SCHOOL SAFE NUT-FREE SNACK LIST

“Food impacts how well a child’s brain works, affecting their moods and abilities ... In a child’s brain junk food can cause neurotransmitters, which pass along information, to function improperly. Smart foods, however, allow information to be processed correctly and help the child function at their optimal level.” – Dr. Sears, one of America’s most renowned pediatricians and author of over 40 books

LET’S HELP OUR CHILDREN DO THEIR BEST AT SCHOOL BY SENDING IN SMART “REAL FOOD” SNACKS

REAL FOOD IS...

100% whole grain
Made with no (or very little) refined sweeteners like white sugar or corn syrup
Fresh fruits and vegetables (preferably organic), dairy products, seeds, dried fruit
More a product of nature than a product of industry

REAL FOOD IS NOT…

“Low fat” or “low carb” or “low calorie” products (in most cases)
Made with artificial sweeteners like Splenda
Deep fried in refined oil
100-calorie packs made with refined grains like white flour (labeled as “wheat flour”)
Something out of a package containing ingredients you cannot pronounce

St. Francis Early Childhood Center only accepts

store bought snacks.

FRESH FRUITS & VEGETABLES (Please bring to school fruit or vegetable trays prepared in stores, pre-packaged bags or the whole fruit like bananas or apples)

SMART “REAL FOOD” SNACKS

100% WHOLE-GRAIN SNACKS

Triscuits
Popcorn
Shredded Wheat (Post or Earth Fare brand)
Arrowhead Mills Puffed Whole Grain Cereal
Multi-Seed Crackers
Woven Wheat Wafers
Whole-Wheat Matzo Crackers
Brown Rice Chips
Rice or Wild Rice Cakes
Organic Frozen Waffles
Cheerios or other whole grain cereal with low sugar

OTHER “REAL FOOD” SNACKS

Cheese
Plain yogurt sweetened with a little honey or Yogurt tubes
Hard-Boiled Eggs
Granola Bar
Pumpkin Bar
Lindsay’s Naturals Olives

DRIED AND CANNED FRUITS

Applesauce
Unsweetened Raisins
Fruit Bars
Dried fruits medleys

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St. Francis Xavier

Early Childhood Center (ECC)

Handbook

“The Mission of St. Francis Xavier School is to partner with families to provide children with a strong foundation in academics and faith, based on Catholic principles.”

Mission Statement

“The Mission of St. Francis Xavier School is to partner with families to provide children with a strong foundation in academics and faith, based on Catholic principles.”

Philosophy

St. Francis Xavier Catholic School is a spiritual cooperative partnership of parents, students, staff and community dedicating itself to be . . .

- a school where parents are the primary educators of their children

- a Catholic school which promotes active participation in the community through prayer, worship, and service to our parish and world

- a school that promotes a safe, accepting environment

- a school where students, staff and community learn to practice mutual respect, cooperation and responsibility

- a school where students and staff utilize technology to prepare for the world of the present and future

- a Catholic school and parish which communicates and facilitates a team effort

St. Francis Early Childhood Curriculum

St. Francis Xavier Early Childhood Curriculum is based from the Education Standards of the Missouri Department of Education in Early Childhood. These standards include Literacy, Social and Emotional Development, Mathematics, Physical Development, Health, Safety and Science. The children’s development is observed and assessed according to the Diocesan Development Assessment which is based on the Missouri Department of Education Standards in Early Childhood.

Children have the opportunity to master their development skills through the High Scope approach being incorporated into the classroom curriculum and activities. The classroom has learning centers based thematic units and key experiences which provide the children with varying levels of opportunities to explore, discover, be creative and expand their thinking with diverse materials.

The program has been evaluated using the ECERS rating scale and is rated well above the state and significantly above the Diocesan standard.

Statement of Nondiscrimination and Welcome

Both faculty and students in true ecumenical spirit will welcome all students into the Christian educational community of the school or center. We admit students of any sex, race, color, national and/or ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities accorded to students of the school or center.

Preschool/Prekindergarten Criteria

The children must be age 3 or 4 by July 31. The children are to be fully toilet trained and not wearing diapers or pull-ups. Our facility is not equipped or staffed to handle numerous accidents. Children should be able to take care of toileting and personal hygiene needs.

Arrival and Drop Off-

(Please follow these guidelines for the safety of all of our students!)

Dismissal and Pick up

E.C.C. dismissal on Penn Street will be at 3:10 pm from the WEST door for students without older siblings in grades 1-8. Students not picked up by 3:15 will be walked to extended care for pickup. Students with older siblings in grades 1-8 will be dismissed from the gym. Dismissal from the gym will be at 3:10 and children will leave with their older sibling. Parents will line up in colored rows and the children will walk out with a teacher. Children using extended care will be taken from the gym at dismissal time and will play in the extended care classroom in the main building and/or the playground. Entrance for parents of these children is through the door by the flagpole of the main building.

Dismissal from part-time morning classes is 11:15 am through the WEST door.

Cafeteria:

Hot lunches are served daily. The price for hot lunch for 2014-2015 is $2.55; white, chocolate or strawberry milk $.50; Icees $.50. Adults and visitors will be $3.35. Family lunch accounts need to be kept current and not allowed to stay in the negative. If the account becomes over $20 in the negative, the child(ren) will receive a peanut butter and jelly sandwich as their entrée until the account is in the positive. No extra milk or Icees will be sold to students whose families are delinquent. Parents can check lunch accounts on sycamoreeducation.com at any time. Click on “My School” then “My Accounts”. A balance showing in red ink indicates you owe on the account, black ink is a reserve/overage.

St. Francis Xavier School participates in the Federal School Lunch program. Free lunches or reduced rates are available for families that qualify. All families are encouraged to apply. Applications are available in the secretary’s office. Families may apply at any time during the school year. All applications are kept strictly confidential.

