News and events

February 3, 2026

Friday, Feb. 6 - Wear a shirt with words

Friday, Feb. 13 - Wear red, white, pink or a shirt that displays friendship

Monday, Feb. 16 - District Closed, NO SCHOOL - Holiday

Tuesday, Feb. 17 - NO SCHOOL (Conferences)

Thursday, Feb. 19 - (Conferences)

Friday, Feb. 20 - Cozy Day

Friday, Feb. 27 - Fun Run (Wear Dayton T-shirt)

Friday, Mar. 6 - NO SCHOOL - Staff Planning

Monday, Mar. 9 - NO SCHOOL - Staff Development

Monday, Mar 30 - Friday, Apr. 3 - NO SCHOOL

Hello Dayton Families,

We are officially turning the calendar to February 2026. This is always a high-energy month at Dayton, filled with special opportunities for our students to learn, grow, and celebrate together.

We are particularly looking forward to seeing you at our February Family/Teacher Conferences. We deeply value your partnership and appreciate this dedicated time to connect and share in your student's progress. Please see below for information on scheduling your conference time. In person and virtual options are available. If virtual works best for you, please work directly with your child’s teacher to get a link.

Celebrating Our Community & Literacy:

• Black History Month: Throughout February, and throughout the entire year, we recognize, honor, and celebrate the vital contributions of Black individuals to our history and society. It is an important time of reflection and learning for our whole school.

• I Love to Read Month: It’s time to celebrate the joy of reading! Thanks to our dedicated planning team we have a variety of fun activities and spirit days planned to keep our students inspired.

PTO Booster Fun Run & Fundraiser:

Our school will be participating in the PTO Booster Fun Run this month! This event is a student favorite, blending character development lessons with a high-energy Glow Run in the gym. This fundraiser is instrumental in supporting our school programs— more specific information coming soon.

Character Strong: Honesty:

In our classrooms this month, our character focus is Honesty. We define honesty as: "Being truthful in what you say and do." To help you bring these lessons into your home, we’ve provided grade-level resources to support your conversations:

• Kindergarten Family Connection

• First Grade Family Connection

• Second Grade Family Connection

• Third Grade Family Connection

• Fourth Grade Family Connection

• Fifth Grade Family Connection

We look forward to seeing you at conferences later this month. Thank you for your continued support of our students and staff.

Best regards,

Jessica Wippler

Sign up for winter conferences at www.myconferencetime.com/dayton

Tuesday, February 17

Thursday, February 19

Looking for your child’s teacher? Click here for more information.

Please schedule a time with your child's homeroom teacher for a winter conference. If you would like to meet with a specialist teacher, please make an additional conference with that teacher on their individual schedule.

When reserving your time slot, please include your email address so that we can send out an email reminder the week before your scheduled conference.

If you are having issues, please contact the Dayton office staff at 763-506-2200.

Need help signing up for a conference? Click here for English. Click here for Spanish.

We are excited to partner with the nonprofit organization, Every Meal, to offer a free weekend food program to all our students. The mission of Every Meal is to fight child hunger through community and school partnerships. This program strives to make a difference in children’s lives by focusing on food gaps like weekends, school breaks and summer, when students are not receiving meals in school. If you are interested in learning more, click here. If you’d like to register for this program, please use this Electronic enrollment form.

Art

This trimester, 4th grade students are analyzing how artists use the principles of art contrast and emphasis in their work. Contrast is when an artist combines opposite or different elements in an artwork. Emphasis is when an artist creates a point of interest in an artwork, typically by using contrast. One art form that wonderfully exemplifies these principles is Notan–a Japanese art concept that explores the relationship between light and dark in a composition. The word "notan" is made up of the Japanese words "no" and "tan", which mean "thin" and "heavy".

