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Student
Handbook
2006-2007
Policies, Procedures and General Information
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Table
of Contents
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Student
Behavior |
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Disciplinary
Actions |
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Bus
Conduct |
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School
Bus Safety Tips |
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Health
Services/Medication |
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General
Health Information |
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Staff
Assignments |
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Calendar |
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The Captain Isaac Paine School's goal is
to provide quality educational experiences for all children
in a caring and supportive environment. We maintain high
standards of learning and value the diversity of talents,
interests, and potential of each student. Emphasis is placed
upon fulfilling students' intellectual, emotional, social
and physical growth. This is made possible through the partnerships
we maintain with parents and other caregivers in the community.
We have over 300 students and approximately 30 adults at
the school. Safety is always our first priority. Please
be patient and understanding when communicating with or
visiting the school.
 Top
All students are expected to be in attendance
every day unless they are ill or a family emergency arises.
Regular attendance is very important to all students and
is required by law. When a student is absent from class,
it is impossible to recreate the situation that existed
during the student's absence. Makeup work cannot take the
place of classroom instruction. It is essential that each
student be in the classroom every day possible.
If your child is to be absent, please notify the school
that morning. If we do not hear from you, we will call to
verify that your child is in fact at home. We wish to be
certain that your child is safe.
If your child is tardy, please report with him/her to the
office where a pass will be issued to enter class. Please
do not drop your child off in front of the school. There
is no outdoor supervision after 8:55 A.M. and we need your
signature on the tardy form in the office. It is important
for your child to arrive at school on time every day.
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- Classes will begin at 8:55AM. Students
should not be dropped off earlier than 8:45AM because there
is no supervision until 8:45AM.
Do not park in front of the building. These lanes of traffic
are reserved for the school buses.
If you are dropping off your child please proceed to the
asphalt pathway by the south parking lot. A teacher assistant
will be stationed at this area to greet the students from
8:45-9AM. Students will go to the cafeteria to wait for
the beginning of class. Students that are accompanied by
parents must proceed to the doors by the office. (Please
watch for people walking in the parking lot.)
- Because of the large volume of students
being dropped-off, we are encouraging parents to allow their
children ride the bus to school.
PM kindergarten children's arrival time will be 12:25PM.
Their will be a teacher assistant stationed at the south
entrance for kindergarten arrival.
- Students that
ride the bus will be dismissed at 3:15PM.
Students that are being picked up will be dismissed at 3:10PM.
Children should not be picked up earlier that 3:10PM unless
it is for an appointment. (If possible, appointments should
be made after the school day.)
Because of the large volume
of students being picked-up, we are encouraging parents
to allow their children to ride the bus home from school.
Please send in a note or call the office before 1:00PM stating
that you will be picking up your child.
Please report directly to the teacher assistant to sign
your child out in the dismissal book. Once your child is
signed out the teacher assistant will have your child dismissed
from the cafeteria.
Once you have received your child please exit the building
immediately so the foyer area will be clear for student
dismissal.
No student will be released to another parent unless directions
to that effect are received.
AM kindergarten will be dismissed to buses at 11:45AM. Kindergarten
students who are being picked up will be dismissed at the
same time.
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Your child's safety is important to you
and us. Please help us insure that every child is safe at
school.
Adults picking up children may not go beyond the office
area. Please make an appointment if you need to see your
child's teacher.
All visitors to the school must stop at the office to
sign in and receive a visitor's pass. No one will be
allowed into the classroom area during school time without
a visitor's pass.
A new security update at the front door includes a closed-circuit
camera and a buzzer/lock combination that is activated in
the office. This permits the front entrance to be locked
during school hours but still allows controlled access to
the building. This entrance will remain unlocked during
arrival and dismissal times in which school staff is monitoring
the doors. To gain access to the building from 9AM to 3PM
please ring the buzzer, which is located on the right of
the entrance, and the office staff will respond and allow
you in. When your children are dismissed to you in
the afternoon, please exit through the front entrance by
the office only.
