Parent Handbook

The Preschool and Kindergarten at Maltby | Monroe classes are curriculum based emphasizing the developmental needs of the whole child: social, academic, physical, emotional, and spiritual. The children participate in a variety of age-appropriate activities during their day, including: circle time, concept/story/bible time, music, art, snack and freeplay, both indoor and outdoor. Our teachers have degrees or certificates in Education or Early Childhood Education and/or extensive experience working in an educational setting with preschool aged children.

Placement in each class is based on the Washington State cutoff date of August 31st.

• Preschool (2 days a week) - must be 3 years old by August 31st.

• Pre-Kindergarten (3 days a week) - must be 4 years old by August 31st.

• Kindergarten (5 days a week) - must be 5 years old by August 31st.
  

Tuition, Fees and Policies

• Preschool/Pre-K Registration and Materials Fee - $250.00

• Kindergarten Registration and Materials Fee - $300.00

  The non-refundable registration fee is used to affirm your commitment to attend. It also goes towards paying for general supplies and curriculum for your child’s school year in lieu of a supply list for parents.
  

Tuition is an annual fee which is divided into 10 equal payments. These payments include the month of December, Spring Break, other holidays and vacations. Credit is not allowed for days absent (sick, vacation or otherwise).

Each month your tuition is due on the 1st and considered past due on the 10th. In months where the 1st falls on a weekend or holiday, payment is due on your child's first day back after the 1st of the month. A late fee will be automatically added to accounts not paid by the 10th in the amount of $20.00. Tuition payments may be mailed or hand delivered to the office. You may also make payments and set-up automatic payments through our secure site.

Please review the current Tuition Schedule.

Withdrawal

If a child is withdrawn from preschool for any reason, we require thirty days written notification. If considering withdrawal at the start of the school year, please consider remaining in class until the end of September to allow for adequate time for your child and the teacher to get to know each other. Often the first few weeks of class are hectic as children adjust to a new teacher and schedule and make new friends.

Health

A healthy child is a happy child. And a healthy child learns better. Therefore, a child who is ill and could expose other children and staff to illness, will not be received into the classrooms. Please keep children home who have any of the following symptoms:

• Continuous, elevated temperature for more than 24 hours. All children must be fever free for 24 hours without the assistance of medications

• Severe pain or discomfort

• Diarrhea within a period of 24 hours

• Vomiting within a period of 24 hours

• Sore throat or coughing

• Runny nose

• Red eyes with discharge

• Skin rashes, lasting more than a few days without being cleared by a physician

• Infected skin patches that have not been treated by a physician

• Lice - we have a no nit policy
  

Please notify the staff immediately if your child:

• Contracts or is exposed to a communicable disease such as, covid19, swine flu, chickenpox, strep, conjunctivitis (pink eye), etc.

• Has any specific medical condition or allergies
  

When Children Need Medicine – We will not dispense any medications. Children may not bring any medicine to school. All medicines must be given prior to coming to school or after going home. Exceptions will be if medication is provided with a doctor’s written documentation of use and if the school feels they can meet these expectations.

When in doubt, PLEASE keep your child at home. Please be as considerate of the health of the other children and adults in your child's class as you would want them to be towards your child and family. Remember that children who return too soon after the acute stage of illness not only risk relapse or increased exposure to other germs due to a depleted immune system, but also enjoy few of the benefits of being at school.

If you bring your child to class and it is determined that he/she is too sick to stay as per the list above, you will be asked to take him/her back home again. Also, if your child becomes sick during the day, we call the home phone, parent cell phone numbers, parent work numbers and finally the emergency contact numbers listed on the registration form until we find someone to come pick your child up. We do not have “sick room” capabilities. It is imperative that your emergency contact numbers are local people that have your authorization to pick up your child.

Clothing

Childhood is a time to explore and discover with all of the senses. In doing so, children will engage in numerous messy and active projects daily. We will also play outside as time and weather permits. Please dress your child appropriately for the weather. Children should dress comfortably with shoes to run in and clothes that can get dirty. It is also helpful to dress your child in clothes that are easy to button, fasten and zip independently. Flip flops are strongly discouraged. Please label all coats/jackets clearly.

An extra set of clothes (shirt, pants and underwear) will be required for your child to keep at school throughout the school year. Please bring in your child’s change of clothes in a gallon sized ziplock bag, labeled with their class and name, to their scheduled open house time.

Arrival at School

When arriving at school each morning, please park in a lined stall in the parking lot in the back of our building. Parking at the curb in front of the school, in the fire hydrant zone, or in unmarked areas is not allowed for safety reasons.

Children may not arrive for class before 9:10 AM for Preschool and Pre-K and 8:55am for Kindergarten, and must be escorted from the parking lot into their classroom by an adult. We do not allow children to be dropped off at the curb to find their way into school. Please take your children to the bathroom and wash their hands before bringing them to check-in.

School will start promptly at 9:15am for Preschool and Pre-K and 9:00am for Kindergarten. Please make every effort to get your child to class on time. It can be a huge distraction to the children already in class when we have students arriving late. Any missed morning work will be sent home incomplete. We only have your children for 2.5 hours and we will be using every minute!

It is important for your child to say goodbye to you at the check-in counter. If he/she cries, it’s okay! If your child is having a difficult time during the day, someone will contact you. It doesn’t matter if you say goodbye for one minute or ten, delaying it just makes it more difficult.

