Guidelines and Procedures

For the safety and comfort of our students and staff, animals are not permitted on campus, even if they are on a leash or are carried. Please be aware that pursuant to Orange County Ordinance 41.46 dogs are not to be on school grounds at any time.

Studies show that there is a direct correlation between good school attendance and student achievement. Therefore, we encourage you as parents to reinforce the importance of good school attendance and to make every effort to send your child to school on a regular basis.

Please call 949-936-5901 before 8:30 a.m. each day if your child will be absent or tardy. The above line is dedicated specifically for this purpose. All tardy students must sign in at the front office before going to class. Parents of students who are bussed, please also call the transportation department at 949-936-5370.

Attendance and tardies are monitored at the District level and, per CA Ed Code, letters will be generated if your child has three or more tardies of 30 minutes or more, ten tardies of less than 30 minutes, or three unexcused absences.

Per CA Ed Code, a student shall be excused from school when the absence is due to: illness, medical/dental appointments, funeral for immediate family members, observance of a holiday or ceremony of his or her religion, attendance at religious retreats, or student’s appearance in court.

It is requested that each parent discuss the following bicycle rules with your rider:

• Parents assume FULL responsibility and liability for the rider’s conduct and bicycle.
• Bicycles are allowed for students in grades 3-6 only.
• All bicycles MUST be parked in the bike rack and LOCKED. Students may not share a bicycle lock—only one bicycle per lock!
• Helmets MUST be worn by all students riding to and from school.
• All bicycles must be walked on school grounds.
• Children should never ride two on one bicycle.
• Bicycles must be in safe working condition.
• Students are not to loiter in or around the bike rack area at any time

Each child will be celebrated in their classroom, by their teacher and classmates. It might look slightly different in each classroom or grade, but each child will get their Special Day!

While we appreciate the joy and excitement that accompanies our students’ birthdays, we ask that no food, treats, goodies, pencils… be brought to school.

A more lasting gesture would be the donation of $15.00 to the Birthday Book Club in our school library. Our library staff has excellent books to choose from in the special Birthday Book Club Bin. See your teacher or the Library staff for the Book Club Form. Your child then chooses a book from the bin and special dedication card will be placed in the book. The book will be shared with your student’s class during their library time. After that, the book will be placed in the school library as a continuing memory of your child’s special day.

With more and more students coming to school with cell phones, it is imperative that you are aware of the following:

1. The school cannot assume any responsibility for any loss or damage to a cell phone.
2. Cell phones must be turned completely off (not on silent or vibrate mode) during the school day.
3. Cell phones must be kept in the student’s backpack at all times during the school day.
4. Students may not talk on their cell phones or listen to messages at any time during the school day.
5. Cell phones confiscated for failure to adhere to these rules will be turned in to the principal and will be returned to the student’s parents only.

Students are not allowed to use the front office phone for non-urgent matters. In order to minimize classroom interruptions, we also do not deliver non-emergency phone messages from the office to individual classrooms. We ask that you take care of all after-school arrangements with your child before he/she leaves for school. Your assistance is greatly appreciated.

The Meadow Park staff makes a concerted effort to establish a learning environment that is conducive to the development of good study habits and uninterrupted academic learning time. We seek your cooperation and assistance in this effort. You can help us by:

1. Sending the teacher a note or e-mail should you need to pick up your child early. This will allow the teacher time to have your child prepared for pick up.
2. Avoiding calling school and leaving messages for your child, unless it is an emergency. The telephone is made available to students only for emergencies.
3. Establishing a system that helps eliminate forgotten lunches, homework, money, musical instruments, etc. Parents bringing forgotten lunches and instruments to school should place them in our office. Children are encouraged to check this area for forgotten musical instruments throughout the day.

Meadow Park welcomes and values our volunteer assistance. In addition to the organization opportunities detailed on page 10, parents and guests may volunteer in classrooms and the library.

Classroom/Library Assistance

Classroom teachers and our library staff will recruit parent help at the beginning of the school year. There are opportunities for parents to work directly with students, to complete clerical tasks, and to complete tasks at home. If you are interested in serving in this way, please contact your child’s teacher. If working in the library is of interest to you, please contact our library staff.

We want your experience as a classroom or library volunteer to be a successful one. Here are some suggestions that might be of interest to you when you come to help out:

1. Meet the students in a relaxed, friendly manner.
2. Learn student names and pronounce them correctly.
3. Let the students know that you are truly interested in them by asking about interests, friends, etc.
4. Give students your full attention. Listen to what they have to say.
5. Set an example for students by being courteous and respectful to them.
6. Build students’ self-confidence. Let them know you expect them to try and to succeed.

