Hours


	4304 41st Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta. T6L 5Y6

	Office Phone: 780.462.4622

	Attendance Line: 780.450.6119

	Fax: 780.440.0925

Parent's Page

ABSENTEE PHONE LINE

780-450-6119

ABSENCES

Our office staff conducts a twice-daily school absentee check. The purpose of this service is to confirm that all students are safe. If your child is going to be absent, please call the school at 450 - 6119 and leave a message on our answering machine. Please call each day that your child is away. If your child is away and there has been no call confirming the absence, you will be contacted. Please note that in the fall 2011, we will be transitioning to a new voice mail system which will include a message box for the Absentee check. You will be notified when that happens. Please continue to use the dedicated phone line above, until the transition happens. It is extremely important that you keep the school office updated with your current home, work, and emergency telephone numbers.

ARRIVAL TO SCHOOL/ENTRANCES

Students are expected to line up outside, at their designated door, when the first bells ring at 8:30 and at 12:15. Teachers will open the doors to greet students and for them to enter. Kindergarten children should be picked up directly from the classroom at dismissal time.

The main doors at the front of the school are reserved for adult guests, for students arriving by bus, and for children with physical/medical needs. Students who arrive late to school must also enter by the front doors, as all other doors are locked once school starts, for safety purposes.

THE IMPORTANT FIRST FIVE MINUTES/LATE ARRIVALS

Attendance and punctuality are both factors which affect student achievement, organizational skills, and attitudes toward learning. The first five minutes of class time are critical to student success. This is a time when teachers greet students, do agenda book checks, review the day’s agenda, and set the tone for learning. Students are considered late if they are not in the classroom when attendance is taken following the second bell. We rely on students to report to the office if they are late, so that we will not phone parents unnecessarily. Students arriving late are given a ‘late slip’ to inform the teacher that the student has checked in and we will not be calling home. Parents can help children to develop good punctuality habits by arriving on time. Parents will be notified if a child arrives late habitually.

REGULAR ATTENDANCE

Regular attendance is essential for success in school. Our attendance policy is intended to support proactive communication between parents, teachers and students, and to help improve the overall achievement of students at Julia Kiniski School. Student attendance is reviewed at the end of each month. Concerns about attendance are addressed first through phone calls to the parent. If the attendance does not improve, a letter will be sent to the parent, and copied to the Provincial Attendance Board. If the attendance continues to be of concern, a formal referral will be made to the Provincial Attendance Board, in accordance with provincial attendance laws.

EXTENDED ABSENCES

Families are encouraged to arrange for family holidays during times which coincide with school holidays as much as possible. Students who are away for an extended absence will be marked as ‘Absent’ from school. Please inform your child’s teacher and the office if your child will be absent for an extended period during the school term. The learning experiences that occur daily in the classroom contribute to student progress and cannot be replaced by worksheets. As a general guideline, teachers are not obligated to assign packages of work for students to take with them on trips that occur during the school year. Teachers may encourage students to keep up with their reading, or create a trip diary or scrapbook. Our experience has shown that it is more productive for students to take on the responsibility for completing assignments upon return to school when they have access to the teacher for answering questions and receiving guidance. Students are not allowed to take school property, such as textbooks and library books with them on trips.

MEDICAL/ILLNESS

If a student becomes ill at school, we will always attempt to contact the parent(s) first. If a parent can't be reached, the emergency contact may be called. If no contact can be made, the child will be made comfortable in the office or infirmary, until a parent is reached. All prescription medicines, asprin, etc., must be brought to the office for safe keeping. We administer medicine only if we have a signed waver from the physician and parent, and we keep a careful record of dosage and time given.

RECESS/COLD WEATHER POLICY

All students have a 15 minute recess break at 10:05 A.M. and again at 2:00 P.M.

Children who stay for lunch will also be outside for about 20 minutes. Recess provides an opportunity for students to have a break from routine, have some exercise and fresh air, and to develop social skills in playing with others. We expect children to be dressed warm enough to be outside for 15 minutes of exercise. Recess will be held indoors in the event of extremely cold weather (-23 degrees Celsius, with windchill considered) or during other inclement weather such as rain or thunderstorms. We check current conditions before each outdoor break.

If recess is cancelled, students are provided with a bathroom break and are supervised for a quiet break in their classrooms. During an indoor lunch recess students are provided with activities, which may include gym time, board games, movies, or computer lab time, and are supervised by lunch supervisors.

During extremely cold or wet weather, before school, students are permitted to stand quietly inside their designated entrances 10 minutes prior to the first bell and are invited to go to class when the bell rings.

