These polices are evolving as were work with Idaho Stars and participate in Steps to Quality. This ensures we are implementing the best practices to create a high-quality early childhood education program.
General Information
Communication
The majority of the communication at center between, parents, teachers and directors is through the Brightwheel app. Parents will be invited to join the app upon enrollment. Brightwheel allows for teachers to send pictures and videos of students in their daily activities. Parents can email the director, as well, at angie@sunnydaysboise.com.
What To Bring
To ensure your child has everything they need, we ask that students have the following with them each day:
- Cold Lunch
- Afternoon Snack
- Change of Clothes (in a gallon sized plastic bag)
- Pillow and/or Stuffed Animal
- Diapers or Pull-ups
Sunny Days will provide a water bottle, baby wipes, sleeping mats, sheets, pillow and extra snacks. Items that need sanitization will be cleaned at least once a week.
Arrival and Departure Procedures
Students will be dropped and picked up through the door marked entrance. They will put their personal belongings in their cubby and place their lunch either in the fridge or in their cubby. Drop-off time is between 7:45am to 9:30am, to make sure to not disrupt their routine, students outside of this timeframe for reasons other than appointments may not be allowed to stay. Students can be picked up anytime after 2:45pm until 5:00pm. A late fee of $15 will be assessed for students that are not picked up by 5:00pm per incident after one warning.
Clothing
Dress your child appropriately for the weather, including coats, hats, boots and mittens in winter. Even in winter, the children usually spend some time outdoors playing. Label all outerwear with your child’s name. Additionally, we extra hats and gloves that the children can borrow during their time outdoors. The children wear paint shirts. However, it is still not always possible to keep paint off clothing. Additionally, we ask that you put an extra set of clothes for accidents inside a gallon sized plastic bag in you child’s backback.
Parent Concerns
Throughout the school year, you may have questions, comments, or concerns regarding your child or the preschool in general. If your concerns are with your child, the curriculum, or a classroom issue, we prefer that you speak first with your child’s teacher. Please do not engage the teacher in discussion during class time but instead, arrange for a conference at another time. You are welcome to request the Director be present at the conference as well. You may email the Director anytime at: angie@sunnydaysboise.com
School Closures
If the Boise School District closes schools due to weather or an emergency, then Sunny Days will also be closed that day, as well.
Healthy Sleeping Policy
For healthy sleeping, every child sleeps on pads with their own sheet, blanket and pillow. Individual children’s bedding is stored separately - without contact with the floor or bedding of others. Sleeping equipment is stored separately (ex. the floor side of one mat does not touch the sleeping surface of another mat). Bedding is washed at least weekly and as needed. Place children as far apart as possible and/or alternate children head to feet.
Privacy Policy
Sunny Days is committed to protecting and upholding the rights and privacy of children and their families. All children will be treated fairly, in a non-discriminatory way, regardless of racial, ethnic, gender, cultural, religious and linguistic background and abilities. All information pertaining to children and their families is maintained in a confidential manner to ensure their privacy is protected. Confidential and private information will be disclosed only with parental consent and only when there is an established "need to know‟. Staff and volunteers are trained annually on the importance of keeping all information about children, families and other staff confidential.
Inclusion Policy
We have adopted the definition of inclusion as developed by the Division for Early Childhood of the Council for Exceptional Children (DEC) and the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) stating “Early childhood inclusion embodies the values, policies, and practices that support the right of every young child and his or her family, regardless of ability, to participate in a broad range of activities and contexts as full members of families, communities, and society. The desired results of inclusive experiences for children with and without disabilities and their families include a sense of belonging and membership, positive social relationships and friendships, and development and learning to reach their full potential.
Discipline policy
One of the fundamental goals of a developmental preschool is to provide a safe and consistent learning environment for children to develop confidence in their skills of group dynamics and conflict resolution. Discipline in such an environment is a combination of guidance and positive reinforcement of desirable behavior as well as limitation of inappropriate behavior
As children experience group dynamics they learn what is acceptable or unacceptable behavior. Most unacceptable behavior stems out of a need for attention or from frustration by the lack of skills to express what one needs. Therefore, most unacceptable behavior can be resolved in the classroom. This is an ongoing process and, more often than not, lapses will occur, but with less frequency and more thought.
We have developed a discipline policy that is mindful of children’s varying stages of development and temperament while ensuring the right of each child to a safe learning environment. We have also purchased and are implementing a curriculum focusing specifically on such issues. The program is from The Peace Education Foundation, an international non-profit organization dedicated to teaching peace through education at age appropriate levels. The curriculum is called Peace Keeping Skills for Little Kids and includes art, music, role playing and activities which focus on the “whole child” embracing physical, social, emotional and intellectual growth and teach compassion, trust, fairness, cooperation and reverence for the human family. You will recognize it if your child talks about “I-Care Cat” or “Hands are for Helping, not Hurting”.
