Parent Handbook
Pelham
Road Baptist Church
Child Development Center
(864)
288-7674
1108 Pelham Road
PO
Box 25818
Greenville,
South Carolina 29616
Welcome to our program! We
are excited about being a special part of your child’s life and are dedicated
to their mental, physical, emotional and spiritual development.
The Bible tells us that as Jesus grew, he “increased in wisdom and
stature, and in favour with God and man.”
(Luke 2:52) That is our
prayer for your children.
The mission of the Child Development Center is to provide quality
Christian Weekday Early Education to children ages 6 weeks
to 5th grade in a Christ-centered environment.
Our goal is to lay the foundation for your child to have a personal
relationship with Christ. “Train
a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from
it.” (Proverbs 22:6)
All children are uniquely and wonderfully made.
They all do not learn the same way, and their individual growth and
development is a process, not an event. The
learning process must be consistent with the individual child’s God-given
abilities and talents. Using
“centers” (blocks, homeliving, books, puzzles, art, writing, manipulatives
and science/nature) encourages children to experience new things in a way that
best suits their learning style and level of development.
“Children learn better on their feet than in their seat.”
General Information
Curriculum: Our
curriculum is based on Wee Learn, a
Lifeway publication. The curriculum is divided into weekly units focused on a
specific topic. Each unit includes
Bible study material. The guide
incorporates learning themes through the “centers” in each room, enabling
our teachers to encourage your child’s spiritual, mental, emotional, social
and physical growth and development. The
guide also provides instructions for age-related foundational skills your child
will need for learning the communication skills of language, reading and
writing. We supplement this
curriculum by other relevant and/or seasonal material.
Our teachers take seriously their responsibilities to choose age
appropriate activities to balance their classroom’s individual and group
needs.
Schedule:
Each
classroom has its own schedule with planned activities carefully selected to
meet the needs of your children. The
schedule will be posted in their classrooms and provided for your reference.
Please
be sensitive to the schedule for your child’s classroom. Whenever possible, plan arrival and departure times that do
not conflict with their activities. Your
child should arrive ahead of time in order to participate fully in their daily
program and mealtimes. This enables
the teachers to keep the rest of the class on schedule for the balance of the
day.
Credentials:
The Child Development Center is registered
by the South Carolina Department of Social Services. We are in compliance with all provisions of the Code Laws of
South Carolina and the regulations applicable to this facility.
The registration is renewed every two years, which includes inspections
by the Fire Marshall and DHEC. A
licensing specialist from DSS also inspects us on a regular basis.
Our teacher to child ratios are higher than the state standard and our
teachers must have 10 to 15 hours of continuing education training per year.
Child
Development Center Committee:
A committee made up of Pelham Road Baptist Church members elected by the
church works with our director to develop policies for the Child Development
Center (CDC). This committee also
reviews the financial status of the CDC on a monthly basis. The committee meetings are normally held on the second
Wednesday of each month.
A
parental representative will serve as an ex-officio member of the committee for
a term of one year. The director
chooses this representative.
Baby-sitting
Disclaimer:
Our CDC strives to hire and retain loving and responsible caregivers for
your children. Pelham Road Baptist
Church and its Child Development Center are not responsible for actions of our
caregivers before and/or after their working hours.
Admissions:
We accept children without regard to race, sex or religious beliefs.
Children are admitted on a first-come basis.
Siblings of currently enrolled children or members of Pelham Road Baptist
Church are given priority. A
Request for Enrollment is completed when a parent tours the facility.
If space is not available, children are placed on a waiting list. You will be notified as openings occur. You may be called periodically to see if you are interested
in remaining on the waiting list. If
our call is not returned after the second message, your request for enrollment
will be removed from our file.
Upon
enrollment acceptance, a $75.00 annual, non-refundable registration fee with a
completed and signed application including a medical release and financial
agreement is required.
Immunizations: The
South
Carolina Certificate of Immunization must be submitted within 30 days of
enrollment. This form can be
obtained from your child’s pediatrician or the Health Department.
You must request a new, updated form each time your child receives
immunizations. We will periodically
send out reminders if your child’s record needs to be updated.
Tuition: Payment
is due prior to childcare services. We
accept monthly, bi-monthly, and weekly payments.
Rates are subject to adjustment as determined by the CDC committee.
A $5 deduction per child for the second (and subsequent) child will be
given to families with more than one child attending our center.
Tuition rates are not adjusted for holidays or in-service days.
