Back to School HUB
Welcome to our Back to School HUB, your resource for all the important things you need to know to have a successful school year. We will be updating this page regularly to keep you informed so please visit often.
Mark your calendars for these important back to school dates:
- 8/4: Aeries parent portal opens for data confirmation/authorizations. Complete this REQUIRED step before the first day of school!
- 8/13: 6th grade Ice Cream Social at 6pm in the Middle School common area. All incoming 6th grade families are invited to attend
- 8/17: Back to School Picnic from 11:30-1:00 on the CCDS field.
*All new to CCDS 1st-8th grade students are invited to the New Student Meet n' Greet from 11-11:30 am, just prior to the Back to School Picnic. This is an opportunity for new students to meet each other and have a chance to ask a few classmates any lingering questions they may have. Students in grades 1-5 will meet in Room 19 on the elementary campus. Students in grades 6-8 will meet in the middle school common area.
- 8/18: First day of school - MINIMUM DAY
- 8/18: Parent Coffee & Pastries, 8:30-9:15 am under the Party Patio after drop off on the first day of school. All parents welcome!
- 8/25: Picture Day: grades 1-5th
- 8/27: Picture Day: Grades TK, K and 6-8th
- 8/27: Back to School Night - times coming soon!
Aeries Data Confirmation & Authorizations
The Aeries Parent Portal opens to all parents/guardians on August 4th. All parents must log into their Parent Portal to complete the REQUIRED data confirmation and authorizations. THIS MUST BE DONE BEFORE THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!
Need help completing this step? Come to our back to school picnic and we'll get you started (picnic details can be found in the Save the Date section below).
DIRECTIONS FOR ACCESSING THE PARENT PORTAL
- Desktop is suggested for completing Data Confirmation, using a mobile phone to complete this process often does not work
- Open the Aeries Parent Portal
- After logging in you will see the following message on your screen: "You have not yet completed the Student Data Confirmation Process."
- Follow the "click here" link on the screen to begin your data confirmation and follow the prompts along the way. It's that easy!
- Parents with multiple children enrolled at CCDS will need to complete this process for EACH CHILD. After the first child's data confirmation is complete, click on the "change student" tab along the top navigation bar to switch to another student's account. Follow the same process for all students.
Additional Forms:
- Medication Authorization Form - required if your student needs any medication, including over the counter medications, administered on campus
- Athletic Waiver & Medical Release - required if your student will participate in CCDS Athletics. This form must be completed for student athletes each school year. Completing this form for one sport covers the student for all sports during the 26-27 school year.
- Universal Benefit Application (UBA): used to determine eligibility for various state and federal supports, including ELOP fee waiver status for our After School Program (ASP). When completing this form online, enter Chico Country Day School in the Search for a District field. A hard copy of this form is also available in the CCDS main office.
Download the Printable 26-27 School Calendar
August
8/18: First day of school, all grades. Minimum Day: 12:30 Dismissal
September
9/7: Labor Day, no school
October
10/14: Minimum day, 12:30 pm dismissal
10/15: Non-student day for Conferences
10/16: No school for students or teachers
November
11/6: Harvest Fair, Minimum Day: 12:30 Dismissal
11/11: Veteran's Day - no school
11/23-27: Thanksgiving Break, no school
December
12/18: Minimum day, 12:30 pm dismissal
12/21-1/1: Winter Break, no school
January
1/4: Non-student day
1/18: MLK, Jr Day, no school
February
2/12: No School
2/15: President's Day, no school
March
3/15-19: Spring Break, no school
3/26 & 3/29: Easter Travel Days, no school
April
4/23: Non-student day, Staff Work Day
May
5/19-21: Presentations of Learning, Minimum Days: 12:30 Dismissal
5/31: Memorial Day, no school
June
6/4, Friday: Last day of school; Minimum day - 12:30 pm dismissal
The first morning bell rings at 8:25am, and students need to be in their classrooms/attendance lines by the 8:30am bell.
START TIME:
8:30am for ALL GRADES, EVERY DAY
REGULAR DISMISSAL:
TK Dismissal: 1:30pm
Kinder Dismissal: 2:15pm
1st-3rd Dismissal: 2:30pm
4th-8th Dismissal: 2:45pm
EARLY RELEASE MONDAYS:
*every Monday is an early release day
TK-3rd Dismissal: 1:30pm
4th-8th Dismissal: 1:45pm
MINIMUM DAYS:
ALL STUDENTS dismissed at 12:30pm
Here's some things to know before you head to the store:- Every student needs a backpack, lunchbox and water bottle. These and any other items that come to school with your child should be labeled.
- CCDS does not issue school supply lists because all necessary classroom supplies are provided for each student. Some teachers have suggested items that are optional to purchase, and they will reach out to their families with that information.
- All teachers have an Amazon Wish List that is posted on their staff bio on our website. Feel free to purchase items off this list if you want to help - just click on a teacher’s name to see their list.
- Students may arrive on campus as early as 7:45 am. Please do not drop your students off any earlier. All students - including middle school students - must go to the elementary campus in the morning; students are not permitted to wait outside the elementary school gates. Middle school students may not wait in the middle school. The only exception to this is if they have pre-arranged to meet with a teacher before school starts.