Please provide a simple tote bag or small backpack for your child to bring to and from school. This will be used in sending work and papers home each day.

For safety reasons, the double door entrance will be locked on most days at 9:30 AM. If you arrive after that time, you will need to call the office to be let in.

Dismissal from School

Children will only be dismissed to go if a parent or other previously agreed upon adult is present to receive them. Only adults whose names are listed on the registration form or who have written permission from the parent will be allowed to pick-up the child. Please be sure your child’s registration form includes all the people who may be allowed to pick up your child. You may update your list at any time during the year.

When picking up your child please line up along the curb. Children will be brought out to the covered patio and will be directed to your vehicle by a teacher. Until teachers become familiar with each child's family car, place the sign provided at the open-house in your windshield. Please be prompt when picking up your child. A $25.00 late fee will be added to your account for every 10 minutes you are late each day.

Discipline

Developing a sense of what is kind, caring and socially acceptable behavior is an integral part of the daily learning process. We help children through this process by using positive, constructive correction throughout the day. Positive steps will always be the approach to helping keep peace in the classroom. A brief separation from the group may be needed in order to keep the peace. The teacher or director will communicate with you if there is an ongoing issue.

It is the policy of our staff to:
1. Use positive reinforcement to encourage correct and desired behavior.
2. Redirect inappropriate behavior with a change of activity or other distraction.
3. Give a consistent reminder and/or consequence to stop any unacceptable behavior, which may put the child, other children, staff, or equipment and materials in jeopardy.
4. Use brief removals from class as a last resort after the above methods are exhausted.

The basic classroom rules that all children are expected to follow are:

• Be kind to yourself and others.
  

• Respect teaching staff, classroom aides, church staff and parents.
  

• Listen to and follow directions.
  

• Be respectful of materials and equipment.
  

Corporal punishment (for example, spanking) is not allowed at our school.

Holidays and Breaks

Our holidays and breaks are the same as the Monroe School District. A yearly calendar will be provided to all families at the beginning of the school year.

Calendars

Monthly calendars will be distributed to all families and can also be found at the check-in counter bulletin board. The monthly calendars will provide information about any holidays, breaks, celebrations, birthdays, etc.

Inclement Weather

We follow the Monroe/Snohomish School District. Because of the location of our school, we hit close to 3 different school districts. We want to make sure that all families are safe during inclement weather getting their child to and from preschool. If Monroe/Snohomish School District is closed for a full day, our school will be closed for the day. If they are running one-hour late, our school will be closed for the day. We will have our closure posted on our Facebook page and on the school’s voicemail the morning of the closure. Please tune in to local TV and radio for closures when inclement weather happens.

Toys from Home

Please do not bring toys or other items from home. We cannot be responsible for items if they are lost or damaged. If toys are brought from home students will be asked to keep those items in their backpack until school is dismissed. The exception to this would be for special "Show & Tell" days.

Drop-In Nursery

We offer nursery care for infants and toddlers at the Maltby Campus for our preschool and church staff. If on any given day the nursery has space, parents have the option of signing up their nursery aged children (birth to 3 years old) for Mommy Morning Out. The charge for this service is $20.00 for the morning (pick-up by 11:45 AM). Parents who are interested in signing up for Mommy Morning Out need to check with the nursery staff the morning they wish to use the nursery to check on availability. Availability will vary day to day and registration will be required.

Fundraising

A few fundraisers will take place throughout the year. The purpose of fundraising is to provide the funds for new toys, equipment and facility needs. Some of them are ongoing and you can support our school at any time. Invite friends and family to join with you!

• Campbell’s Labels for Education - Collecting UPCs and beverage caps/sauce caps from over 2,500 participating products. More information will be sent home at the beginning of the school year. More information is available online at: http://www.labelsforeducation.com/About-the-Program

• Fred Meyer Community Rewards - Sign up for the Community Rewards program by linking your Fred Meyer Rewards Card to The Preschool at Maltby at www.fredmeyer.com/communityrewards. You can search for us by our name or by our non-profit number, 84454.

• Poinsettia Sales - Typically takes place in October and November, selling plants to family and friends.

Healthy Snack Guidelines

Each day the children enjoy a nutritional snack. There are many learning opportunities in sharing snack time with others:

- Patience
- Manners
- Independence
- Language Development
- Nutrition

Parents are responsible for our snack time. It is very important that you remember your scheduled day. A monthly calendar will be sent home as well as posted at the check-in desk. Try to include your child in the process. Talk about what they would like to bring. Keep in mind that if you forget your scheduled day, you have about an hour to drop it off. Please try and include two food groups with each snack.

We will try and schedule one of your child’s snack days as close to their birthday as possible. On this day you are allowed to bring in something sweet and special, but please no soda.

Bulk versus individually packaged snacks are best but there are times when we know this isn’t always possible. Drinks must be 100% juice, milk or water. Please bring a large juice bottle versus juice boxes. Not all the kids will drink an entire juice box and they also tend to get squirted around the classroom.

Here are some examples of healthy snack options: cheese, pretzels, crackers (graham, Cheez-its, Wheat Thins, Ritz), granola bars, pre-cut fruit, raisins, animal cookies, mini bagels with cream cheese, rice cakes, shredded wheat squares, fruit snacks, fruit roll-ups, yogurt, muffins.

• Allergies – If your child has an allergy, please be sure to approve the daily snack to make sure it’s suitable for your child.