OAKLAND TERRACE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PARENT HANDBOOK 2161 Plyers Mill Road

OAKLAND TERRACE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
PARENT HANDBOOK
2161 Plyers Mill Road
Silver Spring, Maryland 20902
(301) 929-2161
AFTER SCHOOL ACTIVITIES A variety of school and PTA-sponsored after-school activities are held
on scheduled Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday afternoons from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.
ATTENDANCE/ABSENCES The Maryland State Department of Education has clarified that ALL
school absences MUST be accounted for with a written note or else be counted as unexcused. Parents are
requested to call the school in the morning if their child is not going to attend school that day and follow up
with a note when the student returns to school. Parents may leave messages about absent students on the
school's answering machine when the school office is closed. When you call to report an absence, please
leave your child's name, his/her teacher, and the reason for the absence. **Students are not permitted in
school with fevers of 100 or higher. Students must be fever-free and vomit-free for 24 hours before
returning to school.
Students will be permitted, to the extent possible and at the discretion of the teacher, to make up work
missed during the period of an excused absence.
Attendance at school is extremely important. Research shows that there is a significant relationship
between consistent attendance and academic achievement. The Maryland State Department of Education
has established standards for school attendance, including both lawful and unlawful absences. As part of
the Maryland School Assessment Program, all schools in the state of Maryland are monitored and
evaluated on their attendance records. Students are expected to attend school regularly and be punctual.
 Students will be recorded as a.m. absent if they arrive at school more than two hours late.
 Students will be recorded as p.m. absent if they leave school more than two hours early.
 Students will be recorded as either a.m. absent or p.m. absent if they are absent from school for
more than two hours, but less than four hours during the school day.
 Students will be recorded as full-day absent if they are present for less than two hours of the
school day.
 Students will be recorded as full-day present if they are present for more than four hours of the
school day.
If your child is absent, tardy or needs to be dismissed early, please send a note explaining the reason. This
information is necessary for attendance coding purposes. Vacation trips are not considered excused or
“lawful” absences. According to State regulations, the following is a listing of “lawful” absences for
elementary students:
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Death in the immediate family
Illness of the student
Court summons
Hazardous weather conditions
Observance of a religious holiday
State emergency
Suspension
Lack of authorized transportation
 Other emergencies
BICYCLES ETC. Students may ride a bicycle to school if a written permission letter is sent to the office.
A lock is needed in order to properly secure the bike to our rack. The school cannot assume responsibility
for damaged or stolen bicycles. It is important that parents review bicycle safety and etiquette. Bicycles are
to be "walked" on school property. Please remember that Montgomery County law requires that all
children 18 years of age or younger wear bicycle helmets. At no time are skateboards or inline skates to be
used on school property!
BIRTHDAY RECOGNITION Oakland Terrace staff will continue to recognize student birthdays on the
morning announcements as well as with the presentation of a birthday pencil. Individual teachers may also
recognize students in the classroom.
Birthday snacks/treats such as cupcakes, cookies, juices are no longer permitted as a part of the birthday
recognition. This will limit many school-wide disruptions throughout the instructional day as well as
address other concerns such as economic differences among some of our families and allergic reactions to
foods.
CELL PHONES Oakland Terrace Elementary school students are not permitted to use portable
communication devices (such devices may include, but are not limited to, portable pagers, hand-held
radios, and cellular telephones) during the school day. Students may possess cell phones, (for walking
to/from school or other specific reasons, etc.) but all phones must be turned “off” and stored in the
backpack at all times and not on the person. Students who are found/caught using or in possession of a cell
phone during the school hours will need to hand the device to school administration. Parents will be
expected to retrieve the phone in person. The school is not responsible for lost or stolen cell phones.