No refunds will be given due to absence. Because our program is non-profit, we depend on regularly
collected tuition fees to keep us in operation. Thank you for making payment a priority.
Late
Payments:
Accounts not paid by 6:00 p.m. on Monday for the current week will be
charged a late fee in the amount of $5. When
payment for a child is two weeks past due, the child could be removed from our
enrollment unless arrangements have been made with the church Financial
Secretary and the CDC Director. If
a child is discharged, they may re-enroll upon payment of all outstanding fees.
Receipts:
We are
happy to provide tuition receipts. If
you need a receipt, please make a written request to the director or assistant
director. Receipts are generally
printed on Friday afternoons and are delivered to your child’s cubby by
Monday.
Records
Update:
Please remember to keep the administrative staff informed of changes in
home, work or emergency phone numbers and/or contact persons.
The CDC staff must be able to reach parents or guardians in the event of
an emergency. You will also be required to complete new registration paperwork
each year, usually late spring/early summer.
Termination
of Enrollment:
Parents may terminate child’s enrollment by giving two weeks notice in
writing to the CDC Director. This
allows the center time to fill the vacancy.
Failure to give this advance notice will result in an additional week’s
tuition charge.
The
center reserves the right to terminate a child’s enrollment with one week’s
written notice.
Arrival
and Departure:
Operating hours for the CDC are 7 AM to 6 PM. A late fee of $1 per child, per minute may be assessed when
children are picked up later than 6 PM. This
fee can be paid immediately or the following day.
You will be notified in writing if the fee is incurred.
Ø
Under no
circumstances should any child, regardless
of their age, enter the building without an adult.
Upon arrival, the adult must place the child under direct supervision of
a staff member. When returning to
take your child home, please also make certain a staff member is aware of your
presence. These practices are of
special concern when children are on the playground.
Pick-up
Procedure: All
persons authorized to pick-up children should have a copy of their driver’s
license on file in the classroom. If
persons other than the parents plan to pick-up children, written consent must be
given to the teacher. A valid
Driver’s License will be required for identification. Please ask the pick-up person to be prepared to show their
picture ID.
Parking
Lot Practices:
Our entrance and exit are designed for one-way traffic only.
Please use the upper driveway when entering the property and the lower
driveway (past the playgrounds next to the fire station) when exiting.
The exit has space for a left-turning and right-turning lane. We request that you do not use the “circle area” for
dropping off and picking up your child(ren).
This is a fire lane for the buildings.
Please park your car in the spaces provided in the lots.
REMEMBER TO KEEP
YOUR SPEED TO 10 MPH OR LESS. Children
do not always remember that cars do not have “eyes”.
We ask that you be
aware of the fact that children are
present at all times.
Discipline Policy
·
Praising
positive behavior
·
Giving
children choices when possible
·
Using logical
consequences when appropriate
·
Redirecting
the child to a different activity
·
Removing the
child from the group or situation (“Time-out”). The standard guideline for time-out is one minute per year of
age.
Under no
circumstance is corporal or physical punishment used in our center.
Should
a serious behavioral problem arise, your child’s teacher may request a
conference so that you can work together in order to give consistent attention
to the problem. Every effort will
be made to reach a satisfactory solution before it becomes necessary to remove a
child from our enrollment.
Clothing
and Personal Items
What
to wear:
Please dress your child in comfortable clothing appropriate for
activities such as outdoor play and art. WE
PLAY DIRTY! The center is not
responsible for items that get dirty due to regular daily activities. We also recommend that children wear socks and tennis shoes
to reduce the risk of injury. Open-toed
shoes (such as sandals and flip-flops) are not functional for children’s
playground activities.
Children
play outside daily, except in rainy, extremely hot or very cold weather.
Please send sweaters, coats, jackets, hats and/or gloves or mittens as
well as sunscreen and hats as weather appropriate and necessary.
ALL
CLOTHING ITEMS SHOULD BE LABELED WITH YOUR CHILD’S
FIRST
AND LAST NAME.
What
to bring:
All personal items (including child’s clothing, lunch items, blanket,
“lovey”, outerwear, etc.) should include their first and last name.
The CDC is not responsible for lost, damaged or stolen items.
Please restrict the bringing of personal toys to show-and-tell days only. Encourage your child to leave a personal toy in your car, or
put it in their cubby immediately upon arrival.
