District policy · 2026-2027
Bloomfield School District
Essex County · K-12 district · Grades K-6
Last verified · policy year 2026-2027
Read this entry with one caveat
Verified from Berkeley Elementary School's page on the district's own site. We did not find an equivalent district-wide document, so we do not claim these details hold at Bloomfield's middle or high schools.
Period by period
All 6 verified from a sourceEach row is either something this district’s own document says, or an explicit admission that we have not found it. We never infer one period from another. Passing time, lunch and study hall, the three periods the statute never mentions, are marked with an amber rule.Q8
- Class time
- Not allowed
- Phones and other personal internet-enabled devices are prohibited.Instructional time. Restricted under the statute itself.
- Passing timeNot named in the statute
- Not allowed
- Phones and other personal internet-enabled devices are prohibited.Between classes. NJDOE guidance restricts it; the statute never mentions it.
- LunchNot named in the statute
- Not allowed
- Phones and other personal internet-enabled devices are prohibited.On-campus lunch. NJDOE guidance restricts it; the statute never mentions it.
- Study hallNot named in the statute
- Not allowed
- Phones and other personal internet-enabled devices are prohibited.Study hall. NJDOE guidance restricts it; the statute never mentions it.
- School bus
- Allowed
- The policy permits device use during this period.State guidance permits phones on buses unless the district goes further. A district rule here is stricter than the state floor.
- Before and after school
- Allowed
- The policy permits device use during this period.State guidance permits phones outside the school day unless the district goes further.
How phones are stored
A local choice, not a state oneClassroom storage
Phones go into a caddy, pocket chart or box inside the classroom.
Devices are handed in on arrival and retrieved at dismissal: "Storage Stations: The school will assign storage stations (e.g., caddies, numbered pockets, shelves, or lockers)."
What happens if the rule is broken
First incident: the device is confiscated for the day and the student retrieves it. Second and third: a parent or guardian must retrieve the device and sign a receipt. Fourth and beyond: parent pickup plus additional incremental consequences determined by school policy.
Asking for an exception
The statute names what a policy must accommodateWe have not found this district’s exception procedure. Not yet verified
The statute itself names circumstances a policy must accommodate, including an IEP, a 504 plan, a documented health plan, translation needs, certain caregiving responsibilities, and emergencies.s.2.b(3)-(5)
In the district’s own words
Quoted exactly, not summarisedStudents in Grades K-6 are prohibited from using internet-enabled devices during the school day (8:30 AM - 3:20 PM).
Bloomfield School District · read · Open the document
Everything else on this page is our reading of Bloomfield School District’s policy. This is the policy. We quote rather than paraphrase so you can check us against the document instead of taking our word for what it says.
Sources
1 primary, 0 corroboratingNothing on this page can be published without at least one primary source attached to it. That is enforced by the database, not by a habit.
District decisionPrimary source
Cell Phone Policy: Berkeley Elementary School
Bloomfield School District · checked
Before & After School: On school grounds before 8:30 AM or after 3:20 PM. Bus Rides: On the school bus traveling to or from school.