Policies

Students are expected to be in school except in cases of emergency, illness, or school-approved absences. The only excused absences are personal illness or injury, medical or dental services, quarantine, a funeral attendance or a religious holiday. Students will be declared truant if they have three or more unexcused absences and/or tardies over 30 minutes in a school year and shall be reported to the attendance supervisor or the superintendent of the school district.

Absences:

• Parents should call the school at (408) 270-4951 on the first day the student is absent or send a note to the teacher stating the reason for an absence. You can also email both Mrs. Sherry Gilmore @ sgilmore@eesd.org or Mrs. Dilly Bhoot @ dbhoot @eesd.org to report your absences.
• A doctor’s statement is required for an extended illness of 3 days or more.
• Family travel plans must be made during official school vacation holidays. Any absences due to family vacations are unexcused absences.
• If your child cannot go out for recess or take part in physical education, he/she must bring a signed note stating the reason for being excused. Frequent or extended absences from recess or P.E. may require a doctor’s statement.
• Make-up work is required when applicable; however, a student will be given ample time to complete make-up work once he/she returns to school.
• 3 or more unexcused absences or excessive tardies may result in a parent/principal conference.
• 3 or more unexcused absences or excessive tardies may also result in a referral to the Student Study Team.
• Excessive absence/tardies that are more than ten percent of the school year may result in a referral to the district’s School Attendance Review Board (SARB).

Tardiness:

1. A student is tardy after 8:15 a.m., after the first bell has rung. He/she needs a late pass from the Office.
2. A student should report to the Office first when arriving late to school. An adult should accompany late primary students to the Office.

Check-Out Procedures:

1. If a student needs to leave during the school day, parents must check him/her out in the Office. The child will be called to the Office via the classroom phone. Please wait for your students behind the painted yellow lines.
2. Standing outside the classroom while waiting for your child is disruptive to the learning environment.
3. Parents are encouraged to make dental and medical appointments after school hours.

If you need to give your child a message, medication, homework, lunch money, supplies, etc., please go to the Office. We will be sure to get the information to your child as soon as possible.

During the year, we will send home notes concerning school activities, rules, and other information which we feel necessary for you to have. Please read these notes and newsletters. Ask your child for the yellow school newsletter every Friday.

We are concerned about the safety and protection of all children arriving and departing Cadwallader. We appreciate the cooperation of all to ensure the safety of all.

We welcome visitors to our school. Please do not go directly to classrooms when you need to see your child; go to the Office first and we will be happy to assist you.

For the protection of the students, all non-students are to report directly to the Office first to obtain a visitor’s pass. Please do not go directly to the classroom during class time or to the Café and the playgrounds during recess or lunch hours. During arrival and dismissal times, please wait at the front of the school behind the yellow lines.

To make the best use of your time, it is best to schedule a conference when it is necessary to speak to a teacher or the principal.

The safety of all of our students is of utmost importance in the parking lot. The red curb is for buses only. Please do not drive through the bus zone. Please park only in marked spaces or on white curbs--never on a red or blue curb. The white curbs near the Café and kindergarten is where you should drop off your child; please don’t park there. Parking is limited in the school parking lot, so it is best to walk from or park on the surrounding streets.

• Please be advised of these basic parking lot rules for the safety of our students:
• Obey all traffic rules, drive slowly and watch for children
• Give buses the ‘”Right of Way” at all times
• Do not double park or leave your car unattended
• Do not allow your child to walk between cars or walk across the parking lot by themselves
• Hold the hands of small children when in the parking lot or crossing the street

Students are expected to follow playground rules to ensure their safety.

General Rules

• Stay inside the red lines at recess.
• Keep lines straight when walking with your class and do not cut in line.
• Throwing grass, rocks, and/or sand is not allowed.
• Do not push, wrestle, trip, roughhouse, fight or play fight.
• Running is ONLY ALLOWED on the grass, not on the blacktop.
• Do not play in the bathrooms.
• Use appropriate language.
• Stealing is not permitted.

Swings

• Swing sitting down, one at a time.
• No jumping off of the swings.
• Do not walk in front of or between the swings.
• Swing forward, not sideways.
• Do not climb on the swing poles.
• Do not push others on the swings.
• A student may swing 25 times before getting off the swing.

Jungle Gym

• Do not play games on or around the jungle gym.
• Do not run around the jungle gym area.

Parallel Bars

• One student at a time may cross the parallel bars.
• Do not stand on the bars.
• Move across the bars in the same direction.

Slide

• Only one student at a time on the slide.
• Only one student may be on each rung of the ladder at a time.
• Slide in the sitting position only.
• Do not block another student on the slide.
• No walking up the slide.

To promote an environment that is conducive to enjoying one’s lunch and having polite conversation with friends, the following is expected of all students:

Entering the Café:

• Students will enter the Café through the doors on the left side and sit down at their assigned table.
• Students who are buying lunch will wait to be excused by the noon duty aide and will line up in the lunch line.

