Dandy Lion Montessori

 

PARTING

If you and your child have difficulty parting, this is much easier on everyone if done on the playground, so please try to have it over with no later than 8:45. The best plan is to make your departure matter-of-fact and expeditious, and don’t allow the “one more hug/kiss” routine to get started. It’s more difficult to stop it.  Parting dramas are harder on parents than children. When you are out of sight they usually forget the whole episode within a couple of minutes and join friends in cheerful play on the playground.

ADMISSION AND ATTENDANCE POLICY:

All children aged 2 ½ - 6 years regardless of race, national origin, and religion are eligible for enrollment.  A Director - Parent interview will be conducted to exchange information relative to the child’s welfare.  Application, medical clearance, and registration forms are to be completed.  The first month’s tuition and registration fee are to be paid before the child enters school.

WAITING LIST

In order to keep our waiting list meaningful and manageable, we require applicants to complete the entire registration process, and pay the non-refundable Annual Registration Fee, before being placed on it. This not only assures that applicants are serious, but facilitates their ability to react quickly to an unexpected opening.

• While ideally the waiting list is kept on a first come, first served basis, there are several caveats:
• Obviously, a part-time opening requires a fit with an applicant willing to accept the available schedule.
• When possible, preference is given to preexisting part-time children wishing to add time to their schedule, to previously enrolled children, or others already familiarized with the Montessori curriculum elsewhere.
• Continuity of income being important to the success of the school, preference may be given to an applicant prepared to act immediately to accept an unforeseen opening and/or also applying for the summer program.
• It is important to the Montessori Method of education to try to maintain a balance among the ages, sexes, and temperaments of the children in a classroom. An opening occasioned by the withdrawal of a 41/2 year-old boy, for example, might be offered to a similar child before a 21/2 year-old girl, application dates notwithstanding.

SIGN-IN / SIGN-OUT POLICY:

To meet the State law requirement it is our policy to have the parents Sign-In and Sign-Out their children entering the time and using their full signature daily.  To insure the utmost safety of our children, parents are asked to park their cars and walk their children inside the school.  If you have a message for your child's teacher, please leave it with the Office Manager.

SCHEDULING AND CREDIT POLICIES:

To maintain the quality of our program, yet keep it affordable for the average family in our community, it is essential that we maintain full enrollment and collect tuition for every space each month. This requires careful planning and a firm collection policy. Our Administrative Office alone makes all scheduling and credit decisions, freeing others to focus on the education of children. We ask that our teaching staff not be bothered with administrative inquiries. The Administrator is resolute in adhering to these policies, so to avoid future misunderstandings, please read carefully the following:

Applicants are declaring their intent to remain enrolled for the full academic year, and agree to give at least 30 days written notice before withdrawing from the program. Likewise, we agree to give at least 30 days written notice before any tuition increase takes effect.

This is a tuition-based educational institution, not an attendance-based daycare facility. Tuition is collected in advance to reserve a space in our program, without regard to whether a child actually attends on any given day, or the reason for any absence (planned for or not).

Think tuition — not childcare. Trying to compare the cost per hour, day, or week of our program, with traditional childcare, is a two-fold mistake. The educational value is simply incomparable. With long and short months, Winter and Spring breaks, and holidays, the actual number of school days each month fluctuates anywhere from 15 to 23 (the avg. is 20), confounding attempts to calculate a unit cost. Again, you are paying for a space, and no refunds will be made, or credit given, for absences during the academic year, for any reason.

SCHEDULING

We cannot always guarantee part-time applicants specific days of the week, but once established schedules are generally fixed for the year.

Rearranging a part-time child’s schedule is difficult at best, usually requiring the cooperation of another party willing to switch days.

Incidental swapping or adding days is only possible when there is a predictable absence so we appreciate being informed as soon as possible when a child will be absent. We cannot offer free “make-up” days for absences or holidays, so please don’t even ask.

TUITION PAYMENTS

Monthly payments are simply 1/10th of the annual tuition fee for the 10-month academic year.

The summer program is available at these same monthly rates in July and August.

You may elect to have tuition fall due on either the 1st or the 15th of the month. A five-day grace period allows for months when these dates fall on a weekend, holiday, or other non-attendance day.

ACCOUNTING

As an incentive to minimize accounting chores, we offer a generous prompt-pay discount for simply paying tuition on time.

