Parent Handbook

MAC Niagara Islamic School offers the Ontario Ministry’s Curriculum, in addition to programs in Arabic language, Quran and Islamic Studies. Our school emphasizes the essential values of our youth’s development and social training, which will inspire our students to become community leaders.

Mission Statement:

To empower students to achieve their full academic and leadership potential by engaging home, school and community partners through enriched programs and an exploration of the students’ spiritual identity.

SCHOOL AGENDAS 

The agenda is a great tool when it is used on a daily basis. It acts as a homework organizer allowing students to prioritize their tasks and manage their time. Teachers will encourage students to write down important information in their agenda should be reviewed by parents daily.  Parents should check each day so they are aware of the projects, tests and assignments which are occurring in each subject area.  Parents may also write comments or feedback to the teacher to ensure that the lines of communication are open.

TEACHER/PARENT COMMUNICATION

Each grade will have a calendar of important dates at the start of every month. Teachers will also send messages to parents whenever the need arises.

If a parent has any question or concern about their child’s education they should arrange an interview through the agenda, an email or making an appointment through the office. If you feel that your question or concern has not been sufficiently addressed, please feel free to discuss it with the Principal.

Arriving in the Morning:

Students must enter from their designated doors: Kindergartens at their classroom door accompanied by the parent, Gr. 1-4 at the Haig St. door and Gr. 5-8 at the rear door facing the school yard. School doors will open at 8:20 am sharp. Please do not drop children off to the school yard prior to 8:20 am. Please observe proper parking spaces and do not block the route intended for the bus or the area designated for bus unloading by the orange cones. At 8:20am all students will enter, change into indoor shoes and line up in the hall. Circle time duaa will take place in the gym promptly at 8:35 am. Our morning duaa and circle time are the commencement of our program and we ask parents not to speak with teachers at this time.  Please be advised that there will be no supervision before 8:20am, so parents must stay with their child(ren) until then.

Student Absence / Late Arrival          

Students must be at school for the duaa at 8:35 am. Students entering after the circle time in the gym must enter through the front entrance and be signed in by a parent or have a note from a parent. Students arriving late can be a major disruption to the class and the teachers may decide on a special arrangement for them during the first period. Administration may decide on further action to deal with repeated late arrivals. Parents can call the school anytime and leave a message if their child will be absent. If we have not heard from you by 10 am, however, the office will be calling your home or work to inquire why your child is not at school. Your child’s safety is our main concern.

Appointments During the Day

If your child has a medical or dental appointment during the school day, please notify the teacher in writing that day via the agenda or note. When arriving to pick up your child, please come to the office and we will call your child from class. You must sign your child out at this time. No child will be allowed to leave the school grounds, during school hours without permission from a parent.

Picking up in the Afternoon

The school bus children will be released at 3pm sharp and loaded onto the school bus.  Please do not block the school bus lane or its exit route. Parents must park in designated parking spaces. Driven children will be released at 3:10 pm. Kindergarten parents must pick up from the kindergarten door in person.  A teacher will be on duty outside to notify which parents are present for pick up.  Your child will not be allowed to leave the building at dismissal time unless we see a parent, or they walk home.  You may remain in your cars if you desire and your child will be notified you have arrived. The school must be notified by the parent in advance, if someone other than yourself will be picking up your child(ren).

 Custody Rights

Where parents are separated or divorced, the school should be clearly informed of custodial rights so that there is no question about which parent has the right to pick up the child(ren) from the school.

Bus Transportation 

There is a transportation committee which deals with all issues pertaining to the route and other bus-related issues.

Students are required to be on time at their designated stop, buses will not wait. Students must be standing on the street if they have a door to door service. The bus drivers have been instructed not to wait for students to come out of their homes. Students are expected to observe all bus safety rules. There is no eating or drinking allowed on the bus. All students must remain seated and use a quiet voice at all times. The bus driver is at all times in complete charge of the bus. When misconduct is reported, students may lose their privilege of transportation following consultation with the parent.