CHECK IN AT OFFICE All visitors to the school - parents, grandparents, volunteers, everyone - must
check in at the main office by signing in/out. Visitors must bring a photo ID to be checked by staff prior to
going anywhere in the building. It is extremely important that we know who is in the school building at all
times. During emergency evacuation drills and actual emergencies, we must account for everyone. The
visitor/volunteer logs are removed and taken to the evacuation site where we account for all those
visitors/volunteers who have signed in. All visitors and volunteers must wear identification badges/stickers
while in the school building. Although some visitor faces may be familiar to staff, it is still of importance
that you sign in and wear a badge. We want everyone to feel safe and welcomed as they enter our school
building. We believe that Oakland Terrace ES is a happy place when there are consistent safe practices for
all.
CLASS PARTIES Class parties are held twice during the school year for special celebrations: Halloween
and Valentine's Day. Parents who do not wish for their child to participate in these or other celebrations
should notify the classroom teacher of their preference.
DAY CARE Parents who need assistance with day care arrangements can inquire at the school office or
call the following frequently used community daycare providers.
 Kids After Hours (housed at OTES)
 Loving Care Child Center
 Northwood Child Care Center
301-933-6888
301-565-0155
301-593-3354
DISCIPLINE POLICY A Student Discipline Policy will be sent home with each child. Parents are asked
to read and discuss this policy with their child so that students can continue to work in a safe, comfortable
learning environment. The discipline policy reflects the standards outlined in the Guide to Students Rights
and Responsibilities in Montgomery County Public Schools, which was sent home in the first day packets,
and is available in the school office or on the MCPS web site.
DROP OFF/PICK UP OF STUDENTS
If you transport your child to and from school by automobile, please remember to use the designated dropoff and pick-up areas. The bus lane is off limits to automobiles.
Arrival
The designated drop-off area is located in the smaller traffic circle next to the parking lot. Staff and patrols
will direct the traffic pattern. Children can only be dropped off in the school traffic circle or on Maybrook
Avenue near the crossing guard - not on Plyers Mill Road. Many parents find it helpful to drop off on or
near Maybrook Avenue by the crossing guard. This way, students can safely cross the street. We also ask
that prior to school, you take time to have your younger children practice getting out of the car quickly and
safely on their own. This will alleviate traffic back ups that occur when parents have to assist their children
from the automobile.
Dismissal
Dismissal begins at 3:25 p.m. Please plan a pick-up location with your child. Parents picking up by car
must use the traffic circle in the rear of the school by the gymnasium. NOTE: This is a different traffic
circle than the one used in the morning. As with arrival, many parents find it helpful to pick up on or near
Maybrook Avenue by the crossing guard where students can safely cross the street. Our goal is to always
keep a safe and orderly environment for our school community. Please be patient when using these areas!
CHANGE IN DISMISSAL FOR YOUR CHILD: If your child is going home with another student
and/or adult, you must send in a note with your child or email the school. There must be agreed upon
plans from parents of both students. Adults must show a picture ID when picking up students.
EARLY DEPARTURE
Children who need to leave school during the day should bring a written excuse to school in the morning
for approval. The parent must sign the child out when they leave school, and sign-in when they return to
school. Please understand that students will not be called to depart their classroom instruction until the
parent has arrived in the school’s office and has requested the child. Instructional time is often lost when
students are waiting in the office for parents to arrive. Your cooperation with this is very important. If you
need to pick up your child for an appointment, please do so prior to 3:10pm. This will decrease the amount
of disruptions to our classrooms and help all students focus during this important time of the school day. In
addition, please be sure you make decisions regarding after-school plans before the start of the school day
(and articulate these plans to your child at that time), as calls about changes in after-school plans are
disruptive, as well.
EARLY DISMISSALS School is occasionally dismissed early due to adverse weather conditions or
mechanical failure (electricity, water) at the school. Students should know where they are to go without
having to call home if school is dismissed early for any reason. Early dismissals are announced on local
media stations. Planned early release days for professional meetings and conferences are listed in the
school calendar. Please plan in advance for these days. Early release time is 12:55 p.m.
