Parent Tips for Royal Oak School

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1 Parent Tips for Royal Oak School Parent to Parent Designed and Written by Royal Oak School Council Welcome to Royal Oak School! We are happy you have chosen our school for your child s education and we hope you will find that Royal Oak School has a vibrant learning environment with dedicated staff. Whether you are new to this school or have been here a couple of years, the following tips will help you and your child navigate the school year at Royal Oak School. CBE and Royal Oak RSS Feeds& Monthly Newsletter Subscribe to both The Royal Oak RSS Feed and the CBE News on the Royal Oak School website ( and you will be notified when the website has been updated. For example, signing up for both feeds will ensure you receive a link to the latest monthly school newsletter which includes important information regarding school events, initiatives, staffing changes, School Council and Fundraising updates, safety information and educational information to enhance your child s learning, as well as CBE news.

2 Why do I provide my address to the school? It is important to provide your address upon registration to the school so you can receive important school messages which include high priority information such as safety information, school meeting dates, parent/teacher conferences, etc. What is a Blue Day? On days when there is inclement weather the Administration will determine if it is a Blue Day and the staff will keep students inside during recess. Children will be allowed into the school through any door in the morning up to 15 minutes before the bell rings. After school, bus student attendance will occur in the gathering space instead of outside. Do I need to wait for my child to enter the school before I leave? For Kindergarten students, please remain with your child until the teachers arrive to escort them into the school. After school, Kindergarten teachers will ensure children and parents make eye contact before allowing the students to leave. For grades 1 to 4, parents can drop their children up to 15 minutes before the bell rings in the morning and at the end of lunch recess. Staff will be out supervising the area designated in the image below and ensuring the students safety. Parents are encouraged not to linger on the compound while their child waits to enter the school. This is to ensure the safety of all of the children. Designated Playground Days Royal Oak School has designated playground days for each grade so the playground remains safe for the students. If you are dropping off a child please refrain from allowing younger children with you from playing on the playground until the bell rings as there could be as many as 100 children on the playground on any given day. The school would like to reserve access to the playground during 2

3 school hours (before school, lunch and recesses) as much as possible for the students. Again, this ensures everyone s safety. Student Agendas One can access teacher agendas on the school website by clicking on Student Agendas on the left side tab and click on your child s teacher. Click on this link for school and classroom specific information. There are no paper agendas that come home. It is the parent s responsibility to check this link daily to receive important notices, requests or educational links from your child s teacher and to stay informed of what your child s class has accomplished each day. The online agenda is an excellent conversation starter with your child about their school day. My CBE Account (fees, waivers, registration of services, booking conferences) To register and pay for transportation, noon supervision and school fees, click on My CBE Account link in the left side tab. Also, access this link to book parent/teacher conferences. You will need to register initially by using your child s CBE ID number sent by the school and then you can use your and password for subsequent years. Parent Teacher Conference sign-up and format Book parent/teacher conferences through your My CBE account (link on left hand side of ROS homepage). Your child is asked to attend these conferences with you to showcase their work as a part of the Student-Centered Conference. In addition to conferences, parents are encouraged to contact their child's teacher any time, with any questions or concerns. Iris Using your child s CBE student ID number and password, login to Iris to view your child s personalized goals and accomplishments. Check this link frequently (found on ROS homepage) to see your child s progress. Raz Kids/Tumble books Links to these great reading resources are also found on the ROS homepage. Passwords and usernames are given by the teacher in October to each student in grades 1-2. In addition, some student in grade 3 and 4 may be given access to support their learning needs. I have a concern, who should I contact? If your concern is with your child or an interaction with another student, we do encourage you to contact your child s teacher first. If an issue needs to be further addressed or if you have a concern that affects the school or the safety of students, etc., you are welcome to contact our Principal or Assistant Principal. My Child is sick or will be late, what should I do? If your child is sick or will be late coming or returning to school, please call the school at , press option 1 for the attendance line. Your child will need to check in with the office and 3

4 receive a late slip if he/she has returned after attendance is taken in the morning or after the lunch hour before returning to their classroom. Signing my child out If your child has an appointment, or you are taking him or her out for lunch, when he or she regularly stays, you must sign your child out at the office. You do not need to sign them back in if your child re-enters the school through their designated door when the lunch bell rings to return to class if lunch recess is still on. If your child is later than 12:48, they will need to check in with the office to obtain a late slip to bring to their teacher. Fun Lunches Royal Oak School s Parent Fundraising Society coordinates Fun Lunches at the school. All families planning to participate must register for an online account through Further details of lunch dates and account registration will be sent home with your child in the fall. New for the 2015/16 school year - Snack Days! All students, including Kindergarten, will be able to order a snack to take home at the end of the day once a month. Any questions regarding Fun Lunch or Snack Days can be sent to ROSfunlunch@gmail.com. Volunteering at Royal Oak ROS welcomes parent volunteers within classrooms, and for school-run events, field trips and special school initiatives & committees. Volunteering is very fulfilling and makes a positive impact on your child s school experience. In order to volunteer, you must have a valid police security clearance. If you have not done so, stop by the office with valid picture identification and they can advise you of the steps needed to complete the police clearance. It takes some time to process; so don t delay getting it done. Once completed, your clearance is good for five years. School volunteers must enter through the main doors, sign-in as a volunteer on the clipboard and wear a volunteer tag at all times while in the school. At the end of your volunteer time, please make sure to return the tag and sign-out. Parent volunteers have access to lockers in the staff room, and are asked to use the staff washrooms only. Some teachers will prefer you contact them directly for volunteer opportunities and others may have a parent coordinate volunteers within the classroom. Volunteer Opportunities There are many opportunities to volunteer at your child s school such as Calgary Reads (training required), or being involved on Royal Oak s School Council or Royal Oak s Fundraising Society. Volunteer opportunities range from helping with fun lunches, special school events like sport days, School Council funded events like dances, movie nights and teacher potlucks or Fundraising events like helping at the casino. Both School Council and Royal Oak Fundraising Society rely on a team of volunteers to fill executive position, but you don t have to be on the executive to be involved. School Council for volunteer opportunities at rosvolunteers@gmail.com or for Fundraising volunteer opportunities, ROSfundraisingsociety@gmail.com. 4