Explorations

Subscribe to TWIG Science Reporter for fun and interactive science experiences you can explore at home! https://info.imaginelearning.com/twig-science-reporter-subscribe/?utm_campaign=twig-science-reporter&utm_source=twigsciencereporter.com&utm_medium=referral

🌟 Kindergarten – Marble Run Engineers
Our young engineers are continuing their exploration of motion! This month, we’ll investigate how pushing and pulling forces affect speed and direction. Students will put their knowledge to the test as they design and build their final marble runs! Ask your child to show you how a push or pull can make something move faster, slower, or change direction. You might even build a simple marble ramp together using books or cardboard!

🦁 First Grade – Animal Reporters
First graders are continuing their journey into the wild as Animal Reporters! This month, we’ll focus on how animals communicate through body language and sounds to survive and thrive in their environments. Ask your child to describe how an animal shows its feelings or sends messages (like wagging tails, growling, or chirping). Can they think of an example they’ve seen in real life?

🌋 Second Grade – Save the Island
We’ve just begun our new unit, Save the Island! Students will explore how landscapes change over time due to natural events like volcanoes, floods, glaciers, and erosion. We’ll discuss how these forces shape the world around us and how people adapt to them. Look at pictures or videos of natural landforms together and ask your child what they think caused them to change. You can also ask, “How would people stay safe if this happened where we live?”

⛈️ Third Grade – Weather Warning HQ
Third graders are stepping into the role of meteorologists as they analyze weather patterns! This month, we’ll investigate temperature, wind, clouds, lightning, wildfires, and how different biomes experience extreme weather. Students will also track real-world weather data to make predictions. Check the weather forecast together and ask your child what they predict will happen and why. Ask them which weather tools or clues meteorologists might use to make those predictions.

🗺️ Fourth Grade – Geographical Investigations
Our fourth graders are starting their Geographical Investigations unit, where they’ll examine natural resources, human-environment interactions, and agricultural regions in Minnesota. Through maps and research, students will explore how geography shapes daily life. Ask your child where food or resources in your home might come from (farms, forests, mines, or factories).

🇺🇸 Fifth Grade – The American Revolution
Fifth graders are wrapping up their Colonization unit, learning about early colonies and how settlers survived and thrived in new lands. Later this month, students will dive into early American history as we begin our American Revolution unit, exploring the French and Indian War and the tax acts that led to rising tensions with Britain. Ask your student what they think would be the hardest part of starting a colony? Encourage them to explain their thinking!

CORE

Kindergarten - Staying Healthy

The Kindergarteners are finishing up learning about trusted adults. They will then be moving on to staying healthy and how they can accomplish this. Watch out in Seesaw for the icky germs activity!

First Grade - Community Helpers and Graphic Organizers

First grade wrap up their unit on Community Helpers and take a quiz in Seesaw. Be on the lookout for some beautiful drawings and interesting descriptions!

Second Grade - Personal Safety Project

Second graders will use electronic resources to learn about safety/health topics. Students will then use the information they collect to create and share a project using Seesaw.

Third Grade - Health “Say No” Project/Poster

Third graders have begun learning about the effects of tobacco on their bodies. Next, they will focus on learning about the effects of alcohol. Students will compete our learning unit by creating a “Say No” project in Seesaw.

Fourth Grade - Germs, diseases, intro to Canva; Oh My!

The fourth graders will continue their unit on germs and diseases. As they start their research project students will get to explore, create and learn about the application of Canva.

Fifth Grade - Google Sheets

Students have input health data as they learn to explore Google Sheets, now they will learn to take that data and create graphs. They will also take an assessment based on the health knowledge they have acquired from their data collection.

Library

February is “I Love to Read Month”! We will spend the entire month focusing on the joy of reading. Students in grades K-2 will continue reading the Star of the North nominees, and some classes will vote very soon! Students in grades 3-5 are learning about different genres of books.

