each day on the calendar to let us know you have seen your child’s behavior chart.
Dismissal Policies
Car Riders- All car rider dismissal will begin at 2:30 pm. Anyone picking up a student at Gateway in the car rider line is required to have the school issued scan tag in their front window. This code will be scanned and students will watch for their name to come up on the screen. If the code does not scan, you may be asked to park and come inside. Parents will have to provide the school with their primary phone number in order to pick up their student in the office. Please do NOT laminate your code as it can interfere with the car line scanner.
Bus Riders- All bus riders must be signed up to ride the bus (you will need to visit the office to get more information). Each bus rider will have a tag that designates the bus they get on and their tag number. In kindergarten our assistant helps with putting students on their bus. Parents are also given a designee tag. Any person picking up a child at the bus stop must show their tag to the bus driver. If a person does not have a tag they will not be permitted to take that student off the bus. The student will remain on the bus and return to school where they must be picked up and signed out of the office. If a student is frequently returned to school, they may be suspended from riding the bus.
Afterschool/Daycare Vans: If your child will be going to Gateway afterschool care, they will remain in the room until an afterschool teacher comes to pick them up. If your child will be riding a daycare van they will be directed by a teacher where to wait within a supervised area until the van arrives.
***Important**** ANY STUDENT GOING HOME A DIFFERENT WAY THAN USUAL MUST HAVE A NOTE WITH THE DATE AND HOW THEY WILL BE GETTING HOME. OTHERWISE THEY WILL BE SENT HOME THEIR USUAL WAY OR REMAIN AT SCHOOL UNTIL THEY CAN BE SIGNED OUT. I CAN NOT GUARANTEE I WILL BE ABLE TO CHECK MY EMAIL DURING THE DAY SO ALL CHANGE IN TRANSPORATION MUST BE SENT IN A NOTE OR CALLED IN TO THE FRONT OFFICE.
School Hours and Attendance
School Hours
Early Stay: 7:00 a.m.
Beginning Bell 7:45 a.m.
Dismissal: 2:15 p.m.
Students may begin arriving to school at 7:00 a.m. Any kindergarten student not eating breakfast at school must go to the kindergarten hallway. A teacher on duty will supervise students. Any student that eats breakfast at school must be in the building by 7:30 to receive breakfast in the cafeteria. The bell rings at 7:45. As per district policy, all students must be in their classrooms by 7:45 a.m. Any student arriving after the bell will be marked tardy. Excessive tardiness may result in unexcused absences and/or an attendance conference with the administration.
Absences/Illness
If your child is not feeling well at home, chances are they will not feel better at school. To prevent illness we encourage good hygiene and ask parents not to send a sick child to school! As per district policy students may not miss more than 10 school days. If your child is absent please be sure to send in either a doctor’s note or written excuse following their return to school. Students running a fever may not return to school until they are 24 hours fever free. Students who have been experiencing vomiting may not return to school until they have kept down 2 meals after their last episode.
Lunch and Snacks
Breakfast & Lunch
Free for All Students
Must arrive before 7:30 a.m. to have breakfast
Extra Milk $0.65
Adult Lunch: $4.75
•If you would like to eat lunch with your child please make sure to send a note as sometimes our schedule can change.
•Birthdays – We cannot have birthday “celebrations” in school. If you would like to send a treat for you child’s birthday please write a note which helps us better prepare for students who may have food allergies.
•Snacks- Students may bring a healthy snack to school (please do not send sugary drinks, sodas or sweets) that they may eat during recess. Snacks are not required and most students are fine for the day without a snack as long as they have eaten breakfast and lunch. You can best decide for your child if they will need a snack or not.
Take Home Binders
O.W.L. Binders stand for Organized While Learning. These binders are essential in communicating daily behavior, school events, and teacher and parent communication. Any notes, money, permission slips, or other important documents need to be placed in the OWL binder. The OWL binder is checked every morning when a student arrives, and the behavior calendar is filled in at the end of the day in the agenda. The best way to make sure your child is prepared for school is to check their binder daily and initial the behavior calendar nightly.
General Classroom Information
General Information
Field Trips- Throughout the year we will be going on several field trips. Parents are invited on most field trips depending on space availability. To make the process easier we ask that you return all permission slips and payment for the field trip at the same time. If you have a concern about paying for a field trip please contact the teacher so we may make arrangements. **Please see letter about volunteer/chaperone approval process**
Volunteering- Many times we need volunteers to come to school and help make copies, laminate or prepare materials for upcoming lessons. If you are interested in volunteering or have a specific day you can come once a week please send me a note and we will be happy to have you help out! **Please see letter about volunteer/chaperone approval process**
Early Dismissal- If you know in advance that your child will be picked up early, please send a note and we will have them packed up with all their materials for the end of the day!
Homework: Students will be assigned homework weekly in their agendas that they receive on the first day of school. Homework is assigned in the newsletter on Monday and checked on Friday. We will also work on doing a monthly reading log. Students are asked to read books at home with an adult and sign the reading log. When a student finishes a reading log they will receive a sticker on their chart and if they complete their reading logs on time for each month at the end of the year they will qualify to attend a Reading Log Celebration!
Behavior Celebrations- During the year the administration hosts Behavior Celebrations for students who demonstrate exemplary behavior. To qualify for the behavior celebrations students cannot go home on yellow more than twice. (See Behavior System)
Visitors/Volunteers- Any person visiting or volunteering must sign-in at the front office. You will need to have your driver’s license with you to be scanned. All visitors must enter through the front doors of the school
Birthday Invitations- Due to pending litigation in Greenville County Schools, students, parents, teachers, or staff are not permitted to distribute any birthday invitations on school property. Unfortunately any invitations sent to school will have to be returned home. If anything changes with this policy parents will be informed in writing.