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RAIN POSSIBLE ON TUESDAY...
Patience will be the order of the day.
We will hold off on taking attendance until entry is complete.
If doing car drop off, please have your child ready to go with backpack and all items easily accessible, and have the student exit your car on the passenger side anywhere in the drop off zone. Please say goodbyes and good luck as you approach the school and give hugs before getting in the car. Please don't wait to be the car closest to the front walkway for drop off or this will dramatically slow down our morning entry. No parents should exit the cars in the morning.
Students will be allowed entry into the building upon arrival in bad weather and they will gather in their morning meeting areas (1-2 in cafe, 3-5 in gym) until 8:45am.
Kindergarten students only will be invited to enter through the gymnasium door for the first 4 days of school. In order to minimize the stress on our youngest learners, during this first week of school, they are welcome to begin to arrive a bit later (8:50-9AM), so that they don't have the extra stress of the morning entry. Parents are requested to leave their child in the capable hands of our staff at the door and not enter the building as this will cause more separation anxiety for the kids. In the case of rain on Tuesday, kindergarten students will wait in the gymnasium foyer in the main hallway if they arrive before 8:50am, but if they arrive after 8:50am, they'll go straight to their classrooms.
Morning Entry
CLICK HERE for the Morning Entry Map.
FAQ -
Where does my child wait when they're at the school before doors open 8:45am? In good weather, kids will be outside on the front lawn. Look for the lawn signs in the first days to know where each grade will congregate. If parents are walking with their children to school and are able to, consider hanging out in the grade level zone. It's a great way to meet other parents.
If I need to drop off BEFORE 8:30, what do I do? The drop off window for Early Morning Supervision is from 8:00-8:30am and will be held in the cafeteria. Please REGISTER HERE if you feel you may need to utilize this option, even if you don't need it on a daily basis. There is no cost, but registration lets us provide adequate supervision for the space. In an emergency, we won't turn your child away if you're not registered, but we will contact you and ask you to register going forward.
Drop off is between 8:30-8:45. What do I do if I'm driving and arrive a couple of minutes early? No problem, Mr. Dreves and/or Mr. Brewer are going to do everything they can to be outside a couple of minutes before 8:30. We can't supervise the whole school with just two people, and our regular morning supervisors start at 8:30am, but if you see us there, then drop your child off and keep on driving. We'll work out the kinks and have everyone up to speed soon, but do your best to arrive in the 8:30-8:45 window. In the first days, we'll be delaying taking attendance until entry is complete. Try to arrive between 8:30 and 8:45 am, but if entry traffic slows us down, we won't penalize students for being late while we work out the kinks.
What happens when it rains, snows, or is too cold in the morning?? We're going to try to have students wait outside until morning entry whenever the weather permits. When the weather is bad, students will be welcomed into the building between 8:30-8:45 to wait for release to classrooms. K-2 will enter the main entrance, turn right, and wait for their for classes to begin in the cafeteria. Students in 3-5 will enter the main entrance, turn left, and wait in the gymnasium. Since these days will present unique challenges for morning drop off, the school will hold attendance a few minutes until morning entry is complete, so no need to stress a minute or two here or there on tough weather days.
I'm going to be walking with my child to school, what do I do? This is an EXCELLENT way to arrive at school!! Please find the congregation zone for your child's grade level. This will be marked with a large lawn sign. In this space, you can hang out until doors open. This is a great time to help build community, and get to know your fellow parents.
My child will ride a bike to school. How does that work? Bike riding is a great way to get to school, if done safely. Please remember that NYS law requires all children under 14 to wear a bike helmet. Bikes should be locked up and can be left outside on the bike racks.
What can parents do to reinforce bus safety? Please speak to your children about your expectations that they WEAR THEIR SEATBELT on the bus and remain seated at all times. They will hear this message from us but should also hear that expectation from you.
Afternoon Dismissal
CLICK HERE for the Afternoon Dismissal Map
FAQ:
What are these STUDENT PICKUP CARDS all about?? These cards will help us to make afternoon pickup more efficient. They will be distributed on DAY 1. You'll get two cards on RED cardstock (not yellow as previously communicated). These are just a tool and allow us to know that your child is safe to be dismissed to the adult with the card. Think of these cards as similar to how people are picked up at airports - the cards help us to put two people together more efficiently. Since there are two cards, the main pickup person should keep one and the other can be used for others who may do pickup. If you lose yours, just contact the main office for new ones. If you don't have it one day, DON'T WORRY, but we may ask for Identification if we don't know the adult picking up. DRIVERS can keep these cards above their car visor and display them on the passenger side dashboard or in the passenger window. This will speed up our car line supervisors in radioing for your child to be dismissed. PARENT WALKERS can carry them in the first weeks while teachers get to know you. Hold them up to identify who you are picking up and that you are a safe adult to release to. If your child takes the BUS, just hold onto the cards and use them when dismissal changes require you to pick up in a different way.
What do I do on day 1 since I don't have a pickup card?? SUPER IMPORTANT! EVERYONE MUST complete this PICKUP INFO FORM - CLICK HERE and send it in with your child on day 1. Teachers will dismiss based on the info from these forms. If we don't have it, we'll call you. In the first days, we'll create a spreadsheet of all dismissal plans based on these forms and identify students for their assigned dismissal procedure based on this info.
Dismissal of Walkers - Our littlest walkers will need an adult to pick them up each day. Kindergarten and Grades 1 & 2 walkers must be received by someone older than 16. KINDERGARTEN WALKERS are dismissed first at 3:05. The rest of our walkers are dismissed at 3:10. K through 2 walkers will dismiss from the main entrance. Grades 3-5 walkers will release from the door nearest to the gymnasium.
