School Attendance Policies

TERMS, DAYS AND TIMES

The school is open all year except as noted in the school calendar. The Center opens at 7:30 am and closes at 6 pm. We ask that you respect the teachers and their time by not attempting to drop off your child before 7:30. For the same reason, we ask that you arrive by 5:50 to pick up children so teachers can have opportunity to say goodbye and close the building at 6. Parents are encouraged to limit the time children spend at the center to 9 hours per day.

SIGN IN/SIGN OUT POLICY FOR RELEASING CHILDREN

The Center maintains a sign-in/ sign-out sheet on the lower level of the house. A parent must bring each child into Center at the back basement door, sign in and accompany the child to the classroom to hang up a coat and deposit other belongings. Likewise, at the end of the day, parents are required to sign their child out before leaving with them. The sign-in sheet is used for head counts in preparing meals and in the case of an emergency evacuation of the building. Therefore, it is very important that this sheet contain accurate information.

A parent or legal guardian must come to the Center to pick up a child and sign him/her out. If someone other than a parent is to pick up a child, written permission must be on file with the Center. There are alternative pick up forms available in the kitchen. The authorization must be given to the teacher. If you will have someone other than a parent or guardian pick up your child on a regular basis (grandparent, neighbor, etc.) please fill out an authorization form to be kept in your child’s file. If the person picking up is not familiar to the teacher, we may ask that person for identification and will check the Center records to be sure the person is authorized to pick up the child. Parents are responsible for notifying the school in writing of any changes in emergency contacts, phone numbers, email, etc. Parents are also required to keep Center records updated with any person(s) not authorized to come in contact with the child.

PARKING

Parents are requested to use the West Chapman Street parking lot when dropping off and picking up their child. Residential streets near the Center are not available for parking. Both pedestrians and drivers are asked to be extremely careful in the parking lot. Parents are required to ensure that their child does not enter the parking lot unsupervised and are asked to be watchful of stray little ones when dropping off or picking up an Abracadabra student. Do not leave other children in your car unattended during drop-off and pick-up. Do not leave your car engine running unattended and remember to lock your car doors. Also, please be courteous towards our neighbors by driving slowly on Chapman St.

ABSENCE OR LATE ARRIVAL

If your child will be absent from the Center for the day, please notify us by phone or email. If no one answers the phone, please leave a message. If your child will arrive later than usual, please let us know so we can plan for lunch.

It is important that children arrive ready to enter individual classes by 9 am. That is when each class begins their individual class plans. Children who arrive late disrupt the class in progress, have difficulty entering into the day’s activities already in progress, and can be more anxious and/or clingy making it difficult for the parent to leave. We ask parents of late arrivers to refrain from talking to the teacher or otherwise taking attention away from the group.

SICK CHILDREN

Parents must keep sick children at home. Children who have a fever, diarrhea, vomiting, constant runny nose or sneezing, contagious illness (chicken pox, pink eye, strep throat, etc) may not attend school. After an illness, children must be fever free for 24 hours before returning to school. If antibiotics are prescribed, children must have taken them for 24 hours before returning to school. Children who become sick at school are not permitted to remain at school. Parents are required to leave current numbers where they can be reached and must come promptly when called. If a parent cannot be reached, the school will call one of the names on the emergency contact form to come and pick up a child.

According to state licensing standards, parent must notify the school if an enrolled child or a sibling of an enrolled child becomes sick with a contagious disease. Parents should notify the Director either by phone or email. The Director then must notify the entire school. Parents will be notified by email if a case of a contagious illness has been reported. This is important so that if your child becomes sick, you know what the potential exposure has been.

ADMINISTRATION OF MEDICATION

Staff will administer prescription medications needed for emergency or an ongoing health condition only and must be approved by the director. Parents must complete a permission form which is available in the kitchen. Be sure to fill out the form entirely. Center staff will note on a separate form the time the medication was given and any special notation with regard to dispensing the medication. State regulations require that parents complete a separate form for each medication and that all medication be in their original container and are given to staff with the package insert or pharmacy print- out attached. Only prescription medications used on a daily basis (such as insulin or seizure medication) or emergency medications (such as an epi- pen or rescue inhaler) may be kept at the Center and administered on a daily or “as needed” basis. Both types of medications require letters of authorization signed by the parent and the doctor, and need to be updated every 6 months. Over the counter medications such as Tylenol or cough medicine will not be administered at the Center.

The staff is trained in pediatric and adult CPR and First Aid. Also, two members have received the state required medication administration training. A complete first aid kit is available on each floor as well as the playground for treating minor accidents.

In the event a child is seriously injured at school the rescue squad will be called. The child’s parents will also be notified. If the parents cannot be reached, emergency contacts listed on the emergency form will be called. A staff member will accompany the injured child to the emergency room. Abracadabra will not be responsible for transporting injured children to the hospital.

FIRE SAFETY

The Center is equipped with an alarm system, together with a dedicated phone line to the fire department. There are smoke detectors and fire extinguishers on each floor and emergency lighting in each stairwell. Equipment is checked yearly by the fire marshal. Fire drills are held monthly. We have a planned evacuation procedure which is posted in each classroom and practiced during every drill.

The Center also has an Emergency Plan that includes procedures for shelter- in -place, as well as evacuation procedures in the event of man made or natural disasters.