Other fun activities happening in the library for “I Love to Read Month” include:

• Bookmark contest

• Story Book Tissue Box display - more information here

• Author read-alouds

• Book Fair Bingo

• Friendship book checkouts

• Golden ticket books

And…..Book Fair! We will be celebrating student academic progress and the joy of reading with a Scholastic Book Fair! Our book fair will run Tuesday, Feb. 17th and Thursday, Feb. 19th. As always, every purchase supports our students and library. More details coming soon!

Music

In February, 4th and 5th grade students will continue to practice playing the recorder. If your student brings their recorder home to practice, please help them remember to bring it back to school each day they have music class. If your student is looking for something to play on their recorder, there are several songs posted in their music class on Seesaw for them to work on.

Throughout February, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade students will be practicing playing the mallet instruments: xylophones, metallophones, and glockenspiels. In addition to playing the songs I teach them, they will all write their own songs and then play them on a mallet instrument. Kindergarten students will start to learn new rhythms and how to recognize patterns in music.

🍿✨ Movie Night Was a Hit! ✨🎬

A huge thank you to all the families who came out for Movie Night. We loved seeing so many smiles and hope you enjoyed the movie and the fun!

🏃‍♀️ Booster Fun Run Fundraiser 🏃‍♂️

Our PTO recognizes that this is a challenging time for many families in our community, and we want to lead with care, understanding, and connection.

As you begin to hear about our upcoming Booster Fun Run fundraiser, we want to share a bit of context. The Booster fundraiser is designed first and foremost as a community-building experience - one that brings our students together through shared events, school spirit, and celebration. All students participate and are included, regardless of a family’s ability to financially support the fundraiser.

At the same time, the Booster fundraiser is our primary PTO fundraiser each year and it’s success plays an important role in supporting our school. These funds help provide classroom supplies, support staff and student morale, offer educational enrichment opportunities, and this year will also enhance the nonfiction offerings in our media center. Fundraising allows us to extend opportunities that benefit all students.

Participation in fundraising is always optional, and we understand that every family’s circumstances are different. Whether you’re able to contribute financially, cheer students on, or simply support from home, you are an important part of our school community.

Thank you for helping make our school a welcoming, supportive, and connected place for every child.

Important Dates for Booster Fun Run

Registration opens Thursday,February, 5th

Booster Fun Run Event: Friday, February 27th

THANK YOU!

A heartfelt thank you to our January volunteers that helped with the workroom, Skillbuilders, classroom support, chaperoning, PTO Movie Night and 3rd Grade Business Presentations. Your support directly helps contribute to the success of these programs and events. Dayton volunteers have given over 1,771 hours of their time so far this school year!

Winter Book Fair
The Dayton Elementary Winter Book Fair will be held during conferences on Tuesday, February 17th and Thursday, February 19th. We need adult volunteers to help with set-up, work at the cash registers, and take down materials on both days. Since this role requires handling money, all volunteers for cashier shifts must be 18 years or older. We can accept high school students for our take down shifts on each night, which is noted in the slot.

Sign up here: Winter Book Fair

Ramadan Support

We are looking for adult volunteers to provide support to students who are observing Ramadan. Volunteers will check in students, supervise and assist with time expectations during their daily prayer time. We will need someone daily from 12:45pm-2pm between February 18th - March 19th.

Sign up here: Ramadan Support

We are gearing up for a busy month and there will be lots of opportunities to volunteer! Keep checking the Dayton Volunteer Opportunities website as we will be posting Booster Fun Run volunteer shifts soon.

If you have not filled out your volunteer application for the 2025-2026 school year - please do so and you will also be added to our volunteer email list for updates on volunteer opportunities as they become available. A reminder - you must complete both the Volunteer Application and Criminal Record History Release form at each school site, every school year.

