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GENERAL SCHOOL POLICIES
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Elementary Office 8:00 a.m. - 4:00
p.m. 838-2355 Business Office
8:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. 838-7538 Pre-School and 6:30 a.m.
- 6:00 p.m. 838-5635 All offices are open Monday - Friday except holidays or announced closing dates.
4K
8:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. OR 12:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. Students may not be left at the elementary building before 7:50 a.m. or after 3:15 p.m. Childcare services must be arranged for students who need before-school or after-school childcare. Office staff and teachers have assigned duties, faculty meetings, devotions/prayer, continuing education in-service, tutoring of students, and parent/teacher conferences beyond regular school hours. They are not available for childcare during before- or after- school hours. Elementary students may not be left at the high school to be supervised by an older sibling. Also, older siblings who attend our high school may not escort their younger sibling of preschool age or elementary age across the North Armistead Avenue or Tidemill Lane interchanges. The school requires permission, written or verbal, from parents or guardians for any child to leave the school grounds during any part of the school day, including after school -- prior to departure but during dismissal times. During busy arrival (7:50-8:15 a.m.) and dismissal (2:30-3:15 p.m.) times it is important to carefully monitor the safety of our students, avoid congestion in the halls, and avoid interruptions to the flow of classroom instruction. Parents are asked to stop at the double doors at the end of the hallway rather than dropping off and picking up their child at the classroom door. |
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4 K students may arrive at the portable classrooms 7:45 - 8:00 a.m. for morning sessions and 11:45 a.m. -12:00 p.m. for afternoon sessions. Please be reminded that prior to 7:45 a.m. students must be registered and dropped off at the childcare center. If the 4K student will be attending our 4K Resource program during the morning, they may be dropped off at the elementary building at 7:45 a.m.5K - 6th grade students will gather in the Chapel from 7:45-8:10 a.m. They may proceed to class between 8:10 - 8:15 a.m. School is not open before 7:45 a.m. Teachers are not available until 8:10 because they are attending devotions/prayer meetings and continuing education in-service training. At 7:45 a.m. students are allowed to enter the school. Students must register and be dropped off at our childcare center prior to 7:45 a.m. Cars should not be left parked next to yellow curbs. If parents enter the school, they should park in designated places and not hinder flow of traffic for those dropping students at the curb. Unauthorized individuals cannot use parking places reserved for handicapped individuals. Drivers may not exceed 11 MPH while in the school parking lot. For the safety of our students, during arrival times (7:45-8:30 AM) and dismissal times (7:45-3:30 PM) it is required that ALL vehicles maintain a ONE WAY traffic pattern (Unless advised differently by our crossing guards or parking attendants). Back door security is essential to the safety of our school. Parents and students must use the front door. Tardiness by students is disruptive to the flow of classroom instruction. Students are expected to be in their classrooms by 8:20AM. Students arriving after 8:20 a.m. must report to the office. A parental note is required to excuse any tardy. 4K students arriving after their designated time will be asked to sign in at the classroom.
Students may follow the lunchroom schedule to determine when they want to bring or buy lunch. When ordering lunch, it is essential that students turn in their lunch order in the morning with the rest of their class. Students will not be released to order lunch items during food preparation and distribution times (when lunch staff have already moved to the kitchen). Students who are late arrivals should turn lunch orders in to the lunchroom office as soon as they get to school. Special orders (Chic-Fil-A, Pizza Hut, Subway, Taco Bell) cannot be ordered from vendors after 9:00 a.m. Students arriving after 9:00 a.m. may order only regular lunchroom items provided by the school. Ordering Lunch 1. For Kindergarten students, parents must place lunch order
forms with money in a Ziploc brand Slide Loc Heavy Duty Freezer Bag -
quart size. Money should be placed behind the order forms.
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Late Pick-Up Charges 4K students must be picked up on time, at the end of their 4K sessions - 11:00 a.m. or 3:00 p.m. Unless your child is enrolled in childcare, $1.00 per minute will be charged if the student is not picked up within 15 minutes of dismissal. For your convenience, 4K parents will have a sign-out clipboard in their child's classroom. There will be no need to stop by the main office when picking up your child unless the child is in the main building for resource or childcare. 5K-6th grade students who are not enrolled in day care should be picked up no later than twenty minutes after dismissal (3:20 on regular school days/12:20 on half school days). Parents will be charged $1.00 for every minute past this grace period. Parents must sign child out after 3:20 p.m. If contact cannot be made with parent or designee, law enforcement will be contacted one hour after dismissal. Likewise, students not picked up prior to the day care closing at 6:00 p.m. will also be charged $1.00 for every minute past closing. Childcare staff will exhaust all contact information provided on the childcare application for any child left at the childcare center. At one hour past closing, the staff will contact law enforcement officials regarding any child for whom we have had no successful contact. The car pool number, provided by the school, should be visibly displayed from the car's sun visor. A rubber band or clothespin works well to attach the number on the visor where it will be readily available. Students will only be released to cars displaying the appropriate car pool number on the school generated sign. Additional car numbers may be purchased for 50¢ in the office. In order to add more names to the list of "Persons Authorized to Pick Up My Child", a special dismissal form must be filled out and signed by the legal/custodial parent(s). 1. Students should memorize their car pool numbers. Teachers will
help students to learn their car pool numbers, and Student I.D. tags will be
used for a few weeks.
