Students are expected to be in attendance from 8:55 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Monday – Friday (with the exception of statutory holidays, Pro-D Days, Catholic Educator Days, and scheduled early dismissal days).
Regular attendance and punctuality are very important to every child’s success, and we ask your co-operation in this regard.
The school requires notification for any absence from school.
At St. Francis de Sales, we track student absences. A online note must be sent to the office email each day your child is away; this information must be presented at the annual school audit. This applies even if a phone call has been made to the school advising staff that the student is absent. Please advise the classroom teacher in an email.
Absentee Notes are required for:
Vacation Time: Holidays during the school year are not encouraged, as this may interfere with the student’s progress in the regular program. If the school incurs a financial loss of any part of the government grant due to a pupil’s absence, other than for sickness, the parents/guardians will be responsible for making up the loss and will be billed accordingly. Family emergencies and crises will be dealt with at the discretion of the Principal. If you are planning to remove your child from class to take vacation time during the school year, please notify both the classroom teacher and the office as early as possible. Please be reminded of the following statement on the registration form signed by the Parent/Guardian at the time of registration.
“We understand that we are responsible for ensuring that our child attends school regularly and if the minimum of 600 hours attendance between September and May 15 is not reached and the Provincial Government Grant is lost, in whole or in part, we will reimburse the school for the amount lost.”
WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE WILL NOTIFY THE SCHOOL OFFICE IF TAKING ANY HOLIDAYS DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR.
Note: the following changes have been made to the Attendance Policy:
"The school is not responsible for supplying homework for students who are taken out of school during the school year. Parents should have their students keep a journal and read daily. Any curriculum missed by students during this time will not be assessed and therefore will not be reported on. Teachers are not responsible for providing individual families with work that will be missed when students are away, except in the case of illness/family emergency." This was approved by the PEC on Wednesday, April 13th, 2011.
Absence of Parent/Guardian: If you are absent during the school year and if you are leaving your children in the care of an alternate care giver for a short time, please notify both the class room teacher and the office using our two-note system. Please advise on the school note where to contact you in case of an emergency.
Leaving For Lunch: All students are expected to stay at school during the lunch hour. If you are taking your child home for lunch or treating him/her to a restaurant lunch off of the school premises, please advise the classroom teacher. Students leaving the school grounds need to be picked up from the office and signed out by their parent, guardian or designated person. Students cannot leave the school grounds unaccompanied during the lunch hour.
Dental and Medical Appointment: As far as possible, these should be made
outside of school hours.