To earn it, an account must be current, and payments received no later than the 5th for those due on the 1st, or by the 20th if due on the 15th.

To ensure this incentive remains effective, there will be no exceptions for payments made even one day beyond the grace period.

Anyone anticipating difficulty making a payment on time should discuss it with the Administrative Office before it is due.

Any check returned unpaid by your bank must be redeemed with cash plus a $25 accounting fee. Since the grace period has usually passed by the time a check is returned, any prompt-pay discount taken was unearned and the full amount must be paid, making for a very expensive banking error. After a second occurrence, personal checks may no longer be accepted for payment.

PAST DUE ACCOUNTS

Accounts missing the prompt-pay discount are already 5 days past due.

Once 10 days past due, we may not allow the child to attend school until the account is brought current. For your child’s sake, please help us avoid this unpleasant decision.

After 15 days past due, we may deem you to have withdrawn from the program by default, and the space forfeited to someone on the waiting list. We will be very sad for the child, but must keep our program economically viable for all the other children.

Once withdrawn for any reason, full payment of all past due amounts, plus a new Registration Fee, is required before a child is again eligible for the waiting list, where we may give preference to a previously enrolled child.

SUMMER VACATIONS

We define “vacation” as a planned absence of one or more full weeks for which we receive written notice at least three weeks in advance.

We allow ¼ month credit for each full week of “vacation” taken during the summer months (July and August) only.

Year-round students not taking “vacation” during the summer months, after maintaining their account current for a full year, may receive up to ½ month credit in the month of August for vacations taken during the previous academic year.

Students taking the summer off may reserve their space for the next year by prepaying September’s tuition before departing.

BOOK FUND CONTRIBUTIONS

Unlike many schools, we do not have annual book or materials fees. Instead, we have a Children’s Book Fund that is funded by ad hoc assessments for transgressions of a few inviolate rules we find it necessary to enforce. We ask that you cheerfully make these contributions when assessed. Try not to get angry with us for collecting them, and we will try to avoid expressing our displeasure at the transgression that triggered them.

We are required by law to ensure that an authorized adult signs each child in and out with a full signature every day. To enforce this rule, we assess a $5 Book Fund charge for each occurrence of missing or illegible signatures on the sign-in/out logs. Please advise your surrogates of this necessity when asking someone else to drop-off or pick-up your child, for the responsibility remains yours.

To safeguard the children’s concentration, we must deter tardiness and/or early pick-ups. The first and last half hour of each class session is recess time, so one can be up to 30 minutes late arriving or early departing without disrupting the formal class period. Therefore, tardiness or early pick-ups between the hours of 9:00 AM and Noon, or 1:00 and 3:00 PM for any reason will incur a $5 Book Fund charge. You can understand that, to be consistent, this must include understandable (yet  no less disruptive) situations like doctor appointments, etc

LATE PICK-UP CHARGES

Arriving even one minute late to pick-up a child, past the time you have contracted for, automatically incurs an incidental childcare charge. This is not a punitive charge, it is just the standard $7 per hour (or any part thereof) charge for incidental childcare, but when only a few minutes late it can seem like one. Try to be on time to avoid the aggravation, but don’t risk an accident or ticket just to save $7.

Arriving after we close at 5:30 PM, however, can cause your child stress and is a very real imposition on our staff. As a deterrent, we charge a late pick-up fee of $14 per ¼ hour or any part thereof. This means that those from one to fifteen minutes late at closing time are charged $14. Those sixteen to thirty minutes late are charged $28, etc. Repeated violations here are unacceptable — we don’t want your money, we want to go home! PLEASE be responsible, and have a relative or friend you can call in an emergency to pick-up your child by closing time.

MEDICATION POLICY:

For the safety of all children, no medication of any type will be administered by any member of the school staff.  No medication will be kept at school.  It is permitted for a parent to come to the school to administer medication to their child.  Individual circumstances sometimes require special allowance - please discuss this with the Director.

DISCIPLINARY POLICY:

The school takes a positive approach to discipline, always emphasizing the positive by using consistency in reinforcing simple basic ground rules that set limits and provide a sense of security.  The basic ground rules are posted in both the classroom and outside on the playground.  Harsh treatment of any kind either verbal or physical is not permitted.  Physical punishment is never a discipline alternative.

