DeWitt Elementary School

Student Handbook Update: The following has been added to the student handbook for the upcoming school year concerning Stanley & Stanley type cups: "Students are allowed to bring a water bottle to school. The water bottle must completely seal closed when not in use. No Stanley cups or tumblers with straws will be allowed". Please help us by not sending your student with this type of container for their water. Thank you ~ DES Staff

We would like to welcome Mrs. Staciah Strayhorn to DES this year! Mrs. Staciah will be joining us as a Special Education Professional. We are excited to have her on staff!

Please welcome Mr. JD Gunnell to DES! Mr. Gunnell will serve as the Assistant Principal at DES. While Mr. Gunnell is not new to DeWitt or the DeWitt School District, he is new to DES. We are excited to have him on staff this year!

Tomorrow is the first day of school and we are so excited to see everyone! If you were unable to attend open house last week, your child will be sent home with a packet of information. Please fill out the necessary forms and return them promptly to DES! We can't wait to see everyone in the morning!

School Zone & Car Line Reminders: 1) There are THREE cross walks at DES, one in the middle of the front drive and one near the end by the Preschool Entrance, and one between the elementary cafeteria and high school gym. Please make sure that you are driving slowly and STOPPING for pedestrians in the crosswalk. 2) Arkansas Code 27-51-1609 states that "a driver of a motor vehicle shall not use a handheld wireless telephone while operating a motor vehicle when passing a school building or school zone during school hours when children are present and outside the building.” Arkansas Act 37 defines a handheld wireless telephone as a wireless interactive communication device with which a user engages in wireless interactive communication using at least one hand. Please help keep our students safe and stay off the phone while in the school zone.

On the FIRST day of school, KINDERGARTEN parents may walk their child into the building and to their classroom. We understand that this is a big and new step in our Kindergarten families lives! First - Fifth grade students are now pro's at getting into the school, so these families will follow normal drop off procedures on Monday morning. They get to model how to be a big kid to all of our new Kindergarten students! After the FIRST DAY, ALL students, K-5, will need to follow normal drop off procedures. We will have plenty of adults inside the building helping kids get to their correct classrooms as well. We can't wait to see everyone on Monday!

Please note our updated start and finish times for DES. Classes Begin: 8:00 am Tardy Bell: 8:05 am All Car Riders Dismiss: 3:07 pm All Bus Riders Dismiss: 3:22 pm

The DES Dragon's Den is in need of gently used backpacks and sneakers! See below for more information.

When you get a chance, come and check out our pollinator habitat flowerbeds at DES! The flower bed habitsts were originally planted by Girl Scout Troop 1313. Now they are maintained by Mrs. Lindsay Beaton, through the Conservation Education Grants she has received from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. This year, Mrs. Lindsay also had the help of 9th grade volunteers, Caden & Elijah, to get the pollinator habitat ready for the beginning of school.

Are you a DES student/parent?? Do you live inside the city limits? If you answered yes, be on the lookout Monday afternoon for the DES Bus! Starting at 2:00 on Monday August 5th, the DES staff will load two school busses to make visits to in and around town! If you see us on the bus, please wave, and be sure to take a pic and post to your Facebook Page! Tag the DES Facebook Page and use the hashtag #IFOUNDTHEDESBUS We will have popsicles for kids as well if we see you all outside! If you tag DeWitt Elementary and use the hashtag #IFOUNDTHEDESBUS , Your name will be entered into a drawing for a family dinner! Can't wait to see everyone! Check the two maps below for our bus routes on Monday! We can’t wait to see you all then!

All incoming Kindergarten Students will need a nap mat. You can either bring it during Open House or on the First Day of school!

DES Awards Assemblies Thursday May 23rd, 2024 4th Grade - 8:00 - 8:45 5th Grade - 9:00 - 9:40 3rd Grade - 10:00 - 10:30 2nd Grade - 10:45 - 11:30 1st Grade - 12:15 - 12:45

The DeWitt ABC Preschool Program was recently awarded a 6 Star Rating, the highest rating, by the Better Beginnings Quality Improvement Rating System. Better Beginnings, which is administered by the Office of Early Childhood, is a voluntary tiered quality rating improvement system in which all licensed child care providers can participate. The Better Beginnings rating system elevates the quality of child care and early childhood education in Arkansas by investing in quality child care learning environments and creating greater awareness of the importance of early learning from zero to five years of age, when brain development is most critical. Staff members left to right: Wendy Currie, Kat Tow, Carrie Ashcraft, Leah Endsley and Jessica West.

DES STEM class is excited to announce that they will be adding robotics into their curriculum next school year. Mrs. Sammie worked to obtain donations to bring the robotics dream to a reality. Students will continue to learn coding and will now be able to apply the skills that they are learning in class in order to make their robots move.

Last week the teachers at DES were blessed with treats from the community for Teacher Appreciation Week! Thank you DES Cafeteria Staff for preparing and DES Administration for providing a baked potato bar lunch! Thank you DeWitt PTO for the Hand Soaps! Thank you to our School Board for providing donuts one morning! Thank you to the Southeastern Education Co-Op for providing a huge snack pack for the teachers! Thank you to Sonic of DeWitt for providing a large Sonic Drink to everyone! Thank you to everyone in our community for your support!

We had a WONDERFUL Field Day on Friday at DES!!! Thank you to all of our volunteers who helped make the day a success! Thank you to DeWitt Hospital for helping man our Concession Stand and making sure everyone had a chance to get a drink and a snack!

Thank you Stone Bank for providing donuts & helping with morning drop off on Monday! Thank you FBC DeWitt for providing an ice cream sundae bar today! We are so appreciative and thankful for the community support we are given daily!

We will have a concession stand at field day again this year! Items that will be available and their cost: Sno Cones - $1 Popcorn - $1 Bottled Water - $1 We are excited for another great field day!

Field Day is Friday May 10th and we are still in need of adult volunteers! Volunteer forms went home with students last week. If you want to volunteer and haven't returned the form, go ahead and send it to DES with your student. If the form didn't make it home, and you would like to volunteer, email Mrs, Lindsay Beaton - lbeaton@dewittdragons.net. You can work ALL Day, or half day (Either 7:45 - 11:00 or 11:00 - 2:45). It takes a village to pull off a great day for the kids! We thank you all in advance!