School Hours

Warning Bell 8:35
Classes Begin 8:40
Recess Break: Kindergarten to Grade 5: 10:20-10:40 
Lunch: Kindergarten to Grade 5: 12:05-12:50; Grades 6 to 11: 11:35-12:15
Dismissal: Kindergarten to Grade 5: 2:45; Grades 6-11: 3:00
Bus Departs 3:05

School Supplies
Kindergarten and Grade 1 supplies are pre-purchased and packaged through a local supplier. Parents are asked to provide the K/1 teacher with a cheque. This program’s benefits are

• Eliminates parental frustration of back-to-school shopping.
• Teachers can select the specific products they prefer.
• Parents get student supplies at wholesale prices and save money.
• The school receives 10% of total orders in free products for additional school office supply purchases up to $1000.

All needed supplies will be posted on the website.

Attendance
Students are expected to attend school every day and to arrive at class on time. Parents must phone the school before 8:30 a.m. if a child is absent and state why they are absent. It is important that any work missed during absences be completed as soon as possible.

Attendance is a crucial element to success and promotion and so it is regularly considered and included in the calculation of grades and recommendation for promotion. In addition, Government funding is dependent upon student attendance. Sick days are counted as being in attendance. Absences for any other than medical reasons do not count towards attendance.

If the child has an illness that is contagious they should be kept at home. The student will need a note, or the parent must contact the office if they are to leave the school any time during the school day. The teacher and/or office must be notified before the student leaves the school grounds as well as when the student returns.

Unauthorized School Absences
Children are legally required to be in school according to the School Act unless they are ill. Unless a child is ill the school cannot be responsible for preparing work packages for such things as family holidays that are taken outside of the regular school calendar. The reasons for this are that:

• A large amount of class instruction is done orally through demonstrations and discussions and therefore cannot easily be made up through work sheets unless considerable explanations take place.
• Vocabulary development and understanding of the concepts in Science, Language Arts, etc., is tightly linked to the active participation of the student.

It is difficult for a teacher to assign work ahead of time and to know exactly what will be covered two or three weeks down the road. As the approach at the elementary level is more child-oriented than content-oriented many variables constantly come into play such as the children’s pace, difficulties, interests, unexpected special events, etc. which all effect the day to day planning.

In the past, teachers sometimes spent time preparing work for a child to take along while traveling. The teacher would expect the work to be completed upon the student’s return. However, frequently the student would inform the teacher that they were too busy during their trip to do this. Therefore, if a child has to miss school, it is usually more feasible to do some catching up after they come back to class. Teachers may add homework prior to departures at their discretion. This being said, we recognize that certain trips can offer excellent learning opportunities. We also realize that parents are the ones who ultimately make the final decisions on whether to take their child out of school to go on trips after all things have been considered. We hope that this helps you understand our position no matter what your decision may be.

Injury or Illness
If a child becomes ill or has an injury, the school will call the parents. If for some reason we are unable to contact the parent, the friend or guardian that is listed on the medical form will be called and alternate arrangements for care may be made for the student. If the injury or illness is serious, the child will be taken to St. Joseph's Hospital.

Lost & Found
There is a lost and found container. Anything of particular value or small items will be kept in the office and the Administrative Assistant will return it if it is identified. To avoid having things remain the lost and found container, please clearly label everything.

Visitors to CVCS
Visitors are requested to check in at the office prior to proceeding to classrooms.

Student Visitors - In special circumstances, if a student wants a friend to visit at school, a request must be made to the principal and the homeroom teacher at least two days prior to the visit. NOTE: Students having time off from other schools in the area do not constitute a special circumstance. School district professional development days are not grounds for students to visit.

Emergency School Closure
Emergency closure before school begins due to snow, etc:

1. The principal/director will contact the teachers and arrange for an announcement on the radio (97.3 FM or 98.9 FM).
2. The teachers will phone parents at home to notify them of school closure.

Emergency closure during school:

1. The school office staff will contact the parents at home/work.
2. Alternate care arrangements may be made if parent cannot be personally contacted.
3. Staff members shall remain at the school until all children have left.

Families are to assume that the school will re-open the following day unless an announcement is on the radio and/or they have been contacted.

Library
Parent volunteers operate the school library.  It is open on a regular basis for students to obtain learning resource materials. Books may be checked out for one week. The student must pay for any damaged or lost materials.

Bible
All students in grades two to eleven are required to have a Bible at school that is to be left there. We suggest the New International version. These are used regularly for Bible studies, chapels, devotions and general classroom study.

Lunch and Recess Snacks
Families are encouraged to send food in containers that are environmentally friendly i.e. reusable.  All food garbage will be sent home with the students so that the garbage pickup costs an rodent problems are reduced.  Eating lunches and snacks outside is discouraged.

Use of Phones and Photocopier
Students are to use school phones only with permission of office staff. Permission is given only for calls deemed absolutely necessary.

Students may make personal copies at a cost of $0.10/copy. Permission must be secured from the office staff to use the copier. Teachers will decide what copies are personal and what the school should provide.

Physical Education

The physical education program runs from K-12 and includes a variety of activities. Grade 11 and 12 students take leadership training in order to display positive Christ-like characteristics to the younger students. They take charge of intramural teams, school events, and planning games and activities for younger students. They also have an opportunity to participate in field trips such as canoeing, kayaking, rock climbing, cross-country skiing, downhill skiing, swimming, skating, and much more.

The CVCS Grade 11/12 students will also participate in the Snow to Surf race in April. This relay race challenges students to a heightened level of teamwork and accomplishment while enjoying the beautiful world God has created.

Interschool Sports

High school sports include ARROW volleyball, basketball, cross-country running, track and field, and badminton. Other fun tournaments happen throughout the year with the Christian Schools on the Island.

Elementary sports are held among the Christian and Public Schools on Vancouver Island. These events include but are not limited to volleyball, basketball, floor hockey, cross-country running, and track and field.

ARROW Athletics: https://sites.google.com/a/cvchristian.com/arrows/