Lower School Curriculum

It is the goal of St. Philip’s Academy to teach students healthy eating habits. With this goal in mind, the following is a list of acceptable snacks for morning, aftercare and on a daily basis:

.       Crackers   .       Pretzels/yogurt covered pretzels   .       Fruit and/or vegetables   .       Yogurt/pudding   .       Granola bars   .       Cereal   .       Popcorn   .       Rice cakes   .       Applesauce   .       100 calorie packs   .       String cheese   .       Mini-muffins   .       Raisins   .       Trail mix

Healthy snacks have been proven help boost a child’s mental and physical skills. Please note that chips, cookies, cakes, etc are not permitted as snacks.  Water is the only drink allowed in the classroom during snack.  Teachers have found that the high levels of sugars in fruit juices and sugary snacks make students excitable and unfocused.  For this reason, we ask that your children bring water if they’d like a drink with their snacks.  Students will have an opportunity to visit the water fountain at an as-needed basis.

Please know that students who bring an unhealthy snack will not be permitted to eat it during our class snack.  When available, a healthy alternative may be provided to your child.  We at St. Philip’s greatly appreciate your understanding and assistance in helping St. Philip’s Academy meet our nutrition goals. If you feel that you have a healthy snack alternative suggestion, please speak with your teacher directly.

If any unhealthy snacks are brought to school with your child, the following letter will be sent home with them, along with the unhealthy snack:

Today,_______(date)_______________, your child,______(name)________________________:

____ Brought a snack that did not follow our snack policy. The snack is being sent home in his/her backpack. Please send a snack from the above list in the future.

____ Did not bring a snack to school.  I gave your child a “backup” snack. Please send a snack from the above list every day.

____ Did not bring water to school.  Please send a reusable (preferably not plastic) bottle of water to school every day.

Birthdays:

Birthdays are exciting times in the life of a child.  We happily celebrate each child’s birthday in the classrooms.  This year we will be holding monthly birthday celebrations.  During these monthly celebrations, we will have a party for all those students whose birthdays occurred during that month.  For these occasions, birthday treats will be offered in a variety of settings: utilizing the teaching kitchen to bake nutritious treats, snacks prepared by our lunch program, or a healthy snack brought in from home (ex: fruits/veggies).  As always, the class will recognize your child’s actual birthday!

Since we will be hosting monthly celebrations we will not be having individual parties on your child’s actual birthday.  If you would like to volunteer be a part of your child’s celebration, or would like to bring in any additional party snacks, please contact your child’s teacher directly.  Thank you!

Thank you for your understanding and commitment to a healthier lifestyle for the St. Philip’s Academy community!