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We encourage you to try to schedule your
child's appointments outside of school hours. For your child's
safety, the teacher will not release a child unless notified
by the main office.
Please send a note in the morning indicating the time for
early dismissal.
All students who are being dismissed early must be signed
out at the office. No student will be released to another
adult other than a parent, unless directions to that effect
are received.
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WPRO-AM is our official school cancellation
station. Snow day cancellations are usually announced from
6:30A.M. on. Other stations we use are WLKW, WHJJ, WEAN,
and channels 6, 10, and 12.
Please be alert to changing weather conditions during the
day that may cause the school to have an early dismissal.
All parents are required to have an alternative emergency
drop-off bus stop for occasions when no adult will be home.
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Schedules are published in the newspaper
and are available at the school.
If you have any questions concerning bus transportation,
please contact Mrs. Kerttula, Transportation Coordinator,
397-5080.
A parent must request permission in writing for a child
to ride a different bus. If a child is visiting another's
home, both the sending and receiving parents must notify
the school in writing.
Safety and efficiency are primary concerns of school bus
transportation. Proper conduct is required of all students
riding the bus. The safety of students is jeopardized by
inappropriate behavior. The bus driver is the authority
on the bus: parental support of the driver is essential.
Written notices keep parents informed of inappropriate behavior.
Students may be suspended from riding the bus if their behavior
interferes with the operation of a safe and orderly transportation
system.
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A Student Emergency Card is on file for
each child. They are sent home early in the year and need
to be filled out carefully and promptly returned to school.
Please notify the school immediately of any changes to the
Student Data Form, such as address or telephone number.
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If you are moving and/or withdrawing your
child from school, please call at least two days prior to
the withdrawal date. This will give us ample time to complete
the necessary work.
On the final day of your child's attendance, you will be
given a transfer card and asked to sign a "Release
of Information" Form. You will also be given a health
record to hand deliver to the new school at registration
time.
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- Medication
Except in the case of an emergency life-threatening situation,
only certified school nurse teachers or parents are authorized
to dispense medications to students.
Written authorization from a physician and signed by the
parent is required before any prescription or over-the counter
medication can be administered by the school nurse-teacher.
All medication must be transported to and from school by
the parent or another adult in the original labeled container.
A full time school nurse teacher is on staff. If your child
is injured or becomes ill at school and you need to be notified
but you are not available, a person designated on the Emergency
Student Data Form provided at the beginning of the school
year will be called. Be sure to keep the school informed
of any changes in telephone numbers and emergency contacts.
In accordance with state regulations, every student entering
a school in Rhode Island for the first time must have a
complete immunization record and physical examination. Every
student in Grades K-5 must also have an annual dental examination.
For the health and safety of all children,
the school nurse-teacher must be informed if your child
has a communicable disease and/or condition. Examples include
strep throat or scarlet fever, head lice, chicken pox, ringworm,
pinworms, impetigo, pink-eye, and scabies.
Each child has a permanent Health Record on which pertinent
health information is recorded. It is important for you
to notify the school nurse teacher of any health problems.
This information is kept confidential. However, certain
information may be shared with staff as allergies, asthma,
diabetes, heart conditions, etc. If you have any questions
or concerns about this, please speak to the school nurse-teacher.
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A voluntary student accident insurance
plan is offered for purchase by all families.
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No money should be brought to school other
than that for lunch/milk money, classroom book orders, picture
orders, collections for charities, use at the school store,
or after school/summer school fees. Money should be brought
to school in a sealed envelope.
The school cannot be responsible for personal items brought
to the school. Students may not bring the following items
to school:
Toys of
any kind (unless designated by teacher).
Water pistols or any type of shooting toy.
Paintballs or other related equipment.
Knives, lasers, or other dangerous objects.
Sports equipment (baseballs, footballs, skateboard, etc.).
Articles or items for the purpose of selling or trading
with friends.