As you work with students, keep these ideas in mind:

1. Be consistent when working with students.
2. Learn school rules and be sure to follow them.
3. Be dependable. The teacher and students are depending on you.
4. Be prepared. Have everything ready when you start to work with students.
5. Reward students with positive praise.
6. Help students learn HOW to do their work.
7. Ask for help if you find a problem that you feel you may not be able to handle.
8. Your interest and enthusiasm as a volunteer may be the single most important part of success in learning for many students.

Confidentiality

All student information observed or obtained while volunteering is to remain confidential. Adults who breech this confidentiality expectation will not be invited to return.

Please recognize that when volunteering in the classroom, you are offering your assistance to the classroom teacher. If you are interested in observing your child’s classroom, you are allowed up to three observations of no more than one hour each during the school year, per IUSD Board Policy. Please request your desired observation in writing at least two school days in advance.

Local schools are granted the authority to establish school-based dress and grooming standards consistent with District policy. Students are not allowed to wear any items to school that may be deemed inappropriate, unsafe, or disruptive to the educational process.

• Pants or shorts must be the proper size (not too small or too large), fitting securely at the waist above the hipbone.
• Shorts must be below the fingertips when hands are held at the side.
• Closed-toe shoes must be worn at all times. Unsafe shoes are not allowed. Shoes must be appropriate for daily physical activity.
• Dangling earrings are dangerous and are not appropriate school attire.
• Clothing that contains offensive or obscene symbols that promote alcohol, tobacco, drugs, gangs, tagging, violence, or that degrade any gender, cultural or ethical values are not permitted at school.
• Any article of clothing that does not cover the mid-section or undergarments or shows bare shoulders is not appropriate for school. Examples include bathing suits, tube tops, tops with spaghetti straps (less than 2 fingers wide), racer back tank tops.
• Make-up, unnatural hair colors or extreme hairstyles are not allowed at school.
• Hats may be worn outside for sun protection but should not be worn indoors.

Staff members monitor our school dress policy. Parents will be contacted when students violate our dress policy. Inappropriately dressed students will phone parents for a change of clothes. Sometimes the health office may have items that students can wear. Appropriate disciplinary action will be taken for students who repeatedly disregard dress code standards.

If you drive to school, we ask that you be aware of the safety of children when driving in the vicinity of the school.

Due to the limited number of parking spaces, the parking lot is reserved for staff only. To ensure the safety of our students, parents are not permitted to drive nor are parents and students allowed to walk through the parking lot at any time.

Parking is permitted along the west side of Blue Lake South between the posted signs. A loading zone is between and on either side of the school driveways; please pull all the way forward. Parking is not permitted in this zone. Do not leave your car in this area even if it is only for a few minutes. Drop off children next to the curb; do not double park or block the road. U-turns are illegal on Blue Lake South.

All staff members have a phone message line and are requested to check it regularly. The phones in the classrooms revert to voicemail during the school day. Each staff member also has an email address, which they check at least once per day, when present at school. Staff email addresses are listed on the staff page of the Meadow Park website. Please call the office for any emergency issues as teachers will not answer the phone or check email during instructional time.

Emergency Preparedness
At Meadow Park, we are constantly concerned for the safety and welfare of each of our students. We hold regular drills to teach children the appropriate way to safely exit the building in the event of a fire, to “duck and cover” in the event of an earthquake, and to respond to lockdowns. The school is fully equipped with search and rescue materials and first aid supplies.. Staff are assigned emergency preparedness roles and undergo specific training as needed. Our school staff is prepared to deal with a major emergency and to provide for the physical and emotional needs of students while they are under our supervision, as well as their orderly and safe release.

Access to students, in the event of an emergency, will be carefully controlled so that we may account for every child. Students will be released ONLY to adults designated on their emergency data.

In the event of an emergency, we will attempt to contact the parent community using emergency systems linked to phones and email.

To assist us in this effort, we require parents to do the following:

• ·Complete an Emergency Information Card and update it whenever there is a change in your contact information.
• ·Keep your contact information (including home phone, cell phone, email, and emergency contacts) on the MyIUSD parent portal up to date.
• In the event of an emergency, check in at the designated student-release area to pick up and sign out students.