Kristin Gow, Volunteer Services Coordinator at kristin.gow@ahschools.us

Hello Parents,

As we enter winter, illnesses typically increase. Please notify the health office if your student has an illness that requires treatment: strep, impetigo, ringworm, fifth disease, scabies, and lice. If we see a cluster of 3 or more students in 1 class, we will send a notification to the whole class. If you've reported the diagnosis to the attendance line, we do see that, but often diagnosis comes later in the day, and that's when we would appreciate an email or phone call.

Please remind your students to wash their hands! And please let us know if you have any other questions or concerns.

Thank you!

Stephanie Mullinix, Health Para LPN

Katelyn Salwey, School Nurse LSN/RN

katelyn.salwey@ahschools.us

763-506-2204

Once per month, Dayton Elementary hosts a book swap. This is a time for all Dayton Elementary students to bring in a gently used book or two to exchange for something new to read.

• March 5

• March 27

• April 30

• May 29

All dates are subject to change.

Time: 9:15 - 9:30 am

*Donations are always welcome, just drop off books in the front vestibule labeled for the book swap.

We are a LOCKED facility.

1. Press the silver button.

2. Wait for a staff member to respond.

3. Have your ID ready.

Please report student absences or late arrivals before 10:30 a.m.

To report attendance, use one of the following methods:

• Call the school's 24/7 attendance voicemail at 763-506-2206.

• Login on our webpage AHschools.us (Instructions linked here)
  
• Use the ParentVUE mobile app

Please refrain from using email or Seesaw to report attendance to your child's teacher. We appreciate your cooperation.

Student drop-off begins at 9:15 a.m., when the first bell rings. Students must be in their classrooms before the final bell at 9:30 a.m. School hours are from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

• Please do not drop off your child(ren) before 9:15 a.m., as staff are not on duty to supervise them until then.

ARRIVAL PROCEDURES LINKED HERE

Parent pick-up starts promptly at 4:00 PM in the Dayton and Rebel parking lots.

Please call 763-506-2200 by 3:00 PM if you need to change a dismissal plan.

DISMISSAL PROCEDURES LINKED HERE

Early dismissals should occur only in rare circumstances. Please make every effort to schedule appointments outside of school hours. Students leaving even a few minutes early often miss important last minute instructions and/or reminders. Interrupting classes to call students to the office also distracts other students and interrupts classroom routines.

If an early dismissal is unavoidable, allow us ample time to locate your student. We ask that early dismissals are avoided after 3:30 PM. We will call your student down when you arrive.

Daily schedules are available here.

ONLY parents and legal guardians are authorized to pick up. If you need someone else to pick up your child, please call the office at 763-506-2200 in advance to make arrangements.

Items can be dropped off and left on the table in the vestibule at Door #1. Please label the item(s) with your student's name and classroom. Post it notes and pens are provided in the vestibule.

Did You Know? Dayton Elementary has its very own PreK–Grade 3 Parenting Educator!

Tawnya Heinsohn is available in person on Digital Day 1 to support families with helpful resources, visuals, and FREE online parenting workshops each month.

Have a parenting question or want to learn more about a topic? Reach out to Tawnya Heinsohn at tawnya.heinsohn@ahschools.us or 763-634-1880.

Check out upcoming workshops at ahschools.us/prektograde3

Dayton Elementary participates in the Box Tops for Education, so please scan your receipts. It helps raise money for our school! Click here for more information.

BOX TOPS + WALMART

Connect your Walmart and Box Tops accounts so you can earn cash for our school when you purchase Box Tops products in-store or online using your saved Walmart payment method — without scanning or submitting your receipts!

Health Office

763.506.2204

HEALTH SERVICES

Dayton A+

763.506.2213

Child Nutrition

Menus

763.506.2211

Transportation Services

If your child's bus doesn't arrive in the morning or they don't get off the bus in the evening (rare), call the bus company directly. Save their number for after-school hours, as they can contact drivers.

First Student Bus Co.

763.421.5785 First Student Champlin (regular routes to/from Dayton Elementary)

763.421.3199 First Student Anoka (students receiving special education transportation)