Pick Up & Drop Off

Parents are welcome to enter the school through the front doors if they need to speak to the office, but are asked to remain outside for drop-off and pick-up times.  Our morning line-up and afternoon dismissal "spot" is on the blacktop behind the school and marked with a Hoyland/Div. 4 sign.  

The morning bell is at 8:40 (the earlier bell at 8:38 is for students to line up at their "spots"), and students are dismissed from their "spots" at 2:48 p.m.  Any students not picked up by the last bell at 3:03 p.m. will be sent to the office to wait for you there.  If your child goes to after school care, takes the bus, or is picked up by a sibling please let me know.

Lunch, Snack, & Water Bottle

Sidney Elementary has a policy of encouraging healthy eating habits in the classroom, and parents are kindly asked not to send in junk food, candy or sugary treats.  Sidney is a “water-only” school, so please do not send in juice.  We ask that you send a reusable water bottle for your child to keep at their desk to stay hydrated.

In addition to lunch, your child will need a “quick and easy” morning snack.  Because of time constraints, messy food that cannot be resealed (such as applesauce cups) or that needs cutlery are best saved for lunch.  I suggest one or two finger-friendly snacks such as veggies, crackers, granola bars, etc. for morning snack.  

The intermediate classes run the food-scrap composting and (eventually) hard-plastic recycling for the school.  Students are asked to bring all other food waste home to be recycled if possible.

Toys, Fidgets, & Books

To avoid the heartache of missing/broken toys, students at Sidney Elementary are not permitted to bring unnecessary personal items from home such as toys or books.  A variety of supports such as fidgets, noise-cancelling earphones, stuffies for comfort, etc. are available in the classroom for all students.  Any personal supports from home need to be discussed in advance.  

Birthdays, Invitations, & Treats

Birthdays are special occasions for young children and birthday parties are a BIG DEAL.  To protect feelings, students are not permitted to hand out invitations at school unless they have one for everyone.  Giving a party invitation to another parent directly is the best way to avoid the birthday party "blues", and family contact information is available on our Class Contact List.  If you're unable to connect with other parents, the invitations can be sent to school discretely and I will deliver them privately.

If you decide to send a treat, I ask that it be something easily handed out (for example, cupcakes instead of a cake).  In our efforts to promote healthy habits, birthdays are the only times that special treats will be handed out.  Other awesome alternatives are bookmarks, fun pencils, or stickers!  There are 20 children in our class.

Holidays

If your family is going on holiday during instructional time please let me know.  Teachers are not required to put together homework packages to take on vacation, however I am happy to send home any missed worksheets upon your family's return

Parent Volunteers

There may be opportunities throughout the year to join us for field trips or learning activities.  Volunteers are required to complete a Criminal Record Check every three years.  You can apply online to the Ministry of Justice at justice.gov.bc.ca/criminalrecordcheck and use Access Code UV53DWHBYX.  Your Criminal Record Check will be sent to the School Board Office for review.  Alternatively, you are able to share the results of a previous CRC completed through the Ministry of Justice within the past three years.

Library Books

Every Thursday our class visits the library, and students can sign out one book for the week.  Books are due back the following Thursday, but can be returned anytime.  Students will not be able to take out another book until their previous book has been returned, and any lost or seriously damaged books will have to be paid for or replaced.  To protect books and help us keep track of them, students should carry their library book back and forth to school in the reusable cloth library bag provided in kindergarten.