September 2025

Our nurses office is in need of lightly used or new pants and shorts of all sizes. (If your child needs to use clothes from school, please wash and return.) Thanks!

Wear your Harvey Dunn Spirit Wear every Tuesday!

August 29 -

NO SCHOOL - Labor Day Break

September 1 -

NO SCHOOL - Labor Day Break

September 4 -

5:45pm - 7:00pm - PTA Pizza Picnic

September 9 -

6pm - 7pm - PTA Meeting

September 18 -

6pm - 8pm - PTA Skate City Night

September 22 -

Picture Day

October 8 -

7:30am - 8am - PTA Walk to School Day

Harvey Dunn Events Calendar

District Parent Calendar

Greetings Harvey Dunn Families,

We have had an amazing first 6 days of school with our Kindergarten - 5th graders! Early Childhood students joined us Tuesday for their first day of school. We are excited to have all our students back in the building for the 2025-2026 school year! Students have been learning and practicing building and classroom expectations. They are doing GREAT! Kindergarten through 5th-grade students started taking the NWEA MAP Assessments for reading and math. These assessments are given three times a year and provide parents, teachers, and students with information on what students know and what they are ready to learn.

Please take time to read through the newsletter each month for upcoming important dates, school reminders and highlights, PTA news, community opportunities, etc.

Welcome Back Harvey Dunn Tigers!

Kindest regards,

Mrs. Chamberlain, Principal

Over the past week, our students have been busy building new friendships with classmates and connecting with their teachers. They’ve also been learning and practicing what it means to follow Harvey Dunn school expectations throughout their day.

At Harvey Dunn, our Tigers ROAR! ROAR stands for Respect, Ownership, Attitude, and Responsibility. Teachers have been teaching students about what each of these looks like in various areas of our school, including classrooms, hallways, the lunchroom, the playground, and beyond.

As part of our school-wide goal, students can earn ROAR slips from staff whenever they demonstrate these values. Whether it’s being respectful, showing ownership, keeping a positive attitude, or taking responsibility, ROAR slips celebrate the amazing choices our students are making!

When your child brings home a ROAR slip, take a moment to ask them about it. Here are some fun conversation starters:

Which letter of ROAR did you earn today?
How did it feel when you earned your ROAR slip?
Which ROAR value do you want to work on next and why?

We are off to an amazing start to the year, and we can’t wait to celebrate even more positive choices!

Hi, my name is Shar Schutte, and I am the new school counselor at Harvey Dunn Elementary. I have been a counselor with the district for several years. I have worked in four different elementary schools and most recently at the CTE.

I have been going around into different rooms and introducing myself to your children. It has been a pleasure meeting them. They are all making me feel very welcome and they promised they would help me if I had questions about my new school. I am excited to be part of the Harvey Dunn community. I will be going into classrooms throughout the year, visiting children individually and in small groups. I am here to be a resource for parents and staff.

One thing I do want to touch on is school anxiety. It is very normal for children to sometimes experience anxious feelings when returning to school after the summer or after a long break during the school year. I want to encourage you to do the following things after a break:

· Keep routines consistent—Regular bedtimes, waking times and morning routines provides children with a sense of security.

· Stay positive and confident—Model calmness and excitement about school. Children mirror their parents’ emotions.

· Talk and listen—Encourage your child to share how they are feeling about returning to school, validate their feelings and reassure them feeling nervous is normal.

· Prepare ahead of time—Lay out their clothes and backpacks the night before to reduce am stress.

· Let the staff help if drop off is difficult—If your child has a difficult time separating from you on the playground then let the staff help with the transition into the building. The majority of the time once they get in the building and are with their teacher and friends the behavior subsides.

We all want your children to be happy to be at Harvey Dunn! This is a great learning environment.

You can reach me by email at Sharla.Schutte@k12.sd.us or calling the school office 605-371-4120.

Harvey Dunn Parent/Guardian Handbook

Thank you for reviewing and keeping students safe!

Students' safe arrival to and departure from school is a top priority. Please take time to review the reminders below. We are all here for the same reason, the children. When we all follow the guidelines during drop off, you help your child start their day off in a positive and safe manner, as well as the other families around you. Thank you for doing your part to make this process and procedure work.

Park vehicles in the parking lot and walk students to and from the school using the crosswalks. If you are choosing to drop off students, use the circle drive or north drive.
Only vehicles with handicap parking permits can park in the handicap spots.
When pulling up in the circle drive or north drive before or after school remain in your vehicle and move forward as the line moves. This helps keep traffic moving.
Students exit on the passenger side of the vehicle. In the circle drive, once you are in the student drop-off zone, students exit the vehicle. When more students are exiting the vehicles, we are able to move traffic through more efficiently.
The north drive might be a faster alternative for morning drop-off when the circle drive is busy. Remain in your vehicle and move forward as the line moves. This helps keep traffic moving.

PTA Information

Mark your calendars for the following upcoming events:

Our monthly meetings will be held on the 2nd Tuesday of each month at 6 PM. Please follow our Facebook page where can find the meeting schedule and info on events.

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100065219912891&mibextid=ZbWKwL

As always, our events are not possible without the help our parents. Please consider giving an hour or so of your valuable time to volunteer for one of more events.

PTA Parent Volunteer FORM

Breakfast & Lunch

Breakfast begins at 7:30am. Each grade level has a separate lunch time (see schedule).

Lunch money can be deposited into your child’s account by using the MySchoolBuck on-line system. MySchoolBuck App is available on the Apple Store and Google Play.

Free & Reduced Lunch Application

Lunch Menu

Infinite Campus - Parent Portal