Toileting

Rhyme & Reason does not have licensed diaper-changing facilities. All registered students must toilet independently or have an aide to help with toileting.

Meals

Rhyme & Reason does not have licensed meal-preparation facilities. All snacks and meals are family-provided and allergen-aware.

FOIP

Rhyme & Reason uses Storypark to share daily learning journeys with our families. In order for us to capture images, audio, and video of your child for these purposes, we require a release form for FOIP purposes. To learn more about Alberta's FOIP act visit https://www.servicealberta.ca/foip/legislation/foip-act.cfm.

Enrollment Fees

Rhyme & Reason requires a Non-Refundable Deposit fee of $100 for each school year for each student. This fee then comes off of your child’s June tuition.

Late Pick-up Fee

Late pick-up requires immediate phone notification. Any late pick-ups will be charged at a rate of $1.00/minute to a maximum of 30 minutes. If after 30 minutes no notification or alternate care is arranged for, a call will be placed to Calgary Child and Family Protective Services, as per Alberta Education Regulations.

Late Payment Penalty

If a student’s account becomes delinquent past thirty days, the account incurs late fees. The ability to enroll for the coming school year will be limited when accounts remain overdue.

Tuition

Tuition for each student partially covers the school’s general operating costs. Families may choose from different payment options (QuickBooks, cheque, post-dated cheques, or e-transfer). Families need to pay tuition before or by the first of every month.

Vaccinations

Rhyme & Reason requires all students to have up-to-date vaccinations in order to protect our immunodeveloping and immunocompromised students, as well as staff and guests of our classroom who might be similarly immunosuppressed or compromised. If you have any questions, A Parent's Guide to Vaccination is an awesome resource, and you can learn more about which vaccinations we require and how to provide your child's records at AHS Immunization and Routine Immunization Schedule.

COVID-19Updated January 2022

Staying home when sick is one of the most important ways to reduce the spread of communicable diseases, infections, and viruses, including, but not limited to COVID-19. This is why it is important for anyone who is sick to stay home.

Please note the following COVID-19 Health/Illness Policy, which applies to all staff and children within this facility and is in addition to established preschool illness policy (pg. 7 Parent Manual)

1) Assessment of Key Symptoms of Illness

Children under 18 core symptoms:

- cough

- fever

- shortness of breath or difficulty breathing

- loss of sense of taste or smell

Children under 18 with just one of either a runny nose or sore throat are not legally required to isolate but should stay home until well.

2) Stay home and monitor for 24 hours.

For mild symptoms without fever, children and staff members must stay home and monitor symptoms for 24 hours.

3) Reassessment of Key Symptoms of Illness

• If symptoms improve and the child/staff member feels well enough, they can return to the childcare facility without further assessment or doctor’s note.

• If symptoms include fever or difficulty breathing, or if symptoms last for more than 24 hours or get worse, seek a health assessment by calling 8-1-1 or a primary care provider. If a COVID-19 test is recommended as a result of the health assessment, self-isolate while waiting for results (see information on how results are provided here).

o If the COVID-19 test is positive, self-isolate and follow the direction of public health.

o If the COVID-19 test is negative, return to the childcare facility once well enough to participate.

o If a COVID-19 test is recommended but not completed, self-isolate for 10 days after the onset of symptoms and return when feeling well enough to participate.

4) COVID-19 Self-Assessment Tool

Use the COVID-19 Assessment Tool to determine if you should seek testing for:

• Children who have, or children with others living in the same home who have just returned from international travel; or

• Children who have, or children with others living in the same home who have been identified as at-risk of potential Covid19 exposure.

Children may not attend childcare programs while they have any of the following symptoms:

• Green mucous nasal discharge

• Fever

• Unusual, unexplained loss of appetite, fatigue, irritability, or headache

• Eye infections

• Any rash that is not confirmed by doctor to be non-contagious

• Known/suspected communicable diseases (measles, chicken pox, pink eye, hand foot and mouth, etc)

• Ear infection

• Nausea, vomiting and/or diarrhea in the last 48 hours

Please use the following guidelines to help us prevent the spread of illness in our preschool by keeping your child at home with any of the following conditions:

• Pain - any complaints of unexplained or undiagnosed pain

• An acute cold with fever, coughing and sore throat

• Difficulty breathing - wheezing or persistent cough

• Fever (100 F/38.3 C or higher) accompanied by general symptoms

• Sore throat or trouble swallowing

• Infected skin or eyes or an undiagnosed rash

• Headache and stiff neck

• Unexplained diarrhea - combined with nausea, vomiting or abdominal cramps

• Severe itching of body or scalp

If a child begins to show symptoms while at preschool, Staff will take the following steps:

1. Immediately separate the symptomatic child from others in a supervised area.

2. Contact the child’s parent or caregiver to pick them up as soon as possible.

3. Where possible, maintain a 2-metre distance from the ill child. If not possible, staff should wear a non-medical mask or face covering if available and tolerated or use a tissue to cover their nose and mouth.

4. Provide the child tissues to cover their coughs or sneezes. Throw away used tissues as soon as possible and perform hand hygiene.

5. Avoid touching the child’s body fluids (e.g., mucous, saliva). If you do, practice diligent hand hygiene.

6. Once the child is picked up, practice diligent hand hygiene.

7. Staff responsible for facility cleaning must clean and disinfect the space where the child was separated and any areas recently used by them (e.g., classroom, bathroom, common areas).

8. Children may only return to school after receiving a negative COVID test result, or after 14 days or when symptoms are no longer present, whichever lasts longer.

If a staff member begins to show symptoms while at preschool, and unable to leave immediately (awaiting substitute coverage of ratio):

1. Symptomatic staff will separate themselves into an area away from others.

2. Maintain a distance of 2 metres from others.

3. Use a tissue or non-medical mask to cover their nose and mouth while they wait to be picked up.

4. Staff responsible for facility cleaning must clean and disinfect the space where the staff member was separated and any areas used by them (e.g., classroom, bathroom, common areas).

Staff will only return to work after receiving a negative COVID test result, or after 14 days or when symptoms are no longer present, whichever lasts long

Rhyme & Reason is committed to upholding the diversity and dignity of all peoples in our learning environments and in our workforce.

We are committed to being an inclusive workplace and learning environment that welcomes, respects, and values the diversity of all our employees, practicum students, children, and families, and one that supports them to actively engage and achieve their full potential.

We work daily towards removing barriers that individuals may face due to historical exclusion and erasure, including those based on race/ethnicity, physical and cognitive ability, access to finances and education, gender expressions and relationship orientations, languages spoken, and religions practiced.

We acknowledge the many different ways we can exist as humans in this world, and truly value the ideas of peace and plurality — we are stronger together.