If your child is transported to school by bus, there may be times when you will pick him/her up from school. Please notify the school in advance if this is the case.

Late Buses

At times, due to construction or poor weather, the school bus may be late arriving.  Please be patient.  Although we try our best to stick to a precise schedule, it is sometimes impossible.  The bus driver’s phone number will not be given to any parent as they are prohibited from answering calls while driving.

Bus Cancellations

During the winter months, the bus may be canceled due to inclement weather. If DSBN cancels bus service, MAC NIS will as well.  You will be notified by 7:30 if buses are canceled.

After-School Care

If a child is not registered in an after-school program, the cost is $1 per minute after 3:30 pm.

What do Kindergarten Parents Need to Know?

Parents can drop off their children in the morning from 8:20-8:30 am, in person, at the kindergarten door located at the side of the school facing the schoolyard. Please do not allow your child to exit the car without you as the school is close to the street. We will not dismiss your child to anyone other than a parent without notification.

JK/SK is a full day program. The JK/SK group will follow a slightly different schedule that is tailored to their specific needs as new and young students.

What is the Procedure for Visitors at MAC NIS?

For safety reasons, during school hours, all visiting adults must sign in and out at the office and wear a visitor’s badge. From 8:45 am – 3:10 pm, all entrance doors will be locked. All visitors must use the front door and must report to the office.

Volunteers

Among the most important resources of a school are the people of the school community. There is no doubt that the children benefit from the assistance provided to both students and staff by parent volunteers. A love for children combined with patience, understanding and some free time are the only requirements to be a volunteer. The time commitment varies according to the individual volunteer and the kind of role for which you volunteer.

Police Record Checks are required of new parent volunteers. They need to be submitted to the office before becoming involved as a volunteer. See the office for a form.

Dropping Off Items at the Office (lunches, homework etc.)

During the day there may be drop-offs of lunches, forgotten homework, etc. to the office. Although we do our best to accommodate everyone, it is often difficult to deal with each situation immediately. Pre-planning to make sure your child has everything in their bag as they leave in the morning would be very much appreciated. If you do, however, drop something off, it is not our policy to interrupt a class to call down a student as it is very disruptive to the class and the teacher. We will make sure the item is delivered at an appropriate time.

Care of Textbooks, Laptops and Classroom Equipment

Textbooks and equipment used in our programs are costly.  It is the responsibility of each student to handle textbooks and equipment with care.  Parents will be required to pay for the replacement of any textbook or equipment damaged or lost by their child.

Library

The school maintains a library that contains books and audio-visual material for use by students and staff.  Students are responsible to maintain borrowed materials in proper condition and will be required to pay or replace lost or damaged the material.

Litterless Lunches

Please send all food in plastic reusable containers (no glass containers), reusable drink containers, stainless steel forks, and spoons, in order to reduce waste. Students will be asked to take all garbage (organics and plastics) home to dispose of. Individually packaged snacks and drink boxes (although convenient) do create an excessive amount of garbage and recycling.  We are trying to help students become environmentally conscious.

Uniform

Clean uniforms are mandatory every day unless otherwise specified by the school.  Gym uniforms are required for gym class and can be worn to school on the child’s gym day. Students will not be allowed to have unusual piercings, dyed or streaked hair. Students cannot wear nail polish or make-up to school.  Excessive jewelry is also not permitted.

On days when uniforms are not required, proper dress is required. No skinny jeans or shorts are allowed.

All shirts, jumpers and gym uniforms must be purchased from MAC NIS. Parents may purchase dark navy pants themselves, but they must be plain dark navy. Absolutely no track pants, tights or jeans.  Pants are also available from our uniform distributor.

Physical Education and Gym Clothes

All of the children at MAC NIS will be encouraged to take an active part in the well-balanced Physical Education programme designed to improve fitness, teach cooperation as well as sportsmanship, and develop skills, etc. It is important that each child be prepared to participate in every Physical Education lesson. This means coming to class with the proper attitude and suitable gym clothes. If your child cannot take part in a P.E. class, a note from home explaining the reason why is required.

