Resources

Lunch and Food

Lunches are brought from home and must be either Parve or Milchig. No meat meals may be sent to school. ADDITIONALLY, CHILDREN MAY NOT SHARE THEIR LUNCHES OR SNACKS WITH OTHERS.
Because of safety issues, the urn in the Faculty Room is not available for student use. Therefore, children should not bring soups or other mixes which require hot water. The vending machines are also not for student purchases, either during, before, or after school hours. Also, due to safety precautions, drinks (or any foods) in glass containers should not be brought to school.

Please Note:
Any food brought to school for a Siyum, party, or for any other class-wide or school-wide distribution must be brought in a sealed package with an acceptable Hechsher. Opened receptacles of any nature are not permitted. The “OU”, “OK”, “Star K”, and Rabbinical Council of Greater Washington supervisions are among those usable in school. We do not use “Triangle K” in school. All foods must be checked by the Headmaster before being taken to classrooms.

In order to be respectful of and show consideration for many of our students who require Cholov Yisrael supervision for milk products, for classwide distribution, items that have Cholov Yisrael Hashgachah or which are Parve must be purchased.

Peanut

We currently have a number of students with life threatening allergies to peanuts and peanut products which cause anaphylactic reactions.
Because of our Halachic, moral, and ethical responsibility to provide a safe place of learning for every student, the entire Torah School of Greater Washington is a PEANUT FREE ZONE. This means that NO peanut butter, peanuts, or products containing peanuts may be brought to school.

We do apologize for any inconvenience this may cause parents or students. However, please rest assured that we would take similar precautions for any child in the Torah School. Please note that there are presently many schools across the nation that have become PEANUT FREE as a schoolwide policy.

Birthday Parties

School Parties
1. Parties during classtime are only allowed in Kindergarten. In Grades 1-6, treats in honor of the occasion may be given out during lunch or recess only. 2. Arrangements with your child’s teacher should be made at least one week in advance. This includes checking the Kashrus of all food for the party. 3. When brought to school, the food must be in its original sealed packaging and checked for Kashrus by Rabbi Charner. 4. Because all foods must be checked for Kashrus, individual party bags are not acceptable in school. We cannot inspect each and every personalized package. We will allow the distribution of such containers if:

All products are first brought to our building in their original sealed containers.
The party bags are then prepared by the parent on our premises.
5. In order to be respectful of and show consideration for many of our students who require Cholov Yisrael supervision for milk products, for classwide distribution, items that have Cholov Yisrael Hashgachah or which are Parve must be purchased.

Home Parties

In order to be respectful of every child’s feelings and to reinforce what is taught at home and at school, it is appropriate to invite all of your child’s classmates to participate in home parties. However, no birthday invitations may be distributed in school under any circumstance! Class lists are available for mailing the invitations.

Dress Code

Chazal tell us that our external actions and appearance directly affect our internal makeup. It is, therefore, essential that the young Ben/Bas Torah dress in a fashion which is neat, demonstrates personal pride and dignity, and is in accordance with the Torah’s guidelines for Tznius, modesty. These standards create the atmosphere which is most conducive for our children’s personal, academic, and religious growth. To facilitate the creation of this ambiance, the Torah School has established the following uniform dress requirements.

Uniforms for Boys in K-6
Boys are required to wear Kippos (no hats or caps during class), Tzitzis, and long pants (no shorts are allowed).

Shirts – All shirts must be tucked in. (All buttons, with the exception of the top one, must be buttoned.)

Long / Short sleeve Oxford style (available from any school uniform store)
1. White
2. Light Blue – Dark blue is not allowed
3. Yellow (not gold)
4. Burgundy
5. Forest Green
6. Heather Gray

Long / Short sleeve collared Polo shirt (available from any school uniform store)
1. Must have 2 or 3 buttons (no zippers)
2. White
3. Light Blue
4. Yellow (not gold)
5. Burgundy
6. Forest Green
7. Heather Gray

Long / Short sleeve Blue Stripe Oxford style (available from any school uniform store)

Only a white t-shirt or turtleneck may be worn under a buttoned up shirt. Sleeves of t-shirts may not extend beyond
sleeves of shirts, and bottom of t-shirts or undershirts may not extend beyond bottom of shirts.

Pants

Navy Blue or Black (available from any school uniform store) This means that light
blue, grey, or any other color may not be worn. Also, torn pants are not acceptable.
1. Straight or pleated
2. Straight or cuffed bottom (no elastic cuffs)
3. No more than the 2 standard back pockets and the 2 standard side pockets
4. Standard zipper in the front
5. No sweats, cargo pants, jeans, shorts, or corduroy

Shoes

• Sneakers
• Shoes
• No sandals, slippers, Crocs, rubber Natives, or slipper-like shoes (e.g. they must have a back)
• No shoes or sneakers which transform into roller skates or any other object other than shoes

Socks (covering the ankle)

• Black
• Blue
• White

Sweat jackets / Sweatshirts / Sweaters may have NO wording or pictures on them. Obviously, the Torah School sweat jackets and sweatshirts are permitted.

