First Years Handbook 2012 - 2013
Please sign and return the portion below.
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I appreciate and agree to the policies in the First Years Handbook.
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Parent Signature Date
The First Years with First Baptist Church
2504 FM 517
Dickinson, Texas 77539
281-337-5635
Firstyears@fbcdickinson.org
We are very excited to have this opportunity to care for your child as well as provide them with a Christian based education. In Isaiah 54:13 it says, “All your children will be taught by the LORD, and great will be their peace.”
Curriculum
Our teachers are dedicated to making our First Years program a positive learning experience for all preschoolers. We use a variety of texts and manipulatives to enhance our teaching purposes and strive to meet the spiritual, emotional, physical, and social needs of children through a Christian environment. First Years uses curriculum specifically written for our program. Your child’s daily lesson plans are literature based thematic units which will include the following parts:
(*3 and 4 year olds only)
- Art activities
- Finger plays and songs
- Bible stories
- Memory verses for the monthly theme
- Shapes
- Colors
- Numbers, counting and math concepts: sorting, patterning, sequencing, matching
- Letters and sounds
- Large motor skills
- Fine motor skills
- Learning centers
- Free play in the gym and on the playground
Calendar
First Years will follow the Dickinson I.S.D. calendar except for starting and ending dates. We begin classes the first Tuesday after Labor Day and end classes in May. We will follow the same schedule for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Spring Break. Our program operates on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m.
Fees and Monthly Tuition
An enrollment fee is required to hold a place for your child. This is a $95.00 fee per child and is non-refundable.
Tuition fees are due on the first Tuesday of the month, however after the 15th there will be a late charge of $25.00. If tuition is not paid by the 20th of the month a letter will be sent home stating that the child cannot attend until tuition is brought up to date. There will be a $20.00 charge on all returned checks. There will not be a refund of tuition for days missed during the month. There is not a reduction of monthly tuition during holidays. Tuition is based on the total number of school days in the year.
Monthly tuition is as follows:
First child = $135.00
Second child = $120.00
Third child = $105.00
Withdraw Policy
If for any reason you decide to withdraw your child from the program, please notify the Director with two weeks or more notice. Whether your child attends one day or five days, you will be responsible for the entire month’s tuition. Our budget is based on the tuition income and advanced notice will assist us in balancing the operating expenses.
Arrival and Departure
Children are required to be signed in and out by the parent or guardian every day at the child’s classroom door. Drop off time is 9:00 a.m. Your child needs to be here no later than 9:30 a.m. to be allowed into the classroom. If you need to arrive late because of a special circumstance, please call ahead or let the Director know in order for something to be worked out. Please pick up your child promptly at 2:00 p.m. A late fee of $1.00 per minute will be charged for every minute after 2:10 p.m. A child will not be released to anyone other than the parent or guardian unless we are notified in writing. If you need to pick up your child early, please call ahead or notify your child’s teacher when arriving that morning. This will help us to have your child ready to leave.
Lunch
Children are to bring their own lunch. Please make sure that the lunch prepared are finger foods or easy to eat items. Please mark your child’s lunch box, cups, etc. with his/her name.
Snacks
Parents are requested to send snack at the request of the teacher. This is to be an item shared with the entire class, for example; crackers, cookies, goldfish, etc.
Rest Time
Toddlers, Two and Three year olds will need a mat to lie on during rest time. Your mat can be of your choosing, plastic or cloth. However, if your child’s mat is cloth, it needs to fit in your child’s bag or backpack so that it is easily transported to and from home and school. We ask that you wash your child’s rest time belongings before the next class time. If it is a vinyl mat we will keep it in the classroom if there is room. Children will be encouraged to rest on their mats while listening to lullaby music for the first 20 to 30 minutes. After some of the children have fallen asleep, one of the teachers will do quiet activities with the non-sleepers, such as books, puzzles or coloring. Rest time will occur between 11:30 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. Three year olds will be encouraged to rest for only 30 minutes before beginning another activity. Three year olds that fall asleep will be allowed to continue sleeping.
