It is essential that Learners arrive at school between 7:30am - 8:00am.

Scholars should eat breakfast each morning before arrival OR bring it to the schoolhouse and eat with your peers. At Agape School House, we encourage all families to ensure students eat a good protein breakfast not full of sugars and artificial preservatives, as this can cause your scholar to experience fatigue and lack attention span.

DROP OFF & PICK UP

Due to the nature of our limited parking space, families are encouraged NOT to park and walk their child inside. Staff will be available to help load and unload your kiddo(s) to ensure traffic moves quickly. If a staff member is not present, DO NOT allow your child to exit your vehicle. This is important for safety.

Be courteous of all families, community members, and neighbors. Park properly ensuring you are abiding by all city laws.

Uniforms

A School House shirt and/or a School House sweater.

If a School House sweater is unavailable please choose a navy, white or khaki sweater. The School House shirt should be paired with: jeans, khakis, shorts, skirts or pants/joggers in any solid color. Please no sports pants, sweatpants or ripped clothing. We encourage children to make their mark through accessories and shoes. No characters of any kind please.

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This policy was set forth based on three ideas: that children should be unencumbered at this age by the pressure and costs of keeping up (nearly 21% of public schools in the U.S. require some form of school attire and nearly all private schools); children should be comfortable and ready to learn; that safety is increased when children are coordinated in school attire; and that the building of team spirit as a school is fostered by doing so.

Indoor Shoes

Scholars will require crocs to be kept at the schoolhouse as their indoor shoe wear. Indoor Shoes should never be worn outside, should be worn with socks, neutral in color.

Weather

Outdoor Play & Weather Policy

At Agape School House, we believe in the importance of outdoor play and weather resilience. In alignment with best practices for child development and Texas school policies, we prioritize time outdoors whenever it is safe to do so.

Cold Weather Guidelines:

• Outdoor recess will continue in our PlayYard down to 28°F, provided conditions are safe (no ice, lighting, extreme wind chill, or weather advisories).

• We encourage children to experience seasonal changes and natural elements to build both physical and emotional resilience.

• When temperatures drop below 28°F, learners will enjoy recess and movement breaks indoors.

Parent Responsibility:

Please ensure your child comes to school dressed for the weather, including:

• Warm coat or jacket (place name inside on tag or with tape)

• Hat and gloves

• Change on clothes (ALWAYS)

Texas Weather Considerations:

• We closely monitor local forecasts and weather advisories (College Station area) to make informed decisions about outdoor play.

• In the event of extreme weather, ice, or emergency alerts, Agape will follow Texas public safety guidelines for student safety.

All food will be brought from home. Please pack a lunch and snack for your Learner each day.

We are a nut-free schoolhouse. Sunflower Seed butter is permitted as a peanut butter substitute. And is much healthier!

Learners will be provided a schoolhouse water bottle to keep at school. We have filtered water throughout the school. Do not send additional water bottles or beverages to school with your scholar. Students may bring pouches to pour into their water, if desired.

Examples include:

LiquidIV Hydration

Gatorade Propel

School Care at ASH is where we choose five children from one class to take care of our school that day. We raise the flag, feed the animals, bring in boots, weed our garden and check the mail.

We stay out in our PlayYard down to 28 degrees in the winter months. Too many children are sheltered from weather and their experience in it. Please dress your child appropriately with winter gear. Below 28 degrees our Learners enjoy recess indoors.

Our Director of HQ will inform all Families via Transparent Classroom, email and text message (available if you have added your mobile carrier to your profile on TC). Our emergency updates / snow closures will also be available on News 12.

Monday - Thursday

• Pre-K: Dismissal is 11:30 am from the front steps.

• Elementary (including Kindergarten): Dismissal is 3:30 pm from the Gym parking lot - please stay in cars.

Fridays

• All ages: Dismissal is 11:45 pm from the Gym parking lot - please stay in cars. TSH closes at 12 noon on Fridays.

• IF you are an Elementary (and Kindergarten) Learner signed up for JAM session: Dismissal is at 3:30 pm on Fridays from the Gym parking lot - please stay in cars.

