St. Elizabeth
Catholic School
Primary School
Playground Guidelines and Rules 2009-2010
Recess Times
Grades 3rd, 4th and 5th 12:00-12:30 (line up for dismissal beginning at 12:25)
Grades 1st and 2nd 12:40 -1:10 (line up for dismissal beginning at 1:05)
Grades 6th, 7th and 8th 1:10-1:20
Recess Staffing and
Responsibilities
1. Children must be supervised at all times throughout the recess period by members of the faculty and staff of St. Elizabeth School and the recess volunteers. Children must be in sight at all times.
• The safety of the children is the main responsibility. Please keep talking with each other to a minimum.
• Volunteers need to sign up in the lobby for a particular zone to supervise on the playground. Please stay in these areas during the recess to ensure that all areas are being monitored.
• Teachers are ultimately responsible for the recess and the children. Please refer all major issues to them.
2. Two teachers and three to four volunteers will be assigned to each outdoor recess.
3.
Volunteers
• Upon arrival to the school, please sign in with the school receptionist at the front desk. Please remember to sign in to receive credit for your recess volunteer hours.
• If recess is OUTDOORS, proceed out to the playground.
• If recess is INDOORS, the school receptionist will have a sign up sheet for the classrooms that need supervision. After each recess period is over, please return to the front desk so that you can be assigned to the next classroom. (Depending on the day, some teachers may not need your assistance in the classroom).
• At the end of recess, one of the volunteers needs to bring the canvas bag of balls to the gymnasium/gym teachers’ office area.
4. Teachers
• Teachers on recess duty will escort the children to the playground. The first teacher will pick up the First Aid Fanny pack and Walkie Talkie from the front desk.
• When recess is over, homeroom teachers will come out to the playground to bring the children into the school. A whistle will be blown to notify the children that recess is over and to line up and wait for the homeroom teacher.
• Children should never be left alone on the playground for any reason; therefore, if a homeroom teacher does not arrive promptly, the adult on-duty should lead the children into the classroom. Staff members are expected to speak with other staff members regarding punctuality.
Playground
1. Boundaries
• Children must be kept away from the low area along the back of the gymnasium.
• Children are not permitted to play on the portable ramps or on the side of the buildings.
• Children are not permitted to play in the woods or behind the hedges.
• If a ball should enter the wooded area, the child must first inform the parent or member of the staff, on duty, that he or she would like to retrieve the ball. Permission to enter the wooded area must be granted prior to a child entering that area. The child must also be supervised as he or she retrieves the ball.
2. Equipment
• Monkey Bars: Children in grades K-2 may not use the high monkey bars.
• Slides: Children are not permitted to climb up the slides or to go down them in groups. They must go down the slide on their bottoms and feet first.
• Balls: Please have the children in the last recess period collect the balls and put them in the big canvas bag. At the end of recess, one of the volunteers needs to return the equipment to the gym teachers’ office.
3. Football/Soccer
• There will be a designated area on the playground where the children can play team games such as football, soccer, etc. Teachers/volunteers should assist children in establishing these boundaries before play begins.
• Football is to be two-hand touch only. Tackling or any rough play is unacceptable.
• The children should not play ball in the area where the equipment is located.
4. Parking Lot
• The lower side parking lot will be used during recess on days when the field is wet. It is very important to keep an eye out for cars that are trying to get around the parking lot and to be cognizant of the dangers of Tildenwood Lane with respect to the children’s activities (i.e. balls going out into the street, football games to close to the road).
• With teachers’ approval, on days when the children are in the back playground, they may also play ball on the near area of the lower side parking lot. Again, we need to be cautious of cars that need to get in and out of the parking lot.
Bathroom
and Nurse Visits
1. Bathroom:
• Children should only use the bathrooms by the gymnasium
• Children in K-3 may only go indoors to the bathroom accompanied by a buddy.
2. Nurses Office:
All students who need to visit the Nurse’s office must ask the teacher on duty. The teacher on duty will then notify the health room via Walkie Talkie that they are sending a student in to be seen by the nurse. All hard bumps to the head and very “dirty falls” should be referred to the school nurse for evaluation before returning to play. See below for Emergency Procedures.
Playground Conduct
1. Any problems that occur on the playground should be handled by an adult supervising the playground. If the behavior continues or is egregious, the teacher on duty should be made aware of the situation and a decision can be made regarding whether or not to report this conduct to Ms. Barrett’s office.
2. Rough play is not permitted on the playground at any time. Children who continue to play in a rough or inappropriate manner should be given a time-out and a note should be sent to Ms. Barrett explaining this child’s behavior on the playground. Ms. Barrett will follow-up with the child.
3. The use of inappropriate or offensive language should not be tolerated. Any child using such language should be immediately reprimanded. If the use of such language does not cease, the child should be sent to Ms. Barrett’s office. In the event that an upper classmen (6-8th grade) is using foul language, they are to be immediately sent to Ms. Barrett’s office.
4. No child should be alone during recess. Finding a child from the same grade level and speaking with that child about embracing the lonely child is expected. “You Can’t Say You Can’t Play.”
5. Small groups of children caught making fun of other students, gossiping, or teasing should be disciplined and separated. The names of these children should be given to the principal who will follow-up with these students.
1. Three Whistle Blasts: Children should be reminded on a daily basis that if they hear three sharp blasts from the whistle, an emergency has occurred. Children should be instructed to “FREEZE” and wait for further instructions. Children should be absolutely silent if this were to occur on the playground. (Homeroom teachers will demonstrate to their children the three sharp whistle blows).
2. First Aid Supplies: One of the teachers will have a fanny pack containing first aid supplies. It is ok to administer basic first aid (i.e. antiseptic and band-aids). For any other injuries, especially any to the head, the children must go to the nurse’s office.
3. Walkie-Talkies: Included in the fanny pack should be a walkie-talkie so that in the event of an accident or emergency the recess supervisors will be able to radio the school front desk or Health Room.