One of our priorities is to have students develop personal responsibility. To this end, staff members will not accept homework or library books once school begins. The front office staff will accept lunches and forgotten instruments.

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• Personal belongings, such as skateboards, roller blades, scooters, Heelys, and hand-held laser pointers, are not permitted on school grounds.
• Electronic equipment, such as iPods, iPads, laptop computers, are not permitted on campus without the prior authorization of a teacher.
• Cell phones must be turned off and placed in student’s backpacks during school hours.
• Students will use appropriate language both in the classroom and on the playground.
• Students must have a pass to be in the buildings or atriums before school, during recess, or during lunch periods.
• Students are allowed on campus no earlier than 15 minutes before their school day begins and no later than 10 minutes after their school day ends.
• Students must use crosswalks or a corner when crossing the street, even if an adult is with them.
• Playing in or near the bathrooms is not permitted.
• Gum is not permitted at school.
• Unsafe play (wrestling, tackling, etc.) is not permitted.
• Closed toe shoes must be worn at all times.
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If you wish to pick up homework for your absent child, please call the office prior to 9:00 a.m. It will be available for pick-up after class is dismissed.

Late lunches are to be labeled with your child’s and teacher’s name and placed in the late lunch box in the office.

A hot lunch program is available for 1st-6th grade students. The lunch price is $3.25 (milk included). Milk is also available for $.75. Pre-payments may be made at school or online through the Lunch Box program at http://www.iusd.org/district_services/food_services/index.html

Checks are to be made payable to IUSD Nutrition Services. Please include your student’s PIN number on the check.

Free/Reduced Lunch

If your income meets required eligibility guidelines, please complete a free/reduced lunch application available online at Free & Reduced Price Meals.

A lost and found cart is located outside the MPR in the 1st Grade courtyard. Small items, such as glasses and retainers, as well as musical instruments, are kept in the office. We encourage parents and students to check the cart regularly for lost items. Please label everything that is sent to school.

Any time your child requires medication at school, the medication must be kept in the nurse’s office to be given by school personnel. LEGALLY, the school requires:

1. Medication MUST be in the ORIGINAL pharmacy bottle, labeled by the pharmacist.
2. The parent MUST sign a consent form prior to medication being administered. The form is available in the school office, as well as on the IUSD website under Health Services (http://iusd.org/education_services/health_services/index.html).
3. The physician MUST sign a consent form prior to medication being administered. Medication will not be administered unless instructions are specific.
4. Medication MUST be brought to school by a parent. At no time should medication arrive at school in a lunch box, backpack, baggie, etc.

These regulations apply to NON-PRESCRIPTION medications as well. Non-prescription drugs include aspirin, vitamins, cough syrup, cough drops, ointments, etc.

Please do not ask school personnel to administer medications supplied by you until the above mentioned requirements have been met.

Please do not ask school personnel to supply your child with medication as no medications are supplied by the school. Please do not send your child to school with medications of any kind.

Parent involvement is critical to the mission of Meadow Park; it supports the staff and helps reinforce the importance of education to your child. There are many ways to get involved. Following are details of organizations available for parent volunteers.

Parent-Teacher Association (PTA)

Meadow Park is fortunate to have the support of an active group of parents who devote their time and talents to promote activities and events for our students. Our PTA assists in providing financial support, not available by other means, which improves the quality of learning and increases opportunities for enrichment for all students. Parents are encouraged to attend meetings, support activities, and volunteer. Dates and times of meetings and activities will be posted on the PTA link of the Meadow Park website and in the Mustang Express.

School Site Council (SSC)

The School Site Council is a group of parents and school personnel whose responsibility is to plan, monitor, and evaluate our School Improvement Plan. Parent members are elected by vote of all parents in the fall. Meetings are open to the general parent community and the schedule of times will be listed on the Meadow Park Website and in the Mustang Express.

English Language Advisory Committee (ELAC)

The ELAC is composed of the principal, staff, and parents of English Language Learners who meet to review our instructional support of English Language Learner students. Sometimes this committee is combined with the SSC.

Meadow Park Foundation

The Meadow Park Foundation is a non-profit foundation made up of parent and community volunteers who raise funds specifically to support Meadow Park in the area of technology. They also contact corporations for matching grants, in-kind services, and donations of equipment.

If you are interested in being a part of any of these organizations, please call the office at 949-936-5900.

