Parkvale School Policy Booklet

Parkvale School

Howard Street
Hastings

Phone 878 6616
Fax 878 8764
email [email protected]

1   INTRODUCTION

Welcome to Parkvale School – we hope you will find your association with your community school a happy, rewarding and educationally profitable experience.

Parkvale School was established in 1919 on the extreme edge of Hastings. Because of its placement Parkvale School can be considered both an urban and rural school, thus providing the children who attend this school a ‘special atmosphere’ on the start of their educational journey.

MISSION STATEMENT

At Parkvale School we believe that it is essential for us to provide the best possible balanced programme and school culture to assist each child to develop their full potential.

The School Staff, Board of Trustees and PTA members all consider themselves to be part of one large team working in partnership with parents to achieve the best possible education for the children who attend this community school.

2   OPEN DOOR POLICY

Our school prides itself on having an ‘open door policy’ – this is simply a title for ‘please come and see us’ if there is anything you would like to share or discuss at any time – NO MATTER HOW SMALL THE MATTER MAY BE.

It also means we welcome all kinds of help and from time to time we ask parents to assist us in a variety of ways. Please keep in mind, the more parents put into this Community School the greater our children benefit.

3   SCHOOL HOURS

Morning   8.45 am-10.30 am   Period 1
Morning Interval
10.55 am-12.35 pm
Period 2
Luncheon Interval

Afternoon   1.30 pm-2.45 pm   Period 3

We do ask that the children arrive after 8.20 am – this is the time when patrol monitors/wardens are on duty at the crossings that serve this school.

4   WET LUNCH HOUR

The luncheon interval runs from 12.30 pm to 1.25 pm daily – we DO NOT have a short lunch hour for wet days.

School days always commence at 8.45 am and conclude at 2.45 pm.

5   ABSENCES

Every teacher makers [marks] their class roll at 8.45 am and 1.30 pm.

Please –
1   Ensure your child is at school on time to ensure an orderly start to the school day.
2   If your child is to be absent on any given day, please notify the school office by telephone before 8.45 am.

Phone 8786616   Fax 8788764

For safety reasons we organise a complete school roll check twice daily and contact parents where children’s names appear on our absence book. A considerable amount of time can be saved if parents follow this ‘check in’ procedure – parents need only make one call, but we often make dozens.

6   AFTER SCHOOL

All children are instructed to go directly home after school (unless parents have made special arrangements for their child to go to another home).

The school telephone is not available for children to make arrangements to go and play at a friend’s house.

If your child has work to complete and will be home later than usual, we will endeavour to contact you by phone, so all patents should expect their children home at a set time each day.

Please instruct your children that they never, ever go to any other place or with any other person unless they have checked with their parents.

7   TRANSPORT TO AND FROM SCHOOL

Most children walk and parents should decide the route their child must always use, but if you decide to supply a bicycle for your child please decide:

a   Is the child old enough to ride in traffic? The Ministry of Transport does not recommend a child under 9 years of age riding on the road.
b   Are you, as a parent, prepared to check your child’s bike for safety each week? (Some bikes turn into mobile death traps.)
c   Will you be prepared to teach your child correct road use and train your child to follow the routes established by the school?
d   Are you prepared to supply your child with a safety helmet recommended by the Ministry of Transport?
e   Will you provide a lock to secure the cycle to the cycle stand?

Footpath riding and doubling are not permitted.

8   CARS/PARKING

Howard Street provides limited car parking areas especially on wet days.

Parents are asked to:
a   Not park on the yellow lines outside the school entrance.
b    Not double park in Howard Street – this creates a real hazard to all road users,
c   NOT USE THE SCHOOL CAR PARK ZONE AS A DROP OFF OR COLLECTION ZONE. (This area is out of bounds to children.)
d   Keep the TURNING BAY outside the hall clear at all times.

9   SKATEBOARDS

For safety reasons we do not allow skateboards or roller skates to be used at school.

Any items (toys etc) brought to school should be with parent approval but we cannot accept responsibility for such items. Please consider the safety factors of all items brought from home.

10   HAND TOWELS

Parents are asked to supply each child with a small hand towel (named) which can be kept on a school peg or in their school bag.

If all children have individual towels we can emphasise healthy, hygienic habits and routines of washing hands before meals, after going to the toilet etc.

11   LUNCHES

a   Lunches, sourced from the Windsor Park Store, may be purchased at school by ordering before 8.45 am in the school office.
b   Parents may also order lunches at the Windsor Park Store which are delivered to school.