The teacher guide is available for review and teachers will be updating any volunteer on concepts and strategies being taught throughout the year.
Discipline for Routine Situations
Children learn appropriate behavior from the examples set by parents and teachers. Therefore, when interacting with children at preschool, parents and teachers shall strive to demonstrate exemplary behavior. Please refer to the “Interacting with Children” section of this handbook for some specific examples.
Children respond to and learn from positive reinforcement. Therefore, desirable behavior will be encouraged and praised.
As discussed above in the “Discipline Philosophy,” a reasonable amount of inappropriate behavior is expected from children as they develop skills to resolve conflict and adapt to a group environment. To help students resolve routine conflicts, teachers may use the following proactive methods:
- Teachers may help students manage conflict by intervening and facilitating negotiation.
- Teachers may redirect students to other activities.
- Take a Break—Teachers may tell the child to “take a break” and think about what they could do differently that would work better or be more constructive. Tell the child that he/she may return to the group as soon as they are ready to try again. “Taking a break” can be an effective way to deal with much of the day-to-day correction a child may need. This method makes the student responsible for changing his behavior. By including the child in the process, the children take responsibility for changing their own behavior. Taking a break” is not the same as time out. One important aspect of taking a break is that the child helps determine the length of time spent taking a break.
iMMUNIZATION POLICY
Immunization Code
Idaho Code, Chapter 11, Section 39-1118: 39-1118. IMMUNIZATION REQUIRED. (1) Within fourteen (14) days of a child’s initial attendance at any licensed day care facility, the parent or guardian shall provide a statement to the operator of the day care facility, regarding the child’s immunity to certain childhood diseases. This statement shall provide a certificate signed by a physician or a representative of a health district, that the child has received, or is in the process of receiving immunizations as specified by the Board of Health and Welfare; or can effectively demonstrate, through verification in a form approved by the
Department of Health and Welfare, immunity gained through prior contraction of the disease. Immunizations required and the manner and frequency of their administration shall be as prescribed by the State Board of Health and Welfare and shall conform to recognized standard medical practices in the state. The State Board of Health and Welfare shall promulgate appropriate rules and regulation for the enforcement of the required immunization program and specify reporting requirements of the day care center, pursuant to the provision of Chapter 52, Title 67, Idaho code. (2) Any minor child whose parent or guardian has submitted to officials of a licensed day care facility a certificate signed by a physician licensed by the State Board of Medicine stating the physical condition of the child is such that all or any of the required immunizations would endanger the life or health of the child shall be exempt from provision of this section. Any minor child whose parent or guardian has submitted a signed statement to officials of the day care facility stating their objections on religious or other grounds shall be exempt from the provisions of this section.
Immunization policy
All facilities are required to have immunization records for the following preventable diseases: Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis, Measles, Mumps, Rubella, Polio, Haemophilus influenza type b (HIB) and Hepatitis B. We allow for an immunization exemption to be filled out and put on file with the Vice President/Registrar. In the event of a reported case of one of the nine above mentioned diseases, children with exemptions will be excluded from the classroom for the duration of the outbreak.
Illness policy
Please tell the teacher when your child is ill. You can contact us via Brightwheel prior to school and send a message to the teacher. Please use good judgment and the following guidelines will be used in determining when to send a sick child home:
Fever
Usually fever is a sign that the body is fighting off an infection or a contagious disease. Fever is defined as an elevation of 1.5 degrees above the normal temperature of 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit (by mouth). A child with a temperature of 100 degrees Fahrenheit or higher will be asked to remain home or a parent/guardian will be called to come an pick up the child. A child should be fever-free for 24 hours before returning to preschool.
Diarrhea
In that event that a child has more than one instance of loose, watery stools. Their parent/guaridan will be called to come and pick up the child.
Vomiting
If a child is vomits at school, a parent or guardian will be called to come an pick up the child. We ask that you not send a child that has been vomiting with other symptoms to school.
Covid-19
Sunny Days follows the Boise School District for guidance on Covid-19 procedures on masking and quarantine.
Influenza
A child with a fever, persistent coughing, congestion, chills or muscle aches in any combination should be kept home or asked to go home.
Sore Throat
A child with a sore throat who has not seen a doctor, should be kept home or asked to go home. Also, if your have excessive nasal discharge, especially if yellow or greenish, we ask that they stay home.
Rashes
A child with an unidentified rash that is spreading and/or getting worse over time will be sent home.
In all of these cases, the Sunny Days Learning Academy recommends that a physician be consulted. If your child is ill or possibly ill, please be thoughtful of other parents and children and keep him/her home until he/she is well.
Lice
Sunny Days has a “NIT-FREE” policy; students will have to be kept at home until initial treatment has been completed.