The Weekly Update #4

We had a wonderful first few days of school! We look forward to our first full week and welcoming all our Kindergarten students and entire school family on Wednesday! Thank you for your flexibility with us as we work through beginning of the year dismissal procedures. There are always a few hiccups but things should be running smoothly by the end of the week!

Monday: Staggered start for Kindergarten

Tuesday: Staggered start for Kindergarten

Wednesday: All Kindergarten students will attend!

Thursday: A great day at KTES!

Friday: A great day at KTES!

Parents…we need your help!! We are collecting 1st day of school photos for the 24-25 yearbook. Please email your first day photos to Heather Leach at leachh@fortmillschools.org (subject: yearbook). The deadline to submit photos is Friday, August 23rd. Thanks so much!

Disclaimer: By e-mailing your photos you give permission for your child’s photo to be posted in the KTES 24-25 Yearbook. Due to space and page formatting we will not be able to include every submitted picture but we will do our best to include as many as possible.

It is imperative that parents review the Student Handbook prior to the beginning of the school year. The handbook contains valuable information about the policies, procedures and day to day operations at Kings Town. If you have questions after reviewing the handbook, please don't hesitate to reach out to a member of our administrative team.

We wanted to bring your attention to the cell phone and smart watch policy that has recently been changed for students throughout the district.

Student cell phones and smart watches should be kept in a bookbag. Electronic devices, including cell phones, must be turned off during the school day and while on the school grounds. A cell phone may not be used during the day to play games or to text message. The student may not use a cell phone to call or text a parent during the school day.

As your school nurse, I want to welcome you to another great school year at Kings Town Elementary School! I am here to collaborate with you and help you and your child have a healthy and successful first year of school! The school district works closely with DHEC and follows their guidelines on school exclusion for certain communicable/contagious diseases. The following health information will help the year at Kings Town go more smoothly for you and your child.

• Illness Procedures:

Fort Mill Schools asks parents to conduct symptom checks of their child(ren) each morning before school. This assists in stopping the spread of communicable illnesses in the school setting.

Questions to consider when your child is sick:

1. Does your child’s illness keep him/her from comfortably taking part in activities?

2. Does your sick child need more care than the staff can give without affecting the health and safety of

other children.

3. Could other children get sick from being near your child?

If the answer to any of these questions is “Yes,” please keep your child out of school.

o In the event your child develops a fever of 100.4° or higher, he/she must be fever free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medicine before returning to school.

o In the event your child has 2 or more episodes of vomiting in a 24-hour period, they must remain at home. Your child may return to school when symptoms have been resolved for 24 hours.

Please let the school nurse know if your child is diagnosed with COVID, flu, strep, lice or another contagious illness. This information will be kept strictly confidential and used for prevention and early detection of other cases in the classroom.

DHEC has posted the School and Childcare Exclusion List on the web at the following address:

www.scdhec.gov/health/child-teen-health/school-exclusion

• Food Policy for Parties/Celebrations:

Due to food safety concerns and the number of food allergies, homemade or home-baked foods are not allowed to be distributed to students within the classroom or applicable classroom setting. Acceptable foods for distribution are those items that were prepared in a commercial and/or licensed kitchen, and most importantly, are packaged with a label clearly listing the contents and ingredients of the food item. This policy is designed to provide consistency and minimize allergy risks in all classrooms, while maintaining a safe and positive learning environment for all students.

• Your child's safety is important to us! Please inform the school nurse and your child's teacher of any medical conditions (i.e. food allergies, asthma, seizures, diabetes, injuries) which will require attention during the school year. In most cases, an Emergency Care Plan or physician’s order is required to accommodate students with chronic health conditions. It is essential to be prepared BEFORE an emergency arises!

• The health room is designed to assist students with chronic health conditions and is an emergency station to care for minor injuries and illnesses that occur at school. Illnesses and injuries that occurred outside the school environment should be treated at home or by a healthcare provider prior to returning to school. The school nurse cannot diagnose illnesses such as COVID, flu, strep throat, ear infections, etc.

• PLEASE BE ADVISED: All medications given in the health room require a Medication Consent Form (M105) signed by a parent/guardian. Prescription medications also require a physician’s signature. Please do not send medication to school with your child! All medications must be transported to and from school by a parent or responsible adult. The student’s name and directions must be easily readable on the original container. All over-the-counter medications must be unopened with the manufacturer’s seal intact when brought to the school nurse for administration. For further health policies/information or for copies of the Medication Consent Form (M105), please refer to https://www.fortmillschools.org/departments/student-health-services/student-nursing-services

Lindsey Maxwell, RN

maxwelll@fortmillschools.org

803-396-3405

Please read the newsletter below for information and helpful tips for lice prevention and treatment.

