Zing! for PS 384Q Afterschool Club Information

Communications, Policies, Procedures & FAQ

To make sure you get the attention you need, we created the alias PS384Q@ZING-KIDS.COM where you can ask questions, send updates, etc. Michele Levy and her team will do their best to respond within 24 hours or sooner depending on the type of outreach.

After School Timing

Afterschool hours are from 2:50-5:30PM. Drop off happens directly at the end of the school day and the primary teacher of your student brings them to the dedicated meeting space in the school. For maximum efficiency, we ask you to be punctual at arrival and dismissal times.

Communication

Afterschool registration is through our HiSawyer page. When you register, we ask that you fill out forms & questionnaires so we have everything we need for maximum safety & smiles. That said, we ask that you email PS384Q@ZING-KIDS.COM with your request in the subject line for both important and non-urgent matters. Additionally, we will share the site leaders’ phone numbers so you can call them directly in case of an emergency. Furthermore, Zing! uses Slack for daily & weekly updates such as a location change, quick update on a child, photo/video sharing, etc. This is a great app to connect with your child’s site leader on a daily basis. Prior to the start of school, we will email out a document on the best ways to communicate on daily basis to make your day easy & simple!

Student Pick Up

Currently, parents are not permitted past the security desk. When you arrive to pick up your child at dismissal time, you can check out your student by entering your information on our tablet. Your child will only be released to an approved guardian, so we invite you to log into your account to double check who you entered upon registration.

Early Pick Up Policy

If you need get your child before 5:30PM, we request that you email PS384Q@zing-kids.com with subject EARLY PICK & the name of your child to pick up your child early from school. The subject line would look like this: EARLY PICK UP - JOHN DOE. If you do not email or call us, there may not be a staff member to immediately greet you. Please know this is not to make your life harder. It is meant to make your child's experience more enjoyable and have the class run more efficiently. Our program involves partner & group movement & activities that rely on the involvement of students. We also don’t want to unexpectedly disrupt class when students are actively engaged. When you notify us of early dismissal, our teachers and the rest of our team can plan accordingly.

During 5:10-5:25pm, the students are preparing for pickup and are escorted to the front of the building for a more efficient pickup process. There will be no early pickup during this time frame.

We understand parents need flexibility, but we hope you can understand why we implement these processes. Should you need a last minute early pickup, please send us a much via Slack or call your site leader’s cell phone.

Late Pick Up Policy

The safety of children is of paramount concern to Zing!. To track all drop-offs and pickups of children, parents/guardians are required to sign children out on the provided tablets & forms. Staff are not permitted to sign out students on behalf of parents/guardians. The school in which we are operating is closed at 6:00 p.m and the entire staff must exit the building no later than 6:00pm. Parents are asked to plan sufficient time to leave the school no later than 5:45p.m. Due to the operational and staffing costs incurred when a parent/guardian is late, a late fee will be charged at the rate of $75. When a child is not picked up by 6:00 p.m. all persons on the associated contact list will be called. If no one is reachable, two staff members will take the child to the local precinct by no later than 6:30pm.

LOCAL PRECINCT: NYPD 108 PRECICT | 547 50th Ave, Long Island City · (718) 784-5411

Classroom Programming & Setup

This is a new program for PS 384Q so we welcome all ages together, but we will do our best to group students based on their grades (K-1, 2-3, 4-5 OR K-2 and 3-5) for specific activities so that they’re at grade level. We are happy to keep you updated on how this will run as soon as we get all registrations in for the year.

What Your Child Needs To Bring

All students must have at least one (1) snack packed for afterschool. As we have several students with food allergies, no peanut or tree nut products are permitted. Thank you for understanding.

Refunds

We budget for resources in our academically-driven afterschool program based on student enrollment numbers. Although we understand the need for flexibility, we are unable to offer refunds after enrollment has been received. In lieu of a refund, you may be eligible to transfer any funds as a credit to be used in a future Zing! program. The affordability and quality we are able to provide is directly tied to the consistency of expected attendance. Should you decide to enroll for a partial week and require additional dates in the future, please be assured we will do our best to accommodate your request, however there may be a wait list. Permits from the Department of Education must be secured to allocate for the proper classroom space which is done at the beginning of the school year. If you are denied a future seat or put on a waitlist, it is not because we do not want to accommodate your student, rather there are various guidelines set forth by the Department of Education that we must adhere to in addition to ensuring the quality and student to teacher ratio in classes. Thank you for your understanding.

Pausing Enrollment

We are unable to pause enrollment or skip months once you have registered for the afterschool program. We budget for resources in our program based on student enrollment numbers. Although we understand the need for flexibility, when you reserve a seat, you do so for the entire school year thus we are unable to fill your seat on a month-by-month basis once the school year begins. The affordability and quality we are able to provide is directly tied to the consistency of expected attendance. Thank you for your understanding.

Allergies & Extra Needed

The Zing! team members are not permitted to administer medication to students. All Zing! staff members are trained and certified in Youth CPR/AED & First Aid. In the event of a medical emergency, the Zing! staff will administer first aid, CPR, and rescue in the best interest of the child. Parents will be contacted if care is administered.

