Guidelines

School Attire

Students should be neat and clean. Comfortable play clothes and sneakers are recommended for playground participation. Boots, gloves, scarves, hats and warm outerwear are necessary during the cold and snowy season (children will play outdoors during the winter and their extremities need protection). Flip-flops are not allowed. Sneakers and loose-fitting pants or shorts are requested for physical education classes. Shorts should be the appropriate length and shirts should cover the midriff area.

Snow Days/Delayed Openings

Information regarding a school closing or delay can be accessed in several ways:

• You will receive an automated call by 7:00 a.m. alerting you to the closing.

• Montclair Public School website: www.montclair.k12.nj.us

• Local television news will carry school closings for Montclair.

A delayed opening means the start of the school day is postponed for two (2) hours. School will begin two hours late. Buses will be at their stops two (2) hours later than usual. School will dismiss at the usual time. If the delayed opening occurs on an early dismissal day, school will dismiss at 3:05 p.m. and all parent conferences will be canceled.

Before and After Care

The YMCA operates a before and after school program at Bradford School. Each child is required to have a current YMCA youth membership. The YMCA sets the fees and financial assistance is available. Hours of operation in the morning are 7:30 a.m. to school opening. In the afternoon the program begins at dismissal until 6:30 p.m.

Cell Phones/Electronic Devices

Recent Board Policy allows students to carry cell phones to and from school but they may not be used in school. They should be turned off at all times, and may not be used during the school day for sending/receiving calls or texts, using social media, or taking photos/videos. Please review these rules with your children. If a student violates this policy, the phone will be confiscated and a parent must come to the office to retrieve the phone. We are not responsible for the loss of personal items.

Field Trips

Field trips are an integral part of the school program. Permission slips are sent home prior to a trip. Permission slips and fees must be returned to the school at least a day before the trip. No student is allowed to leave school without this signed slip.

Walking Trips

At the beginning of each school year, we ask you to give permission for your child to take walking trips. Walking trips include visits to the Montclair State University Campus, Mountainside Park, the Iris Gardens, and other neighborhood attractions.

Birthday Parties 

Outside birthday party invitations are not permitted to be distributed at school. Board policy prohibits food of any kind to be served at birthday celebrations in school. Alternate items, such as a birthday pencil for each student, a book donation for the classroom library, or a board game donation for the class to enjoy, may be considered. If you are sending in snacks for the class, you may want to reference the Bradford Food Guide

Lost and Found

All found articles are placed in the Lost and Found area located at the front entrance by the gym (Door Q). Students and parents are urged to check there for lost articles. All articles not claimed within a reasonable amount of time are donated to charitable organizations. To prevent such losses, all personal items should be labeled with the student's first and last name.

Fire and Security Drills

At least twice a month, students will review and practice fire and security drills. Fire and security drills are always to be taken seriously. The teacher will review the following guidelines with the children:

Follow the assigned escape route out of the building in an orderly manner. Escape routes are posted next to the door in each room. The last person leaving the classroom will close the door.

If a student is out of the classroom when the fire bell sounds, he/she/they should proceed to the nearest exit and find the nearest adult. Any teacher outside the building will assist a child who does not know where his/her/their class is assembled.

A security drill is defined as an exercise, other than a fire drill, to practice procedures that respond to emergency situations. Security drills include lockdowns and evacuations.

 

HOMEWORK

Homework will usually be assigned an average of four nights per week. Meaningful homework is assigned to help students become more self-reliant, learn to work independently, and develop good study habits in addition to reinforcing material learned in the classroom. It is the students' responsibility to keep an accurate record of assignments, to apply and practice skills learned in class, to strive for the best quality of work, and to complete all assignments. The District's policy on homework recommends one assigned activity, Monday through Thursday night for Kindergarten, a minimum of thirty minutes, Monday through Thursday for Grades 1-2, and a minimum of one hour for Grades 3-5. Contact your child’s teacher if homework is taking too long to complete, as accommodations can be made.

 

Why do teachers give homework?

1. To reinforce what is taught in school.

2. To exercise your brain.

3. To review things you have already learned to keep your skills fresh.

4. To teach responsibility for one’s own learning.

Tips for doing homework: 

1. Have a healthy snack.

2. Take a short break after school before beginning your work.

3. Gather everything you need before beginning (paper, pencils, books, erasers).

4. Set a study pattern that works for you.

5. Find a comfortable place to study.

6. Stay in one place until all your homework is done.

7. Make sure the TV is off while you are working.

8. Make sure there is enough light so you can read easily.

SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAM

The Montclair Public Schools participates in the National School Lunch Program. The district provides the five components of a complete lunch as required by the USDA. They are meat/protein alternative, bread/grain, vegetable, fruit and milk. To obtain a full, reduced of free lunch at the listed price, the lunch must include at least three of the five components. One of the three components taken must be a 1/2 cup of fruit and/or vegetables to be considered a full lunch. If a complete lunch is not purchased, each item is purchased separately or a la carte.

Students may either bring a lunch from home or buy a lunch at school. Lunch money may be brought in on the day your child wishes to purchase lunch, or you may deposit money into your child’s My School Bucks account. For more information or to register with My School Bucks, visit www.myschoolbucks.com.

There is a nut-free table in the cafeteria. If your child has a nut allergy, you may designate whether or not you would like your child to sit at this table. Staff members in the cafeteria make sure that no child sitting at the nut-free table have any food items containing nuts.

For more information about menus and price lists, please visit the Food Service page on the District website.

Montclair Public Schools Regulation 8505: Food/Nutrition Standards

  • No food may be sold for fundraising during school lunchtime.
  • Food sold for fundraising during school hours (other than lunchtime) must be tree nut free and peanut free with all ingredients clearly labeled, and must follow USDA Smart Snack Guidelines.
  • Food sold for fundraising before and after school hours must be tree nut and peanut free with all ingredients clearly labeled. This includes PTA and Booster Club fundraisers.
  • No food is allowed for birthday parties or other individual student celebrations, or used as student rewards, with the exception of food rewards designated in an individual student’s IEP.This reward must be tree nut and peanut free, and eaten in the designated classroom.
  • Food may be use as instructional material in science labs, family and consumer science classes, and classes where course lesson plans contain a food-specific educational component. All food used as instructional material must be tree nut and peanut free.
  • Food served at any classroom or all-school festivity must be tree nut free and peanut free with all ingredients clearly labeled. If any food does not have all ingredients clearly labeled, it cannot be served. These rules also apply to evening and weekend functions. Parents/guardians must be given a five day notice of any event serving food.
  • All classrooms must be tree nut and peanut aware. Other life-threatening food allergens will be restricted on a class by class basis as deemed necessary by the school nurse. Tree nuts and peanuts must be consumed only in the cafeteria during lunchtime. All K-5 schools will have a designated tree nut free and peanut free table in the cafeteria or outside picnic area. Middle and high schools will have a designated tree nut free and peanut free table in the cafeteria or outside picnic area only upon parent request.
  • Breakfast Program may be consumed in the classroom by students within 10 minutes of arrival to school.
  • Snacks in the classroom may be eaten only during a snack time designated by the teacher or administrator. All snacks must be tree nut and peanut free.
  • No food may be consumed on K-12 school buses with the exception of students with diabetes who require an emergency snack. They may consume a tree nut free and peanut free snack at a seat in the front of the bus. Buses for field trips and athletic events must be tree nut free and peanut free.
  • All school trips must consider the needs of students with food allergies. For example, a class may not go apple picking if a student in the class is allergic to apples. It is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure all students are accommodated.


 

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