Emergency Contacts

Please ensure that the school is notified immediately with up-to-date information if there are any changes to information including address, telephone numbers at work or home, emergency contacts, medical contact and custody arrangements.

Emergency School Closures 

In the event of inclement weather:

Please check our school website by 7:00 am. www.macnis.ca

You will be notified by text message as well.

Injury or Illness at School

If your child becomes ill or injured at school, we will make every attempt to contact you or your designate to determine an appropriate course of action.   If the injury is serious, he/she will be taken to the hospital. If your child is too ill to follow the daily routines at school, please keep him/her at home.  If a student becomes ill while at school, parents must pick the child up or arrange for transportation in a timely manner. Generally, children do not recover at school and we are not equipped to make youngsters feel as comfortable as they would be at home or in the care of a friend or relative.

It is critical that emergency contact information be kept up to date.

Peanut/Nut Allergies

 Do not send your child to school with any peanut products or items containing nut by-products!

EPIPENS for students with life-threatening allergies are mandatory. These will be stored in the child’s classroom by the teacher. Please provide the school with one on the first day of school.  For further information, please visit www.anaphylaxis.org

Prescription Medication at School  

If your child must take prescription medication at school, we require a permission form signed by the parent. Staff can only administer routine prescribed medication when a written permission is submitted to the school by the parent. Forms are available in the office, however, we would like to encourage parents to administer medication for their children at home if possible.

Head Lice

Please inform the school if your child has this problem so that we may prevent the spread of lice to other students. The best way to prevent the spread of lice is to encourage your child to avoid sharing combs, hats, scarves, etc. If your child has head lice, you must provide medical clearance before he/she will be readmitted to school.

Please refer to the following website for a list of reportable diseases and the Health Protection and Promotion Act.

http://www.peelschools.org/departments/sch-serv/peelhlth/4-00.htm

 Periods of Exclusion

Children with the following diseases should remain at home and away from others:

Disease
Chickenpox (varicella)	Until well enough to participate in all activities regardless of the state of the rash.
Diarrhea	Daycare: Until 24 hours after diarrhea stops * Schools: Until diarrhea stops * * Depending on the cause, the Health Department may require a longer period of exclusion.
Fifth’s Disease (parvovirus)	No exclusion Children well enough to participate in all activities can attend school.
Impetigo	Until the antibiotic prescribed by a doctor has been taken for at least 1 full day.
Measles (rubeola)	For at least 4 days after the rash begins.
Mumps	For at least 9 days after the swollen glands first appear.
Pink-eye, bacterial (conjunctivitis)	Until the antibiotic prescribed by a doctor has been taken for at least 1 full day.
Ringworm	Until treatment has started.
Rubella (German Measles)	Until at least 7 days after the rash first appears.
Scarlet Fever	Until antibiotic treatment prescribed by a doctor has been taken for 1full day
Strep Throat	Until antibiotic treatment prescribed by a doctor has been taken for 1 full day
Whooping Cough (pertussis)	Until antibiotic treatment has been taken for at least 5 full days. If no treatment is given, exclusion for 3 weeks from when the cough began.

Source: Canadian Paediatric Society

If you suspect your child has a communicable disease that may spread to others:

• Keep your child at home and away from others
• Contact your family doctor for a diagnosis
• Your doctor will advise you about care and treatment when a communicable disease is diagnosed

*Note the above information is taken directly from the Halton Regional Health Department

Celebration Policy

If you wish to recognize a special day at the school we would like to remind you that we are promoting a peanut and nut free environment. Some of our students have other types of allergies. Parents must have teacher approval before sending any food to school to avoid any health or cultural issues. In keeping with this policy we are requesting that you send NON-FOOD items for celebrations or foods which are clearly marked with an ingredients list.  Absolutely NO HOME BAKED items are permitted for sharing in the classroom with children with allergies. Some alternatives may be stickers, pencils, erasers, books, etc.

