Bird Elementary Family Handbook

Please park in the designated visitor parking areas only. The bus loop, located in front, is reserved for school buses. 

All cars will unload  and load students in the front of the school at the farthest end of the parking lot (note the parent drop off/pick up sign). A staff member will be outside to greet the children. You no longer need to sign students in. Students should not arrive at school prior to 8:05, as there is no one available to supervise children before that time. Students that arrive late at school (after 8:15 am) report to the front door to check in at the Main Office.

Any time that a parent, guardian, or designee will be picking up a student during the school day, fill out the “Bird Elementary Transportation Form” prior to the day of pick up. Place this form in your student’s folder to hand in when they arrive at school. If it is a last-minute change in transportation please call the school at 585-586-1850 no later than 1:00 PM. 

Any time there is a change in a student’s regular school year transportation plan (ex: student typically takes the bus, but will be picked up that day instead) please complete the “Bird Elementary Transportation Form” the day prior.  Place this form in your student’s folder to hand in when they arrive at school. If it is a last-minute change in transportation, please call the school at 585-586-1850 no later than 1:00 PM.

When district schools must be closed for any reason families will receive an automated robocall and/or Parent Square Alert. Bird Elementary School follows East Rochester School District School Closing Schedule. In addition, such closings will be announced on local radio stations and television channels. Please do not call the school office for information regarding emergency closings. When schools are closed, all adult education and school functions for the evening are canceled.

Safety and security staff members work to provide for the safety of all school community members, to protect school property, and to prevent and reduce violent incidents and unsafe situations. Wanda Moore is the Bird Elementary School Security staff and will greet all visitors when entering the school. 

Monroe #1 BOCES also has a School Resource Officer (Monroe County Deputy Sheriff) located at the Foreman Campus during the regular school year.

Bird Elementary is continuing to use ParentSquare as our primary platform for school communication. It is designed to give you a safe, easy way to get information from principals, teachers and staff. You will need to create an account with Monroe One even if your home district already uses ParentSquare.

You will use ParentSquare to:

• Get emergency alerts
• Get attendance alerts 
• Receive messages from your student's principal via email, text or app notification
• Access to school postings and photos
• Fill out forms and permission slips
• Communicate in your preferred language
• Direct messages to teachers and staff
• Calendar information
• Send and receive class information

Please make sure your contact information is updated in order to receive important alerts. You can do this by reviewing the student information sheets that were sent home this summer and return them to school with any updates/changes. You can also update your information within ParentSquare when logged into your account.

ParentSquare will send an activation letter to your email account. You can also sign up by visiting ParentSquare.com and clicking "sign on" in the upper right corner or by downloading the free app on your device. You will need to use the same email you provided for SchoolTool.

An introduction video is available at the following link: ParentSquare Introduction Video.

The use of electronic devices, including cell phones, pagers, DVD players, video game systems, and radios (Walkmans, iPods, headsets, boomboxes, MP3 players, etc.), is prohibited in our school during regular school hours. These devices disrupt learning and may endanger the safety of students and staff during a building evacuation. If a child brings these devices to school, they must turn them in to their classroom teacher and will be given back to them for ECT (Earned Choice Time) if they have earned that activity.

It is strongly recommended that electronic devices not be brought to school.  The school is not responsible for damage or loss of personal property.

Student attendance is monitored by our school nurses and main office staff. Please be sure to call the office, 585-586-1850 to report a student absence or tardy. It is important for students to attend school on a regular basis. When a student receives 10, 20 and 30 unexcused or unexcused absences an attendance letter will be mailed home.

The supply lists for each grade level will be sent home prior to the beginning of the school year as well as a Welcome letter from the teacher. 

Children are expected to have clothing and footwear that support a safe and focused learning environment. Students and their parents have the primary responsibility for acceptable student dress and appearance. See the Code of Conduct for student dress expectations Monroe One Code of Conduct.

The Code of Conduct articulates the expectations of our school and BOCES organization. The full Code of Conduct can be found at the following link, Monroe One Code of Conduct. 

All students enrolled at Bird/Morgan School for the 2023-24 school year are eligible to receive breakfast and lunch each day at no charge. There will be a charge for all ala carte items and snacks; only complete meals are free of charge. Nutritious breakfast and lunch are served every day in school. Consult your monthly menu for specific information. 

Students/Parents/Guardians may pay for meals in advance via www.MySchoolBucks.com or with a check payable to Monroe 1 BOCES Food Service Department. Funds should be maintained in accounts to minimize the possibility that a student may be without meal money on any given day. Any remaining funds for a particular student will be carried over to the next school year.

Unclaimed funds must be requested within one school year. Unclaimed funds will then become the property of the District Food Service Program.

MySchoolBucks provides: 

This online payment service provides a quick and easy way to pay for student meals. You can now pay for your child's meals and ala carte items by using your credit/debit card or electronic check.

MySchoolBucks provides

• Convenience—Available 24/7 on the web.
• Efficiency—Make purchases for all your students, even if they attend different schools within the district. Eliminate the need for your students to take money to school.
• Flexibility—Make payments using credit/debit cards and electronic checks.
• Security—MySchoolBucks adheres to the highest security standards, including PCI and CISP.
   