Illness / Medications
Children who show signs of an illness, such as; fever, heavy nasal discharge, constant cough, diarrhea or vomiting within the previous 24 hours will not be allowed to attend school. We ask that you keep your child home to ensure they get better as well as help not spread illness to others. A parent will be contacted and asked to pick up a child if any of the above symptoms occur. Please notify the Director when a child has been exposed to any contagious disease (chicken pox, measles, etc). Medication will not be administered to any child unless the Director has been notified and a medication form has been filled out and signed by the parent. The Director will give all medication, not the teacher. All medicine administered will be documented.
Accidents
Parents will be notified of any bumps, scratches or scrapes that occur while the child is in our care. These accidents usually happen when the children are at play. You will receive a written incident report and if the injury is serious enough, you will receive a phone call. Please make sure all emergency numbers are current and are on file prior to the first day of school.
Shot Records
All children must be current on all immunizations. We will need a photocopy of all shot records before the beginning of school.
Class Parties
We will celebrate the following holidays with a party… Christmas, Valentine’s, Easter and End of the Year. A signup sheet will help coordinate the different items needed. There will be an evening in August for Meet the Teacher Night, a Christmas program in December and an End of the Year / Pre K Graduation in May.
Birthdays
We know that birthdays are very special for our children. If your child wishes to bring a treat to share with the class, it will be welcomed. If your child’s birthday falls during the summer, a special day in May can be chosen for him or her to celebrate with their classmates. Please confirm this chosen date with the teacher.
Open Door Policy
We encourage parents to come and observe their child’s class. However, we ask that you observe through the glass window of your child’s classroom.
Personal Toys
Please keep your child’s personal toys at home. This helps so that they do not become lost or broken.
Discipline
Our number one goal is to love your child as Christ Jesus does. Our discipline will be positive and will encourage children to make good choices. Should a problem arise, a child may be placed in a short “time out” (one minute per year old).
Biting
Should a biting occur:
- The biter will be placed in “time out”.
- The parents will be notified by phone.
- If the children are old enough to understand, then the “biter” will attempt to heal the other child by using an ice pack on the wound.
- A conference will be scheduled with the Director, parents and teacher, should a child bite more than twice.
Potty Training
We understand this is an important time for your child but we ask that while your child is potty training they remain in a pull up.
Daily Supplies
Please mark all your child’s personal belongings or supplies with their name.
18 month old & Two year old supplies to be brought in their bag daily:
diapers
wipes
diaper cream
rest time mat and blanket
change of clothes in a zip lock bag
Lunch: lunch box, non-spill cup
Three year old supplies to be brought in their bag daily:
pull up and wipes (if needed)
rest time mat
change of clothes in a zip lock bag
Lunch: lunch box, non-spill cup
Four / Five year old supplies to be brought daily:
backpack
change of clothes in a zip lock bag
Lunch: lunch box, drink
Supply list may vary from class to class. You will receive your child’s school supply list before Meet the Teacher Night in August.
Four / Five year olds will be given a Kindergarten pre-test in September and May. It is our desire that our preschoolers become familiar with the following readiness skills, even though they might not master them:
- Classification – grouping objects (same/different)
- Prepositional words – on, above, inside, beside, between, etc.
- Body parts
- Opposites / Rhyming words
- Recognizes upper and lower case letters in the alphabet
- Phonics – recognizes the sound each letter makes
- Colors – red, blue, green, yellow, orange, white, brown, black
- Number recognition 1 – 10
- Rote counting 1 – 20
- Math Concepts: sorting, patterning, sequencing, matching
- Language Development – The child can speak in complete sentences.
- Motor skills – cuts, pastes, holds pencil correctly, copies and matches simple designs, prints first name using a capital letter at beginning and the rest lower case letters, hops, skips, jumps, balances on one foot and is able to throw as well as catch a ball.
- Social development – follows directions, listen attentively to a story, etc.
We are looking forward to having a great year!
In Christ love,
Terri Whitten
First Years Director
“Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness,
and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33