ENROLLING STUDENTS New students are enrolled at the school by having their parents or guardian
complete enrollment forms at the school office. Immunization information, birth certificate, and proof
of residency for each student new to Oakland Terrace must be on file at the school before the child can
attend the school. Strict enforcement of all residency policies will be in effect at all times. Any questions
regarding residency in the Oakland Terrace neighborhood will be investigated.
EMERGENCY CLOSINGS School is occasionally closed all day due to unsafe weather conditions or
mechanical problems in the school. Announcements are made over local media stations during the
mornings of unscheduled closings. Parents are asked to listen to the radio or TV for information about
school closings. Please do not call the school for this information. Emergency closings are also announced
on the MCPS information line - (301) 279-3673.
EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS In an emergency, MCPS refers to 3 major “plain language”
responses: Lockdown, Evacuate, Shelter.
While the terms change, the procedures do not. The reason for the change is so that anyone affected by the
emergency will understand the language.
Each emergency incident has unique aspects so no one plan will always apply. The Crisis Emergency Plan
gives us guidelines and prepares us to handle emergencies. It is important that during an emergency we
remain composed. The children will look to us for reassurance. We must model calm behavior for the
children during an emergency.
LOCKDOWN (formerly CODE RED)
This response is implemented when there is imminent danger inside or immediately outside the building
requiring us to do the following:
•Make lockdown announcement
•Call 911 & Office of School Support and Improvement (OSSI)
•Go to nearest possible securable location
•Sweep/scan hallways (if safe to do so)
•Lock classroom/office doors
•Cover windows/close blinds
•Turn off lights
•Maintain silence
•Ignore alarms/bells
•Await further instructions
EVACUATE
This response is implemented if an emergency makes it dangerous to remain in the building. The two types
of evacuations are:
FIRE EVACUATION
Used when there is fire or smoke in the building.
•Activation of the fire alarm
•Students/staff/visitors exit the building
•Proceed 50 feet from the building
•Account for all students/staff
DIRECTED EVACUATION
This is used during a high level bomb threat, identified suspicious package or hazardous material inside the
building.
•Call 911 & OSSI
•Make an announcement with specific instructions, i.e., evacuation routes, areas to
avoid
•Move students/staff/visitors 300 feet from the building
•Account for all students/staff
REVERSE EVACUATION
This is used during a high level bomb threat, identified suspicious package or hazardous material inside the
building. After everyone has exited the building and the threat has been cleared, everyone returns to the
building.
•Make an announcement with specific instructions
•Account for all students/staff
SHELTER (formerly part of Code Blue):
This response is implemented under any of the following circumstances:
PUBLIC SAFETY COMMUNITY INCIDENTS
This is a fire/police activity within the community surrounding the school that does NOT present imminent
danger to the school.
•Bring all students/staff/visitors into the building
•Lock exterior doors
•Call OSSI
•Activate On Site Emergency T (OSET) Team (if necessary)
•Monitor business of anyone approaching the school
SEVERE WEATHER SHELTER
This is used during high wind weather events.
•Announce severe weather is approaching
•Direct students/staff/visitors to identified weather-safe areas of the school
•Monitor weather announcements
OUTSIDE HAZARDOUS MATERIAL RELEASE (formerly Code Blue Shelter-In-Place)
This is used when the outside atmosphere/air is contaminated.
•Shut down ventilation systems in building
MEDICAL EMERGENCY IN THE BUILDING AND OTHER REASONS
This is used when there is a need to keep students/staff/visitors in place.
•Keep the students/staff in place
•Ignore bells and class changes
DROP, COVER, AND HOLD
This is used during an earthquake.
•Announce that there is an earthquake
•Drop to the ground before you are knocked down
•Cover your head and neck with one hand and get under a sturdy desk or table
•Hold on to the desk or table leg so that the desk or table will stay over you
•Monitor news announcements
PARENT REUNIFICATION PLAN:
If an emergency occurs that causes us to evacuate the building (such as a fire or a broken pipe), our plan
includes evacuation procedures:
•If students can be dismissed from our building, parents should report to the All Purpose Room to await
student pick up.