NAPPING POLICY:

All children under the age of four years old are required to take an afternoon nap. Once the child reaches their 4th birthday napping becomes optional, at the request of the parent, and/or based on readiness and space available in the afternoon class. This decision will be determined by the Director. Please speak with the director prior to discussing any changes with your child.

NUTRITIONAL POLICY:

Snack- Children are served a nutritious snack both mid-morning and late afternoon.

HEALTH CARE POLICY:

Dandy Lion Montessori School and its employees will not administer medication of any kind.  This includes even cough drops!  If a child needs to be given some medication, a parent will have to come to the school and administer it personally.  PLEASE do not send any medication in a lunch box. . . lunches sometimes get mixed up.

Parents must have a plan for caring for their child when ill.  Children shall not be permitted at school who display symptoms of, or who have any illness, including the common cold.  For the benefit of all the children, we ask that each child be inspected at home before coming to school.  If any symptoms of illness are displayed, we ask that you keep the child home and give us a phone call.

The following are a few of the most common symptoms that would warrant the child being kept home:

• Fever
• Diarrhea (especially if it is frequent or causes cramping)
• Persistent cough
• Runny nose (especially if discharge is not clear)
• Ear ache
• Head ache
• Sore throat
• Unusually tired or lethargic

If a child displays any of these symptoms at school, he/she will be isolated and parents will be phoned to pick up child.

If a child contracts something extremely contagious requiring immediate attention (such as impetigo, chicken pox, lice, scarlet fever, Hib, etc.), the school must be notified immediately so that other parents may be warned to watch for the symptoms.  We also require a note from a physician stating that the child has been treated, is no longer contagious, and may return to the school.  The child will not be re-admitted without the physician’s note and an inspection by the director.

LUNCHES

We monitor children’s lunches and make the following suggestions:

Try to keep in mind the four basic food groups:

• Protein:    Peanut butter, chicken/beef, tuna, baked beans, etc.
• Bread / Cereal:    Whole wheat bread, crackers, tortilla, noodles, etc.
• Fruits & vegetables:   Preferably fresh! (watch the canned fruits—they usually contain added sugar!)
• Milk & Dairy:   Cheese, cottage cheese, yogurt, milk, etc.(Please, no pudding or “Gogurt”!)
• To Drink:    Send milk (without Quik!) or 100% fruit juice
• We have an old tradition at school that any child may purchase milk at lunchtime for a dime. Tape the dime to the inside of the lunch box.

PLEASE DO NOT SEND THE FOLLOWING TYPES OF ITEMS:

• Cookies
• Gum
• Candy
• Sodas
• Chips
• Twinkies, etc.
• Donuts
• Cupcakes
• Fruit drinks (they are full of sugar!)

Stay away from high sugar foods. Along with having nearly no nutritional value, high sugar foods can play real havoc with your child’s metabolism--- giving him / her a sudden burst of energy then shortly leaving him / her with none.

BEWARE OF THE HIDDEN SUGARS IN THE FOLLOWING ITEMS:

• Granola bars
• Fruit rolls
• Fruit drinks
• Canned fruit

We will not force your child to eat the entire lunch, however, we will encourage him / her to eat as much as possible (protein items first). Food not eaten will be sent home with your child so you will know how much has been eaten. This is for your information and we hope will not be used against your child. Big people eat only enough to meet their needs—children should have the same opportunity.

DRESS AND EXTRA CLOTHES:

Casual, comfortable clothing and sturdy shoes should be worn.  Clothing should also be easy for the child to remove (especially for the child who is still working on his toilet training).  Please never dress your child in super-hero themed shirts, e.g. superman, spider man or power rangers, etc. as it influences behavior and encourages escape to a fantasy world, which interferes with the socialization of the child.  No skimpy “Brittany” style girls-wear - girls’ shirts should be modest and unrevealing. Open-toed shoes, sandals and boots (of any kind) are not allowed as it is difficult for a child to run and play in these types of shoes (sand in sandals is very uncomfortable) and the soles are often slippery.  It is important that each child has an extra set of clothing, clearly labeled with his/her full name, left at school (including underwear and socks).  It is equally important that these clothes be promptly replaced if used.  Any spare clothing supplied by the school also needs to be promptly returned, ready for the next accident or emergency.  Removable articles of clothing (e.g. coats, hats, sweaters and jackets) must be clearly labeled with the child's full name (a permanent marker is available on back shelf).  This also applies to books, etc. brought to school. Note: Only pre-school size backpacks please, as cubbies are small.

