Greetings!
As we start to get closer to the cold & flu season, I wanted to make sure that you all are aware of the procedures for reporting absences as well as the PALS program illness policy that is supported by the school nurse. You do NOT need to contact me directly if your child is going to be unexpectedly absent due to illness. You are welcome to shoot me an email or leave a message on the classroom phone but please do not call me on my cell phone. You DO however need to call the school and report it. The office will contact me directly once you have called it in. However, if you know in advance that your child needs to leave early or will be late due to doctor's appointments, please write it down in your child's communication notebook, leave it opened to the page you wrote on and place it in your child's binder in the slot labeled "Ms. Lay". I check these each morning for notes. Please follow the district & building guidelines for reporting absences. One other reminder is that if you need to get hold of me during the day, please call me on the classroom phone only. If we do not answer then just leave a message and I will get it.
As far as our illness policy goes, please know that we have students in the program that have significant medical conditions so please make sure that you are following the 24 hour fever free policy before allowing your child to return to school. In addition to fevers, your child may also be sent home if they are so lethargic that they are unable to stay awake or if they have a runny nose that is significant enough that they are unable to contain the mucus to a tissue independently. If it becomes an issue and the mucus is getting on their hands, belongings, clothes, etc. we will send them home for health & sanitary reasons. Please know that the same goes for a significant cough that is persistent enough that it disrupts their learning and that of the other students. We may ask you to pick your child up or even bring up a cough medicine. I want your child to be at school as much as possible and we practice hand washing, nose blowing, coughing into the crook of your arm, etc. but due to the number of students in the room and the health of the other students (& staff) I ask that you please err on the side of caution when it comes to determining whether you should send your child in or not. Judging from how quickly the virus spread in our classroom earlier this year, we are already wiping down tables, desks & chairs daily with Clorox wipes. The Health Dept. & CDC have already stated that this fall & winter will see a significant numbers of cases of the flu & other viruses as well as an early & prolonged time frame with which these viruses will be active. Please be extra aware & proactive of any symptoms that your child may be showing. Feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns you may have.
Thank you!
