Parent Resources

• Car line gates on W 143rd St open at 7:45 am
• School doors open at 8 am
• Students begin their day at 8:15 am
• Please make sure your child arrives on time

Students will be Assisted

• Please do not let your child out of your car until a Birchwood staff member opens the door to your vehicle.
• School personnel walk students of all ages into the building. 
• Parents are not permitted to walk their children into the building.

Before School Care

• Before School Care only accepts students before 7:45 am.
• Students who arrive after 7:45 am must be dropped off through the car line using the W 143rd St entrance. 

Drop-off/Pick-up Map

• Enter the car line from the W 143rd St entrance (drive south on W 143rd St and turn left into the school entrance).
• Do not park or block driveways on W 143rd St. 
• Display your car line tag on your car passenger dashboard/visor.
• Follow directions from staff while in the car line.
• Please do not use your cell phone once the car line begins moving.

• Car line gates on W 143rd St open at 3 pm (drive south on W 143rd St and turn left into the school entrance).
• Dismissal is at 3:20 pm each day (except for Reading Days when dismissal is at noon).

Dismissal Changes

• All dismissal changes are required by 2 pm using the After Care Form. 
• Please do not email or text your child’s teachers about dismissal changes.
• If your child has an appointment they must be picked up from the main office by 2:30 pm.

Remaining Students When Car Lines Closes

• After all students have been picked up from the car line, any remaining students will be sent to After School Care.

• Lunch and recesses will often be held outdoors, so please make sure your child has the appropriate clothing. 
• Please label your child’s jackets and hoodies. 

Kindergarten - Grade 8 Dress Code

• Click here to see the complete dress code.
• Click here to see a list of acceptable gym shoes.

All kindergarten through 8th grade students will follow the weekly accepted attire schedule: 

Mondays and Reading Half Days: dress down or school uniform
Tuesdays - Thursdays: school uniform (Grades K-8)
Fridays: Spirit Day or school uniform

Preschool Dress Code
Preschool students are not required to wear school uniforms. They may participate in Friday Spirit Days. 

• Click here to see preschool clothing requirements.

• Preschool and kindergarten rooms are nut free.
• Please send your child to school daily with a full water bottle (no glass bottles) and it will be refilled throughout the day. 
• Please label the water bottle with your child’s name.
• There is no microwave usage. Thermoses can be used to keep food warm. 
• Please send your child to school with all eating utensils needed. 
• We also ask that you practice with your child opening their lunch containers. 
• Clearly label all food (i.e. morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, after school snack, etc.). 
• All food that will be consumed by each child will be brought from their home. 
• There will be no sharing of food.

Click here for details and fees.

Birchwood School Sick Policy

• Parents should use the Absence Form to notify the school of absences, tardies, and dismissal arrangements.
• For our community's safety please keep your child home if they are sick.
• Please notify the school of an extended absence. 
• Click here to view our policies regarding absences, tardies, and parent homework responsibilities in cases of unexcused absences (i.e. vacations).

• Masks are optional for preschool-8th grade students and school personnel throughout the building. While mask-optional, there will be times when students and staff will be required to wear masks.
• Please monitor your child’s health prior to arrival because we will not have temperature checks upon entering the building.
• There will be no after school activities except for Signature Programs run by our teachers. 

Each month a half day Reading Day is scheduled for all students. Reading Days for students in grades 3-8 will be in the form of Sustained Silent Reading (SSR). Younger students will have their own schedule. Following the noon dismissal staff will take part in professional development.

• Noon dismissal for ALL students in preschool through 8th grade via the car line.
• After School Care will be provided with normal charges.

• Children are allowed to dress down on their birthdays. If they have a summer birthday they can choose a day to dress down in May. If your child’s birthday falls on a weekend during the school year, they can dress down on the following Tuesday after their birthday. 
• Children are recognized on their special day with an announcement and they may choose an item from the Birchwood Treasure Box. Birchwood does not allow birthday treats, party bags, or anything brought from home to be distributed to students, with no exceptions.
• If you would still like to share something with your child’s class, you may choose a book to donate to the class library or the Birchwood Treasure box. If you donate a book, the classroom teachers will put a label with the child’s name and birthday inside the book.
• It is our desire to make your child’s day special while maintaining a low-key atmosphere that does not distract from academics. Please know that we are not trying to take the fun out of birthdays. Classroom teachers and the Main Office will continue to recognize children on their special day in special ways.
• When organizing parties outside of school, we respectfully ask that, in order to minimize hurt feelings and classroom disruptions, all invitations for parties should be managed outside of school.  

Click here for medical forms.

During school hours if you have any questions, please contact the main office at 216-251-2321. If you have questions for our teachers, please email them directly and they will respond at their earliest convenience.  
 
Cristiana Parrino
School Secretary
cparrino@birchwoodschool.org
Text only at 216-712-9380
Call 216-251-2321
 
Claudia Bixler
Director of Operations
cbixler@birchwoodschool.org
Call or text 216-789-0865