Items needed daily:
·
Pacifier,
“lovey”* & blanket for napping (Nap
Mats* are required for children in K4)
·
Extra clothes*
Temperature appropriate. Please
send two or more outfits when teething, potty training, etc.
·
3-4 sip cups
for each day’s useÑ
·
Bottles with
capsÑ,
food/cereal or daily lunch as needed.
·
Diapers/pull-ups,
wipes, and ointment*
*
may remain at the center stored in cubby; blankets go home Friday for
washing.
Ñ We cannot rinse or wash bottles, bowls, and utensils or sip
cups and re-use them. They must only be used for one feeding. Please carefully review our “Lunch and Snacks” as well
as our “Bottle and Sip-Cup” policies.
The
CDC will provide morning and afternoon snack for all children. Because our kitchen is in a separate building, we are unable
to provide daily lunches. We do,
however, have the ability to heat and/or refrigerate whatever you send.
We request
that you do
not send carbonated drinks,
candy or chewing gum. These
items cause problems. Please label
lunch box and all contents with your child’s name.
Lunch
is provided for all ages eating table food on Fridays.
We serve Wedgy's cheese pizza.
On Mondays, lunch is provided for older 2’s through K-4.
Hot dogs and chips are served. The
cost of these lunches is included in your full-time tuition.
Lunch
must be brought from home on days not specified above.
If you do not send a lunch with your child, it will be provided at a
$5.00 cost.
Please
be aware of the scheduled lunch and snack-times in your child’s classroom.
Your child should arrive before these times in order to participate in
our mealtimes and keep their classmates and teacher on schedule for the balance
of the day.
Because
preparing lunches for many children is time-consuming, we have adopted the
following procedures:
·
Maximum
cook-time for heat-ups is two (2) minutes
(This includes “TV”/frozen dinners)
·
Meals are to
be sent in microwave-proof containers, ready for heating
·
All food is to
be cut or prepared and ready-to-eat (including Lunchables)
For
children in early 2’s and under, PLEASE DO NOT SEND:
·
Whole Grapes
·
Whole Hot Dogs
·
Nuts
·
Popcorn
·
Thickly-spread
Peanut Butter
We
provide apple juice, milk and water for those children no longer needing
formula. You do not need to send a
beverage. We also provide
disposable plates, cups and spoons. If
your child requires a sip-cup (spill-proof only), you will need to provide them.
Parties:
We will be
glad to celebrate your child’s birthday.
You are welcome to bring lunch or party food for the day. Please coordinate your plans with your child’s teacher.
This will allow them time to notify parents of a change in the routine.
If invitations are sent for a party away from the center, please include
all the children in the class. This
will alleviate hurt feelings.
Due
to health department regulations, a clean (sanitized) sip-cup or bottle must be
used for each meal or snack. In
order to be in compliance, following is our procedure:
·
Infants –
Send a clean, sanitized bottle or sip-cup for every meal or snack.
·
Toddlers –
Send at least two (2) clean sip-cups
plus the one they are drinking from in the morning. We will use the first one for morning snack.
We will use the other two for lunch and afternoon snack.
·
If
no sip-cup is provided, your child will drink from a disposable cup.
·
All other
rooms (Older 2’s through K-4) will use disposable cups for all meals and
snacks. If you send a sip-cup in
the morning, we can only use it for morning snack.
We will then rinse it and put it in the child’s cubby.
The
CDC will be closed on the following days:
New Year’s Day
Labor Day
Good
Friday
Thanksgiving Thursday and Friday
Memorial Day
Christmas Eve
Independence Day
Christmas Day
Last Thursday & Friday in July*
If
the holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the center will be closed on Friday
or Monday. Notices for all holiday
and in-service closings are posted in advance.
*During
our teacher “in-service” days, the staff attends a conference as a group
where they are trained in the Wee Learn curriculum and other related topics.
This is an excellent opportunity enabling teachers to grow spiritually as
well as bond with each other in a team environment.
It is a tremendous benefit to your children as well as our staff.
Vacation
Every
child is entitled to five (5) vacation/ free days in each calendar year.
These days may be taken one at a time or all together.
Please remember, your child must be out of the center in
order for you to use a free day. Please
fill out a free slip located outside of the CDC office and place in the check
box. If you do not fill out a slip,
payment is expected.
Inclement Weather
Policy
In
the event of severe weather, these guidelines are used to determine the daily
operating schedule.
*If
Greenville County schools are delayed, we will open at the same time they open.