EMERGENCY PLAN

Safety drills are conducted so that all students and staff will know what to do in the event of emergencies, including potential need for evacuation, lockdown, or threats from outside such as severe weather or gas leak in the community. If we have to relocate, we will evacuate to Jackson Heights School. All students contact information is taken with us as is the emergency phone fan out system. In the event of an actual emergency incident, students and staff are not allowed to call out on cell phones and parents are asked not to call the school as all phone lines will be required for emergency purposes. In this event, however, parents will be contacted as soon as possible. Safety is always our priority first; communication, second. Our emergency plan is quite comprehensive and procedures meet the requirements of our school board.

FIELD TRIPS

Field trips help to support the learning in the classroom and enhance Alberta Education curricular objectives. Money is collected to pay for in-school performances and presentations, field trip admission fees and transportation costs. Children may participate in field trips only with the informed written consent of parents. Please contact the principal should you have a financial challenge with a field trip. Sometimes teachers will need parent volunteers to help supervise on a field trip In those cases, the cost for the parent to attend will be covered by the school, to a maximum of the number of parents required for supervision. Unfortunately, we cannot have younger siblings attend field trips, as the primary role of the parent volunteer is to be able to help with supervision of the class. Younger siblings can distract a parent from that role, and are also not covered by district liability insurance. Parent volunteers must also complete a volunteer form at the office in order to be covered.

FOOTWEAR

In order to keep our school carpets and floors as clean as possible, all students and parents are asked to remove their outdoor footwear upon entering the school. For health reasons, it is expected that students will wear indoor shoes at all times in the building. We are proud of our building and want to take good care of it.

PARENT/SCHOOL COMMUNICATION

A school newsletter will be provided five times during the year: September, November, January, March, and May. Families may receive the school newsletter on School Zone or in hard copy. Other notes will be provided to highlight important or emergent dates and events. We hope that these and other classroom communications from teachers will keep you up-to-date and informed about what is going on at the school. Please call the classroom teacher or office staff if you have any questions.

PARENT INVOLVEMENT

Parents and community volunteers are welcomed and valued at Julia Kiniski School! We feel that education is a responsibility shared between the home and the school. Parents are involved through volunteer work in the school, through the School Council and through support at home.

The School Council is a group of interested parents who provide feedback, organize events, discuss educational topics or areas of concern, and share their time and talents with the school. All parents at Julia Kiniski School are considered to be members of School Council and are welcome to attend any of the meetings. Meetings are generally held once a month and dates are posted on the calendar and School Zone.

PARTNERSHIPS

Julia Kiniski School is fortunate to have community partners who care about our students and who work closely with us to enhance programming. Some of these include:

Julia Kiniski Education Society, who raise funds to provide extra resources
Alberta Health Services who provide access to a school nurse
ESHIP (Edmonton Student Health Integrated Partnership), who provide a team approach for speech language services, occupational therapy, and other health services.
Edmonton Public School Board Student Learning Services, who provide human resources for assessments and consulting.
Burnewood Community League
Tiny Treasures Play School and Before/After School Care 780 463-9185

Edmonton Police Services, who provide access to a school police liaison officer as well as support for the D.A.R.E. program.

PARENT CONCERNS

Our goal is to work closely with families in a proactive way, to help your child have positive, successful learning experiences at school. If you have questions or concerns about your child’s growth, or about classroom or school issues that impact your child, please contact your child’s teacher first. If administrative support is needed, please contact the office. It is best to make an appointment with a teacher or the principal if a meeting is needed. Phone messages may be left at the office and will be returned as soon as possible.

LUNCH SUPERVISION SERVICE

We offer a lunchroom supervision service at Julia Kiniski School. This childcare service is in place to help parents who are unable to make other arrangements for their children over the lunch hour. Lunch supervision staff are hired to provide this service. The costs related to this service must operate at no cost to the school’s instructional budget and are therefore covered by parents who use the service. The fees are as follows:
One Child

$200.00 for 10 months

(Sept. – June)
Two Children

$350 for 10 months

(Sept. – June)
Three or more Children

$400.00 for 10 months

(Sept. – June)
*** Lunch fees are due on the first Monday of each month.
*** If lunch service fees are paid through post-dated cheques, by the end of September we will offer a 5% discount.
*** If the entire lunch service amount is paid by the end of September, we will offer a 10% discount.

Drop-in occasional users
A book of 11 tickets can be purchased for $20.00 or $10.00 for a book of 5 tickets (Occasional users must buy the book of lunch service tickets). Single tickets will not be available.