 Exceptional Students

MAC NIS does not have the resources or facilities to accommodate special needs students, gifted children and children with learning and physical disabilities.  Parents will be consulted and may be asked to withdraw their child from the school if he/she is identified as having special needs which we are unable to meet. It is in the best interest of the child to receive the appropriate help for his/her learning needs.

Lost and Found

The lost and found box will be located in the office. Please ask to check the box if your child has lost anything. Please label all of your child’s items to prevent loss. All unclaimed items will be donated to Goodwill at the end of each month.

Probation Period

All new students will be placed on a probation period of three months. If a student is not  observing the behavioural guidelines of the school or seems to have a learning issue that is beyond the capabilities of the staff, then the student may be asked to leave the school

 Homework

Homework is a planned part of the education process designed to enhance student learning, and is directly connected to The Ontario Curriculum Learning Expectations. Homework provides students with opportunities to apply learning and practice skills. Homework helps to develop lifelong skills such as self discipline, task commitment,

time management, responsibility, independence, initiative, and problem solving. It also helps to build a partnership between home and school which leads to higher academic success.

What are the types of homework?

1. Completion – anything not finished in class.
2. Practice – review, and reinforcement of lesson
3. Preparation- review for a test, re-reading or research
4. Extension – creative applications that integrate or expand on class lessons.

Teachers use professional judgment and discretion to alter quantity and time frame of homework to meet the needs of a classroom or a specific student.

Extended Absences During the School Year and Homework

If parents choose to take their child(ren) out of school for an extended holiday, the school cannot provide the exact academic activities that replicate the missed schoolwork. Responsibility for this decision must rest with the parents.  Parents are encouraged to plan activities such as daily journals, travel logs, reading, mathematics, science, and technology activities during their trip.  Teachers are not responsible for providing work in advance of the trip and use their judgement to assign make-up work.

Please note that if your child is absent for an extended period of time assessment in all areas of the curriculum may not be possible and this may result in some blank areas on your child’s report card.  Please complete an extended absence form found in the office if your child will be absent for more than 1 week of school.

Report Cards

JK and SK:

• in class observation before December 31^st and goal setting with parents

Term 1 report in January

• Term 2 report in June

Grades 1-8:

• Progress report in November
• Term 1 reports in early February
• Term 2 reports in June

Please note we are following the Ministry of Education guidelines for the new report cards.

Curriculum

Staff design their classroom programs by integrating Islamic character education with the Ontario Curriculum Documents. Monthly forecasts will be posted on line by teachers keeping you informed of how we are implementing the curriculum in your child’s class.

Parents can review the Ontario Curriculum documents on the Ministry of Education and Training website.    http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/

PARENTS ADVISORY COUNCIL (PAC)

Parents committee or Parent Advisory Council (PAC) is the elected parents’ body to provide consultation to the school administration.

Composition

The parents committee includes:

• At least 5 and up to 12 parents whose children are registered in the school, elected by their peers.
• One teacher elected by his/her peers
• The principal of the school or his representative.

Note: The principal (or his representative) and the teacher cannot vote, or become the president of the parents committee, or represent the parents in the school board.

President

On the day of the election, members of the parents committee hold their first meeting and decide, among themselves, who will become the president who will manage the parents committee and represent the parents in the school committee.

Charges and responsibilities

The parents committee assumes the following tasks:

• give its opinion to the principal of the school about all the matters concerning the parents.
• promote participation of the parents in improving the school.
• organize extra-curricular activities and fundraising activities.