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Parents, or designated representatives, who are picking up students prior to normal dismissal should report to the office and sign out the child. People not recognized by staff should be prepared to show picture identification. Office staff will also verify that the person picking up a child is on the list of people authorized (by the parent) to pick up the child. We expect that parents normally pick up their child(ren) at the designated dismissal time (3:00 p.m.) unless there in an emergency or an appointment. If the child must leave early, a note should be sent in advance to allow for the teachers and the child to be able to prepare and be ready. Also, following this procedure will help to ensure uninterrupted flow of the classroom instruction. To maintain security and safety of students during dismissal times we ask that parents refrain from picking up their child(ren) between 2:45-3:00, unless there is an emergency or an appointment. Students must be signed out in the office if they need to be picked up between 2:45-3:00 p.m. To ensure the safety of your child(ren), the school will maintain a list of people who are authorized to pick up your child(ren). A written note will be required before students will be released to anyone not on the list of authorized people to pick up your child. It is imperative to alert the office of any special safety concerns regarding your child. Inclement Weather and School Closing If there is an emergency closing (or late start) of school due to inclement
weather, the information will be broadcast over TV-10, TV-3, TV-13, 90.3 FM,
89.5 FM, 101.3 FM, 104.5 FM, 94.9 FM, 95.7 FM, 850 AM, 790 AM. Please turn to
these radio and TV stations on days when changes in weather may dictate an early
dismissal. It is not always possible to contact every school family on early
dismissal days. If Hampton and Newport News public schools close, it is likely
that HCS will also close. The Childcare Center will usually remain open unless
military installations close or it is determined that the safety of our
employees may be negatively impacted. For further details you may contact the
school office at 838-2355 or the Childcare office at 838-5635 on mornings
involving inclement weather concerns.
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Before- and After-School Supervision Hampton Christian Elementary School monitors and supervises its students from 7:50 a.m. - 3:20 p.m. during normal school days. Before 7:50 a.m. and after 3.20 p.m., personnel are not available to supervise/monitor students except for those students involved in organized before or after-school events. Therefore, outside the hours of 7:50 a.m. to 3:20 p.m. supervisory responsibility for our students shifts from the school to the parents/guardians of the students except for students involved in organized before- or after-school events. With this in mind, all other students need to be picked up by 3:20 p.m. Written arrangements must be made with the principal regarding any exceptions. The parent(s) will not hold the school liable for any complications resulting from these arrangements. Hampton Christian Elementary School students are not permitted on high school
property without PARENT supervision except for students participating as members
in our organized sports programs (for 6th - 12th graders). Childcare is
available for other preschool and elementary students needing before- or
after-school childcare. Once the student has been signed out from school
or the Childcare facility, the responsibility for supervision shifts from the
school to the parent(s). If a child continues to be allowed by the parent to
play on the playground, the parent must be physically present on the playground
and is responsible for any incidents that might occur. HCES students attend weekly chapel services. Parents and pastors are invited to join us for these special times of worship and devotion on Wednesdays from 9:45-10:15 a.m. Often the elementary Praise Choir will lead the worship and the elementary classes take turns leading the chapel services. Chapel themes include the "Character First" curriculum and focus on missions during "Missions Month" in January. A schedule of upcoming chapel programs is printed each week in the "Parent Connection". Crosswalk to Hampton Christian High School Elementary students are NOT permitted to cross North Armistead Avenue or Tidemill Lane without specific permission from an administrator. They must be under the direct supervision of an adult. High school students with younger siblings at the preschool or elementary buildings may not escort their younger siblings across the crosswalk. This is done for the safety and protections of ALL our HCS students. Parents, faculty, and staff needing to go to and from the high school must use the crosswalk at the traffic light.
