January Newsletter 2012

Reading School Newsletter

January 2012

Volume 13, Issue 5

Principal’s Pen

THERE IS NO PLACE LIKE USD 251

The character trait for January is Courage.

Courage—being brave in difficult times; trying new things and trying again if you fail. The color for the month is purple.

Dear Parents,

SICK CHILDREN:

SEND TO SCHOOL OR KEEP HOME?

Deciding when a child is too sick to go to school can be a difficult decision for parents to make. When trying to decide, use the guidelines below.

*GO TO SCHOOL…

If your child has any of the following symptoms, they should probably go to school.

1. sniffles, a runny nose, and a mild cough without a fever.

2. Vague complaints of aches, pains or fatigue.

3. Single episode of diarrhea or vomiting without any other symptoms.

*STAY AT HOME…

If your child has any of the following symptoms, please keep your child at home or make appropriate child care arrangements.

1. APPEARANCE, BEHAVIOR—-unusually tired, pale, lack of appetite, difficult to wake, confused, irritable.

2. EYE—-thick mucus or pus draining from the eye or pink eye (with pink eye or conjunctivitis you may see a white or yellow discharge, matted eyelids after sleep, eye, pain , and/or redness).

3. FEVER—-temperature of 100 degrees Fahrenheit or higher. Remember that a child must be fever free for 24 hours before returning to school.

4. GREENISH NOSE DISCHARGE AND/OR CHRONIC COUGH—-should be seen by a health care provider. These conditions may be contagious and require treatment.

5. SORE THROAT—-especially with fever or swollen glands in the neck. With strept throat the child may return to school after 24 hours on antibiotics.

6. DIARRHEA—-three or more watery stools in a 24 hour period, especially if the child acts or looks ill.

7. VOMITING—-vomiting two or more times within the past 24 hours.

8. RASH—-body rash, especially with fever or itching. Heat rashes and allergic reactions are not contagious.

9. EAR INFECTIONS WITHOUT FEVER—-do not need to be excluded but the child needs to get medical treatment and follow up. Untreated ear infections can cause permanent hearing loss.

10. LICE, SCABIES—-children may not return to school until they have been treated and are free of lice and nits (eggs).

11. CHICKEN POX—-children must stay at home for five days after the onset of blisters or until all pox are scabbed and dry.

Thank you for acknowledging these symptoms and for your part in helping your child stay healthy and other children stay healthy.

Remember to contact the school if…….

Your child is absent from school. Please call before 9:00 a.m. to report any absences.
Your telephone number and/or address has changed. If your child becomes ill or we need to communicate with you, the correct telephone number and address is very important. If you have changed jobs recently, please contact the school with the new information.
Your child is in need of a heavy coat, gloves, or hat for the winter. Recess will be held outside, weather permitting, and it is much more comfortable and safe for all children to have the appropriate winter wear.

Help our school earn money and earn a chance to win one of the cool friends pictured here. Bring in General Mills Boxtops for Education (each one is worth $.10), either on the sheet you received earlier or in a container marked with your name and you will receive one chance for every 10 box tops returned; send all your box tops and get more than one chance to win. Remember, you must identify the Boxtops as belonging to a specific student to earn chances to win. Extra contest sheets may be picked up in the school office.

On February 14, two names will be drawn to win the winter time friends pictured here. Remember to save your box tops and bring completed sheets to the office. If you need more sheets, you may pick them up in the office.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM READING SCHOOL