SCHOOL MOTTO:
Towards Tomorrow Today
MISSION STATEMENT:
Alexander Forbes School is a safe, supportive environment where we as a collaborative learning community provide diverse instruction and programs for students to achieve success and develop social responsibility.
VISION
To build a promising future of inspired, responsible and innovative citizens.
VALUES
At Alexander Forbes School we value:
· Every student's opportunity for success.
· A stable and supportive environment respecting individuality.
· A family atmosphere where parents are partners.
· An innovative approach to prepare for a changing global community.
· Research and current educational practices that influence diverse instructional strategies.
· Accountability for all.
· A healthy, active lifestyle.
· An environment that provides stability and reinforces socially responsible behaviours.
SCHOOL HOURS AND SCHEDULE
MORNING ARRIVAL
The main front door of the school and the parking lot doors will be open at 8:00 a.m. Students who arrive early should remain in the boot rooms at these doors until invited in by a supervisor at 8:15 a.m. Other school entrance doors will open at 8:15 a.m. Full building and school grounds supervision will commence at 8:15 a.m. Students should not arrive before that time unless they are prepared to remain in the boot rooms.
Staff Meetings will be held on the first Monday of each month. On these days all classes will be shortened and students will be dismissed at 2:25 p.m. Lunch will also be at an earlier time.
VISITORS/SCHOOL SECURITY
For the safety of our students and staff we will lock all doors to the school, with the exception of the main doors by the office, during school hours. If you are visiting the school please report to the main office to check-in with the office staff. You will be issued a “visitor” badge that will make you easily identifiable to all staff and students. If you come to visit with staff or students at recess time please come to the office to sign in before you go out to the playground.
Lunchroom and Noon Hours
A full cafeteria service and menu with healthy options is provided for all students. Elementary students may submit pre-orders by 8:30am.
Grades 1 - 6 students will eat in their classrooms,
Grades 7 - 9 will eat in the lunchroom.
Students have 20mins to each lunch and the remaining 18mins will be recess outside for elementary, pending weather. Junior High students will have the option of proceeding to three other designated supervision areas.
CLOSED CAMPUS POLICY
Please be notified that Alexander Forbes School will maintain a closed campus. Students are expected to remain on designated school property for the entire school day including lunchtime. Under no circumstances will students be permitted to walk to convenience stores or other local businesses during the school day.
Exceptions may be made in the following circumstances:
· Students who have appointments or are ill and need to leave the school may do so after signing out at the office. In these cases, a note from the student’s parent must be presented or an office administrator must speak to a parent over the phone.
· Parents who wish to give permission for their child to go home during lunch must sign the permission form at the school, at the beginning of each school year. It should also be noted that students going home for lunch are not allowed to take anyone else home with them or go to a convenience store/local business.
Junior High Students who have permission to go home for lunch must sign-out at the office.
Students going home for lunch who have difficulties returning to school on time and/or following the above school policy may have their privilege removed following a consultation between parents and school administration.
Students that fail to comply with the above regulations will face disciplinary action.
School Attendance
Educational research has identified regular school attendance as being a key factor in determining academic success. As well, Section 12(b) of the School Act states that it is the responsibility of the student to attend school regularly and punctually. Students should be in attendance at school unless prevented from doing so by illness, bereavement or other exceptional circumstances. Students who are habitually absent or late for school or classes will be contacted by phone/email and/or a letter sent home to inform them of the problem and possible disciplinary action.
COMMUNICATION OF ABSENCES OR LATES TO THE SCHOOL
Students do not require a note when returning to school after an absence but we do ask that a parent telephone the school office at 532-1365 on the morning of the day the student will be absent. If you call before 8:00 a.m. please leave a message on the school voice mail. If no such call is received, school personnel will telephone parents to confirm the reason for the absence. Office personnel are available to answer the phones between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. If you call outside these hours please leave a message on the answering machine.
Office personnel must speak to or receive a note from a parent or other responsible person before a student who must miss a class because of medical appointments or for other reasons may sign out. Students will also be asked to sign in on their return to the school. Students who become ill during the school day cannot be sent home unless permission is received. For their safety, we cannot allow a sick student to go to an unsupervised home.
SCHOOL FEES AND OTHER COSTS
School fees are payable during the first week of the new school term. Students who are unable to make payment at that time should arrange with the office for payment at a later date. Please make all cheques payable to Alexander Forbes School.
Please note that Junior High students will not be assigned a locker until school fees are paid or arrangement for payment has been made.
In addition to these fees, students will be charged the replacement cost of any materials they lose or damage. If the agenda booklet is lost additional copies are available at a cost of $10.00. Please check the registration booklets for any possible additional costs associated with a course.
Insurance
The School District sponsors an optional student accident insurance plan at a low cost to the student. Application forms will be sent home early in September.
STUDENT TRANSPORTATION AND PERSONAL BELONGINGS
Locks and Lockers
Locks and lockers are the property of the school. The school has the right to access student lockers at any time. A license to use agreement must also be filled out and signed before a locker and lock is distributed. The student is responsible for maintenance/care of the locker to which he/she has been assigned. Students should not share their lockers or locker combinations with anyone. If a student loses a lock there is a replacement fee of $7.00.
