Forms

Classroom Directory Form
Tobin School Dress Code 2011-2012
Sunscreen/Insect Repellant Permission Form
A Note From Home
Developmental History Form
Student Information Sheet 2011
Hopes and Dreams
Oral Health Policy 2011
Medical Form
Electronic Funds Transfer Form
Required Student Transportation Plan
Individual Health Care Plan
Medication Consent Form

 

Policies

A complete list of our policies and procedures is provided to each family upon admission to Tobin. This document (our Parent Handbook) is updated annually to stay current. Please refer to this document for additional information.

Tobin School Bullying Prevention and Intervention Plan

 

School Schedule and Attendance

School Hours

Morning Preschool / Pre-K Classroom	8:45/9:00am-1:00/1:15pm
JrK One, JrK Two, and Kindergarten	8:00am-2:00pm
First Grade through Grade 5	8:00am-2:30pm

Early Release Hours

Morning PS/Pre-K Program	11:30am (no lunch served)
Junior Kindergarten through 5th	12:00pm (no lunch served)

A detailed Academic Calendar is prepared for each year and has been provided to you. Students are expected to attend School on all days that school is in session. Attendance in school is vitally important to your child’s connections and successes at school. Therefore we expect you to schedule all vacations in accordance with our school schedule. Any deviation from this policy needs to be discussed with The Tobin Office on an individual basis.

Please report any known absences to the Head of School prior to the day. If your child is going to be absent, please call the office by 8:00am (508-655-5006).

 

Snow Closings/Emergencies

The Tobin School will follow the Natick Public School system for all snow closings, delayed openings, and 1/2 days. An academic calendar for the coming school year will be made available to you in May. Please wait to make vacation arrangements until you have the preliminary calendar in hand. The Tobin School will not be listed on the local media outlets and will always follow the Natick Public Schools. Please use the internet, TV or radio to track closings for the town of Natick. You can find snow closures on all local TV and radio stations and can even have them sent directly to your mobile phones and email addresses. We will also change our phone message here on the Tobin School line to reflect any change in routine.

School Closures
If Natick Public Schools calls a snow closure, the Tobin School will also be closed. If there is a snow day, our Tobin Afterschool program WILL be open from 7:00a.m - 6:30p.m. If your child is enrolled for that day, they are welcome and will be expected. If they are not enrolled on this day, you must call Jackie Morgan to see if we have space for them to attend.  She can be reached at 508-650-1561 or at jmorgan@thetobinschool.org.
 
Delayed Openings
If Natick calls a one or two hour delayed opening, we will also delay our opening for one or two hours. For example, if Natick calls a one hour delay, we will begin JrK through 5th grade at 9:00a.m. and will have staff available for drop off one half hour before (8:30a.m.). Our Morning PreK or Preschool will also do the one hour delay with drop off beginning at 9:45 instead of 8:45. Note that we will not have staff here for 7:00a.m. drop-offs on this day for our primary students.

 

Dress Code

The Tobin School requires all its students to adhere to our dress code.  This dress code serves to set a respectful atmosphere at the school, alleviates peer pressure in dressing choices, and promotes the understanding that school is an important place of learning.  While we do ask all our students to follow the dress code, we will only enforce it strictly for students enrolled in Jr Kindergarten through 5th grade.

Clothing Options NOT Permitted at The Tobin School:
Tops:
• No graphic t-shirts
• No character shirts (cartoon characters, superheroes, etc.)
• No tank tops or tube tops

Bottoms:
• No camouflage pants
• No jeans
• No sweatpants or wind pants
• No gym shorts
• No pajama bottoms

Other:
• Hats are not allowed indoors at The Tobin School

APPROVED Clothing for School Days:
Tops:
• Collared shirts (polo shirts are fine)
• Solid color crew neck and henley shirts, short or long sleeve (NEW!)
• Button down shirts
• Turtlenecks and sweaters
• Dressy shirts and tunic tops
• Dresses or jumpers

Bottoms:
• Solid colors khaki style pants or shorts
• Solid color elastic waist pants or shorts that are NOT sweat pants, pajama pants or wind pants
• Leggings or tights with dresses or tunics are fine

Footwear:
• We encourage active play at Tobin. Please choose footwear that will allow your child to run, jump, and climb.
• ALL children are permitted to wear sneakers every day.
• Students are required to wear sneakers and socks for physical education class.
• No flip flops or Crocs.

Approved Clothing for Physical Education Days (JrK and up):
Please select attire choices on these days that will allow your child to participate in active play.  Sneakers and socks are required for PE. Layered tops are recommended to prevent overheating.

Tobin Spirit Wear:
Logoed Tobin School clothing is available but is not required.  Items can be purchased through Lands’ End by contacting them at 800-469-2222 or at www.landsend.com/school.  Note: Land’s End contributes 3% of all sales back to Tobin if you use our school code: 9000-99151.

We will enforce the dress code as follows:
• The first time your child comes to school in inappropriate attire, we will send home a ‘reminder’ at day’s end notifying you and your child of the dress code issue and asking your future support.  This reminder will not be handed directly to the child but will be sent home in their folder that day.  We ask that you talk to your child about the reminder and how to make better selections for the next day’s attire.  Note: In extreme cases, your child may be asked to change into some school-owned clothing if we feel that their clothing choices are not appropriate.
• After the third ‘reminder’, your child will be sent home from school for non-compliance with the dress code.