Please send your child to school each day with a light sweater or jacket even if it appears to be warm out. As we all know, our weather here on the Central Coast can be unpredictable. A warm sunny morning can quickly turn into a cold foggy afternoon.

JEWELRY & SUNGLASSES:

Children may not wear or bring jewelry to school. The only exception will be small post earrings. We do not allow children to wear sunglasses on the playground due to safety reasons. However, we will make exceptions for children with a medical reason. Children sometimes run into each other and a broken pair of sunglasses can greatly injure a child’s eyes or face.

BEDDING:

Napping children need a fitted crib sheet and a lightweight blanket left at school Monday through Friday.  Make sure that all bedding is clearly labeled with your child's name.  Bedding must be taken home on Friday, laundered, and returned to school on Monday.  Please do not send comforters or large pillows, as we are unable to store large and bulky items and they will be sent home.

TOYS / SHARING:

Bringing toys to school is not allowed as these objects may break or get lost.  However, items of special interest that the children want to share are most welcome and will be put on the observation table.  Should your child find a grasshopper, frog or any live creature, please do not hesitate to send it in on the day of discovery! Other precious items related to a theme or subject being studied are very welcome. Each child may share only once a week. Please put the item into a bag with your child's name on it and store in your child's cubby until class time. If the item is delicate please give it to the classroom teacher for safe-keeping.

BIRTHDAYS:

We are happy to help you celebrate your child’s birthday in school. To make it a special day we have a ritual that we know your child will enjoy. If it is possible, we would like a parent or both parents to attend.

We require your help in making your child’s day memorable. Please bring to school:

• A photograph of your child taken on the day of his/her birth and a photo taken on each birthday since then.
• A short description of who was there when your child was born and how you felt about their arrival into the world.
• A similar description of each year of their life should accompany the photos of each birthday.
• Paste these photos and information on a poster board to create a life timeline of your child.

These photos and information will be used when we celebrate your child’s birthday and will be enjoyed by all the children during the celebration. You may prepare this life timeline and bring it with you on the day of celebration or leave it in the office the day before.

You may send individual treats for the children in your child’s class to enjoy if you wish. Here are a few suggestions: Cookies, Rice Krispy Treats, individually wrapped treats, fruits or nuts.

We ask that you do not bring cupcakes or fancy birthday cakes, and please, no balloons or treat bags.  We like to keep birthday celebrations simple but respect the importance of the day.

PARENT OBSERVATIONS:

We have an open door policy for parent observers. However, we request that you contact the office to schedule an observation so we do not have too many parents in on the same day. For the first six weeks of school it is important for the children to settle in and for the teachers to have this time to establish routines. For this reason, we will not schedule observations until the third week of October.

PARENT CONFERENCES:

Parent/Teacher conferences are scheduled twice a year to discuss the child’s progress.  We consider these conferences to be a very important exchange between teacher and parents and we encourage both parents to attend. Please check the calendar for dates. Special conferences are called whenever the need arises.

PARENT EDUCATION:

Our Parent Education Programs are informative evening meetings held throughout the year by the Head Teachers to give parents a forum for discussion, gain information of child psychology and the Montessori approach to education. It’s a time to get your questions answered, get to know some of the other parents and have a fun evening.

FIELD TRIPS:

The Teachers sometimes take the children on short nature walks.  Major field trips away from the school will require information being sent home in advance about the purpose, location, cost, means of transportation, and a request for parent participation.  A special field trip permission form will be required.

TRANSPORTATION:

Transportation of children to and from school is the responsibility of the parents/guardians.

EMERGENCIES:

Both Fire Drill and Earthquake drills will be scheduled on a regular basis.

VOLUNTEERS:

Parent participation is invited to support the teachers in preparing for and organizing special events. Parents are encouraged to sign up for the event that best suits their schedule and interests. Following is a list of events and positions you may care to sign up for:

• Class Parties – Coordinator or Helper
• Field Trip Driver – 2 field trips per year
• Library Parent – Coordinator or Helper
• Art Projects – Coordinator or Helper
• Community Service Parent - Speaker

 

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