Explorer Express

Dry Creek Families,

In this season of gratitude, I want to extend a sincere thank you to the Dry Creek community. Coming into the 2021-22 school year, it was unclear what to expect. As a school community, we continue to work through new challenges, and yet, every day I have the opportunity to see your kids working hard, caring for each other, and continuing to learn in a supportive environment. I am grateful for the staff at Dry Creek who continuously step up to provide learning experiences and connections for students. I am grateful for the parents and families of Dry Creek who share their little ones with us and support our school in a multitude of ways. My hope is that in the season of gratitude that each of us would reflect on what we are grateful for. Practicing gratitude helps us to experience joy.

For those who celebrate Thanksgiving, I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving!

For those who celebrate Hanukkah, Happy Hanukkah!

Enjoy the break, we will see everyone back on November 29th.

Sincerely,

Mr. Kevin Watanabe

Principal

There will be no school for students from Wednesday, November 24th through Friday, November 26th due to Thanksgiving break. Have a safe and restful break. Happy Thanksgiving!

If your student has misplaced an item or is missing an article of clothing, water bottle or lunchbox, please come check out the Lost and Found next to the main office! We will hold items until November 29th and then will be donating it.

Coffee with the Principal will be on Tuesday, November 30th from 8:00-9:00am in the library. All parents and the community are welcome.

Illness at School and Decreasing the Spread: How Can you Help?

Please keep your student/s home from school if they are feeling sick. If your student has symptoms seen with COVID-19 (regardless of their vaccination status), they should not come to school.

Symptoms of COVID-19 include ANY of the following: Feeling feverish, having chills, a temperature of 100.4 F or greater, new or worsening cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, loss of taste and smell, sore throat, runny nose or congestion, muscle aches, headache, fatigue, nausea or vomiting, and/or diarrhea.

We encourage anyone with symptoms to reach out to their healthcare provider and seek out COVID testing.

No-cost COVID testing is available to anyone in the Cherry Creek community who needs a test:

· For current Cherry Creek students and staff: https://www.primarybio.com/l/cherry

· For friends, family and community members: https://www.primarybio.com/l/cdphe

The best way to prevent experiencing severe illness due to the COVID-19 virus or the upcoming seasonal flu (influenza) virus, is to get vaccinated.

COVID-19 vaccines are now available for children ages 5-11, see our district vaccine page for more information:

https://www.cherrycreekschools.org/site/Default.aspx?PageID=13483

Seasonal Flu vaccines will be available at most sites after October 1st, but many grocery and drug stores have them available all year.

Below is a link to a general guide for students experiencing symptoms, when they should stay home and when they can return to school. Please note, if your student has been exposed to someone who tested positive for COVID-19 and is currently experiencing symptoms this leads to an automatic 10-day isolation per (Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE).

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nhgGIbakyAJY3XJ2TW44sw7btXXqISBR/view

The Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is now available for children ages 5-11 after two federal agencies – the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – granted emergency use authorization and expanded vaccine recommendations to include this age group.

The COVID-19 vaccine is the best way to protect yourself, your family, our students and our community from the COVID-19 virus. The pediatric vaccine is a lower dose that has been researched and determined effective for children ages 5-11. Like the adult Pfizer vaccine, children will receive their two vaccines 21 days apart. For more information about the Pfizer pediatric vaccine, visit this CDC website. For specific questions about the COVID vaccine and your child, contact your health care provider. Please note that any absence associated with the vaccine will be excused, and that clinics will require a parent or guardian to be present with any child who is getting a vaccine.

The district has been working with our health care partners to be ready to offer clinics and other access to vaccines for families who choose to vaccinate their children. Visit our Pediatric COVID-19 Vaccine webpage to find out where you can get a COVID-19 vaccine for your child. Check back often, as we will update the page with more resources and links to sign up for clinics as they become available.

Our first major clinic will be on Friday, Nov. 12 at Smoky Hill High School in partnership with STRIDE Community Health Center. At this clinic, we will have pediatric COVID-19 vaccine doses, as well as flu shots for children and adults, COVID-19 vaccines for those 12 years and older and COVID-19 vaccine boosters. Register for this clinic here.

You can also register your child for one of the Children’s Hospital Colorado COVID-19 vaccine clinics here: https://covid19.colorado.gov/kids-vaccines.

We are excited about this opportunity to offer the vaccine to more of our students.