 

Building Security

All of our Tobin Family of School buildings have security access systems.  Each family is provided with their own security code to our location at 73 Cottage Street.  We ask that you respect the security of all our families by not holding the door for people you do not know or providing this code to others.

 

Snacks & Lunch Program

Students are provided with a healthy snack each morning, including fresh fruit and vegetables, dairy products, and whole grain starches. We have switched to water at these snack periods with concerns from the American Academy of Pediatrics of too much fruit juice in children’s diets. We set limits on all snack items to avoid these snacks from turning into mini-meals. If your child has significant food allergies above and beyond the peanut/nut restrictions and is not able to partake in many of our school purchased snack items, we do allow families to send in their own snack items. Parents can either pack a snack daily or send in a larger supply to keep on hand at school for the teacher to serve to your child.

Your child may either bring their own lunch in a lunchbox (with a cooler pack) or participate in our school lunch program. For lunches brought from home please note that there is no refrigeration available and no access to heating up lunch items. Please make sure your child has tried the foods at home before sending them to school.

A detailed listing of our hot lunch offerings through Mel’s Commonwealth Café and Catering, available for purchase, will be provided. Each lunch includes a hot entrée item, a vegetable, and a fruit, as well as condiments and silverware.  You may choose to sign up and purchase one or as many days as you like. Note – we only purchase the hot lunches we need to avoid waste. Your child must be signed up in advance in order to get a hot lunch on a given day. Milk (1%) is available for all students free of charge each lunch period.

We use snack and lunch times at Tobin as much more than a chance to refuel. These are great opportunity to work on etiquette, socialize with friends, and to build independence skills. While we will encourage your child to eat the lunch items that they are provided, we cannot ensure that they eat certain foods or provide you with specific details about all items eaten.

All food from home must be peanut/nut free. We recommend that hot dogs, grapes, and carrots need to be cut up for children in Preschool and PreK. NO candy or soda. Because of our emphasis on good nutrition, we discourage the use of canned or prepared foods, because of their high sodium content, as well as chocolate and excessive sweets. We will not serve food from home with a past expiration date.

 

Peanut/Nut Avoidance Policy

Allergies to a variety of foods – most notably peanuts and tree nuts are becoming more common.  Due to this increase we have instituted a strict avoidance of peanut/nut products within all our schools. Strict avoidance is the only we to prevent a life threatening allergic reaction. We ask for your assistance in providing all of our students with a safe and healthy learning environment.

If exposed to peanuts/nut products susceptible students may develop a life threatening allergic reaction that requires emergency medical treatment. The greatest potential for exposure at school is to peanut and nut products. To reduce the risk of exposure, the entire school now practices “PEANUT/NUT AVOIDANCE”. We are asking that you do not knowingly send in any peanut, peanut oil or nut containing products for your child to eat during lunch or snack in any classroom. ANY exposure to peanuts or nuts through contact or ingestion can cause a severe/life threatening reaction. If your child has eaten peanut or nut products prior to coming to school, please be sure your child’s hands have been thoroughly washed prior to entering the school. We ask that you do not pack any peanut or nut products in your child’s lunch. The teachers will continuously preview and monitor the children’s lunch products for peanut or nut products. As there are many items that include peanut or nut products, but do not present as a nut product, careful monitoring of lunch items will be done. If your child brings peanut or nut item to school, he/she will be offered a healthy alternative and you will be notified. The school will not serve or provide food to children if that food has been made in a factory that processes peanuts, nut products, or claims that the product may contain nuts or nut products.

 

Tuition Plans/Financial Obligations

A $1,000 non-refundable deposit is required to secure enrollment. This will be credited to the student’s balance. Tuition at the Tobin School is charged on an annual basis. An Enrollment Contract must be signed by the family and the Head of School for a child to be fully enrolled at Tobin. At present, there are three payment plans to select from:

Option #1 – EZ-EFT Two Payment Plan*
An automatic billing of your financial institution or credit card on June 25th, 2010 for 60% of your total tuition amount with a second automatic billing will take place on November 25th, 2010 for the remaining 40%, your total balance due. An authorization form and detailed financial information is required for this plan.

Option #2 – EZ-EFT Monthly Payment Plan*
An automatic billing of your financial institution or credit card for twelve equal monthly payments beginning June 25th, 2010 and ending May 25, 2011. An authorization form and detailed financial information is required for this plan.

Option #3 – Single Payment to the School
A single payment for total remaining tuition due (less deposit) to be paid to the Tobin School by June 25th, 2010.

*Changes to accounts or credit card numbers that affect any EFT transaction must be communicated with the office as soon as possible to avoid fees.

Consequences of late payment of tuition, for all payment options, may include (a) imposition of a late fee of $30; (b) payment by you of our collection costs (including legal fees); and/or (c) denial of your child’s attendance at The Tobin School.

In the event of withdrawal from Tobin, you will be held to your legal and binding contract and are responsible for the full sum of tuition. Your child’s student record may be held until all unpaid balances are resolved.