No sweet items or glass bottles of drink are to be included in these orders.

Please ensure your child has an adequate and nutritional lunch each day.

Children MAY NOT leave the school grounds to purchase lunch at any shops at any time.

12   LUNCHEON INTERVAL

Children are not permitted to leave the school grounds at luncheon interval unless they have a note from their parents. If your child is to go home for lunch each day, a note at the beginning of the year is sufficient – the staff will note this on your records.

However, we recommend children stay at school to enrich their social skills at play.

For safety reasons children waiting for parents to deliver lunches to school wait inside the grounds on the deck area outside Room 16. Please deliver to this area.

If your child is to leave the grounds at any time, parents are asked to collect their child from their classroom and notify the office – staff are then certain of the safety of all children at all times.

13   DRESS

We do have a school uniform (details on separate sheet) and ask that parents support the school by outfitting their children in the school uniform.

Please note:
Bare feet – avoid at all times.
Rubber jandals – we have found that these are responsible for many accidents and parents are asked NOT to send their children to school in this footwear.
Jewellery – Earrings that dangle have proven to be dangerous in school playgrounds. If you wish your child to have their ears pierced please insist that they wear only studs to school.

14   NAMING CLOTHING

If all articles of clothing and shoes are named the task of locating owners is made so much easier and avoids confusion about who owns particular items of clothing.

Please check the ‘Lost Property’ box if you have items which go missing.

15   ASSEMBLY

A cordial invitation is extended to all families to attend our fortnightly school assembly held in the school hall. For dates and times please see the school newsletter.

We encourage all parents who are able, to join us at these functions where the children
present individual items
present group/class items
have combined singing
are presented with certificates/rewards
are given general school notices.

Please feel part of your school and join us as often as you can.

16   MONEY

From time to time we send requests for money for payment of various items/events.

Please send all money in a sealed envelope to your child’s teacher and print clearly on the outside
Child’s name
Child’s teacher/Room number
Amount
Purpose of the money.

This makes the task of sorting much more efficient for our staff and school secretary.

17   HOMEWORK

This matter always causes concern with parents. Please discuss this matter with your child’s teacher so all parties are working towards the same goals.

All children should have reading as a daily task.

18   READING BOOKS

A large amount of our yearly budget is directed towards expenditure on books – library, junior/senior readers, text books etc, and all children are encouraged to read as many books as possible.

Considerable damage is done to books in school bags – the more we can eliminate, the more widely we can spread our annual budget. Part of stationery requirements is a waterproof book bag for carrying any books in school bags.

PLEASE ensure younger children do not have access to these books.

Parents are asked to ensure all books are returned as required.

19   STATIONERY

We sell all our pupils’ stationery requirements through the school office. There are two main reasons for this:
1   This ensures all children have uniform equipment.
2   The small profit we make through a handling charge can then be spent on something extra for the school.

For these reasons we ask that all parents purchase all their stationery material through the school office.

20   SECURITY

All parents are asked to play their role in the general security of this community school in ‘out of school’ hours. If all parents who were out walking went through our grounds and checked (and are seen checking), then our vandalism problems would continue to be kept at a very low level.

21   HEAD CHECK

Parents are asked to check their children’s hair regularly for any signs of headlice (pediculosis) and treat immediately on any signs of infestation.

Advice on treatment is available from any chemist.

22   DENTAL CLINIC

Our dental therapist at Parkvale is available for any concerns relating to the teeth of the children.

If there is any emergency we are able to direct parents to other clinics in the area: so do not leave any problems unattended. Contact the office if there is no reply from the Dental Clinic.

Dental Clinic Phone No 878 5871

23   HEALTH

Please feel free to discuss any health concerns related to your children, with us. We have access to the Public Health Nurse, Speech/Language Therapist, Hearing/Vision Technician and other such agencies.

If we are unable to help we may be able to arrange for advice through some other source using the above personnel.

24   PARENTAL ASSISTANCE

This school is your community school and there are any number of ways in which you can support your school and thus be of assistance to your children.

Assistance with:
transport for school trips
writing process/language
parent tutoring for reading
library work
typing
gardening
joining sub-committees for special ventures
collating information
classroom activities
your skills in particular fields (art areas)

and so on.

25   PROTECTIVE HEADWEAR/SCREENS

We do encourage children to wear a hat or apply some sunscreen during the hottest summer months – this is especially important for the luncheon interval. (Please avoid the use of zinc – this screen has proved to be a problem with classroom books.)