In the Café:

• Students will use quiet indoor voices.
• All students will remain seated for at least 20 minutes to eat their lunch before being excused for recess.
• All students will remain seated until dismissed by a noon duty supervisor.
• When students are dismissed, they are to walk to the trash/recycling area and deposit items in the appropriate bins.
• Students must clear their tables and their eating area of any food or garbage before leaving the Café.

Departing the Café:

• All primary students will line up and wait to be escorted to the primary playground by a noon duty supervisor.
• All upper grade students may walk to the playground after being excused.
• All lunch pails are to be left in the designated areas outside classrooms.

Regulations:

• Parents or guardians are not allowed in the food services area.

Other:

• Time constraints do not allow for visitors during lunch.
• Drop off late lunches in the Office for your child to pick up. Please make sure that your student is aware that you are dropping off their lunch. This helps with the office staff not disturbing the morning instruction time.

The safety of your child is one of our greatest concerns. The school holds regular drills to teach students to respond calmly in the event of an emergency. Fire, earthquake, and CODE RED drills are conducted regularly. Detailed escape plans are posted inside the door of each classroom. Each class has an escape route to an outside area a safe distance from the school building. We have designated staging areas in the event of a CODE RED emergency. In the event of a real emergency, our district web page (eesd.org) will have a flashing“emergency” link to access current information.

The school must always be informed of a work telephone number or emergency number in the event your child becomes ill or is injured at school and requires your presence. Please remember to notify the school of any change of address or telephone number immediately. Parents also can update their contact information themselves through our district’s new Parent Portal. Please go to the Office to sign up for the Parent Portal if you have not done so already.

Evergreen School District has a District Policy that forbids smoking anywhere on district property. Also, alcohol and drugs of any kind are forbidden.

Clothing and personal belongings that are brought to school should be labeled with your child’s name. Found articles are turned in to the school’s Lost and Found in the Café. Unlabeled or unclaimed property will be turned over to charity throughout the school year.

• Compromises safety or modesty
• Is disruptive to the educational process.

STUDENTS ARE NOT TO WEAR THE FOLLOWING:

1. Any clothing or apparel which:

• Is considered dangerous, unsafe or a health hazard.
• Contains offensive or obscene symbols, signs, or slogans.
• Contains language or symbols oriented toward violence, sex, drugs, alcohol, or tobacco.
• Is mostly red or blue that includes but is not limited to shirts, pants, hats, and/or shoes.

2. Any attire or grooming disruptive to the instructional process which may include, but is not limited to:

• Make-up
• Off the shoulder or bare midriff tops
• Halter tops
• Tank tops, spaghetti straps
• Mesh tops
• Shorts, skorts, or skirts shorter than fingertip length or three inches above the knee
• Clothing which allows underwear to be exposed
• Long dangling earrings
• Open-toed shoes with or without ankle straps
• No shoes with skate wheels

All hats must be removed inside buildings.

Children should leave all toys/equipment at home (i.e. bats, skateboards, scooters, trading cards, etc.).Sports equipment is alright if it has been approved by the classroom teacher and a student is willing to donate it to the classroom. Students should not bring balls to and from school on a daily basis. All electronic devices (ie. ipod, MP3 player, ipad, tablets, etc.) should be left at home. We are not responsible for lost or stolen items that should not be at school. Cell phones may only be used before school hours and after school hours; all phones must be turned off during school hours.

All students are to use polite comments such as “please,” “thank you,” and “excuse me” at all times on the campus. Put downs, rude behavior, laughing at others’ mistakes, teasing that is intended to be hurtful, or inappropriate and disrespectful comments to staff members and students are not allowed. When walking to and from a classroom, students are expected to walk in an orderly line. Students who are not demonstrating appropriate behavior will be asked to leave an assembly or school activity.

We adhere to a Zero Tolerance Policy when it comes to dangerous items at school. These include but are not limited to firearms, knives, dirks, daggers, razors or any weapon with a fixed or sharpened blade, explosives, etc. Any student found to be in possession of such items will be held accountable to sanctions listed in educational code such as suspension and expulsion.If warranted, the police will be called.Senate Bill No. 1198 amends Education Code section #48915 to require the principal or superintendent of schools to immediately suspend and recommend for expulsion any student in grades K-12 found to be in possession of a fire arm at school or at a school activity off school grounds. Senate Bill No. 292 expands this current law to include any instrument that propels a metallic projectile as a firearm for expulsion. This includes BB or pellet guns, spot markers, or paint guns on school grounds. Expulsion is a serious action that removes a child from all Evergreen Schools for up to one year. The School Board may also expel for: weapons (firearms, knives, etc.), tobacco, damage to property, obscenity, profanity or vulgarity, theft, drug possession, use or sale, receipt of stolen property, and/or sexual harassment.

Nondiscrimination Policy
District programs and activities shall be free from discrimination, including harassment, with respect to the actual or perceived ethnic group, color, race, ancestry, national origin, religion, gender, physical or mental disability, age, and/or sexual orientation. The Governing Board shall ensure equal opportunities for all students in admission and access to the educational program, guidance and counseling programs, athletic programs, testing procedures, and other activities.