Backpack Considerations

As children start a new school year, the Peel District School Board has compiled the top 10 tips to help students and parents select a suitable backpack, and pack it properly, to prevent injury:

• Choose a bag that has two-inch shoulder straps and a hip or chest belt to remove the weight from the neck and lower back. Adjust the straps so that the backpack sits on your child’s hips
• For additional support, select a backpack that features a padded back and shoulder straps.
• Make sure the pack fits properly, is not too snug around the arms and under the armpits and that its size is proportionate to your child’s body.
• Ensure that your child is carrying less than 20 per cent of his body weight—some doctors recommend no more than 10 per cent for young children. For example, a 50 lb. child should carry a backpack no more than five pounds.
• Talk to your child about the importance of wearing both straps of the backpack and discourage carrying the backpack on just one shoulder. If your child is leaning forward, the bag is too heavy.
• Pack heavier books closest to the body.
• Consider choosing a bag with a strong handle and wheels so your child doesn’t have to put strain on his back—this is especially helpful if your child walks to school.
• Get into the habit of cleaning out the backpack with your child each evening.
• Pack only the items that are essential—other supplies can be stored at home and brought to school when necessary. .

 School Awards

We would like to give our students an incentive to perform to the best of their abilities during the school year.  Awards will be given during the Awards Assemblies in June for Grades 4 to 8.  Parents will be informed about the dates and the times of the assembly.

Throughout the school year, students will be encouraged to do their best and be reminded of the criteria for winning an award. Winning and losing graciously are also life skills we would like to develop in our children.  Based on the criteria below, teachers will select award winners.  A staff meeting will be called to approve the selections and the decision will be final.

Category	Description
Honour Roll (Grades 5 to 8)	Overall achievement over 80% of all subjects.  Core subjects are weighted more. No C or D in any subject area.
Overall Academic Achievement	Awarded to the student who has the highest overall average in a particular grade.
Principal’s Award	Best model of Islamic behaviour, best overall performance in all subject areas, positive attitude towards learning.
Citizenship Award	Best model of Islamic behaviour: honesty, conduct in prayer, cooperation/willingness to help, application of Islam in daily life, respect for others, modesty, Islamic appearance, overall cleanliness, patience, Islamic manners (i.e. salutations, expressions), Islamic approach in resolving conflicts, encouraging others to do the right thing, setting a good example. Student has excellent academic standing.
End of the year per Grade Awards:	Max 1 award per student.
Language Arts	Best overall performance in the three strands of language arts: Writing, Reading, and Oral and Visual Communication.
Mathematics	Best overall knowledge, performance and problem solving skills in the five strands of mathematics:  Number Sense and Numeration, Measurement, Geometry and Spatial Sense, Patterning and Algebra, and Data Management and Probability.
Science	Best overall performance in the five strands of science and technology:  Life Systems, Matter and Materials, Energy and Control, Structures and Mechanisms and Earth and Space Systems.
Islamic Studies	Best overall knowledge in all aspects of the Islamic Studies curriculum.
Quran Recitation	Best pronunciation, reading and memorization of suras learned in class.
Arabic Language	Best overall performance in developing a vocabulary, oral and visual communication, reading and writing, pronunciation, following instructions and homework completion.
Social Studies (Grades 1-6) History & Geography (Grades 7& 8)	Best overall performance in the study of Community and Environmental Studies.
Visual Arts	Best overall performance and most creativity shown on a consistent basis.
Computers	Best overall performance in the subject of computers
Physical Education (Boys/girls separate)	Active participation, skill, leadership, attitude and sportsmanship shown during gym and health class.
French	Best performance in oral and visual communication, reading and writing, and pronunciation.
Persistence Award	Consistent hard work and perseverance in the academic work.  Sets goals to improve work and is highly motivated to always do their best.

 

MAC NIS Spirit Award

Excellent attitude towards school, with at least a “B” average. Participates in several school clubs and events. Positively contributes to the school culture and shows leadership skills.

 

Male/Female Athlete of the Year (one student each from Grade 7 and 8)

Participates on school teams (basketball, volleyball, and soccer.) Displays excellent sportsmanship and skills and contributes to the success of the teams.