Ithaca South Elementary

Ithaca Public Schools have added 2 new buses to the transportation fleet. That results in some of the current buses being retired and new bus numbers for some of the routes. If you use the school dismissal system, you may get an email with an updated bus number for your student. The bus routes and drivers have not changed, just new bus numbers for that route. Richard - Old bus number 21 - new bus number 22 Tammy - Old bus number 17 - new bus number 23 Brenda - Old bus number 14 - new bus number 21 Cody - Old bus number 11 - New bus number 17 South Elementary

Dear South Families, March is Reading month continues at South and our students have been outstanding in completing their reading logs! Keep up the great work. 2 of the activities this week are the Reading Fair. Displays can still be brought in Tuesday morning and will be on display Tuesday evening from 6-7 PM. Students can bring in their stuffed animals on Thursday and the animals will get to spend the night at South. Students are invited to wear PJ's on Friday as well.

We had a fantastic time engaging in an opportunity with the Alma College Chemistry Club at their Science Blowout! We created Bio Art after looking at plant cells and sugar under a microscope. We extracted DNA from a strawberry. We saw what liquid nitrogen does to different objects. Watched what happened when fire was brought to balloons filled with different gases. We watch the elephant toothpaste demonstration. We also got to explore medical science by listening to our heart beat, looking at what light does to our pupil, and play the game Operation. We made friendship bracelets and dog toys for environmental science. We also explored physiology with a step and vertical jump contest.

Ms. Clark's class celebrated March Reading Month with engaging literacy activities today! We participated in the vocabulary parade and read in the dark with flashlights!

First graders in Mrs. Schaeding's class used their creativity to paint watercolor pictures of rainforest animals that they have been engaged in learning about.

The South Reading Fair is on Tuesday, March 21st. Student's can bring in their projects and they will be on display from 6-7 PM in the South Hallways. South is "Wild About Reading!"

Good morning! Our leprechaun didn't leave gold, but left something much yummier! Happy St. Patrick's Day! ☘️☘️☘️☘️ Mrs. Simcox

What a welcoming learning environment we have here at South. Enjoy some pictures from our Vocabulary Parade.

Students, teachers and families are providing engaging opportunities to learn and share vocabulary words at South.

Some of our wonderful families and friends collaborating to complete the puzzle challenge at family night!

Happy Thursday Everyone! We continue to have awesome readers come in and share a story or two! Mrs. Jesse Rayburn, Wes' Mom, North School Principal, and Mr. Rayburn's wife read two awesome stories today! My favorite was called, "Truck Stops!" Mrs. Rayburn shared gold coins with each student. Thank you so much for reading to us! Tomorrow is our vocabulary parade at 8:15. Weather permitting outside, otherwise, see you in the gym! Happy St. Patrick's Day tomorrow. I am searching for green snacks after my appointment tonight! Sincerely, Mrs. Simcox

South Elementary students taking part in the Doug Scheer Magic Bookshelf assembly. They were an energetic audience learning the wonders of books!!

South Elementary participated in the Magic Bookshelf by Doug Scheer! Our students were engaged in the performance and many were active participants!! Great fun for everyone!

Hello Mrs. Hessbrook's and Mrs. Simcox classroom parents! I hope you are having a great week! We have had so many engaging & fun activities during reading month. Today was an incredible reading & magic assembly performed by "Doug Scheer, Magic Bookshelf Assembly" Students were absolutely thrilled by the literature focused stories & activities. Two students from our room got to participate. We are also continuing in class to tailor our learning experiences to include books with "hands-on" experiences. Watercolor painting, "King of Ing" Day, and much more! A few parents have stopped in to read their favorite story to our class. If you would like to come in, please email me to set up a time. We would love to listen to you read a story! Have a great rest of your week! Mrs. Simcox

Building Positive Relationships by being creative and sharing the love of reading in Mrs . Dawe's room.

Ithaca Schools' phone system and network are back up and running. Thank you for your patience during the outage.

Dear South, This week we have several items related to our March is Reading Month theme, "Wild About Reading!" On Wednesday, students are invited to wear green clothing as celebrate "Great Green Forest Day! - Wear Green!". Thursday evening, from 5:30 - 7:30, is our combined Family Night with North Elementary. All are welcome to participate. And we wrap up the week with our Vocabulary Parade on Friday. The Parade will begin approximately 8:15 AM. Families are invited to watch the parade. If it is not raining we will parade along the playground for families to view. If it rains we will move the event inside and families will watch the parade from the gym!

We are building positive community relationships in Room 111! Mrs. Groeneveld's first-grade class welcomed Mrs. Bowen and State Police Officer, Sargent Zamarron to read a story!

Hello! We have been learning how to "Read to Self" since January in Mrs. Hessbrook's room. Students have practiced reading pictures, reading words, and retelling a story! Today we added a new experience, "Read to a Partner!" I chose their partner for the first two weeks, they will choose with me next time. Students learned how to sit, "EEKK," how to share a book, seesaw read, and much more. Comprehension increases when students read together. It is also a great way to build social skills. Please ask your student about his or her "Read with a partner" experience! *Please note, if someone's partner is absent or out of the room, they read to self until the partner returns! Great job kindergarteners! Mrs. Simcox

First graders used The Umbrella by Jan Brett as inspiration to construct their own leafy rainforest umbrellas!