Overview

Meadow Park R.O.P.E.S. is a school-wide commitment to positive behavior support. Identifying, teaching, and reinforcing the expected behaviors allow students to achieve academic, behavioral, and social success. Meadow Park R.O.P.E.S. stems from the University of Oregon’s Center of Positive Behavior Interventions and Support (P.B.I.S.) program. Two years ago, Meadow Park adopted the P.B.I.S. philosophy and our first step was outlining our school-wide expected behaviors. We chose the acronym R.O.P.E.S., which stands for Responsible, On Time and Ready, Positive Attitude, Expect Respect, and Safety First. Please click here to see our school-wide matrix to learn more about Meadow Park’s expected behaviors.

R.O.P.E.S. Coupons

Students receive Meadow Park R.O.P.E.S. positive reinforcement coupons for displaying the school-wide and classroom specific expected behaviors. By turning in these coupons, students become eligible to win fun prizes from our R.O.P.E.S. cart! Students can earn these coupons from administrators, teachers, guest teachers/substitutes, support staff, and noon duty supervisors. Periodically, various Meadow Park staff members visit classrooms and Meadow Park R.O.P.E.S. coupons are randomly chosen from the classroom buckets. These students are rewarded with a variety of prizes. Once a month at Flag Deck, there is a special drawing where students are selected for prizes such as “Wii with the Principal”, “Extra Recess”, and a “Homework Pass”.

P.B.I.S. Basics

Utilizing the “Systematic Change Model”, attention is focused on creating and sustaining primary (school-wide), secondary (classroom), and tertiary (individual) systems of support that improve lifestyle results for all children. This makes problem behavior less effective and desired behavior more functional. It is research-based, and it works!

Key Components

• Clearly defined school-wide expected behaviors

• Expected behaviors are intentionally taught in all school settings

• Purposeful reinforcement for demonstrating positive school-wide expected behaviors

• Consistent consequences and opportunities for re-teaching positive expected behaviors

• Use of data to make decisions about school-wide practices

• Comprehensive staff and student involvement

Goals

• Improve the academic culture through increased instructional time

• Improve the behavioral culture through a decrease in office discipline referrals

• Improve school safety and positive peer interactions

How do we acknowledge students for positive behavior?
Students receive R.O.P.E.S. coupons for displaying the expected school-wide and classroom specific behaviors. By turning in these coupons, students become eligible to receive prizes and participate in fun activities! Students can earn these coupons from teachers, administrators, support staff, guest teachers, and noon duty supervisors.

When are the R.O.P.E.S. prize drawings?

R.O.P.E.S. coupons are drawn every Friday at Flag Deck, on monthly spirit days, and on random days throughout the week over the loud speaker.

Congratulations to the R.O.P.E.S. winners who were recently chosen for the Month of November. They were invited to join Mr. Potwora for a Hot Dog lunch on Dec 12th!!

Driving and Parking

If you drive to school, we ask that you be aware of the safety of children when driving in the vicinity of the school.

Due to the limited number of parking spaces, the parking lot is reserved for staff only. To ensure the safety of our students, parents are not permitted to drive nor are parents and students allowed to walk through the parking lot at any time.

Parking is permitted along the west side of Blue Lake South between the posted signs. A loading zone is between and on either side of the school driveways; please pull all the way forward. Parking is not permitted in this zone. Do not leave your car in this area even if it is only for a few minutes. Drop off children next to the curb; do not double park or block the road. U-turns are illegal on Blue Lake South.

Arrival and Dismissal

Bicycles

It is requested that each parent discuss the following bicycle rules with your rider:

• Parents assume FULL responsibility and liability for the rider’s conduct and bicycle.

• Bicycles are allowed for students in grades 3-6 only.

• All bicycles MUST be parked in the bike rack and LOCKED. Students may not share a bicycle lock—only one bicycle per lock!

• Helmets MUST be worn by all students riding to and from school.

• All bicycles must be walked on school grounds.

• Children should never ride two on one bicycle.

• Bicycles must be in safe working condition.

• Students are not to loiter in or around the bike rack area at any time.

Walking To and From School

Parents are urged to discuss safety rules and the responsibilities of good citizenship with their children in regard to walking to and from school. The City of Irvine provides crossing guards at Thunder Run/West Yale Loop, Blue Lake South/West Yale Loop, and Early Morn/Blue Lake South. These points should be stressed:

• Come directly to school from home.

• Walk on the sidewalk and inside the crosswalks.

• Cross streets only at the corners and crosswalks and with the crossing guard who is on duty before and after school. Jaywalking is a citable offense by the Irvine Police Department.