Changes to your Learner's Pick-up / DIsmissal plans should be sent in advance or by 1pm on the day of for last minute changes HQ@TheSchoolHouse.org

If you have any changes to your pick up time or the individual picking up your Learner please email Headquarters HQ@TheSchoolHouse.org at by 1:30 pm on that day.

We will need these changes in writing of course for the safety of your child.

It’s a crazy world out there!

From time to time TSH will participate in Fire Drills and Safety Drills coordinated with the Suffolk County Police Department. There are a number of Drills - Evacuation, Shelter-in-Place (for weather) etc. Full Lock - you’ll recognize this as Lock Down but TSH does not use this term - is where there is an external threat.

This can be anything from an animals to someone who wishes to us harm - what we call an “intruder” at The School House. It is paramount that children never leave our drills feeling scared or getting any non-age appropriate information. Drills are both practiced and random and each type of Drill happens once or twice a year.

Valentine’s Day at Agape School House Although the origin of Valentine’s Day is historically vague, the first celebrations in the 16th century were centered around messages of love and friendship.

At ASH we are proud to continue that tradition and add some of our own special touches. We very much encourage Learners to use this celebration for letter (or card) writing and of course drawing. Mailboxes are set up in each Learning Environment and our School Care team will deliver these messages throughout the year and most especially on Valentine’s Day. Since Valentine’s Day is also seen as the beginning of the avian mating season, flowers can be given as a way to acknowledge our deep appreciation and admiration for someone. Please refrain from sending in any candy, chocolate (children will be making their own in the Kitchen), toys or other plastic items that end up in landfills for the most part. Stickers as part of the cards are welcomed. This is a wonderful opportunity to practice letter writing with your children discussing names, dates, punctuation and of course all the art they can manage to get on a page!

Halloween Celebration at Agape School House We celebrate the occasion of Halloween at ASH with Mystery History.

Mystery History begins two weeks prior to Halloween and depending on our academic focus that month Learners (and Team members!) are asked to research a particular person in history. Explorers or Pioneers might be the category. On Halloween, all Learners dress as that character and give clues to us and their friends as to who they might be. The result is a wonderful day of learning, dressing up, game playing and creativity all culminating in our Fall Festival Recess.

This eliminates any scary costumes worn to school that might upset our little ones and brings back the true spirit of Halloween.

It can be hard to know when to send your child to school if they tell you that they do not feel well. Usually, the best place for them is in school, but there are some times when keeping them home to rest or call for an appointment with your doctor is a good idea.

Please keep your child home and/or contact your child’s doctor for:

• Fever greater than 100.4° (taken by mouth)

• Vomiting and/or diarrhea within the last 24 hours

• Severe sore throat along with fever and feeling ill for more than 48 hours, or

• after exposure to Strep throat infection

• Honey-crusted sores around the nose or mouth or rash on other body parts

• Large amounts of mucous (liquid) from their nose, with face pain or headache

• Severe ear pain or fluid coming from the ear

• Severe headache, especially with fever

If your child has a fever, it is not a good idea to give them medicine like Tylenol or Advil and send them to school because as soon as the medicine wears off, the fever may return and you will be called to come and pick up your child.

Please keep children home for 24 hours after the fever ends or they have completed 24 hours of medication if prescribed by your health care provider.

If you find your child is frequently asking to stay home from school, if they are falling behind or appear anxious about school, or if there does not appear to be any physical symptoms, contact the School Nurse and your health care provider to discuss your concerns.

Remind children to throw away used tissues, cover their mouths when they cough or sneeze, keep their hands away from their face, and to wash hands often with soap and warm water will help keep everyone healthier.

Please call us with any concerns or questions at 631-261-9000 or nurse@theschoolhouse.org

We have a growing lost and found at TSH, please be sure to LABEL your learners clothing including. Washable clothing labels are readily available on Amazon and at your local stores.

• Shirts

• Jackets

• Sweaters

• Shoes

• Gloves

• Hats

And anything else that is removable during the day!