Uniforms for Girls in K-6

Shirts/ Blouses – (All buttons, with the exception of the top one, must be buttoned)

Oxford or Peter Pan collar blouse (3/4 or long sleeve only) (available from any school uniform store)
1. White
2. Light Blue
3. Yellow (not gold)
4. Burgundy
5. Forest Green
6. Heather Gray

Long sleeve collared Polo shirt (available from any school uniform store)
1. Must have 2 or 3 buttons (no zippers)
2. White
3. Light Blue
4. Yellow (not gold)
5. Burgundy
6. Forest Green
7. Heather Gray

Only a white turtleneck, t-shirt, or shell may be worn under a buttoned up blouse. Sleeves and hems of t-shirts or shells may not extend beyond sleeves and bottom hems of blouses.

No short sleeved shirts or jackets may be worn over uniform blouses.
Please make sure that no blouses/shirts are of sheer or tight-fitting material.

Skirts – Skirts must be sewn down several inches from the waist and pleated. No straight or A-line skirts allowed. The skirts must be long enough to cover the knees, front and back, both when standing and sitting down. Absolutely no slits!!!

Navy Blue or Plaid (plaid skirt only available from our vendor, Shani Brodt Uniforms)
Elastic waist with yoke and pleats
Buttoned waist with stitched down pleats
Leggings or pants that extend below the knee are not allowed. Keeping warm should be facilitated by wearing tights.

Jumpers

Navy Blue or Plaid (only available from our vendor, Shani Brodt Uniforms)

Shoes

Sneakers
No sandals, slides, clogs, Crocs, rubber Natives or slipper-like shoes(e.g. they must have a back)
No shoes or sneakers which transform into roller skates or any other object other than shoes

Socks

Knee socks or tights are required. Navy or white are the preferred colors.

No nail polish or make-up for K-6.

Sweat jackets / Sweatshirts / Sweaters should be a solid color with no designs, words, or pictures with the exception of the Torah School sweat jackets and sweatshirts.

Under all circumstances and for all grades, any inappropriate clothes or accessories (e.g. necklaces for boys) or those with logos, wording, or characters in questionable taste are unacceptable. This includes length of hair or hairstyles that are not within our mores. The Headmaster may request that a child who is dressed inappropriately go home and change.
The Mesillas Yesharim emphasizes the idea that all of our external actions directly affect our inner makeup. We hope that, by coming to school in a dignified and modest manner, our students will fully feel the importance ofDavening, learning Torah, and studying, and that this, in turn, will positively affect their attitudes and performances.

Car Pool

Because of our numbers, there are many cars/vans coming at 8:00 and 3:25. As a result, safety considerations and just plain common sense require us to require that all of the following guidelines be adhered to very carefully.

a) As you enter our lot from Brookville Rd., please take note that there are two lanes – the right for entrance and the left for exit. This is because this is the only entrance to and exit from our lot.

b) Please make a FULL STOP at the STOP sign.

c) Turn right and stay on right side of dotted line. Continue to do this until you reach the DROP-OFF point. (The left lane is the drive-through lane and should be used that way during car pool times.)

d) Please do not EVER cut through parking spaces to get from one side of the lot to the other. At all times, all vehicles must follow the arrows to the far end of the lot in order to get to the other side.

e) There are signs posted in appropriate strategical places in the lot to advise/remind everyone of all the above.

For both safety purposes and to maintain the necessary smooth flow of traffic, please do not park or even stop in the “drive-through” lane even if it is only to let passengers get out “quickly”.
Please make sure that all kids exit and enter your vehicles on the passenger (right) side. No one should risk going out on the driver’s side.
If you have business to conduct in our office (even for a few minutes), you may not leave your car parked in the car pool line area (at any time of day). Please park in our lot in the designated visitors’ spaces. Unattended cars in the car pool lanes will be subject to ticketing by the local police.
If you park in our lot when you come for car pool, please accompany your “charges” to our building or to your vehicle. Do not allow them to run or even walk by themselves through our very busy traffic areas.
At dismissal time, please do not go inside to pick up your kids. We will send the children to you. Please note that this process will take longer during the first few days of school.
Please make sure your kids know their car pool #’s.
Please make sure to place the car pool number, which you will receive, on your dashboard.
Please reinforce with your youngsters our in-school discussions with them regarding all the above regulations and safety precautions.
Please ask/encourage/cajole/force older children to supervise the younger kids (especially their siblings) in all these procedures.
PLEASE NOTE THAT IT IS HIGHLY LIKELY THAT, IF YOU ARE PARKED IN OUR LOT AT 3:15P.M., YOU MIGHT NOT BE ABLE TO LEAVE THE PREMISES UNTIL 3:50P.M. BECAUSE OF CAR POOL.
We thank you for your cooperation in these vital matters.