• Go directly home after school.

• Do not talk to strangers.

Driving and Parking

If you drive to school, we ask that you be aware of the safety of children when driving in the vicinity of the school.

Due to the limited number of parking spaces, the parking lot is reserved for staff only. To ensure the safety of our students, parents are not permitted to drive nor are parents and students allowed to walk through the parking lot at any time.

Parking is permitted along the west side of Blue Lake South between the posted signs. A loading zone is between and on either side of the school driveways; please pull all the way forward. Parking is not permitted in this zone. Do not leave your car in this area even if it is only for a few minutes. Drop off children next to the curb; do not double park or block the road. U-turns are illegal on Blue Lake South.

Student Pick-up Locations

We have designated four pick-up locations for those families meeting their children at dismissal. In order to alleviate congestion on campus and to keep our students, staff, and parents safe, we ask that you wait at one of four designated pick-up areas. Students are not to be picked up at their classroom’s door. Kindergarten students are released by their teacher at location #1. The locations are:

1. On the grass area between Rainbow Rising and the Kindergarten play structure. Note that siblings are not permitted to play on the play structures/grounds during school hours.
2. At the gated entrance to school grounds on Blue Lake South near the community pool and crosswalk.
3. On the grass area on the east side of the campus near the path that connects Meadow Park and South Lake Middle School.
4. On the sidewalk near the bike racks.

Playground supervision begins at 7:55 a.m. Students are not to arrive on campus before that time. There is no supervision after school. All students must go directly home when dismissed. Primary students who are dismissed early may not wait for older siblings. The school grounds/playground are for the sole use of Meadow Park students during the school day, and are not open to siblings during school hours.

At Meadow Park, we are constantly concerned for the safety and welfare of each of our students. We hold regular drills to teach children the appropriate way to safely exit the building in the event of a fire, to “duck and cover” in the event of an earthquake, and to respond to lockdowns. The school is fully equipped with search and rescue materials, first aid supplies, food, and water. Staff are assigned emergency preparedness roles and undergo specific training as needed. Our school staff is prepared to deal with a major emergency and to provide for the physical and emotional needs of students while they are under our supervision, as well as their orderly and safe release.

Access to students, in the event of an emergency, will be carefully controlled so that we may account for every child. Students will be released ONLY to adults designated on their emergency data.

In the event of an emergency, we will attempt to contact the parent community using emergency systems linked to phones and email.

To assist us in this effort, we require parents to do the following:

• Complete an Emergency Information Card and update it whenever there is a change in your contact information.

• Keep your contact information (including home phone, cell phone, email, and emergency contacts) on the MyIUSD parent portal up to date.

• In the event of an emergency, check in at the designated student-release area to pick up and sign out students.

We have designated four pick-up locations for those families meeting their children at dismissal. In order to alleviate congestion on campus and to keep our students, staff, and parents safe, we ask that you wait at one of four designated pick-up areas. Students are not to be picked up at their classroom’s door. Kindergarten students are released by their teacher at location #1. The locations are:

1. On the grass area between Rainbow Rising and the Kindergarten play structure. Note that siblings are not permitted to play on the play structures/grounds during school hours.
2. At the gated entrance to school grounds on Blue Lake South near the community pool and crosswalk.
3. On the grass area on the east side of the campus near the path that connects Meadow Park and South Lake Middle School.
4. On the sidewalk near the bike racks.

Emergency Preparedness

At Meadow Park, we are constantly concerned for the safety and welfare of each of our students. We hold regular drills to teach children the appropriate way to safely exit the building in the event of a fire, to “duck and cover” in the event of an earthquake, and to respond to lockdowns. The school is fully equipped with search and rescue materials, first aid supplies, food, and water. Staff are assigned emergency preparedness roles and undergo specific training as needed. Our school staff is prepared to deal with a major emergency and to provide for the physical and emotional needs of students while they are under our supervision, as well as their orderly and safe release.

Access to students, in the event of an emergency, will be carefully controlled so that we may account for every child. Students will be released ONLY to adults designated on their emergency data.

In the event of an emergency, we will attempt to contact the parent community using emergency systems linked to phones and email.

To assist us in this effort, we require parents to do the following:

• Complete an Emergency Information Card and update it whenever there is a change in your contact information.

• Keep your contact information (including home phone, cell phone, email, and emergency contacts) on the MyIUSD parent portal up to date.

• In the event of an emergency, check in at the designated student-release area to pick up and sign out students.