WEATHER CLOSINGS: Abracadabra will close whenever the Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS) are closed due to the weather. On days weather conditions are severe but ACPS is open, every effort will be made to be open and fully staffed. However, it may be necessary to alter hours and operating procedures depending on the severity of the weather. When the weather is inclement, parents should call the school to determine operating procedures for the day. A message will inform parents whether and when the Center will be open and closed. If ACPS opens one or two hours late, Abracadabra will open at 9.

If there is major weather or other emergencies during the school day that require an early closing, parents will be notified by email or phone. If parents cannot be reached during the day, emergency contacts on the emergency form will be called. Please be sure you have someone authorized to pick up your child during emergencies.

WITHDRAWAL, DISMISSAL, OR ABSENCE

Parents should give as much notice as possible when they plan to remove their child from the Center. This will allow the staff to help prepare the child and classmates for the sense of loss they may feel when the child leaves. Thirty days notice is required and the notice needs to be given in writing to the Director. If the parents fail to provide this notice, the month’s tuition will be charged. It should be noted however, that this policy does not apply to children who are leaving Abracadabra to go to kindergarten.

Every effort will be made on the part of the Center staff to ensure each child’s continuing progress and happiness. However, if a child seems unable to benefit from group experiences or gives evidence of serious disciplinary problems, the Director may take steps that would result in the child’s dismissal. If possible, depending on the severity of the problem, parents will receive two weeks notice of a child’s dismissal. In addition, a child may be dismissed if a parent refuses to participate in Center activities and events, is frequently late, fails to pay tuition and late fees within the specified time period, or exhibits inappropriate or disrespectful behavior towards the staff. In the latter instance, dismissal will likely occur without notice.

If a child is kept home because of illness, family vacation, parent’s time off from work or other reasons, tuition charges will continue. If a child is absent for an extended period because of serious illness, a reasonable adjustment will be made after the first 30 consecutive calendar days. If the school is closed temporarily as a health precaution or for any other reason beyond control of the school, tuition will continue to be charged.

ACCELERATED LATE FEE FOR TARDY PICK UP

It is crucial that children be picked up before 6 pm. Late pickup penalizes our teachers and causes unnecessary anxiety in children. All our teachers have families and personal commitments after school, and children become anxious when they are the only one left at the end of a long day. For that reason, we exact accelerated financial penalties for families who are late in picking up their children. The fee for the first late pickup will be $5 for the first 10 minutes and $1 for every minute thereafter. The fee for the second time will be $10 for the first 10 minutes and $2 for every minute thereafter, and so on. Parents should calculate the late fee and pay the closing teachers in cash upon arrival. Failing that, late fees will be added to the next month’s tuition. Late fees are meant to be a deterrent and not a “convenience” fee. Chronic tardiness will result in dismissal from the school. If a child has not been picked up by 6:30 and the Center has not heard from the parents, we are required to notify legal authorities and the child will be released to their care.

DISCIPLINE AND BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT

Abracadabra is a place for growth and learning. Our philosophy of discipline is that it involves teaching, learning, and helping. The goal is to teach each child to manage his/her own behavior, to get to know each individual child to better understand their behavior and to help the children by making rules and expectations reasonable and clear. With the High/Scope curriculum, we believe that many management problems are prevented because the classroom environment is carefully planned. Many other problems, of course, must be dealt with on the spot. Our ultimate goal in handling management issues is to help children become aware of their own actions, of how those actions affect the people and things in their environment and of how the choices they make can help them resolve difficulties and conflicts.

In order to enlist some basic prevention strategies in child management, we:

Have designed our environment with the development needs and limitations of the children in mind.
Have established a consistent daily routine so children are able to predict and plan for things that are about to happen.
Have established reasonable limits to be followed in the classrooms. The rationale for limits is explained to the children.
Model ways of interacting with materials and people.
Plan for transition times.
Respect and plan for the different abilities and interests of each child.

We also use the following on-the-spot management techniques to handle problems as they arise:

We intervene immediately to stop behavior that is unsafe or destructive.
We use language to identify children’s feelings and concerns.
We ask children to put their own feelings and desires into words.
We ask children to think of their own solutions to problems.
We redirect inappropriate behaviors and activities.
We avoid language that passes judgment on a child.
When we stop behavior that is unacceptable, we explain the reasons to children.
We decide if children can settle things without our help before we step in.
We provide a quiet area for children who need time and space to regain control of their actions or emotions.

Physical punishment is never an acceptable form of management for a child. Food is never withheld from a child as a form of discipline.

CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT POLICY

Child abuse is mistreatment or neglect of a child by parents or other caretakers resulting in injury or harm to a child. Child abuse may be physical, verbal, emotional or sexual. Teachers, directors and school administrators are mandated by law to report any suspected abuse, including abuse of children in their care.

FIELD TRIPS

Abracadabra takes a few field trips during the course of the school year. The most popular is the trip to the pumpkin patch in October. We ask as many parents to go as possible and most parents enjoy the trip as much as the children! Occasionally, we make take the Genies on a field trip to the Smithsonian or other places via Metro. We also take walking field trips in the neighborhood. Every parent should have signed a blanket field trip permission slip in their enrollment packet. We would never take a field trip outside of the neighborhood without letting you know in advance. However, sometimes we do take walks in the neighborhood on the spur of the moment.