Dismissal of Car Riders - Car Riders will wait in the main hallway and exit through the faculty room door at the center of the building. Car line dismissal does not start until 3:15pm. Out of respect for our neighbors and to allow kindergarten to clear out, please plan to arrive no earlier than 3pm to line up for car pickup. The traffic pattern for car pickup is one way coming from East Birchwood Avenue. Please no U-TURNS or 3 point turns near the school. Students MUST load from the passenger side of the car for safety reasons. When you arrive in the pickup zone, a staff member will look at your PICKUP CARD and radio for your child to be dismissed. Please reinforce our message that students should NOT RUN towards your car (and the street) as this is dangerous with moving vehicles around.
Dismissal of Bus Riders - When buses arrive, they are loaded immediately. Students who take buses will wait in the gymnasium for dismissal. There may be slight variations in timing of release based on when the buses arrive and how quickly they can be loaded. If a bus is leaving more than 15 minutes later than the normal time, we will notify parents of kids on that bus. Please be reminded that our youngest riders (Kindergarten, Grade 1 and Grade 2) must have an adult at the bus stop to receive them or they will not be allowed to disembark. Students in grades 3-5 are allowed to disembark without an adult to receive them so be sure they have clear directions on what to do if no adult is present at the stop.
PLEASE NOTE: Even with the STUDENT PICKUP CARDS, it's still important to notify the main office of dismissal changes, but they are an added safety measure to ensure that all of our kids get home safely.
School Supplies
Attendance and Dismissal Changes
Attendance: Please call Linda Dellolio, the attendance secretary, at 845-353-7261 (PRIOR to 9:15AM) to notify us of your child's absence or tardiness. Kindly leave your child's full name, grade and teacher and the reason for their absence or tardiness. If you do not have time to call, you could email the main office secretaries at ldellolio@nyackschools.org or acontreras@nyackschools.org.
Please note there is no need to leave an absence message with Nurse Laura Weigel; however, should you need to speak with Nurse Laura about your child's absence or illness, please inform the attendance secretary and she will notify Nurse Laura to return your call.
Change in dismissal/early dismissal: In the past we requested hand-written notes (to the classroom teacher) outlining dismissal changes or early dismissal information; however, there have been instances where the classroom teacher was absent and the dismissal change WAS NOT passed along to the main office PRIOR to dismissal time.
To avoid this, we are now requesting all early dismissal and end of school day dismissal changes be telephoned into the main office (845-353-7261/7260; PRIOR TO 1:00 PM) or sent to the main office secretaries via email at ldellolio@nyackschools.org or acontreras@nyackschools.org.
Breakfast and Lunch
Breakfast/Lunch: Breakfast will be available for students each morning in the all purpose room; the cost will be $1.00. Students in the early morning program will be provided breakfast and students who are not in the program will be given early access to the cafeteria through the main entrance to start eating breakfast at 8:40am.
Lunch is available each day for students and the cost will be $2.35; students have an option of a hot meal or a cold meal. Meal accounts can be prepaid weekly or monthly for your convenience through MyPaymentsPlus.com (online payment plan). If you qualify for free or reduced lunch, application forms were included in the district calendar and are available on our website. You must complete these forms and submit them to the main office for processing in order to qualify for free or reduced lunch/breakfast.
Mark Your Calendars!
Tuesday, September 6th is the first day of school for all students. We ask that Kindergarten students be dropped off near the gymnasium door; there will be faculty there to assist.
The PTA Back to School Bash is on Friday, September 9th from 5-7pm on the back playground.
Monday, September 26th and Tuesday, September 27th schools are closed in observance of Rosh Hashanah.
Thursday September 29th is Back to School Night for Upper Nyack Elementary School.
Saturday, October 1 is the Upper Nyack 150th Anniversary Celebration on the front lawn of UNES!!
UPPER NYACK HAS A TIME CAPSULE!!
Some things that we can look forward to in the coming weeks include projects focused around: letters to future selves, students researching the community and the way it has changed, photo collages, drawings of life today or in 2035, artifacts that represent our lives today, predictions for the future, written student narratives of their lives, bucket lists, advice to the future, family trees, articles that document our lives, poems, music, you name it!
This is a great opportunity to start to talk to your children about family history & heritage. It's also a great time to expose your children to local sites of historical value in the community. Anything that parents can do to deepen student knowledge of the community, its history and personal family heritage is helpful and welcomed!
Back to School Bash - Friday, September 9 !!
CLICK HERE for the Back To School Bash Flyer.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 9TH FROM 5-7 PM ON THE UNES PLAYGROUND
Everyone is invited!! Bring your family, a bite to eat, and a blanket. Come hang out with your classmates. See old friends, and make new ones! It will be a GREAT way to kick off a new school year at UNES!
Each UNES student will receive one (1) ice cream from the ice cream truck on behalf of the PTA.
Additional ice cream can be purchased for $4.00.
*All proceeds benefit the UNES PTA*
*This is NOT a drop off event.*
Mr. Dreves is seeking your feedback!
MEET OUR NEW TEACHERS
PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR VICTORIA CRUZ (SOCIAL COMMUNICATIONS 3-5) WELCOME LETTER
PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR JOYCE PLUS (GRADE 2 TEACHER) WELCOME LETTER
Upper Nyack Elementary
Email: cdreves@nyackschools.org
Website: https://un.nyackschools.org/
Location: 336 North Broadway, Upper Nyack, NY, USA
Phone: 845-353-7260
Twitter: @NyackPrincipal
