Topics

• General Info & Hours
• Arrival & Dismissal
• Reporting Absences
• Visiting/Volunteering
• Illness
• Transportation
• Smith Cafeteria
• Forms & Documents
• FAQs
• P-CCS K12 Student Handbook

General Info & Hours

Read below or select from the drop-down menu on the left to find the information you are looking for.  If you are unable to find what you need, try using the search feature at the top of the page.

Please let us know what additional information we could include that would be helpful to you.  We will strive to continually develop this site in order to best meet the needs of our school community.

School Hours

• Full Days: 8:55 am - 4:01 pm
• Half Days: 8:55 am - 12:10 pm

Students enter the building at 8:50 when the bell rings and should be in their classrooms by 8:55.  

Students will only be released from school to a parent or adult who is listed on the student's emergency card.  Students are released from the office only.

Arrival & Dismissal 

ARRIVAL:  Smith School has line-up supervision starting at 8:40 each day as students arrive at school. Procedures and important details are as follows:

Bussers - students exit their bus and join their class line.

Walkers - students cross at the crossing guard in front of the school, if needed, and follow the sidewalks to their class line.

Car loopers - All vehicles should utilize name placards on their passenger-side sun visor (Name placards will be given out at the open house or if you do not attend open house the placards will come home in your child's folder). Parents pull up as far as possible in the car loop and students exit their vehicles on the right side only. If student assistance is needed that requires the parent to exit the vehicle, parents should park in the lot and walk the student(s) across the crosswalk to the sidewalk. From 8:40 - 8:50 students may walk around the building to join their class lines or gather by door 14 and wait for the bell. Once the first bell has rung at 8:50, the orange sign is taken in and arriving students should enter using door 14 after that point, until the supervising adults go in and lock the door. The second bell rings at 8:55, at which time all students should be in their classrooms.

Prior to 8:40, only students who are arriving at Champions Care, have student safety jobs, or who are purchasing breakfast should be in the building. Students should not cut through the building to get to their class line.

On rainy or cold days, when the orange sign indicates "indoor line-up," students may enter using the nearest entrance and join their class in their line in the main hallway. This is also indicated by the red flag outside of door 14.

Smith playgrounds are not available for use before school. We do not have supervision for the playground at this time. If non-school aged siblings would like to play, we ask that parents wait until the Smith students have entered the building to start the school day before accessing the playground equipment and areas.

Many parents walk their children to the lines in the back of the school. Please either follow the sidewalks or use the crosswalk at the front of the car loop when crossing the parking lot. Our goal is to make the traffic areas as predictable as possible during arrival and dismissal.

Thank you for your support in helping us get all of the students into the building safely, on time, and ready to learn!

DISMISSAL:

Please make sure that your child knows his/her dismissal plan before leaving home in the morning. If your plans change, please contact the school office and we will notify the student and teacher. Emailing the teacher with this type of information once the school day has started is not the best plan as teachers may not be checking email during their time with students in the classroom. Contacting the office to change or communicate the dismissal plans is the best plan, but should be reserved for emergency situations. Thank you for being proactive!

Our first bell rings at 3:55, at which time safeties are dismissed to help our youngest students get to their end-of-the day destinations: car loop, bus, or Champions. All other students are dismissed at 4:01.

Please make sure that anyone picking up your child is authorized to do so on your child's emergency card and knows the car loop or pick-up procedures. Emergency contacts can be changed, added, or deleted in the MiStar Parent Connection by the parent.

Car loop procedures are the same for arrival and dismissal. Please remain in a single line until reaching the end of the driveway, at which point vehicles should form two left turning lanes.

The utilization of the car loop is for students who are being picked up by adults in vehicles. Adults who are walking up to the building may not pick students up from the car loop. If the adult is getting out of their car to pick up the child, then the child is considered a “walker” and should be picked up at their designated release location (check with teachers for specific release location) door. This allows us better accountability for the release of children and helps reduce confusion in the car loop area.

Reporting Absences

To help us make sure that all children arrive safely at school, please report the absence or tardiness of your child.  Call 416-4850 and press 2, which will connect you to the Smith Attendance Hotline.  Office staff will call to check on unconfirmed absences.

Visitors/Volunteers

Your child's teacher will share more about opportunities for volunteering in the classroom during the school year. In the meantime, you can prepare yourself for volunteering by reviewing the this slide deck. In the slide deck you'll find links to the required Ichat along with guidelines for volunteering at Smith Elementary. 

Illness

Any child with a fever of 100 degrees or signs of a contagious disease will be sent home from school.  Please keep emergency numbers for your child up to date along with numbers of other people who can care for your child if you are not available. 

 Please refer to the daily Covid-19 Health Screener for additional guidance at this time.  

Our school nurse is Cheryl Wiseman.  You may email her at Cheryl.Wiseman@pccsk12.com. Information about school health matters is available at this link:  School Health and Safety.

Forms & Documents

Forms

• Smith Lunch Menu
• Medication Authorization form 
• Authorization for Self-Medication form
• Application for Free/Reduced Meals
• Student Vacation Form
• Parent Volunteer Forms
• Breakfast Opt-in Form Link- Deadline October 29th

Documents

• Elementary Curriculum Overviews

Transportation

Bus Transportation - The school office must be notified, in writing from both families, if your child is going home with another student.  The school office will approve/disapprove the requests, contingent on bus space, if applicable.