•Immediate evacuation follows our fire drill procedures (to Homewood Field).
•If the danger is more extensive, we will evacuate to Homewood Field and await bus transportation to
Einstein High School where parents can pick up their students from the auditorium.
EVACUATION PLANS In the event of an emergency where we must evacuate the building, leave school
grounds and cannot return to the building, our emergency evacuation location will again be:
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Homewood Park
2830 Plyers Mill Road
Silver Spring, 20902
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Albert Einstein High School
11135 Newport Mill Road
Kensington, Maryland 20895
(301) 929-2200
All students and staff would proceed to this location where they would wait for transportation to deliver the
students home. MCPS personnel would assist us in having all school buses pickup the students from this
location and help in safely dealing with the emergency.
FOOD POLICY It is the policy of the Montgomery County Public Schools Board of Education that only
store-bought, pre-packaged food be brought into the classroom for parties, snacks, etc. While everyone
loves the idea of home-baked goods, there is no way to control the quality or contents of the food unless it
is store-bought with required labeling. Some children have allergies and are sensitive to even traces of
allergens in food.
HEALTH ROOM A health technician is on duty from 9:00 to 3:30 each school day. It is important for us
to have every child's emergency information on file so that we may contact parents quickly if necessary. If
your home or work telephone number changes, please let us know. Students who become ill at school may
be picked up in the Health Room and should be signed out in the main office.
ILLNESS - **See student absences**
LATE ARRIVAL
Children who arrive late (after 9:00 bell) to school must be signed in at the office by a parent or
guardian. Students should also have a written excuse for tardiness, signed by their parent or legal
guardian.
LOST AND FOUND A lost and found area is located in the school's All - Purpose room for items that
have been misplaced by students.
LUNCH LOANS The National School Lunch program does not permit the cafeteria to loan money or
extend credit to those without money for lunch. All students are encouraged to have sufficient money in
their SNAP accounts to cover breakfast/lunch purchases desired or to bring the change needed for their
purchases.
LUNCH PRICES
elementary lunch = $2.55
reduced-price lunch = $.40
breakfast = $1.30
reduced-price breakfast = $.00
milk = $.60
LUNCH PROGRAM Lunches may be brought or purchased at school beginning with the first day. A
computerized cash register system is used in the cafeteria. Each student is assigned an account which is
accessed by a Personalized Identification Number (PIN). Students returning to our school will use their
PIN from last year. Students new to our school will receive their new PINs on the first day of school. This
is a debit system in which students may choose to make deposits into an account. At mealtime, the
computer records food purchases and deducts them from the account when the student enters his/her PIN
on the keypad. Students who choose to not pay in advance still enter their PINs, then pay by cash. We
strongly suggest that deposits be made in advance. Checks, made out to Oakland Terrace School Cafeteria,
may be brought in throughout the year. Your child's name must be written on the check. The use of this
program will enhance the speed and smoothness of the lunch process and should add to the time that
students have to eat their lunch. When accounts become low a reminder letter will be sent home so
additional money can be deposited into the child's account for future use. Cheese sandwiches will be
offered to children who have forgotten a lunch or have exhausted funds from their SNAP account. The
maximum negative amount allowed on a SNAP account is $10.00. Once this negative balance is
reached, students will receive a cheese sandwich. Money deposited on the student’s account by the
parent/adult will be applied to the negative balance.
myLunchMoney.com is a service which allows parents to make prepayments to their child’s cafeteria
account with a credit/debit card using the Internet. Once the account is established, you can check
balances, view student purchases, set up recurring payments, and receive low balance e-mail notification.
Prepayments will generally be available at the school the next day.
Under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, a student may be entitled to receive menu substitutions of
texture modifications under the school lunch program. This entitlement occurs when a doctor determines
that a child has an impairment, which substantially limits one or more major life activities. A signed
statement from the student's doctor must verify the existence of the student's handicapping condition and an
indication that the handicap restricts the student's diet. If the handicap prevents the student from eating the
regular school meals, meal substitutions for that child will be made at no extra charge. If you believe your
child needs substitutions, please contact the school office.