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Desks and book bags may be periodically inspected by school authorities to ensure compliance with the following policies: a. A student must never enter another student's
desk, book bag, or gym bag without specific permission from a faculty or
staff member. (Removing an item from another student's desk, book bag, or
gym bag without proper permission may be considered an act of theft.) During the school year, students will practice various safety drills. Tornado drills and building lock downs will be rehearsed and carefully monitored. Adjustments to procedures will be made when necessary to accommodate for the needs of handicapped students or staff. Field trips are considered a valuable part of the students' education at HCES. Parents will be notified in advance and must provide written permission in order for their child to participate. All students must turn in permission slips no later than the day before the outing. A student will not be allowed to go on the trip if the permission slip is not turned in. The student will remain in a classroom under the supervision of a staff person. Permission slips will be available from the trip sponsor or the school office. Nominal fees may be necessary for some field trips. If a parent wishes for a student to ride with his/her parent during a field trip, then the parent will notify the school in writing PRIOR to the field trip date. The parent would then assume total responsibility and liability for safely transporting the child. Due to the nature of some field trips with specific timetables and transportation needs, and safety needs, ONLY students will be allowed to ride in the buses or vans provided by the school. Example: Sixth grade field trips that travel out of state.
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Periodic fire drills will be practiced. At the sounding of the alarm system, each student should leave the room and walk quietly and briskly to the designated exit along the route outlined by the plan for that room. All doors and windows should be closed; lights and air conditioners should be shut off. Quietness and orderliness must prevail during the entire procedure. Students are to stay together in their particular area outside with the teacher. Attendance will be taken and a report filed. Students are to remain in their group and return to class quickly and quietly when directed. Hall Passes Students are not to be outside the classroom at any time without the permission of an adult. Teachers will carefully monitor students who have been given permission to be excused. They may choose to issue hall passes or use a sign out/sign in sheet. Insurance Accident insurance is available for every student. Information and application forms are sent home with students during the first week of school. Any student participating in a competitive sport must be covered by insurance and have an annual physical exam. Any student wishing to access the Internet must have a signed "Internet Policy Agreement" on file with the computer teacher or librarian. The agreement must be signed by student and parent(s). Students are not to use computers designated for teachers. No student is to change any setting on any school computer. Lost and Found A small table used for the purpose of displaying lost items will be located near the office. Students may only claim their own possessions. After PTF meetings parents will be encouraged to inspect the Lost and Found table for misplaced items. Items not claimed will become school property and may be donated to a Christian ministry at the end of the school year. Textbooks Some textbooks and workbooks are supplied by the school for student use. Other materials such pencils, paper, notebooks, and some paperback books must be purchased by the parent of the student. Charges will be assessed when textbooks and library books belonging to the school are damaged or lost.
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Bus transportation is available to students (within certain limits and at designated stops to be determined by the administration). Bus schedules, including stops, and a tentative time schedule will be sent out about a week before school starts. It is understood that the bus cannot wait at the morning stops for any student, as that would disrupt the time schedule, causing all the students on the bus to be tardy. All students are to fully cooperate with the bus driver concerning all rules and regulations regarding the bus. Due to safety as well as our testimony to the community, no improper behavior will be tolerated. Correct behavior includes being in the seat at all times and wearing a seat belt. There is to be neither loud talking nor throwing of any items inside or outside the bus. Nothing is to be put out of windows, including hands and arms. Any of the above offenses may result in the student being suspended from bus transportation. If any problem ensues with their children on the bus, parents should contact the bus driver, then the office, in that order. Please do not request changes in afternoon transportation after 2:00 P.M. The school administration reserves the right at any time to make any bus route changes that are in the best interest of the school. Use of the Multi-Purpose Facility (Gym) Use of the Multi-Purpose Facility must be scheduled through the elementary school principal. If the activity is approved, it will be posted on the calendar in the foyer of the Multi-Purpose Facility. It will be scheduled on a first come/first served basis. Gym shoes will be worn during physical education classes and other athletic activities in the gym. Visitors must report to the office upon arrival at the school. Prospective students and visiting students from out of town will normally be the only visitors allowed to attend class. Former students may, on occasion, be allowed to have lunch at the school. All visitors must obtain permission from the office and meet our dress code requirements while they are at the school. Visitor badges will be issued by the office staff. The visitor badges need to be returned to the office at the end of the visit. Parents are always welcome to visit our school (Please refer to Parental Visits section of handbook). Youth pastors of our students are always welcome to visit during lunch. We request that you call the school in advance of your visit and sign in and out at the school office. We ask that parents and guest dress modestly while they are on campus. "I beseech you therefore, brethern, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and prefect will of God." Romans 12:1-2
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