5 Royal Oak School Council The Royal Oak School Council is an important part of a well-functioning school. We work with Administration to discuss issues in and around the school, and to explore ways to enrich the learning and school environment at ROS. Check out ROS School Council link ( on the ROS homepage for council minutes, meeting dates, information about our council s purposes and a list of our executive members and contact information. Our executive consists of a Chair, Vice-chair or cochairs, Secretary, Treasurer and Directors over appreciation, community spirit and volunteering. All parents are part of school council and are encouraged to attend our monthly meetings, usually the second Monday of each month at 7 pm. Our meetings are a great way to stay informed about school events, initiatives and matters that effect and enrich their child s education. Please consider being more involved in your child s education by attending our meetings and volunteering at events or being a part of our executive. In addition to our meetings, please find monthly updates in the school s newsletter and check out our Facebook page, Royal Oak School Council, for additional information and volunteer requests. Or us with any questions or concerns: ROSchoolcouncil@gmail.com. You can also submit anonymous feedback anytime into our suggestion box, which will be located in the school lobby this year. Royal Oak School Fundraising Society Fundraising initiatives are planned annually to support the school, reduce costs and enrich student learning experiences. The funds raised go to these main areas: - field trips and transportation, - curriculum enhancement, such as artist in residence, theatre, dance or sports programming, - new technology and equipment - tools and books for literacy and numeracy support. There are several fundraising initiatives held throughout the year, including a Casino. All require the vital support and assistance of parents. The Fundraising Society meets monthly at 6:30pm immediately prior to School Council meetings. All parents are welcome to attend, to help provide suggestions in how the funds will be used and raised. For questions or to volunteer, please contact ROSfundraisingsociety@gmail.com. Celebrations of Learning/Concerts At Royal Oak School, each grade group has a Celebration of Learning to highlight and showcase some of the students learning and work. The evenings are enriching and very meaningful to the students, parents and the teachers. Students often make connections between their learning and real-life issues. The evenings often include art work, music, multi-media and various other applications of learning. Lunch Time Royal Oak School is nut-aware and children are asked not to share their snacks or lunches with friends. Students are encouraged to bring a healthy snack and balanced lunch and to limit trash by using containers. Children eat with their grade groups either in their classroom or in the gathering 5

6 space at staggered times. Hot water and a milk program are available, but there is no access to microwaves. Can my child bring in treats for special occasions? At ROS we ask that you please refrain from bringing in treats for special occasions. We have a number of children with allergies. However, we do invite children to share Valentine cards. Also for Halloween, we encourage the students to dress in Halloween colors and celebrate with the annual Pumpkinella display which are pumpkins carved by families and brought to school to display before Halloween. All families are welcome to attend the Family Halloween dance. How do I know if my child s bus is running late? To track your child s bus, go to or follow First Student YYC on Twitter. Traffic Safety & Parking Lot Etiquette during Drop-off & Pick-Up Times Our school has many students that attend and very limited parking. You can park across the front of the school or along the road after the playground. We also ask that parents refrain from using the staff parking lot for drop-off and pick-up times unless permission has been granted from Administration. The two visitor spots in the parking lot are meant for CBE employees during board business or guest speakers to the school other than parents. This is a safety precaution as small children are very difficult to see if they are in our parking lot. The safety of our students is paramount and thus, we ask parents to obey traffic laws and model safe pedestrian crossing practices. In a highly congested area, many can become frustrated, but this cannot lead to bending the rules. Give yourself plenty of time and show patience as we all care about the safety of our children. Please ensure you: Use designated crosswalks; Watch for pedestrians in unmarked crosswalks; Park 5 meters away from crosswalks; Avoid making u-turns on the road, especially the crosswalk; Please do not park in the bussing zones (across from the main entrance and along the staff parking lot) as this is a designate space for busses and daycare vans; Park in designated parking areas if you need to exit your car (across the front of the school and along the same road as the playground); Be respectful of our neighbours by not blocking driveways; Slow down and watch for children; and Don t cut across staff parking lot to get to crosswalks. Please stay on sidewalks or along the outside perimeters of the parking lot adjacent to the playground to help ensure the safety of students around a parking lot. Kiss N Go child drop off zone is coming in the near future. The intention is to have 6 cars pull into the Kiss N Go zone and parent volunteers will act as a valet service to open doors and unload your children while you are still in the car. See the rules in the Kiss N Go handout that will be distributed in the month of October