POSITIVE BEHAVIOUR PLAN

We Believe:

All people have a right to be treated with respect.
All people are responsible for the choices they make.
Each choice carries a consequence, positive or negative.
We can learn self-control.
Self-control enables us to make choices that will have positive results for ourselves and others.

SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT

All students have the right to learn in a safe and positive environment that supports their growth as individuals.
All students have the responsibility to behave in a way that respects the rights of others.

PARTNERSHIP

Behaviour is learned by every child, everyday, from the many role models in the child’s life.
Home and school share the responsibility for helping children to learn appropriate behaviour and acquire healthy, positive attitudes.
Clear expectations and consistency will help children make good choices as they grow and learn.

PROBLEM SOLVING, CORRECTING BEHAVIOUR, AND CONSEQUENCES

When a child makes a mistake in behaviour, it is an opportunity to learn. Staff members will help the child to problem-solve, develop alternatives, practice the correct behaviour, and plan for the next time. When the situation requires, consequences are identified and parents will be contacted.

COMMON SENSE CODE OF CONDUCT

At Julia Kiniski School it is your responsibility to . . . . .

be on time
be prepared
do your assignments
respect your space
respect the space of others
act in a safe and caring way

Major Problems
The following actions are serious offenses and are unacceptable at our school:

fighting, physical abuse
bullying
causing harm to others
harassment, racist comments, threats
swearing, abusive language and gestures
persistent disruptive behaviour
disobedience, defiance, and disrespect toward authority
vandalism
theft
Bringing a harmful substance or weapon to school

We are fortunate to have a number of staff trained in Non-violent Crisis Intervention, who implement a team approach in situations requiring intervention to de-escalate volatile situations with students or adults. Staff will not put themselves in unsafe situations, and if need be, police will be called.

POLICY ON ELECTRONIC DEVICES AND PHONES

Electronic devices must be turned off and stored in a secure location during class time, such as in a backpack or in the teachers’ desk. All music and content heard or seen on the devices at school must be appropriate, and follow all other behaviour expectations of the school. Students are not allowed to use cell phone cameras, or any other cameras, to take photos, to store photos, or to transfer photos of students, staff, or parents, without written consent of the person, or in the case of a child, the child’s parent. Violation of this policy may result in consequences, which may also include confiscation of the electronic device.

The school will not assume responsibility for any electronic device that is lost, stolen or missing. For this reason, we would prefer that electronic devices be kept at home.

PARKING AND DROP OFF AREAS

Parents are reminded to drop off children in the designated Loading Zone areas posted on 41st Avenue, on the main street in front of the school, or in the Community League Parking lot on the east side of the school. Please do not use the staff parking lot or the school bus bay. Do not block the driveways and do not stop inside a crosswalk. Please pull over and come to a complete stop before letting a child out of the car. Remember our slogan “Safety Over Convenience,” and please help to set a positive example.

SAFETY PATROLS

Student safety patrols are on duty before school and at dismissal every morning and afternoon on 41 Avenue, directly in front of the school. To our patrols and their teacher leader, we extend our thanks for the big responsibility they have undertaken. Please remember: vehicles must stop BEFORE the patrols can hold the stop signs out, allowing children and adults to cross safely. Please follow the direction of our safety patrols. Our patrols are trained by the Alberta Motor Association. They are, however, children, and rely on all of you, to help keep them safe while on duty!

SUPERVISION

Teachers provide playground supervision for ten minutes before the first bell in the morning and at AM and PM recesses. Lunch supervisors provide supervision during the lunch hour. For safety reasons, we ask that students arrive no earlier than 8:20 in the morning and 12:05 in the afternoon. Students remain outdoors until bell time unless the weather is severe.

STUDENT SIGN OUT SYSTEM

We ask that parents come to the office to sign children out if they must leave early for an appointment. If an adult other than the custodial parent or regular caregiver is to take a child out of school early, we ask that you notify us in advance.

We do not release children to adults other than those listed on your registration form, unless we have confirmation from the custodial parent or guardian.

TELEPHONES

Please make necessary social arrangements or instructions for providing lunch or getting picked up after school, with your child at home, as messages can only be given to teachers during breaks, and our telephone lines are extremely busy. Classes will not be interrupted for parent messages to children, unless it is an emergency. Children may use the phone in the office in emergent situations or with a teacher’s permission.

VANDALISM

We are requesting support from all residents of the community in reporting any acts of a suspicious nature or vandalism. If you see persons:

On the roof of the school
Throwing objects at windows or doors
Lighting fires
Writing graffiti
Destroying shrubbery, playground equipment, or fences
Shooting weapons of any kind
Committing any other suspicious acts

Call (780) 423-4567 or 911 Emergency