Setting up your account

If you are already using MySchoolBucks to pay for school meals and ala carte items, your account is already set-up and ready to go! Just login and click on the new link to Store.

1. Go to www.MySchoolBucks.com and register for a free account.
    
2. You will receive a confirmation email with a link to activate your account.
    
3. Add your students using their school name (Monroe #1 BOCES) and student ID. Call Monroe One Food Services at 585-387-3830 if you need your child's student ID number.
    
4. Make purchases with your credit/debit card or electronic check.
   *A program fee of $2.75 for each transaction will be charged to your account. You will have the opportunity to review any fees and cancel if you choose, before you are charged.
    

Questions

If you have any questions, contact MySchoolBucks directly:

• parentsupport@myschoolbucks.com
• 1-855-832-5226
• Visit myschoolbucks.com and click on Help/FAQ's

The organization adheres to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Private health care providers must follow other laws called Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). In instances where the school needs to communicate with primary health care providers, the parent will need to complete the required form(s) from their health care provider in order for school officials to be able to exchange information with them. Please be advised that confidential medical information will be shared with district personnel who need to know. This may include understanding the impact a medical condition may have on a child within the classroom setting and/or how to recognize and potentially manage significant medical concerns until medical help arrives. If you have any questions, please contact your school nurse teacher.

New York State law requires parents or guardians to provide a certificate of physical examination for all new students and for students in grades kindergarten, 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11, and for those students participating in sports, requiring special education services, or seeking work permits.

To ensure continuity of care, the Board of Education recommends that all examinations be done by your own physician, physician’s assistant, or nurse practitioner. A physical exam is valid for 12 months through the last day of the month in which the exam was conducted. This exam is valid for an entire school year for new entrants and mandated exams.

On June 13, 2019, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo signed legislation removing non-medical exemptions from school vaccination requirements for school-age children. This means that religious exemptions for immunizations are no longer valid for current or incoming students. Therefore, every child must obtain the required immunizations in order to attend school. 

It is important to note that your child will not be permitted to attend school in September without the required immunizations.

The required immunizations can be obtained from either your family health care provider or the Monroe County Health Department located at 111 Westfall Road, Rochester, NY 14620. They may be reached by phone for hours of operation at 585-753-5150. The exact date each immunization was given must be included in the record. 

Your immunization records along with required proof of scheduled follow-up appointments must be submitted to your school’s main office. If you have questions or concerns about immunizations, please contact your healthcare provider.

Any child with a severe or life-threatening medical condition that may require adult intervention and oversight during the school day, i.e. diabetes, poorly controlled seizures, severe respiratory problems, or anaphylaxis secondary to food or insect allergy, will have an emergency care plan created by the School Nurse in cooperation with the parent and their primary health care provider. These plans are updated annually. The purpose of these documents is to provide straightforward and simple instructions to non-medical personnel acting in a supervisory role to keep your child as safe as possible until medical assistance arrives. If you believe your child needs an emergency care plan, please be sure to bring the medical documentation from your physician as soon as possible before the start of school, so they can work with you to develop a safe plan for your child.

Medications will be dispensed in school only with written permission from the student’s physician and parents. This also applies to non-prescription drugs such as aspirin, cold remedies, or cough drops, etc. These rules are necessary to comply with New York State law.  Parents/guardians must personally bring medicine to school. Students may not bring in medications. Pharmacies will supply duplicate containers upon request.

You must call each day that your child will be absent from or late for school. The main office number is 585-586-1850.  Please give the following information when calling your student in late or absent:

• Your name and a phone number where you can be reached
• Your child’s name and their teacher’s name
• The date and the reason for the absence or tardiness

When late, a parent must accompany a student to the main office, and sign in as late. The student will sign in with the main office and report to their classroom. Using the change in transportation form, please notify the classroom teacher in advance if your child will be late due to an appointment.

A student’s repeated illegal tardiness, and/or absences will be reviewed and discussed with the parent in writing or in a phone call.

If your child is injured or becomes ill during school hours, the school nurse will notify you.  The school provides first aid only for injuries or acute illnesses that occur during school hours.  In an extreme emergency, the local Ambulance will be called and the school nurse will contact you.

Please Note:

It is very important that contact information be updated whenever information changes.  Without correct and current information, it may be extremely difficult to get in touch with you in the event of an emergency. New home phone numbers or addresses, new work situations and numbers, or new after-school care providers are all examples of the types of information we need to give your child the best care possible. Please keep the main office current with changes and updates.
 
Please alert the health office of any allergies your child may have, especially of any potentially life-threatening allergies.
 

Our school nurses coordinate healthcare in the school setting; answer routine medical questions for parents, staff, and children; give immediate first aid; and provide medical care according to the medical regimen prescribed by the student’s health provider. In addition, the nurses coordinate mandated physical examination requirements. Bird Elementary School Nurses are Denise Carroll, Michelle Guidice, and Lilly Herring. They can be reached at 585-388-2450.

All students are expected to participate in P.E. classes. All physical education excuses must be submitted in writing to the school nurse. A physician’s request must be submitted if the student is to be excused for more than one day. Students excused from physical education may not participate in playground activities.