DCES Back-to-School Guide: 2025–2026
Regular School Hours
School is in session from 8:00-3:10 p.m.
Drop off and Breakfast start at 7:40 a.m.
Breakfast will be served from 7:40 a.m.-7:55 a.m. in the cafeteria.
The Y-Club Before & After School Care opens at 6:30 a.m. daily for early drop-off and stays open until 6:00 p.m. Y-Club drop offs and pick-ups are done through the bus loop.
PLC Wednesdays (1-HR Late Start)
School hours will be 9:00-3:10 p.m.
Drop off and Breakfast start at 8:40 a.m.
For those who are paying for the Y-Club: Drop off still starts at 6:30 a.m.
Free YMCA care during PLC Days: Drop Off is from 7:40-8:00. Drop off through the bus loop.
DCES Traffic Flow
Your cooperation is greatly appreciated in ensuring a smooth arrival and dismissal process. Kindly pull forward to the designated drop-off and pick-up area.
Here’s the link to the DCES Traffic Flow Guide for your reference.
Arrival of Students
Students arriving by car or walking to school will enter through the main entrance of the school. Also, DCES families’ safety is important to us, so please use the available crosswalks when walking students to school.
Students riding the bus will enter the building through the rear playground doors in the morning.
Our front entrance doors will be open for students at 7:40 AM. This is also the time when the staff supervision for student arrival begins.
For the safety of our students, it is important that students are not dropped off earlier than 7:40 a.m.
All students will proceed to the gymnasium for the morning assembly
.
On the first day of school, parents/guardians may walk their children into the school and drop off by the gym. Parents/Guardians who would like to do this will need to sign in and get a visitor badge.
Dismissal
All students riding the bus will exit through the rear playground doors.
Walkers will exit through the west or front doors. Please use the crosswalk when crossing to and from the parking lots.
Car riders exit through the front doors (3rd-5th Grade) or the classroom pod doors (K-2nd Grade).
Please have your car tags hanging on your rearview mirrors so we can see the numbers clearly.
Kindly remain in your cars if you’re in the car line to avoid delay.
If you really need to step out (e.g. to buckle up), you are more than welcome to use the parking lot or pull all the way up near the west door exit.
Please pull up to the sign to help us maintain an efficient process.
Please take a few moments to fill out our
.
Your responses will help us ensure a smooth and efficient dismissal process for all students and families.
Volunteering at DCES: If you are interested in being a new parent volunteer this year, you may register here. The volunteer registration is only valid for three years so please ensure that your registration is current.
Lunch Guests: We love having family members join us for lunch at Dayton Creek! It truly makes our day extra special! Just like last school year, we will welcome our lunch guests after Labor Day. This will give us the first few weeks of school to help students learn routines and procedures before your visit. Thank you for your support and understanding!
Safe Learning Environment: As part of our commitment to maintaining an educational atmosphere conducive to the teaching and learning process. , we will uphold the Student Code of Conduct, follow school-wide behavior expectations and lead with the Habits from our Leader in Me program.
Kindly review our Elementary Handbook 2025-2026 for more information on Academics, Activities, Attendance, Code of Conduct, Health, Nutrition, Transportation, Safety & Security.