Elementary schools will dismiss at 1:45 p.m. every Wednesday. For families who participate in after-school child care, the after-school program will be extended every Wednesday at no additional cost. For families who need care, you can register with our Explorer Club Before and After School Program. Please contact our Director, Julie Cottorone, at jcottorone@cherrycreekschools.org for more information.

We are excited to welcome volunteers and visitors back this year. If you are interested in volunteering or visiting for lunch, please review the information below!

Volunteering: Our classroom teachers have opportunities for volunteers to support the classrooms in a variety of ways. If you would like to volunteer in your child's class, please make these arrangements directly with the teacher. Volunteers will need to follow the masking protocol while inside the school and must check in at the main office upon arrival. Volunteers are also expected to sign the Dry Creek volunteer agreement prior to beginning helping in classroom settings.

Visitors: We welcome parents and family members to come to eat lunch with your child on special days such as birthdays or other occasions. Parents are encouraged to provide his/her own lunch. There are picnic tables outside of the cafeteria that makes a great place to enjoy lunch with your student at school (weather permitting). All visitors are required to wear masks while inside the school. For questions about volunteering or visiting Dry Creek, please reach out the main office at (720) 554-3300.

Dry Creek parents, students, and staff can “Rent the Rock” to recognize a birthday/academic achievement, show school spirit, thank/recognize a teacher or staff member, celebrate a graduation, etc. It’s a great way to spread a positive message, make someone smile and help build our Dry Creek Explorer community spirit. Spirit rock reservations are on a first-come, first-serve basis so make your reservation before your special day is taken! www.drycreekptco.org/dce-spirit-rock

Accountability will meet on the following dates at 6:00 pm:

• January 27, 2022 - Virtual
• February 24, 2021 - In-person
• March 24, 2021 - Virtual

P.A.S.S. will meet on the following dates at 6:00pm:

• January 12, 2021
• February 16, 2021
• April 13, 2021

General Meeting Dates:

• January 12, 2022 at 6:30pm
• March 9, 2022 at 8:30am
• May 11, 2022 at 6:30pm

Coffee with the principal begins at 8:00 am right after drop-off in the library on the following dates:

• November 30, 2021
• January 25, 2022
• March 29, 2022
• April 26, 2022
• May 24, 2022

Email: kwatanabe@cherrycreekschools.org
Website: https://www.cherrycreekschools.org/drycreek
Location: 7686 East Hinsdale Avenue, Centennial, CO, USA
Phone: (720) 554-3300
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drycreekelementaryccsd/
Twitter: @DryCreekCCSD

Families who need Dry Creek Elementary communication translated, please contact the liaison listed:

English:

Please contact Kati Brinks at kbrinks@cherrycreekschools.org for support with this resource in your language.

Amharic

እነዝህን መረጃዎችን በተመለከተ በቋንቋዎ ዕገዛን ለማግኘት ከፈለጉ እባክዎን ተሊሌን በዝህ እሜይል ያግኙዋት thirpa@cherrycreekschools.org

Arabic:

يرجى الاتصال بـ (جميعة صباحي أو جاودة العلمي) على (jsebbahi@cherrycreekschools.org أو

jdajanialami@cherrycreekschools.org للحصول على الدعم مع هذا المورد باللغة العربية.

Chinese:

如有需要，请经由ahan10@cherrycreekschools.org，与韩馥联系，以您的语言获得此资源的支持。

Korean:

귀하의 언어로 이 자원에 대한 지원을 원하시면 (리아 리) 에게 (llee6@cherrycreekschools.org) 로 문의하십시오.

Russian:

Пожалуйста, обращайтесь к Ларисе Бака по адресу: lbaca3@cherrycreekschools.org для получения поддержки с помощью этого ресурса на своём языке.

Somali:

Fadlan la xiriir Omar Nur cinwaanka emaylka-onur2@cherrycreekschools.org si aad u hesho macluumaad ku qoran luqadaada.

Spanish:

Si necesita ayuda con este recurso en su idioma, póngase en contacto con Ilse Chavez Maldonado en ichavezmaldonado@cherrycreekschools.org, Rosa Han en rhan4@cherrycreekschools.org, Helena Gognat en hgognat@cherrycreekschools.org o Milagro Nuanes en mnuanes@cherrycreekschools.org

Vietnamese:

Vui lòng liên hệ với Thuý Ngọc tại Lchung2@cherrycreekschools.org để được hỗ trợ về tài nguyên này bằng tiếng Việt.