All students must have a lunch. If a student does not bring a lunch from home, they will receive and be charged for the school lunch.

Due to federal regulations, no fast food lunches are allowed in the cafeteria.

Due to federal regulations, no soda beverages are allowed with school lunches. These will be confiscated if they are brought to school.

Extended Care:

The charge for Extended Care for 2014-2015 will be $3.00/hour. It will be charged by the minute in an effort to keep parent cost down. The time for extended care will be from 3:15 to 5:30 following each full school day. This cost will be computed in the accounts section of sycamoreeducation.com and the extended care teacher will be able to check the child in and out with a laptop logged in to the website. So the cost will be computed daily and will be based on a per minute calculation. If the account becomes over $20 in the negative, the child(ren) will not be permitted to attend extended care programs until the account is in the positive. Parents can check extended care accounts on sycamoreeducation.com at any time. Click on “My School” then “My Accounts”. A balance showing in black ink indicates you owe on the account, red ink is a reserve/overage.

Discipline

Self-esteem is very important. We will encourage each student to employ problem solving and negotiating skills when social difficulties arise. The level of discipline appropriate for a violation shall be determined on a case-by-case basis at the administration’s discretion based upon a review of factors including, but not limited to the severity of the misconduct and student’s behavioral record and similar criteria. Students having repeated discipline behaviors will have a discipline plan designed by the parents and teacher and the plan will be monitored for improvement. For more information on Discipline Code, Policy, Violations and Expulsion refer to the school’s Parent-Student Handbook.

Communication Between Home and School:

Change of Information - The school’s database contains pertinent information about each child. This information consists of: child’s name, address, phone number and persons to contact in case of an emergency. Please notify Pam Hoyt- extension 1202 or phoyt@sfxstjoe.com as soon as possible if there are any changes.

The school newsletter, The Falcon Forum, is sent home usually via email and will be posted on Sycamoreeducation.com. This newsletter contains all information about upcoming events in the school. If you do not have internet access, please contact the school office to arrange for a paper copy to be sent home with your child.

When sending any information to school, such as notes or money, always place it in a sealed envelope. Please check your child’s take home folder which should be in their backpack daily.

ECC Fees are collected through Smartution.com. They can be contacted via customer service and Pam Hoyt can help you work with them.

Attire

Seasonal attire is required for children to participate in outside activities. Any modest comfortable clothing is acceptable. Girls are required to wear shorts underneath dresses and skirts. Clothes should be manageable for undressing and dressing while using the restroom.

All outer clothing such as: hats, coats, book bags, sweatshirts, mittens, etc. must be labeled with your child’s name.
For safety purposes athletic shoes with socks must be worn at all times. Please NO FLIP-FLOPS, CROCS or SANDALS. Children will be required to sit out at recess if not wearing the appropriate shoes for their safety.

Each child is required to bring an extra set of clothes in their labeled backpack. Please include socks, underwear, shirt and pants according to the season.

Health and Medication Policy

Please notify the school office or your child’s teacher when your child will be absent.

The child needs to be free from fever and other illness (ie. vomiting and diarrhea) for 24 hours before returning to school. If your child becomes ill or has a fever of 100 degrees you will be notified by the school office. For further information refer to the Parent-Student Handbook.

All medications must be taken to the office with documentation and dosage from a doctor. Please do not send medication in your child’s backpack. Please refer to the Parent-Student Handbook for more details.

School Closing for Weather

In cases where school will be cancelled, all families will be notified through the calling system. Listen to KJO Radio, KQTV, channel 2 or other local stations for school closing information. The school will generally follow the St. Joseph School District unless they dismiss for extreme cold. St. Francis Xavier does not dismiss early for weather conditions, but parents are always welcome to pick up their children early.

Field Trip Policy

If parents have volunteered to chaperone a field trip with their child’s class they should find alternate care for siblings. Being a chaperone requires the parent to oversee a group of children and be able to attend to their needs. Protecting God’s Children training is mandatory to chaperone field trips.

Protecting God’s Children

All parents who volunteer to assist with student activities must register for, and attend Protecting God’s Children training, have a background check completed and read and sign the Ethics and Integrity in Ministry(EIM) Policy. This can be done at the time of Protecting God’s Children training or at www.virtus.org.

Toys from Home

To keep from losing toys or causing disruptions please do not allow your child to bring toys from home. Toys can be brought only on special occasions or as requested by the teacher.

Rest Time

All full-time preschool and prekindergarten children will have a rest period. Children need to bring a plastic-covered nap mat and blanket for rest time. Teachers prefer the Kindermat to lie on and a blanket that fits inside the backpack. Blankets will be sent home each Friday to be laundered and returned on Monday.

Snacks

A snack calendar will be sent home by your child’s teacher with a list of any student allergies in the classroom. Please send healthy snacks, such as, cheese crackers, fruit cups, animal crackers, fruit snacks, etc. Please avoid candy and sugary treats. If you are unable to provide snacks, please let your child’s teacher know as soon as possible. In compliance with state policies and for the protection of all students, all food items sent to school must be store bought and not homemade. Thank you!!

Birthdays and Treats

Birthdays are special days. Some parents like to send treats for their child to pass out to their classmates. You are welcome to do this, but please follow these thoughtful procedures.

Students may only bring store-bought treats to share with the class. Sorry, for the safety of our children, no homemade treats allowed.
Fresh fruit and vegetables and other healthy options are suggested.
Please notify your child’s teacher in advance if you will be sending treats to find out how many students are in the class.
Teachers are happy to distribute birthday party invitations at school under the following conditions: (1) If everyone in the class is invited, (2) If all the boys are invited, or (3) If all the girls are invited.

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Birthdays and Treats