*If
Greenville County schools are closed, we will open no earlier than 10:00 am.
We will determine the need to close all day based on whether there is
enough staff available to operate.
This
information will be communicated by Channel 4 or by the website www.thecarolinachannel.com.
Because
sick children require special attention, we are unable to give them the care
they need. We also do not have the
facility to separate them from healthy children.
We appreciate your cooperation by finding alternative care for them
during times of sickness. They
may return when symptoms subside or with a doctor’s note stating they are not
contagious.
If
your child has been diagnosed with a communicable disease, such as chicken pox,
pink eye, thrush, fifths disease, etc., please
notify the center immediately. We
have a responsibility to share this information with other parents and teachers
in the center. Additional
sanitizing is usually required. Your
child may return when they are no longer contagious.
Sick
Child Pick-up: A
parent or authorized person will be called to pick up your child from the center
if any one or more of the following symptoms are present:
·
Rashes:
If our
staff notices an unusual rash on the child, you will be notified.
If this cannot be explained, you will be asked to come pick them up.
They may return with a doctor’s note stating they are not contagious.
·
Colds:
The center
understands that a child will have runny noses and coughs.
If a child comes to the center with a cold, he should be able to follow
the daily routine, including playground time. If
we feel he is not able to participate in daily activities, parents will be
notified to pick up child.
·
Fever:
If your
child has a fever of 101 or higher, they should be picked up immediately.
The child may return when their temperature has been normal for 24 hours
without the aid of medication, i.e. Motrin or Tylenol, or you have a doctor’s
note stating the fever is caused by an ear infection or teething.
Children with non-contagious illnesses may still not feel well and should
remain out if this is an option for you.
·
Diarrhea:
If your
child has three loose bowel movements or one that comes out of the diaper you
will be called to pick them up. They
may return to the center 24 hours after diarrhea has subsided and child has
returned to normal eating habits.
·
Vomiting:
If your
child vomits at the center, you will be called to pick them up.
They may return 24 hours after vomiting has subsided and child has
returned to normal eating habits.
Our
policy in regards to diarrhea and vomiting is strict because infection is spread
so quickly to other children and staff. We
try to be reasonable with regard to antibiotics and teething.
Children
who cannot play outside for whatever reason should remain at home until they are
able. We have no one to care for
him or her inside.
Parents
are asked to notify the teacher of any
situation that may affect your child’s behavior.
Guests, travel, and undue stress are generally things that upset
children. We can’t help deal with
their anxieties if we are not aware of them.
Please
call the CDC as early as possible if your child is not attending that day.
This is helpful in scheduling teacher resources and their classroom’s
daily schedule.
Medication: If
your child should require medication while here at the center, medicine forms
must be filled out and signed. You
will find these in your child’s room or in the office.
We must have written consent to order to administer any medication
whether it is over-the-counter or prescription.
Following
is a list of guidelines we follow for giving medication:
*The medicine form dosage must match the label.
*The medicine bottle must have your child’s name printed on the label
if it
is a prescribed medicine. (Siblings
cannot share medication unless
both names are on the bottle.)
*We will not administer expired medication.
*Non-prescription medications must have your child’s weight and age on
the dosage label. If it reads, “Consult a physician,” we will require a
doctor’s note stating the child’s name and dosage.
We
provide after-school care from 2:30 to 6:00 p.m.
We currently pick up from the following elementary schools:
Pelham Road, Mitchell Road, Brushy Creek, Buena Vista and Oak View.
Please call the center before
11:30 AM whenever possible if we do not need to pick-up your child at school
that day. If your child’s
school is not listed, please ask. We
may be able to make an arrangement.
We
provide afternoon snack and drink every day.
Homework time is scheduled for this group of children Monday through
Thursday. We also have a computer
lab with Internet access for the children to enjoy. Outside play is scheduled daily weather permitting.
Our
summer program is made up of weekly field trips and special activities.
This information is published in mid April to early May each year.
There is an additional fee charged to cover field trip costs.
There
are many ways in which you can be involved in our center.
You have to opportunity to go on field trips, help out with parties, be a
class parent, participate in center workdays, and donate toys or other items for
special projects. There are many
occasions that require volunteer labor/time for playground or building
maintenance, staff appreciation activities, or special events.
The list could go on and on. It
is important that you become involved in your child’s childcare experience.
It helps you to build a relationship with teachers and other parents.
These relationships are invaluable to our program.