Important Information

WHAT SHOULD PARENTS BRING FOR THEIR CHILDREN?

School Age Children:

Forms—(if you have not already turned them in), diapers, wipes, ointment or powder, if desired (permission slip required), 2 changes of clothing, pacifier, formula, breast milk, bottles, cereal, jar food, sunscreen (permission slip required), weather appropriate outerwear, and a small photo of your child to label his/her cubby. Please bring a supply of diapers, wipes and any ointment or powder (permission slip required), your child uses. OUAT will provide center-provided snacks & lunch for older school age that are eating table food, sippy cups, bowls, bibs, burp cloths, crib sheets and a small blanket the child can use and keep. Please do not bring any crib bedding or toys. (Please refer to SIDS policy for more information.)

Toddlers:

Forms—(if you have not already turned them in), diapers, wipes, ointment or powder, if desired (permission slip required), sleeping bag for use at nap time, nap blanket or “Nap Buddy”, 2 changes of clothing, pacifier, formula or breast milk (if needed), bottles, sunscreen (permission slip required), weather appropriate outerwear, and a small photo of your child to label his/her cubby.

Preschoolers:

Forms—(if you have not already turned them in), diapers, Pull-ups, wipes, 2 changes of clothes, sleeping bag for use at nap time, nap blanket or “Nap Buddy” (soft, cuddly toy, if desired), sunscreen (permission slip required), weather appropriate outerwear, and a small photo of your child to label his/her cubby.

School-Agers:

Forms—(if you have not already turned them in), weather appropriate outerwear, extra change of clothes, sunscreen (permission slip required), quiet activities (workbooks, books, homework), and a small photo of your child to label his/her cubby.

Sunscreen and Insect Repellent:

If you bring sunscreen (recommended) and/or insect repellent for your child, please fill out a sunscreen and insect repellent permission slip. Please also be sure that your child’s name is written on the bottles. Sunscreen and insect repellent will be applied to the child every time they go outside. If you would like to bring in a sunhat or sunglasses for your child, we will be sure the child wears those when going outside also.

WHAT SHOULD CHILDREN WEAR?

Dress for fun and activity in comfortable clothing. Children will be learning through hands-on activities, playing outside, using dramatic play areas each day. During winter months, please dress your child appropriately with a coat, mittens, hat and boots, as necessary. We will ask that you provide a smock or older shirt for your child’s use during messy art and science activities. Please label everything you bring to the Center with your child’s name.

Personal Belongings:

Children often have security items which they need to bring from home. That is accepted, but we ask that you only bring one (1) security-type item to the Center. Please keep in mind that the item needs to fit into your child’s cubby, and, school age will not be allowed to have such items in their crib. Please do not bring electronic games, cd players, etc. as those are difficult to keep track of. There may be special event days or show-and-tell days where bringing these items is accepted. Your child’s teacher will alert you to those events. Please label anything you bring to the Center with your child’s name.

WHAT ABOUT SNOW DAYS AND OTHER UNSCHEDULED DAYS?

We understand that center closing days are very difficult for families. We understand that should closings occur, parents have to: make other child care arrangements (having to locate someone and having to pay twice for the day of care), take time off of work (missing meetings, pay, frowns from the boss, etc.), use vacation time, etc. OUAT provides a service to the working public and, as such, must be responsible about its closings. However, there are circumstances in which the center must close or open late for the safety of its staff and in order to meet licensing ratio guidelines. The following provides guidance on this: 

• Once Upon a Time follows the Verona Area School District (VASD) public school closings for inclement weather due to snow days, ice and other conditions that affect travel and road conditions. 
• OUAT does not follow public school morning delays (i.e., the 2-hour delays).
• OUAT does not follow public school closures due to cold weather only. In the case of severe cold weather (i.e., a wind chill warning), OUAT may open later in the morning (i.e., 10:00 a.m.) to give things a chance to warm up a little. 
• If Verona Schools are not in session (i.e., winter break), OUAT will make the decision on snow/ice closures and will email all parents and staff and will put a notice on the voice mail by 6:30 a.m.
• If it is necessary for the Center to close mid-day, parents will be notified via email (and by phone, if necessary) and asked to pick up their child(ren) immediately. In this situation, adequate staff must remain to maintain classroom ratios until all children have been picked up. 

How parents will be notified:

• Please watch and listen to local radio and television stations for notification of school district closures. If Verona schools are closed due to snow or other travel hazards, OUAT will be closed.
• In the case of a snow/ice closure, OUAT administration will put a notice on the OUAT voice mail and will email all parents and staff, also. We will try to do this by 6:00/6:30 a.m.
• In the case of a potential OUAT cold weather late start, OUAT administration will put a notice on the OUAT voice mail and will also email all parents and staff before 6:30 a.m. 

The Verona School District is very conscientious and only closes school if the weather creates a dangerous travel situation. Other than the risks of safe travel for families and staff during these weather emergencies, OUAT must be sure that we have enough staff on site to meet State licensing regulations regarding staff/child ratios. If we do not have enough staff to cover all the classrooms (because they could not get to work due to snow, cold, etc.), we may have to close a classroom (or the center), contact families and ask that children be picked up. As always, during cold weather we have an obligation to make sure that children are safe. If there were a fire, gas leak or other emergency during a cold weather situation, and the children had to evacuate the building, they would do so without coats, mittens, hats, etc. and would be subject to snow, freezing temperatures and potential frost bite. State licensing rules require us to evacuate the building in 2 minutes. Those situations will probably never happen, but it is something that needs to be considered as we would hate to have anything like that happen for many reasons.

WHAT IS THE POLICY ON TERMINATION OR WITHDRAWAL?

Please notify the Center Director in writing at least two weeks prior to withdrawal of your child. If parents and Center staff mutually agree that the placement of the child is inappropriate, or feel that the Center is unable to meet the child’s needs and a more immediate withdrawal is necessary, the two-week notice requirement may be waived.

The Center may terminate enrollment for the following reasons:

• Parents failure to pay fees
• Parents failure to comply with Center policies and practices or are disruptive, harassing, continuously rude or threatening to Center staff, children or families
• Parents failure to submit forms required by the Center and the Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services Licensing Regulations
• A child’s behavior is creating an emotional or physical danger to other children in the Center; a child requires so much of a teacher’s time that the other children’s needs in the class cannot be met; the child’s needs cannot be met by the program or the child does not benefit from the program. Each situation will be assessed on an individual basis. Timeframes and specific methods will be determined case by case. In all situations, parents will be involved from the beginning.
• The Center is closing. The Center will give a minimum of two (2) weeks notice to parents if the Center is forced to close for reasons other than fire or natural disaster.

Parents and Once Upon a Time staff will work on the above issues first through discussions, then through written plans, if necessary. Parents will be given notice of center-initiated closing in writing.