Chewing gum is not allowed.
Valuable items (headphones, CD players, radios, electronic
games, sports cards, etc).
Pagers or cellular phones.
These items will be taken from the students
and returned to their parents.
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The Sodexho Food Service Corporation operates
our school's meal programs.
Monthly menus and costs will be sent home allowing you to
help your child in making daily selections.
Please contact the school nurse-teacher if you feel you
are eligible for free or reduced price lunch.
Students who do not purchase lunch at school are required
to bring a lunch. Milk is available for purchase.
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There are many opportunities to be involved
in your child's education. The school has a Parent/Teacher
Group, A Technology Committee, a C.I.P.S. Volunteer program,
a School Improvement Team, a Cultural Arts Committee, and
many events to participate in throughout the year.
If you are interested in more information about any of the
above opportunities, please contact the school.
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The purpose of the P.T.G. is to aid in the
cultural and educational needs of the Captain Isaac Paine
School. We are not affiliated with any national parent-teacher
organization. If you are interested in joining our P.T.G.
please contact the school.
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Communications between home and school are essential. Opportunities
for parent-teacher conferences will be scheduled throughout
the school year. However, please feel free to set up conferences,
either in person or by phone, whenever necessary.
Communications are also fostered through classroom or school
notices. Please impress upon your child that any correspondence
from school should be brought to your attention. These notices
can be found in our child's school folder and should be
checked daily.
The use of technology such as our schools web-page, listserv,
and teacher and staff e-mails will be available during the
2007-2008 school year.
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In addition to classroom and auxiliary teachers,
there are additional staff members who can offer your child
support services.
Learning disabilities, speech, hearing and language services
are under the umbrella of Special Education Services. If
special services are necessary, you will be asked to give
permission for evaluation, meet with evaluators on results
and testing, and also be asked to sign an Individual Education
Plan (I.E.P.) that you will develop with the specialist
who will service your child.
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The opportunities for learning, recreation
and communication provided by the Internet are limitless.
However, it is also true that there are many sites that
are unsuitable or even harmful for children. It is Captain
Isaac Paine School's goal to protect children from such
material.
- Students will be supervised by an adult
at all times when using the Internet at school.
Students will access only those sites that have been
previously reviewed by staff and deemed appropriate for
student use.
The Foster School District will use a
content filtering system to protect students from inappropriate
sites. This filtering system filters and blocks inappropriate
sites so that students will not be able to access them.
Content Filtering will be provided by
RINET, which is operated by the State and is the Internet
provider for Paine School.
Local filtering policies will be set and
filtering configurations will be controlled and maintained
by authorized personnel at Paine School.
Student work will be posted on the Internet
only with written permission from the parents/guardians.
Parents/Guardian will have the option of not having their
child's work published at all on the Internet, having it
published without a name, or published with the first
name only. A permission form will be available for this
purpose.
Students photos will not be published
on the Internet.
Disks (floppies, CD's) from home are not
allowed in school or used on the school computers in order
to protect against the possibility of inappropriate material
being on the disk and put on our system, as well as protection
against viruses.
Parents are strongly encouraged to supervise
their children's use of the Internet at home. Although there
are filtering features on many of the Internet Browsers,
parent supervision is still needed to guard against the
access of inappropriate sites by their children. The best
way to ensure that children have a good Internet experience
at home is to stay in touch with what they are doing and
to spend time with them when the are online.
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It is necessary that children learn to develop
self-discipline in order to further learning.
We ask that you discuss the importance of the need for good
behavior and a positive attitude while at school.
It is the goal of the Captain Isaac Paine School to create
a learning environment in which children feel safe, secure,
happy, and have a maximum opportunity to learn.
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The following behaviors are prohibited at
school, at any school-sponsored activity or event, or while
on a school bus:
1. Behavior that interferes with learning, including disrespect
and failure to follow reasonable directions.
