An important part of the philosophy of The Burlington Academy of Learning focuses on support of the family unit and in doing so recognizes the need and desire for programs that extend beyond the school schedule. To fulfill this need, we offer extended hours through our Before School and After School Programs.

BEFORE SCHOOL PROGRAM

For our Before School Program, we open at 6:30am and children may arrive anytime between 6:30am and the start of their morning class at The Academy. Students who attend public school may attend the Before School Program and ride the bus from The Academy to Lake Garda, Harwinton Consolidated and Har-Bur Middle Schools. If parents need this service on a regular basis, we ask that you register your child in the Main Office. Parents may also bring children to this program on an "as needed" basis by simply showing up. Children will be added to the attendance list and the billing office will invoice monthly for this additional program. The cost for this program is $8/day if your child is not enrolled in one of our full-day programs. All parents must "sign-in" their child into the attendance book upon arrival.

The Before School Program is held in Building Two, 4 Covey Road, which is the green building to the right as you pull into the main driveway. Children have the option to do open choices including books, puzzles, games, manipulatives, blocks, writing and art in the morning. At the time of their bus or class at The Academy, a teacher escorts them to their proper destination.

Breakfast Policy

We prefer that children eat their breakfast before coming to The Academy, but we realize that, at times, it is necessary for a child to eat their breakfast during the Before School Program.

We must ensure that The Academy is a safe environment for each and every child. Some of our children have severe allergies including contact allergies and in order to protect those children from allergens, we've put in place a policy and procedure for any child that brings breakfast to the Before School Program.

The first thing that each and every child does when (s)he enters the school is to wash their hands. The Before School Program will have a table designated as a breakfast table that any child who has food will go to and eat their breakfast. We ask that any food brought into The Academy be healthy food. We are a CANDY and NUT-FREE SCHOOL. Please exclude any candy or nut product from any food item brought onto The Burlington Academy of Learning premises. Nut allergies are very serious. Nut products include any form of nut, nut oils and any food processed in the same vicinity of a nut product.

The child will remain at the table until (s)he completes their breakfast (no "grazing"). They will then clean up their spot, wipe off their mouth, then wash their hands before moving to the other area to play with the other children or to do activities at the other locations in the room. We take great pride in the safe environment we provide for our students with allergies. We appreciate your understanding of and for this Policy and ask that you explain the procedure to your child(ren) as well.

LUNCH BUNCH PROGRAM

Our Lunch Bunch Program is a wonderful time for children to enjoy eating their lunch together allowing for additional time for socializing and developing good manners.

Children in the morning Nursery School, PreKindergarten or Jr. Kindergarten classes may join us following their classes for Lunch Bunch from 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Children in afternoon Nursery School, PreKindergarten or Jr. Kindergarten classes may arrive at 11:30 a.m. and join us for the Lunch Bunch prior to their classes at 12:15 p.m., (12:30 pm for JK). Children in Lunch Bunch will wash hands, have lunch (which their parents provide), and as time allows, may enjoy singing, a story and/or outside playtime. Children are guided to unpack their lunch onto their placemat, eat their main part of their meal before their snack/dessert, put any uneaten portions back into their lunch bag (so parents can see what was eaten), and to clean up their own space paying special attention to proper recycling. Manners that are stressed at lunch time are to use "Please", "Thank you", "May I", "Excuse me", to keep mouths closed while chewing and to wait to finish chewing before speaking.

If parents would like their children to attend this program on a regular basis, we ask that you register your child in the Main Office. Parents may also have children join this program on an "as needed basis" by simply calling the Main Office or visiting the Main Office to arrange for Lunch Bunch when they bring their child to school. Children will be added to the attendance list and the billing office will invoice monthly based on attendance in this additional program. The cost for this program is $7/day for those children who are not enrolled in a full-day program.

Children need to bring their lunch and the lunch bag MUST contain an ice pack. We ask that any food brought into The Academy be healthy food. We are a CANDY and NUT- FREE SCHOOL. Please exclude any candy or nut based product from any food item brought onto The Burlington Academy of Learning premises. Nut allergies are very serious. Nut based products include any form of nut, nut oils and any food processed in the same vicinity of a nut product. We take great pride in the safe environment we provide for our students with allergies.

We look forward to having your child join us for lunch!

AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM & HOMEWORK CLUB

An important part of the philosophy of The Burlington Academy of Learning focuses on support of the family unit and in so doing recognizes the need and desire for programs that extend beyond the school schedule. To fulfill this need, we offer extended hours through our Before and After School Programs.

Our After School Program allows parents additional flexibility in their scheduling challenges! This program may be used regularly or on an "as needed" basis when parents simply need to meet other, unexpected, commitments.

Since it is the end of a school day for children, we like to allow them as much outside playtime as weather permits. If your child is not in our Homework Club, or after completing their homework, when inside, they can enjoy playing on the Wii, computers, doing puzzles, games, quiet reading, creating beautiful artwork, doing craft projects or playing on the playground. We'll also be holding our "Fun Fridays" where we offer movie and popcorn on the big screen with surround sound!

The Academy provides a nutritious snack each afternoon.

Homework Club

Our Homework Club offers a certified teacher working with 1st - 5th graders on an individual and small group basis. Our goal is to reinforce the skills the children are learning at school and use positive reinforcement to make learning fun. Teachers chart incentives and give prizes to reward children for their hard work. We have an exciting atmosphere with a variety of activities to promote a lifelong love of learning.

Our Homework Club Tutor tracks children's homework assignments, tests and projects to insure they stay on task. For those younger children, we offer assistance in Math, such as working on their facts, reading and grammar skills, as well as giving tutoring assistance in any subject areas according to your individual child's needs. Your partnering is vital and we welcome your input, as well as letting us know your concerns for your child. There is no one who knows your child better than you. We feel this is a team effort and if you have any questions or comments, we look forward to hearing from you.

Our Homework Club is voluntary in the After School Program, but we would encourage you and your children to take advantage of this enrichment of your child's education. It is also especially helpful for working parents who would like to have homework commitments completed early so they can enjoy a more relaxed evening with family. Additional one-on-one tutoring is also available as desired and/or needed.

After School Program Logistics

For our After School Program, we are open until 6 pm. This program is available for children in Nursery School through 5th Grade. Although The Academy school day ends at 3:15 pm or 3:30 pm (depending on the program), children of parents electing this option may stay at school up until 6:00pm. Region #10 students may ride the school bus to The Academy's After School Program from Burlington and Harwinton Elementary and Middle Schools. Students who attend the Lake Garda, Harwinton Consolidated, Har-Bur Middle School may ride the bus to The Academy. If parents need this service on a regular basis, we ask that you register your child in the Main Office. Parents who would like this program on an "as needed" basis, may do so by simply calling our Main Office.

The After School Program is always held in Building Two, 4 Covey Road, which is the building to the right as you pull into the main driveway. If a child enrolled in one of our regular programs is attending our After School Program, (s)he will be escorted to the After School program by his/her classroom teacher or another staff member who will sign them in on the After School Program Attendance Sheet. If a child is taking a bus from one of the public schools, one of our staff members will meet the bus, walk the child to the After School Program and sign them in on the After School Program Attendance Sheet. All children must formally say "good-bye" to the After School Teacher and parents must "sign-out" their child in the attendance book.

Day students in Nursery School, PreKindergarten, Junior Kindergarten, Kindergarten, Kindergarten Enrichment are welcome any day in our After School Program, even on a day they don't normally attend The Academy. Siblings are always welcome, also, if they do not normally attend the After School Program. We hope the convenience of this program is useful to you and we look forward to having your child(ren) with us in the After School Program!