Hats are available for purchase through the school office.

26   FAMILY PROFILES

It is important for the benefit of the child that we are notified of any changes in family situations, eg changes of address, telephone number, emergency number etc.

It is absolutely essential that we know of any medical condition that requires treatment by the school staff – epilepsy, asthma, allergies, heart conditions etc. Please inform school office of these details – supplying medication (named) if required.

27   FAMILY CRISIS

Every family has them – some minor, some major (bereavements). If you notify us then the school can be aware of the situation and be in a better position to handle any difficulty that may arise.

Please be assured that all personal matters are handled in confidence. (We are aware of our responsibilities under the Privacy Act.)

28   REPORTING TO PARENTS

Reporting to parents on the progress and development of their children is not only conducted on a half year and end of year basis.

Reporting and keeping parents informed takes many and varied formats:
open periods (morning/afternoon or set time)
assemblies
material going home
invitations to view displays
sporting/cultural occasions
social events
displays in library/office/staffroom/entrance
before/after school ‘chats’ etc.

Please feel free to contact your child’s class teacher at any time – for convenience if you have a specific matter to discuss, please ring and make an appointment or send a brief note outlining what you would like to discuss.

29   EVACUATION DRILL

Drill for emergency evacuation of classrooms is practised once per term.

In case of a major disaster ALL children are held at school for their safety, until collected by parents or guardians.

30   RELIGIOUS INSTRUCTION

This ‘Bible in Schools’ programme is run by volunteers in the Standard 2-4 classes (Standard 1 included if we have sufficient volunteers) – usually on Friday 8.45 to 9.15 am. Parents receive a consent form each year to approve involvement in this programme.

31   CHILDREN AT RISK

If any parent feels that any child known to them is ‘at risk’ in any way then this should be reported to the Principal – we have access to a number of organisations that can assist or give help or guidance where required.

It is the responsibility of the whole community to ensure our children are ‘safe’.

32   SCHOOL RULES

Our rules are kept to a minimum –

WE TREAT OTHER PEOPLE WITH KINDNESS
This means we: –
Do not hit, push, shove, punch or annoy others
Do not say nasty things
Do not swear
Do not spit
Do not throw things at people
Do not take other people’s things.

WE LISTEN TO AND OBEY ALL MEMBERS OF THE STAFF

WE KEEP IN THE RIGHT AREAS OF THE SCHOOL AND WALK SAFELY AROUND ALL BUILDINGS AND COVERED WAYS
This means we: –
Keep away from all classrooms and cloakrooms
Keep away from the car park and cycle area
Do not go past the yellow lines unless with a teacher
Do not play in and around the toilets
Ask permission of a duty teacher to retrieve equipment from out of bounds areas.

WE LOOK AFTER ALL PROPERTY OF THE SCHOOL
This means we: –
Do not deface desks, walls, fences, seats etc
Treat everything with care
Report any damage or breakage
Do not throw things at buildings or property
Look after our trees and gardens.

WE STAY AT SCHOOL AT ALL TIMES UNLESS WE HAVE PERMISSION TO LEAVE FROM OUR TEACHER AND THE OFFICE

WE KNOW WHAT NOT TO BRING TO SCHOOL TO PLAY WITH OR EAT
We do not bring:
water pistols, war toys, water balloons, pocket knives, cigarettes, lighters, matches, chewing or bubble gum, lollies or dangerous items.

WE EAT OUR FOOD IN THE CORRECT AREAS AND WAIT TO BE DISMISSED BY A DUTY TEACHER AT LUNCHTIME

Our school ‘Behaviour Management Plan’ is a school wide programme. “The emphasis of this plan is for children to accept responsibility for their actions”. Staff will be pleased to explain this programme – a copy is available in the school office for your information.

33   PRIVACY ACT

Schools are required (and need to) collect large amounts of information on children and their families. Please be assured that information gathered is treated with confidence and discretion.

Parents, however, need to be aware that certain information is shared with other sources:
Dental Clinic
Special Education Service personnel
Research issues
Statutory agencies (as required by law)
Health Nurse
Ministry of Education (statistical information)
Kindergarten and pre-school agencies.

We always contact parents prior to the release of any information whenever we feel this is necessary.

35   BOARD OF TRUSTEES

All Board of Trustees material is displayed on a noticeboard by the staffroom entrance. This includes:
Members and telephone numbers
Meeting dates
Reports
Minutes
Policies
General details.

This display is for your information so you can be informed on school matters.