We’re excited for another wonderful year at KTES! We will be using this Counseling Connection section of the school newsletter to share news, updates, and resources throughout the school year. Please CLICK HERE to learn more about our role as school counselors and how we serve ALL students to support their academic, social/emotional, and career development. The KTES School Counseling Program Website contains program information and valuable resources as well. If we can be a resource to you and your child(ren) this school year, please do not hesitate to reach out.

If your family is experiencing food insecurity and would benefit from receiving a bag of food each weekend, please CLICK HERE to complete a short form so we can be sure to include you in our district’s “Backpack Program”. If you have any questions about this resource, please reach out to your child’s school counselor.

It is our goal to make sure all of our students arrive to and from school safely. Therefore, parents must complete a walker/biker form giving permission for their child to obtain a walker/biker pass. Parents giving written permission for their child to walk home recognize the school’s responsibility for the safety of the child does not extend beyond school supervised areas. Students who have been issued a walker tag will be dismissed starting around 2:05 pm. Students will exit the doors near the cafeteria entrance. An updated walker/biker waiver must be completed each school year for each child. Please note, students requesting a walker tag must live in the surrounding 1.5 miles of the school. In the event of a change to transportation, contact the classroom teacher and Becky Morris morrisre@fortmillschools.org. Even on rainy days if no alternate transportation is communicated, the student will continue to walk home.

Walker/Biker Permission Form

It's also important to point out procedures related to our car rider line drop off. Following these procedures will ensure a smooth drop off in the mornings.

To maximize safe and efficient arrival of our students, drivers should approach the school using the main entrance off Masons Bend Dr. When dropping off your child(ren) please pull forward as far as you can in the drop off line (this will help keep the line moving quickly and we can unload more cars). Please follow the directions of all staff members on duty. ALL STUDENTS SHOULD EXIT FROM THE CURB-SIDE (RIGHT SIDE) OF THE VEHICLE. No students should arrive before 7:05 (when adult/safety patrol supervision begins) or after 7:35 AM. Students arriving after 7:35 A.M. should go directly to the office with an adult to sign them in and get a pass to the classroom. All students will enter through the main entrance. In an effort to make the car rider line as safe as possible, there will also be a staff member with a stop sign to allow pedestrians to cross at the crosswalk. Traffic is not stopped until the line is moved all the way forward, this allows for a more efficient unloading process. Please do not park and cross the crosswalk unless you need to visit the office. There will also be cones blocking half of the crosswalk, this will ensure one lane of traffic until after the crosswalk. Please do not exit the drop off lane until after the crosswalk.

We are pleased to continue welcoming parents into our cafeteria this year. Parent lunches will not begin until Tuesday, September 3rd. If your child has a birthday during the 1st few weeks of school, you will be permitted to visit prior to the Labor Day holiday. Please contact Becky Morris, morrisre@fortmillschools.org, if this applies to your child and you plan to attend lunch.

Due to security protocols and limited seating, parents and guardians may join their child during their lunch period up to four times per year, per child. Visitors coming for lunch should limit the number of adults to two per visit.

• Our front office will keep a record of parent visits for lunch.
• For safety reasons, parents visiting for lunch will only be allowed to visit the cafeteria.
• We ask that families work together on lunch passes. Due to the size of our school and the cafeteria capacity, we will not be able to make any exceptions to the four visit limit.
• Staff and Administration will not mediate between split families in regards to using passes. We are unable to limit specific visitors if they are on the approved contact/pickup list.
• At least one of the visitors each visit must be on the approved contact list (pickup list). If you would like to add someone to that list, please send an email to Angel Helms, helmsah@fortmillschools.org, the name of your child and the person(s) you would like to add.
• All visitors will be required to show a form of identification to visit lunch/visit our school.
• Students will not be allowed to have a friend sit with them when a parent is visiting for lunch.

Principal: Nicole Randolph

Assistant Principals: Matt Savage (1st, 3rd, 5th)

Ebony Kennedy (K, 2nd, 4th)

Instagram: @kingstownelementary

Email: randolphn@fortmillschools.org
Website: https://ktes.fortmillschools.org/
Location: 1774 Masons Bend Drive, Fort Mill, SC, USA
Phone: 803-396-3400