2. Bus misconduct.
3. Damaging school property or the property of others.
4. Dishonesty.
5. Distribution, use, access, upload, or download of vulgar,
obscene, or threatening materials and/or graphics.
6. Fighting.
7. Leaving a class or the school without permission.
8. Physical contact that is inappropriate.
9. Possessing or using tobacco or any smoking paraphernalia.
10. The sale, give-away, barter, exchange or distribution
of any materials, toys, or other personal belongings without
the consent of the principal or the principal's designee.
11. Theft.
12. Throwing objects on school property.
13. Using inappropriate language, whether written or spoken.
14. Verbally or physically abusing teachers, administrators,
students, or any other person, including but not limited
to, acts of sexual harassment, threats or intimidation.
- Parents will be contacted by phone or in
writing when their child is facing disciplinary action.
Parents may be invited to observe their child in the classroom
and/or be invited to attend a conference with the principal
and/or teacher for the purpose of devising a discipline
and behavior correction plan.
- Student support services, as well as disciplinary
action, may be used to address misbehavior. Student support
services are provided by school social workers, school psychologists,
peer mediation, and student support teams.
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- Students who commit any of the behaviors listed in this
section will be disciplined. Some of the types of discipline
that may be used are described below. Student support services
may be used in conjunction with the following:
1. Warning/Reprimand: Students will be warned that there
may disciplinary action if their misbehavior continues.
2. Loss of recess/ lunch recess privilege.
3. 1 Day In-School Suspension: Students will lose all school
privileges and complete the school day under the principal's
direction.
4. Short-Term Suspension: Students will be suspended from
school for not more than five (5) days.
5. Long-Term Suspension: Students will be suspended from
school for more than five (5) days but not beyond the end
of the current quarter.
6. Expulsion: Students will be expelled from school beyond
the end of the current quarter.
- Although generally progressive in nature, discipline must
be appropriate for the misbehavior and must be age appropriate.
The principal has the latitude of assigning punishment in
relation to the misbehavior. For example, students who engage
in more serious acts of misbehavior such as fighting or
committing an illegal act are not automatically entitled
to a warning before any other disciplinary action is taken.
- Students who deface or destroy school property willfully,
maliciously or carelessly will be charged with the full
amount of damage in addition to the disciplinary procedures
outlined in this section.
- Bus drivers have complete charge of students riding the
bus and will report misbehavior to the principal. The principal
is responsible for disciplining students for bus misbehavior.
To help maintain order on the bus, bus drivers have the
authority to assign a special seat on the bus to any student.
- For the safety of all students who ride the bus, students
are expected to obey the following rules:
1. Students must use only the bus and the bus stop assigned
to them.
2. Students may not enter or leave the bus at any place
except the student's regular bus stop or school unless the
student has a note from home that has been approved by the
school.
3. Students must stay in their seat while the bus is in
motion. Students may not reserve seats.
4. Students must keep the center aisle of the bus clear
at all times. Items such as book bags must not block the
center aisle.
5. Students must obey all bus safety rules and the directions
of their bus driver.
6. Students are not allowed to transport balloons, flowers,
glass containers, or animals (dead or alive, including insects)
on the bus.
7. Students are not allowed to consume food or drink on
the bus.
8. Students must not litter the inside of the bus, throw
anything out of the window, or cause damage to the bus.
9. Students may not physically or verbally assault others
on the bus.
10. Students may not be disrespectful to the bus driver
or other students on the bus.
11. Students cannot display unruly behavior.
- If students violate any of these rules, the principal
may take disciplinary action, including suspension from
riding the bus.
- If a student is found to have engaged in bullying, physical
assault or battery of a person on the bus, the student's
parent/guardian to meet with principal to develop a school
bus behavior contract for the student. If a student causes
damage to a school bus, the student will be suspended from
the bus and/or from school, and will be required to repay
the cost of any damage to the bus.
The general progressive discipline plan that may
be followed in dealing with bus misbehavior is as follows:
1st Offense: A documented warning from the driver.