Riding the bus is a privilege; therefore, following the bus procedures is essential. Safety is first and foremost. Rules that apply specifically to buses are posted on the front of every bus.

For the safety of every student who rides the bus, the bus driver must be given complete cooperation. Should a student choose not to follow the rules regarding the school bus, consequences ranging from a warning to a suspension from school or bus services may be applied.

Please be aware that in circumstances where the behavior of the student seriously compromises the safety of the other students or is destructive or vulgar in nature, the principal and/or designee may automatically suspend bus privileges for a period deemed appropriate for the infraction.

Visit the Transportation Department Page for more information.

Smith Cafeteria

We welcome our students to the Smith Cafeteria! The majority of foods we serve are whole grain products as well as low fat. We encourage good nutrition habits!  

We offer 5 different lunch choices daily. Fat free milk choice of white or chocolate is included with lunch.

We recommend prepaying your child’s lunch. Send cash or check in an envelope with your student’s name on it. We will accept any amount, and one check can cover multiple kids regardless of school. Please stipulate how it’s to be divided. This money may only be used for breakfast or lunch. You can also prepay online; please be aware that there is a  service charge in order to do so. You can call technology at 416-2711 if you need help setting up the online account. Account balances can be checked online as well. 

In addition to lunch, we also serve a grab n go breakfast before school. We offer a variety of items including egg muffins, mini pancakes, whole grain muffins, whole grain pop tarts with a cheese stick, yogurt, bagels and cream cheese, assorted fresh fruit, and milk and juice.

Daily milk purchases are available for 50 cents if you bring a packed lunch. Also at our snack cart we sell a variety of baked chips, whole grain fresh baked cookies, and low fat ice cream choices. Snack cart purchases cannot be made with the pre-paid lunch account.

I hope this has answered some of your questions about eating at the Smith Café. Please don’t hesitate to email if you have further questions. See you in the lunch line!

Mrs.  Colleen  Baumann

colleen.baumann@pccsk12.com

FAQs

Q:  We are moving or have moved to the Smith community.  How do we register for school?
A:  Click here to view district registration information.  Then contact the school office at 734-416-4850 to schedule a registration appointment.  Students are usually able to begin the next school day after registration is complete.

Q:  What immunizations will my child need to have in order to start school?
A:  Visit the P-CCS Health and Safety Immunization page to view immunization guidelines and obtain any necessary forms.

Q:  My child will need to take medication during the school day.  What procedures will we need to follow?
A:  Visit the P-CCS Health and Safety Medication Use page to view medication disbursement information and obtain any necessary forms.  Please read carefully as these guidelines are strictly followed.  Let us know if you have any questions.

Q:  Is before or after school care available for my child?
A:  Before and after school care is provided through the district's Kid's Time program at Smith. Contact the Kid's Time main office in order to check for availability.  This office also runs the summer camp program.  Smith staff members are not available to monitor children before or after school.

Q:  My child is interested in purchasing lunch or breakfast at school.  Where can I find information regarding pricing and menus?
A:  Visit the P-CCS Food & Nutrition page for menus, cost information, as well as an application for free/reduced meals. 

Q:  I would like to be able to check on my child's attendance in between report cards.  How can I sign up for the Parent Connection service which allows me to do this?
A:  Click here for the Parent Connection information.  You will need a login and pin to access the system.  If you do not have one or experience difficulty, contact the help desk at 734-416-2720.

Q:  What are the best ways to stay informed about what is happening at Smith Elementary?
A: Smith School sends building-wide information home via student home folders for print information and via email for electronic information and reminders.  There is a weekly automatic phone call on Sundays at 5:00 pm for weekly updates.  The same content is also shared via email every weekend.  Smith School also maintains a calendar for school-wide events on our website home page.

Smith School maintains a private Facebook information group, The Comet Connector.  This group is for parents and guardians of current Smith students.  Anything that is critical for all families to know will be emailed directly to all families.  The Comet Connector allows for follow-up questions and clarification.  Smith School also utilizes a hashtag on Twitter, #smithcometsrock.  Our use of Twitter is intended to give families a glimpse of all of the exciting things that happen at Smith throughout the year, but not meant to be a means of getting time-sensitive information to families.

Critical and timely information will also be shared through the rapid-call phone fan out system.  If you are not receiving these important messages, please call or stop by the office to talk with our school secretary so we can reset your primary phone number to ensure that you will receive the calls. 

Q:  What resources are available for students and families who speak languages other than English?
A:  The district has an English Language Learners department which provides services to over 600 students who speak at least 55 different languages.  You can contact the ELL office at 734-416-4908 or visit the ELL web page.  Arrangements for translation services for parent/teacher conferences can be arranged if necessary. 

Q:  What are the district's curricular and learning expectations for my child's grade level?
A:  Curriculum overviews for each grade level can be found on Teaching & Learning's Curriculum & Instruction page. 

Q:  Where can I find information about the district's Talented and Gifted program (TAG)?
A:  Visit the TAG webpage to find information regarding the program and qualification process.