PERSONAL BELONGINGS
The school, the School Board and its insurers take no responsibility for valuables lost, stolen or damaged while on school property. To ensure the safety of personal belongings, students should not share their hall-locker or their gym-locker combinations with anyone else. If students have a large sum of money on their person they should deposit it at the school office until the end of the day. Teachers will not accept money or other valuables for safekeeping.
Cell Phones & Ipods
For 2010-2011 school year, Alexander Forbes staff and students will look at developing a new policy that “embraces” this type of technology while at the same time having provisions in place to maintain a high level of respect toward proper use and protocol within a school system.
Student Transportation
Students who ride skateboards or scooters to school should carry them once they reach school property. Bikes should be locked up in the bike racks using a quality lock during school hours. They should not be ridden on school grounds at recess or at lunchtime. In addition, as per the City Bylaws – all students riding a bicycle must be wearing a helmet. Students who rollerblade to school should remove them in the boot room when they arrive.
Student Vehicles
Students who attend Alexander Forbes School and who qualify for a driver’s license may not bring motor vehicles to school under any circumstances.
ACADEMICS AT ALEXANDER FORBES SCHOOL
Evaluation and Promotion Policy
Junior High
There are three formal reporting periods during the school year. Students will be assigned a mark in each subject in each reporting period. In addition, Junior High Students will write final exams in Language Arts, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies as well as other subjects as determined by the teacher. Each teacher will include as a part of their course outline information on the evaluation system, including term and final exam weightings, to be used in his or her class.
Parent Teacher Interviews will be scheduled following the first and second reporting periods.
Homework
It is expected that students will be required to complete assignments at home in most core subjects regularly during the school year. To help students minimize homework, time management will be stressed in class and the use of agenda booklets will help students to schedule their tasks.
Parents can assist their children by monitoring Student’s Achieve, emails and voice messages, and by ensuring students have adequate facilities and time for home study. Assignments are designed to assist with achieving curricular outcomes so all assignments must be completed. If assignments are not completed, the follow process is implemented:
· Completion in detention at noon or after school
· Student removal from extra-curricular activities
· Students are not allowed to choose a zero for a mark in order to avoid handing in the assignment
· When all avenues have been exhausted, a different form of assessment may be used.
Students are responsible, along with Teachers, to ensure that any assignments or tests given while a student is absent are completed on the student’s return. When a student arrives back from an absence the student should arrange with their teachers to complete missed work.
Student NEED TO BE PREPARED
Students are responsible to come to school and to class with all of the necessary supplies and equipment to accomplish the tasks assigned to them. This includes having proper gym strip, two pairs of footwear (one for outside and one for inside), an adequate supply of paper, pens, pencils, all necessary textbooks and any other materials requested by the teacher.
Student Privileges
We believe that student effort and initiative need to be recognized and that opportunities should be made available to those who accept their responsibilities as a student. We sponsor a wide variety of activities and a reward system to support this. However, when students do not accept their responsibilities as students, they will lose their privilege to participate in these extra activities and to stay for lunch until they have demonstrated an acceptance of the duties assigned to students in the School Act. The monitoring of effort is done on a regular basis by our Junior High staff and includes such considerations as completion of homework, task commitment in class, behavior, attendance and punctuality.
Dress Policy
When students are choosing clothing and jewelry for school they should remember that they must dress in a way which facilitates learning and which does not detract from the positive climate that school rules and procedures are designed to encourage. The following guidelines are intended to help students to make these choices. The school administration retains the right to make all final decision regarding the appropriateness of any article of clothing, jewelry, etc. for wear at the school.
Guidelines:
1. All clothing should be clean and tidy.
2. Clothing worn at the beach is not suitable for school (ex. short shorts, halter-tops, tank tops, muscle shirts, and clothing which exposes the midriff).
3. Clothing that has crude sayings, obscene or offensive pictures, vulgar language, which advocate illegal activities, depict violence or weapons or are otherwise offensive in nature, may not be worn.
4. Students should place their hats, bandanas and sunglasses in their lockers when they arrive at school and leave them there until they are leaving the school, either at noon or at the end of the day.
5. For safety and hygiene, suitable clothing and shoes are necessary for Industrial Arts, Home Economics and Physical Education. Students must have a change of clothing for Physical Education that includes running shoes, proper socks, T-shirt or sweatshirt, shorts or sweat pants. If students do not have proper gym strip, clean gym strip will be provided for them from our supply.
Students who arrive at school dressed in an inappropriate manner will be asked to rectify the problem by covering up or removing the offensive item of clothing or jewelry. If they do not have appropriate clothing at the school they may be asked to return home to change.
Footwear
All students should have a pair of clean indoor shoes they can change into when they arrive at school. Street shoes or running shoes which have been worn outside will not be allowed for gym activities. Shoes with soft soles, which mark the hallways, should not be worn to school.