Student Harassment
The Governing Board is committed to maintaining a school environment that is free from harassment. The Board prohibits sexual harassment of any student by another student, an employee or other person, at school or at a school-sponsored or school-related activity. The Board also prohibits retaliatory behavior or action against any person who complains, testifies, assists or otherwise participates in the complaint process established in accordance with this policy. Any student who engages in sexual harassment of anyone at school or at a school-sponsored or school-related activity is in violation of this policy and shall be subject to disciplinary action.

Notice of Uniform Complaint Policy
The district shall investigate and seek to resolve complaints at the local level. The district follows uniform procedures when addressing complaints alleging unlawful discrimination (within six months of the alleged occurrence), violation of civil rights guarantees, or failure to comply with state or federal law in programs for consolidated categorical aid, Indian education, migrant education, child nutrition, special education, adult education, career/vocation education, and child development.

Contact the Superintendent or Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services if you have a question concerning noncompliance on any of the listed programs. The district will respond to a written complaint within sixty days. After receiving the district’s decision regarding a complaint, appeal procedures are available to the California Department of Education within fifteen days. Complainants may use any civil law remedies that may be available such as local mediation centers, legal assistance agencies, etc. (ex. Legal Aid Society of Santa Clara). In a discrimination complaint, the complainant has the right to seek civil law remedies at least sixty days after filing an appeal to the California Department of Education.

Textbooks are furnished for free. If textbooks or library books are lost or damaged beyond reasonable use, parents or guardians will be charged the full replacement price. Report cards may be withheld at the end of the year if fees for lost or damaged textbooks and library books are not paid.

The fundamentals — reading, writing, speaking, and mathematics — often need to be reinforced with additional practice, which the students will complete outside the classroom. Homework, the extension of classwork, will be study which relates directly to the mastery of a subject. Homework is a part of the learning process. Students must assume responsibility for their classwork just as they will assume job responsibility in the future. Each Cadwallader teacher will explain his/her individual homework policy at Back to School Night. Responsibility is a big part of homework. Please remind your child to not forget his/her homework. Once the teachers leave for the day, you cannot get into the classroom to pick up homework. Because our night custodian is on a very tight schedule, he is unable to let you into the classroom. Please don't ask him. If children forget their homework, they usually only do it once, so use this as a lesson in responsibility.

Checklist for Helping Your Child with Homework:

Show that you think education and homework are important

• Do you set a regular time every day for homework?
• Does your child have the necessary materials to do assignments?
• Does your child have a quiet place with plenty of light?
• Do you set a good example by reading and writing yourself?
• Do you stay in touch with your child's teacher?

Monitor assignments

• Do you know what your child's assignments are? How long they should take?How the teacher wants you to be involved?
• Do you make sure assignments are completed?
• Do you read the teacher's comments on work returned?
• Is TV viewing taking valuable time away from homework?

Provide Guidance

• Do you understand and respect your child's style of learning?Does she/he learn best when she/he can see things, hear them, or handle them?
• Do you help your child to get organized?How does she/he keep track of assignments?Does she/he have a bookbag or folder for papers?
• Do you talk with your child about homework?Does she/he understand them?

Talk with someone at school when problems come up

• Do you meet the teacher early in the year before any problems arise?
• If a problem arises, do you meet with the teacher promptly?
• Do you cooperate with the teacher and your child to develop a plan to address homework problems?

Formal and informal assessment is on going throughout the year at all grade levels. All students are given district benchmark assessments in English Language Arts and Mathematics throughout the year along with a district Writing assessment at the end of the year.

Kindergarten: Students are assessed to evaluate developmental progress and to determine understanding of basic kindergarten concepts. These concepts include number sense, concepts of print, phonemic awareness, letter and sound recognition, identification of high frequency words, and a range of other skills.

First grade: Students are assessed at the end of the year with district performance based reading, and Math tests. Throughout the year, student writing is assessed using a grade level rubric. Teachers also regularly assess students to determine level of phonemic awareness and progress in developing a range of literacy skills.

Second grade: Students are assessed at the end of the year with a district level performance based test in reading. Throughout the year, student writing is also assessed using a grade level rubric. Teachers regularly assess students to gather needed information on the development of literacy skills.

Third grade: Students are assessed at the end of the year with a national standardized test in English language arts and mathematics. Throughout the year, student writing is also assessed using a grade level rubric. Teachers regularly assess students to gather needed information on the development of literacy skills.

Fourth grade: Students are assessed at the end of the year with national standardized test in English language arts and mathematics. Throughout the year, student writing is also assessed using a grade level rubric. Teachers regularly assess students in the area of literacy.

Fifth grade: Students are assessed at the end of the year with a national standardized test in English language arts, mathematics, and science. Throughout the year, student writing is assessed using a grade level rubric. All fifth grade students must also pass a state physical fitness test.

Sixth grade: Students are assessed at the end of the year with a national standardized test in English language arts and mathematics. Throughout the year, student writing is assessed using a grade level rubric.