Why Registration Fees

We budget for resources in our afterschool program based on student enrollment numbers. When parents pre -register, it provides our team ample time to prepare resources and materials for the upcoming school year. As the school year approaches it becomes increasingly difficult to hire qualified educators and source resources for an unexpected amount of students. The affordability and quality we are able to provide is directly tied to the consistency of expected attendance. In addition to this, permits from the Department of Education must be secured to allocate for the proper classroom space which is done at the prior to the start of the school year. There are various guidelines set forth by the Department of Education that we must adhere to in addition to ensuring the quality and student to teacher ratio in classes. Registering within a timely manner allows us to provide the support you need and avoids the necessity of a waitlist.

STANDARD REGISTRATION: AUGUST 2ND - AUGUST 15TH | $100 REGISTRATION FEE

LATE REGISTRATION: AUGUST 16TH - AUGUST 25TH | $120 REGISTRATION FEE

Registration will close September 4th and your child will be put on the waitlist until space becomes available.

Health & Safety Policies

1. Students will wash their hands before entering class & will have hand sanitizer available.

2. We will encourage students not to touch one another or to touch their own faces.

3. If a student is coughing, sneezing or visibly sick, caregivers are called immediately and the child is redirected to an alternative area.

4. We will encourage students wash hands their before leaving our program & will have hand sanitizer available.

5. If someone uses a tissue, we will ensure that it is discarded in a waste basket immediately.

6. All Zing! Staff are fully vaccinated for covid-19

7. Masks are optional for students that are fully vaccinated and we will continue to follow guidelines set in place by the DOE

We don't expect, nor have there been, any issues in our classes, however we always want to be transparent in our processes and give our parents the utmost confidence that we are always diligent in our practices.

Student Expectations & Redirections

At Zing! we aim to provide not only a fun, safe, and secure learning environment, but also stress respect for other students, staff, and property. In order to ensure the quality of this program and safety of the students, each student must follow program guidelines. Please review these guidelines with your child.

Zing! Guidelines

1. Follow instructions by the afterschool team promptly to ensure safety.

2. Show respect to all students, team, equipment and property. No put downs, insults or teasing is allowed.

3. Keep hands, feet, head and other body parts to yourself. Fighting, hitting, theft, destruction of property, etc. will not be permitted.

4. Tidy up after yourself.

5. Personal valuables (i.e. cell phones, tablets, game systems, cameras, etc.) are not permitted.

6. Do not run away from staff supervision or leave the school premises without parents/guardian. Students should always be with their instructors unless they have permission to be somewhere else.

7. Always ask permission from an Instructor to use restroom, get a drink, etc.

8. Appropriate language and dress at all times. Comfortable clothes and shoes should be worn to afterschool so students can participate in activities.

9. Maintain a positive attitude and have a fun!

10. NO PEANUT BUTTER OR NUTS are allowed at afterschool due to other students with food allergies.

11. All children will need to bring a labeled, refillable water bottle.

Redirection Procedure

The following procedures will be followed when children do not follow afterschool rules. Our Site Leaders reserve the right to bypass one or more steps in the process if a situation warrants.

Staff Redirection Response:

Step 1: Verbal Warning and Redirection

Step 2: Take a monitored break from the activity

Step 3: Parent Contact (3 levels)

o 1st Parent Contact: After redirection, a verbal warning, and an activity break/one on one attention from the instructor, a parent/guardian will be notified by phone call that their child violated a rule of the community agreement. The instructor and parent/guardian will discuss the next steps in the redirection process.

o 2nd Parent Contact: Parent/Guardian will be contacted to pick up their student. The child will be welcomed back to afterschool the next day or the next session they are enrolled in.

o 3rd Parent Contact: If the undesired behavior continues after the 2nd parent contact, it may be determined that our program is not a good fit for your child at this time. Tuition refunds will be handled on a case-by-case basis.

Physical violence is not tolerated at Zing!. Our staff reserves the right to dismiss a student whose behavior endangers the safety of themselves or others, thereby bypassing some of the disciplinary steps outlined above.

Immediate Dismissal Examples:

1. Any child who brings a weapon to camp (i.e. butterfly knife, blade, bb/airsoft gun, explosive device, etc.) will be immediately removed from the program

2. Any child who makes a credible threat to hurt himself or others will be removed

3. Any child who seriously harms himself or another camper will be removed (physical and/or verbal abuse)

4. Any child who verbally or physically abuses staff will be removed

Incident Reports

For any incidents that involve one or more other students, an incident report will be completed immediately by the Zing! instructor and submitted and reviewed by Zing! Leadership. They will then be distributed to the parents of the children involved for their review within one business day.

The purpose of Incident Reports are to keep parents informed of minor incidents and redirection issues that may happen during the afterschool day.

Parent Conduct and Process of Dispute

Zing! staff seeks to treat the children and their families with respect. Parents and guardians are also expected to display professionalism in all inquiries and disputes about redirection decisions and incident response. All program and/or staff issues, comments, or concerns should be directed to the Zing! CEO, Michele Levy, not the instructors or assistant instructors.