Peanut/Tree Nut Safe Classroom

We are asking for your help this year in a very important matter. Your child is in a classroom where at least one student has an allergy to peanut and/or tree nut products. For that reason, we have made your child’s room a “peanut/tree nut safe classroom.”

Our students’ overall health and wellbeing are issues that involve all of us. Peanut products to avoid include peanuts, peanut butter, peanut flour and/or peanut oil. Examples of tree nuts that should be avoided include such things as almonds, cashews, macadamia, pecans and walnuts.

A student's allergy can be so serious that contact with even the smallest amount of a peanut product can cause a severe or even fatal reaction. There are a number of simple things you can do to help us to ensure a successful school year for all of our students:

• Do not send daily snacks that may contain/were processed on shared equipment with/ or manufactured in the same facility with peanut or tree nut products. Be aware that traces of nuts can be found in unexpected foods. Please check packaged food labels for content ingredients or potential allergens.
• If there is a classroom activity or celebration for which you are providing a special treat, please be sure to not send foods with peanut or tree nut products.
• Even though they may be delicious, we also must require that no homemade baked or commercially prepared bakery treats be brought to school.

This is a learning process for all of us. It is extremely important that we respect and adhere to these guidelines. If you have questions at any time about this issue, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Thomas Yaw, Bemis Junior High School Principal