Pierce School Documents

• Guidelines for Breakfasts and Celebrations in the Classroom
• Classroom breakfast signup form
• Information for school families about food allergies
• Kids "going nuts" for edamame
• Head Lice Information
• Notice from Dr Smith Mumford about Norovirus
• Public Health Fact Sheet: Norovirus

Guidelines for Breakfasts and Celebrations in the Classroom

• Classroom breakfast signup form

In recent years the incidence of serious food allergies has greatly increased. At Pierce, every grade has at least one child with a serious food allergy. In order to insure that Pierce is a safe place for both children and adults, we need to work together as a community.

Some of the measures listed below will allow us to continue to celebrate special events while providing a safe environment for all children:

• To reduce the risk of accidental exposure by inhalation or by contact with food on surfaces, please do not send peanuts, nuts or shellfish-or foods containing these- into the classroom for any reason or for any event in the daytime or the evening. (If there is an adult or student in the classroom with other allergies, families will be asked to restrict the eating of these specific foods to the cafeteria, as well.)
• Please substitute treats such as stickers, special pencils, games or books for class, instead of a food treat for a birthday or celebration.
• Inform your child that food allergies can be life threatening. In school, a student’s individual snack/food should never be shared. It is strongly recommended that food allergic children eat foods provided by their own parent/guardian. Please discuss this with your child.

At the teacher’s discretion and according to the special needs or an individual class, store bought packaged goods with a printed ingredient list may be shared in the classroom for celebrations as long as it does not contain peanuts, nuts or shellfish. Due to the risk of cross contamination with allergic items while baking in any family’s kitchen, it is recommended that all home baked goods be shared only in the cafeteria.

Non-allergic students may eat peanuts, nuts, shellfish and foods containing these substances in the cafeteria, but not in classrooms or in other areas of the school. Students who have food allergies may sit at a special table in the cafeteria, if requested by a parent.

Remind your child about careful hand washing before and after eating.

Please be sure that your child knows that students who have food allergies should not be teased, tempted with forbidden foods, or ridiculed in any way.

Thanks for your cooperation.

Kate Donnelly RN

Information for school families about food allergies

(For additional information, see Brookline Families with Food Allergies - BROFFA)

The number of people who have serious allergies to food has increased substantially over the past five years in our Community as well as in other parts of the world. There are a number of students who have food allergies in this school. Food allergies can be life threatening. The cooperation of many people in the school community is required to help prevent an allergic reaction from occurring. The following information is being provided to you to enable you and your family to learn about these allergies, about what we as the school community can do to help, and about what some of the practices are in this school regarding food allergies.

What is a food allergy?

A food allergy is a medical condition in which the body recognizes a food as being harmful and reacts to it. The body may react in different ways. The skin, the respiratory tract, the gastrointestinal tract, and the cardiovascular system may be affected. Allergic reactions can range from mild to severe and are unpredictable. People who experience serious allergic reactions are usually treated with emergency medications and transported immediately to the ER.

What are some of the foods that people are often allergic to?

The most common foods that cause food allergies are peanuts, nuts, shellfish, fish, eggs, milk, soy, wheat. Some people may be seriously allergic to a number of other foods, such as sesame or various fruits.

How can exposure to food allergens occur?

Exposure to allergic foods can occur by tasting/eating, by touching, or by inhaling fumes or particles of the food. (This means even cooking fumes and the presence of food on surfaces could cause a person to become ill.)

How much food exposure is needed to cause a reaction?

Sometimes even tiny amounts of a food, such as just crumbs or as little as even less than one-tenth of a peanut can make a person very seriously ill.

What is the treatment for food allergies?

At this time, the only treatment for these allergies is strict avoidance.

What can we do as members of the school community to help?

Some of the measures that will help all of our students and staff are the following:

• To reduce the risk of accidental exposure by inhalation or by contact with food on surfaces, please do not send peanuts, nuts or shellfish—or foods containing these into the classroom for any reason, including evening and daytime events. (If there is an adult or student in the classroom with other allergies, families will be asked to restrict the eating of these specific foods to the cafeteria, as well.)
• Please substitute treats such as stickers, special pencils, games or books for class, instead of a food treat for a birthday or celebration
• Inform your child that food allergies can be life threatening. In school, a student’s individual snack/food should never be shared. It is strongly recommended that food allergic children eat foods provided by their own parent/guardian.
• At the classroom teacher’s discretion, store bought packaged goods with an ingredient list may be shared in the classroom for celebrations as long as the list does not contain peanuts, nuts or shellfish. Due to the risk of cross contamination while baking in any family’s kitchen, it is recommended that all home baked goods be shared only in the cafeteria.

Non-allergic students may eat peanuts, nuts, shellfish and foods containing these substances in the cafeteria, but not in classrooms or in other areas of the school. Students who have food allergies may sit at a special table in the cafeteria, if requested by a parent.

Remind your child about careful hand washing before and after eating.

Please be sure that your child knows that students who have food allergies should not be teased, tempted with forbidden foods, or ridiculed in any way.

Kate Donnelly RN
Pipier Smith-Mumford, Principal