LUNCH AND RECESS Students have 30-minute lunch periods and 30-minute recess periods each day
except for early dismissal days. Students will have recess outdoors unless it is raining or the temperature is
below 320 F. They should dress accordingly on days when the weather is windy or cold. All students are
expected to go outside on "outdoor recess" days unless they have a note from their physician.
MEDICATIONS Parents are encouraged to administer medications to their children at home whenever
possible. No medication will be administered in school or during school-sponsored activities without
written authorization from the parent/guardian and a physician's written order. Any prescribed medication
that needs to be administered at school must be in the original bottle and must be accompanied by MCPS
form 525-13 (Authorization to Administer Prescribed Medication). All medications must be hand
delivered to the school by a parent. Under no circumstances will school personnel administer medications
brought to school by a student. Over-the-counter medications must be accompanied by a physician's note
to be administered by the health technician. Please do not send cough drops, throat drops, vitamins, etc. to
school with your child.
OFFICE HOURS The school office is open from 8:15 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. each school day. An
answering machine will take messages during non-school hours.
PARENT NEWSLETTERS AND COMMUNICATIONS Regular communications from the school
should be expected to arrive home with the students. These will include teachers' notices and
announcements as appropriate. A school newsletter is sent home with students each month.
PICKING STUDENTS UP FROM SCHOOL Once students have arrived at school, they will be
released only to their parents or legal guardians. All students leaving school before the end of the school
day, must be signed out from the main office by their parents or legal guardian. If parents want their child
to be picked up at school at any time by anyone else, including siblings and grandparents, the parents must
send a note to the school stating their wishes and the name of the person who will pick up the child. The
person picking up the child must present picture identification to the school office. In order to maintain
safety at the end of the instructional day, students will not be called out of class for dismissal after
3:10 p.m.
PROGRESS REPORTS Progress notes will be sent home four times throughout the school year. They
will be sent in the middle of each quarter to identify and address a student’s needs.
P.T.A. MEETINGS P.T.A. activities are scheduled periodically throughout the year and provide
opportunities for families to come together at the school for information, entertainment, and/or
socialization. P.T.A. business meeting are scheduled each month on the first Tuesday; beginning at 7:00
p.m., and are held in the All – Purpose room. All parents are welcomed and encouraged to attend P.T.A.
meetings and activities.
REPORT CARDS Report cards are sent home with students four times a year, at the end of each of the
nine-week grading periods. The dates for report card distribution will be as follows:
November 12, 2015
February 3, 2016
April 14, 2016
June 27, 2016 (mailed)
SCHOOL HOURS
The instructional day for students begins at 9:00 a.m. and ends at 3:25 p.m. Students arriving after the 9:00
bell are considered tardy and must sign in at the front office. In the morning, students are admitted to
classrooms at 8:50. Students should not be dropped off at school before 8:35. There will be no supervision
for students until that time.
TOYS Students CANNOT bring their personal toys, balls, stuffed animals, trading cards, electronic games
etc. to school. We will not be responsible for these items and they are not needed for the instructional
program or recess.
TRANSPORTATION Some Oakland Terrace students are bused to school. Students are picked up at
designated bus stops. Parents are responsible for maintaining discipline and safety at bus stops. Inclement
weather, traffic accidents, and road construction can cause delays in the bus routes, so the pick-up and
drop-off times of each bus may vary somewhat from day to day. Questions about the buses or bus routes
should be directed to Sinisa Pavlovic, MCPS Randolph Depot Manager at the Transportation Office at
(301) 929-6906. No child may ride a bus other than that which is assigned. Children wishing to ride a
bus not regularly assigned to them must have a note from their parent that is signed by office personnel.
Office personnel will make a final decision based on space and student behaviors when allowing students
to ride a bus that is NOT assigned to them.