2nd Offense: Warning and parent contact by principal.
3rd Offense: Bus suspension for one day.
4th Offense: Bus suspension for two days parent/principal
meeting.
As a parent, you can help ensure our students arrive to
and from school safely each day by practicing the following
school safety tips:
Be sure your child arrives at their bus stop 5 minutes
before the bus is scheduled to arrive.
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When the bus approaches, remind your child to stand at
least 5 giant steps (ten feet or as far away as they can)
away from the bus.
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Never run after the school bus if it has already left
your bus stop.
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Never run in front or behind the school bus to pick up
something that you dropped or forgot.
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Make sure you tell your child never to get on the bus
until it has completely stopped.
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After the bus stops and the door opens, take firm hold
of the handrail and get onto the bus.
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Never push another student while getting on or off the
bus.
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All students riding the bus should go directly to a seat
and sit quietly. This allows the bus driver to concentrate
on driving safely.
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Students should never place any part of their body through
the bus window.
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When outside of the bus, make sure your child is aware
of the danger zones and is always within sight of the
bus driver. The Danger Zone is a 10-foot wide area on
all sides of a school bus -- an area where children are
in the most danger of being hit. Children should be taught
to stay 10 feet away from a school bus (or as far away
as they can) and never go behind it.
Proper dress at all times is encouraged. We encourage students
to look neat in their dress. Caps and hats should not be
worn in the building. Writing on T-shirts and caps should
be non-distracting, non-suggestive and must be acceptable
for school. Please make sure your child is sufficiently
dressed for outside recess in cold weather. Roller shoes
and flip-flops are not permitted in school. Shoes appropriate
for safety and comfort should be worn.
Students are responsible for all books and
Library books and other instructional materials issued to
them during the school year. The parent must pay for lost
or damaged materials.
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A varied and rather extensive program is
scheduled each year for our students.
These activities include field trips, special day events,
Learning Celebrations, contests and service projects.
Student activities promote learning and create school spirit,
good manners, and a sense of community throughout the building.
Our Student Council consists of fourth and fifth grade students
working together to bring about a sense of community within
our building. The students are elected by their classmates
and assist in such activities as Learning Celebration, citizenship
and courtesy programs, collection for charities, and other
special programs.
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Field trips and special events provide
additional educational experiences that enhance the curriculum.
Field trips and special events are scheduled periodically
throughout the year and will correlate with the curriculum.
Students will not be charged a fee to participate in field
trips or special events.
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Fire drills are necessary for the safety
of students, faculty and staff. State law requires fifteen
drills per year. Specific information for proper exiting
is provided by the teacher and posted in each room.
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Parents are urged to label all belongings,
including wearing apparel, with their child's name. All
lost items are placed in a designated location. Encourage
your child to claim any missing possessions from the lost
and found area. Parents may also check for lost items at
any time.
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In accordance with federal law, parents
have access to all records of their children. Without your
prior consent, only you and authorized individuals having
legitimate educational interests will have access to your
child's records.
Should you wish to review such records, please call the
school office to arrange for an appointment to do so.
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It is the policy of the Foster School Department
not to discriminate on the basis of age, sex, marital status,
race, religion, national origin, color, creed, political
affiliation, or handicap in its employment policies.
Inquiries regarding compliance with equal employment opportunities
and affirmative action should be directed to Mr. Robert
Wallace, Captain Isaac Paine School, 160 Foster Center Road
Foster, RI 02825; The State Equal Employment Opportunity
Unit, State Education Department, 199 Promenade St. Providence,
RI 02908; or the Director of the Office of Civil Rights,
Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Washington,
DC.,20201.
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Captain Isaac Paine School is asbestos
free.
The school has been tested for Radon. Results of the test
from an independent laboratory indicate that the school
does not have a problem.
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The Captain Isaac Paine School's water is supplied from
a drilled water source. This water supply is tested monthly
by the Rhode Island Department of Health. Their reports
indicate that our water supply is of a healthy quality.
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