Greeting Dresden Families,

Starting January 19th, we will have all our non-Virtual Academy Kdg- sixth grade students returning

to Dresden. They will be returning to participate in the Utica Community Schools half day hybrid

model. Students will come to school for either an a.m. or p.m. session and continue their lessons

remotely for the other part of their day. Covid-19 mitigation strategies have been put in place for

when students are coming to the building for live instruction and all are expected to follow them:

*First and most important, if your child is sick or showing symptoms do not bring them to school. Allowing your child to come to school sick not only puts others in danger, but it could also result in us having to shut back down. If your child is sick call our attendance line at 586-797-4599 and let us know. If your child is sick it is an excused absence. *All students, staff, and parents that come onto our property must be wearing a face mask that covers their mouth and nose. As an adult if you do not wish to wear a face mask, please stay in your car or do not come onto our property. *Please maintain proper social distancing of six feet. Markers, painted dragon footprints, have been painted six feet apart around the outside of our building. Use these markers as guides to help you with social distance. Inside the building we have stickers in the hallway for students to use as social distancing markers. *We will utilize hand sanitizer and hand washing breaks.

In addition to our mitigation strategies listed above our classroom teachers have been busy prepar-ing their classrooms. Students desk are spread out to provide social distancing. Common places where students congregate are now off-limits example: we will not be using our coatrooms, instead students will be keeping their bookbags and jackets at their seat. Our drinking fountains will not be used. Instead have your child bring in a water bottle. There are sinks in all the classroom in which they can fill it up throughout the day as needed. If you cannot afford to purchase a water bottle please call me and I will get one for your child. We have staggered our arrival and dismissal doors and times to keep groups of students from gathering. We have stopped the practice of students sharing supplies with each other. We have also increased our daily cleaning and sanitizing proce-dures. We must work together to follow these mitigation strategies so that we can all stay safe. In the short time I have been the Principal of Dresden Elementary I have witnessed many great things from our community. I am confident that together we will get through these rocky times. I thank you in advance for helping us keep all our community safe. It is a pleasure to welcome your chil-dren back for live face to face instruction and it is my honor to serve as your Principal. Please call me if you have any questions or concerns. Have a great day! With Much Respect. Principal Brad Suggs

Lunchtime Aides Needed! Medication Plans

We are always in need of lunch-

room and recess supervisors, These

are paid positions from 11:50-

12:50 each day. Lunch Aides work

in our lunch room and on the play-

ground supervising students and

ensuring their safety, If you are

interested, or know of anyone who

might be, please call Michelle at

(586) 797-4500

If your student re-

quires medication, in-

cluding over the coun-

ter medication, during

the school hours UCS

requires a medical

plan signed by a doc-

tor be on file in the of-

fice . These forms can

be attained in the front

office.

Birthday Treats

Due to the increased fo- cus on keeping our students healthy, we

will continue with our goal of promoting healthier choices. This year we will not be accepting birth-

day treats into our classrooms or school. Please keep in mind that this means no food items will be

distributed to classmates if your child celebrates a birthday during the school year. As adults, we

will certainly acknowledge children who are celebrating a birthday in the same way as usual (for ex-

ample: a song, a crown, a sticker, a visit to the Principal.) In addition, teachers can provide sugges-

tions for items other than food/treats to pass out to classmates. Some popular suggestions have

been; a book for the class, a board game for indoor recess, a ball or jump rope for outdoor recess,

individual pencils, stickers or erasers to name a few. Thank you in advance for your adherence to

this practice. It is our belief that this change will become a welcome one once we recognize the

benefits to all our Dresden Dragons.

Your students’ attendance

is very important to his/her

education and success

here at Dresden. Howev-

er, if your child needs to be

absent, please call the at-

tendance line and include

in your message; child’s

name (spell the last name),

teacher, grade, and reason

for absence (specific ill-

ness, vacation, funeral,

etc.)

