At Bertha Kennedy we recognize the importance of good communication between children and parents to keep children safe and avoid worry when making arrangements for transportation and pick-up. While we encourage families to make these arrangements ahead of time, we are very accommodating with ensuring that messages with last minute changes are given to students and allow children to use the school telephone in urgent situations. Some parents opt to provide cell phones for their children. For these situations we have put the following procedures in place:
Unless a teacher invites the students to bring these items into the classroom, they should remain in the student's backpack. They should not be used at all during instructional time as they can be a distraction. If a child is feeling unwell or has forgotten an item, they need to speak with their teacher and with the office, instead of using a private cell phone. This will ensure that our staff are aware of the student's concern and can assist them. Because most are equipped with cameras, cell phones should also never been taken to washrooms or change rooms in the interests of student privacy.
If a cell phone is being used inappropriately or becomes a distraction to the learning environment, it will be taken from the student and parents will be contacted. Misuse of the cell phone can result in a student losing the privilege of bringing it to school. We also discourage the use of cell phones, DS/Gameboys, and music players during recess and lunch as these times provide great opportunities for socialization with peers and active play. We also worry about the security of these expensive electronics as student backpacks are hung in the hallway and we cannot take responsibility for the security of these items. We appreciate parents who send a cell phone with their child discussing these procedures with them as well.