Smoking Policy
In accordance with Grande Prairie School District Policy, Alexander Forbes School is a smoke free environment. Students who attend Forbes are not of legal age to possess tobacco products and are prohibited from possessing tobacco products while at school and are also expected to refrain from smoking on property adjacent to the school at the request of property owners and community members. Students who violate this policy will be referred to the school administration for disciplinary action.
Alcohol and Drugs
School District Policy states that students who come to school or to a school function in possession or under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol are to be referred to the school or school district administration for disciplinary action.
Suspensions
Students under suspension should not be on or around the grounds of Alexander Forbes School or any other school during school operational hours without having first received the permission of the school administration.
SCHOOL HARASSMENT POLICY
In order for students to succeed academically they must feel safe from threats and harassment. As it is the aim of our school to have all students be successful to the best of their abilities, it is to be understood that harassment of any kind will not be tolerated. Students who feel that others are harassing them need to take responsible action to protect their rights. It is our recommendation that the following steps need to be taken by those being harassed:
¨ Advise the person who is causing a problem that you wish them to stop.
¨ Ask a teacher, administrator, counselor or parent to help solve the problem.
¨ Keep telling people until the harassment stops.
Our school takes this issue seriously. Those involved in harassing others will be firmly dealt with by school administration. Continuous harassment will result in a suspension from school.
SERVICES TO STUDENTS AT ALEXANDER FORBES SCHOOL
Extra-curricular Activities
The school may offer extra-curricular activities to students in grades 5 to 9, as well as a more limited range of activities to younger students. Specific opportunities such as lunch room supervisor, library helper, playground helper and elementary choir ,will be advertised throughout the school term and students are encouraged to take part in as many activities as possible. It is the responsibility of all students to ensure that they have fulfilled all of their academic responsibilities as a first priority. Students who fail to fulfill their classroom responsibilities may have their extra-curricular opportunities withdrawn to encourage an acceptable academic focus. Homework assignments, detentions and other classroom expectations are given priority over extra-curricular involvement.
Athletics at Forbes
Forbes has proven itself to be very successful and competitive with the other schools in the area of athletics. Our Junior High Athletic program includes volleyball, basketball, soccer, badminton, cross country running, curling, golf and track and field. Our elementary program includes bordenball, newcombeball, track and field, curling and cross country running. All students are encouraged to try out for teams and to come out to support the Knights as they compete with teams from other schools. Our programs are here as an extra for the students that wish to participate. Our coaches are volunteers. They are the teachers and the parent volunteers from the school community who try to help the students grow in aspects of life other than those in the classroom.
Canteen
The school canteen will send out a menu at the beginning of the year outlining the products available for purchase.
Counseling Services
Requests for student counseling can be made by students, teachers or parents, through the school office or directly to the School Counselor. .The primary role of our school counselor is as a liaison to community mental health supports.
Library Resource Center/Computer Labs/COWS
The Library Resource Center, two computer labs, and two COWS (Computers on Wheels) are available for student use. Time is available before school, during lunch break and after school in accordance with posted schedules and announcements.
Internet Use
Students today must understand and practice proper and ethical use of the Internet. Before being allowed to access the Internet, students will be educated concerning laws, including the Criminal Code and the Copyright Act and school and school district policies pertaining to its use. Access to network services will be given to students who agree to act in a considerate and responsible manner and whose parents/guardian has signed the Network Resources “Acceptable Use Protocol” form. The school will ensure that procedures are in place to control student access to offensive materials. However, it is the user’s responsibility not to initiate access to controversial, inappropriate or offensive materials and to leave locations of undesirable material immediately.
PARENT HELP AND INVOLVEMENT
In past years, parents have been involved as helpers or advisors in a number of capacities, including:
· Extra-curricular activities
· Supervision
· Classroom assistance
· Playground construction
· Student transportation
· Library and clerical help
· School Patrol Assistants
Any parents interested in any of these or similar activities are requested to speak to the appropriate teacher or to leave their names at the office. We can use all the assistance you are willing to give us.
School Council
The Alexander Forbes School Council works to improve the quality of school life at Forbes for all students. An organizational meeting will be held in September. We strongly encourage all parents to become involved with this group. We will be looking for a representative on the council from each class in the school and hope that you would consider serving on this body.
Please see our website for School Council updates in our newsletters.
Parents Transporting Students
Parents who transport students other than their own children in private vehicles to school events must sign a form allowing the school to access their driver’s license abstract. These forms will be available in the school office. In addition, they must carry an insurance policy which shows coverage of at least $1 000 000.00 liability coverage. This is necessitated by changes in School Board Policy and changes in the School Districts insurance coverage.
Visitors to the School
Parents and guardians, as well as members of the general public, are welcome to make arrangements for a tour of the school during operational hours. Formal visits to classrooms or school facilities may be arranged through the school office. For the safety of our student we ask that all visitors to the school sign in at the office.
Students from other schools or youths who are not attending school are not permitted in the school or on school grounds at any time during the school day.
Alexander Forbes School students should not be at any other school during their operational hours without permission from that school.