- Students and parents are expected to utilize our crosswalks. We will have staff assisting with crossing duty at our crosswalks for both drop off and pick up times.
- Our loading/unloading zones are along W 11th Street and Broadway Street. Do not leave your vehicle unattended along the loading/unloading curbs. It's helpful to have your children gather their belongings together before they exit from your car to keep traffic flowing smoothly.
- If you need to park to walk your child onto campus or meet them at pick up, you can find a parking space along the neighborhood streets. Please respect our neighbors and refrain from blocking, or turning in, their driveways.
- For school dismissal, all students are walked by teachers to the loading/unloading curb for parent pick-up. After 10 minutes, students who have not been picked up yet are "swept" from the curb into the main office, where we will attempt to contact parents. Every attempt to contact parents will be made, but any students remaining 15 minutes after the bell rings may be checked into ASP and you will be charged for ASP services. Please contact the office if you are running late due to an extenuating circumstance.
Fall 2026 Menu
Breakfast Options
Monday: Muffin(WG); Croissant(WG); Cereal; Yogurt & Granola(WG)
Tuesday: Bagel(WG); Biscuit(WG); French Toast Sticks(WG); Cereal; Yogurt & Granola(WG)
Wednesday: Waffle(G); French Toast Sticks(WG); Cereal; Yogurt & Granola(WG)
Thursday: Crepes; French Toast Sticks(WG); Waffle(G); Cereal; Yogurt & Granola(WG)
Friday: Chocolate Croissant(WG); Sausage Biscuit; Yogurt & Granola(WG)
Fresh fruit, 100% juice, and 1% milk/chocolate milk offered daily
WG= whole grain
G= gluten free
Lunch options
Monday: Crispy Chicken sandwich(WG) OR Turkey/Cheese Sandwich(WG) OR Veggie Roll-ups(V)
Tuesday: Bolognese Pasta(WG) OR Marinara Pasta(WG/V), both with Breadstick(WG)
Wednesday: Orange Chicken Rice Bowl OR Teriyaki Chicken Bowl OR Veggie Rice Bowl(V)
Thursday: Alternating Weeks: Cheeseburger(WG)/Hotdog(WG); OR Veggie Burger(WG/V)
Friday: Cheese Pizza, Pepperoni Pizza, Focaccia Pizza OR Parfait with Granola & Cheese Stick
Fresh cut fruit/vegetable bar and 1% milk/chocolate milk offered daily
WG= whole grain
G= gluten free
V= vegan
*TK Students Only:
Only the underlined lunch menu items will be offered to our TK students (they don’t choose between lunch menu items)
Free Meals for All
Great news! CCDS participates in the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), which provides every enrolled student a breakfast and lunch at no cost every school day, regardless of household income. Visit our School Nutrition webpage for more information.
The CCDS After School Program (ASP) offers a safe, supportive, and fun learning environment after school hours. Every CCDS student is eligible to enroll in ASP, subject only to program capacity. Visit our ASP webpage for complete program details.
ParentSquare:
ParentSquare is a web and app-based program that we use to quickly and easily communicate with all families at CCDS. This is the primary way the school and your individual teachers will communicate with you. ParentSquare (also referred to as Aeries Communications) provides a free and secure way for families to:
- receive school newsletters and teacher updates
- receive forms, files and pictures from teachers
- get attendance alerts
- get urgent updates/safety text alerts
- sign up for conferences
- and much more...all in one centralized place
Our goal is to make sure every household has at least one parent/guardian as a registered user of ParentSquare. It’s the best way to make sure you don’t miss a thing!
New families are automatically enrolled in ParentSquare, and you’ll begin receiving communication from the school and your teacher(s) around late July/early August. There are a couple important steps you should take to make things easier on your end:
- Activate your account: Around late July/early August you will receive an email and/or a text message from ParentSquare inviting you to activate your account. The process is quick - just follow the prompts and you’ll be set!
- Download the app: While the ParentSquare app is not necessary, it is highly recommended to keep school communication easily accessible. The app is free for both iOS and Android:
Once you activate your account you’ll be able to set your account preferences under the My Account tab. Here’s where you can set your language and notification preferences.
This Getting Started video and help page is a great place to get acquainted with ParentSquare: https://parentsquare.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/203414049-Getting-Started-
Your school ParentSquare contact is Irene Henkens. Please reach out with any questions at ihenkens@chicocountryday.org.
Newsletters:
Miss a newsletter, miss a lot! The CCDS Weekly News will be sent to families every Monday via ParentSquare. This digital newsletter will provide all the information you need to stay in-the-know at CCDS. Current and past newsletters can be accessed in your ParentSquare account, but you can also find them in our newsletter archive HERE.
Social Media:
Our social media channels are another great way to stay informed on all things CCDS, and they're a fun way to see what our students are up to! Make sure you follow us on Facebook and Instagram.
More Questions?
Don't hesitate to reach out with any questions. We'll get back to you as soon as possible!