(586) 797-4599

It is available 24 hours

7 days a week.

supervision on the play-

ground before school, stu-

dents should not use the play-

ground equipment. Teachers

will allow students to enter

assigned doors at 8:50 and

supervise then until school

begins at 9:10.

Our UCS parent and student

handbook states, “general

supervision begins 10 minutes

before the start of school.” At

Dresden , that means students

should arrive at school no

earlier than 9:00AM. Stu-

dents should not come to

school before this time, un-

less enrolled in School Age

Child Care. Since there is no

If you need to pick up your

child(ren) earlier than our

regular time, you will have to

sign them out in the office.

Children will be dismissed

only to their parents or those

listed on their emergency

cards. All children will be

called to the office when

someone arrives to take

them out of school.

Early Arrival Early Dismissal

Volunteers and Visitors

office. You will also need

to wear a visitor badge

and be prepared to show

your ID if you are going

into the school. Please go

directly to the classroom

you are volunteering in.

We love having volunteers

and visitors here at Dres-

den! In order to keep our

students in a continuously

safe environment, we ask

that you please come into

the office and sign in at the

counter, then sign out be-

fore you leave. If you

have not filled out a Volun-

teer Background Check

form, please do so in the

Page 3

9:10 AM-4:00 PM

Half day dismissal

12:04 PM

Office Hours:

8:00 AM—4:30 PM

586-797-4500

School Day Attendance

Page 4

Utica Community Schools is committed to promoting the safe and effective use of technology. Through our district’s K-12 digital citizenship initiatives, we are providing students with information that promotes the proper use of digital content and tools.

A tool that families can use to help protect their children is the Michigan Child Protec-tion Registry. This free service from the State of Michigan protects children’s e-mail, cell phone numbers and Instant Messaging addresses from receiving inappropriate, adult-themed material.

The registry can be accessed by visiting www.protectMICHild.com. In addition, par-ents can click on the Protect MI Child icon, which will soon appear on the district and school Web sites for direct access to the registry.

New Federal Guidelines Set for Snacks Sold in School New federal mandated snack and beverage standards were im-

plemented effective July 1, 2014 in school districts nationwide. This will impact snacks sold by the district and through

school fundraisers. In accordance with the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act and the United States Department of Agricul-

ture (USDA), Utica Community Schools has implemented the required nutrition standards for all snacks sold in school by

all parties, including parent/student organizations, teachers, boosters, fundraisers and the Food and Nutrition Services de-

partment. These standards for snack sales are in effect from any time before school through one-half hour (30 minutes)

after school. through the rest of the day. The standards do not apply to foods brought from home for personal con-

sumption or to foods provided to students at no cost (i.e. approved special events).

The standards do not apply to items sold beginning 30 minutes after school through the rest of the day. The standards do

not apply to foods brought from home for personal consumption or to foods provided to students at no cost (i.e. ap-

proved special events).

Dresden Elementary and Utica Community Schools have a service for parents who would like information texted directly to them. The texting service provides school news and announcements, district information such as emergency school closing situations, or updates issued from UCS departments, such as transportation. To join this system, please text “Y” to 67587.

Note – if you have previously registered for this system and are not receiving texts from our school or UCS, please contact the school office to ensure we have your most recent cell phone number is on file.

Dec 23– Jan 1 Winter Break– No School

Jan 18 MLK Day– No School

Jan 19 Students return, hybrid model

Feb 15-19 Mid-Winter Break-No School

Feb 25 Rink Night 6-8 pm

Mar 18 Virtual Kindergarten Open House 7 PM

Mar 23 Rink Night 6-8 pm

Apr 2 Good Friday– No School

Apr 5-9 Spring Break– No School

Apr 22 Rink Night 6-8 pm

May 4 Rink Night 6-8 pm

May 5 or 6 6th Grade Career Focus Virtual Event

May 25 Rink Night 6-8 pm

May 28-31 Memorial Day Weekend– No School

June 11 Last Student Day Half Day

Will be updated as more information becomes available.

Dresden Elementary Calendar 2020-21