Ithaca South Elementary

South Elementary preschoolers are hard at work learning the routines of their classroom. They recently learned how to appropriately use glue sticks and then practiced using them to glue paper shapes. Preschoolers have also learned how to use stamps and ink pads and played daily in the Sensory Table Area.

🌟 Celebrate Showing Up 🌟
Attendance improves when kids feel noticed. Try a simple routine: “High five for being here today” or a weekly family shout-out for effort.

Need support or want to learn more? Visit fewerthan5.com for family resources. Funding for Strive for Fewer than Five is supported by the Region 5 MiFamily Engagement Center.

Our Donuts for Grown-Ups Event is planned for October 20th at South Elementary!

"Library Day" is always an awesome day for our Junior Jackets. Each week, students hear a read-aloud from our wonderful librarian, Mrs. Longanbach, choose a book to take home, and play with the toys that can only be found in the South Elementary Library! 📚 🐝💙💛

We celebrated '9 to 5' or Dolly Parton Day at South! Some of our staff dressed the part with Ms. Stec and Mrs. Schaeding winning best dressed! Students also listened to a book written by Dolly called "Coat of Many Colors" and colored their own coat in the classroom.

"If you see someone without a smile today, give 'em yours". -Dolly Parton

Join us for our school/community connection STEAM story hour at Thompson Home Public Library Monday, Sept 28 at 5:30!

Awesome job, Junior Jackets and South Elementary Families!!!

Last week, Ms. Hayes's classroom had an Apple Day!! They had an apple tasting where they tried red, yellow, and green apples. Then they voted on which one was their favorite… Green won the vote! 🍏🍎

It was a beautiful day for a trip to the orchard on Tuesday! First graders had a wonderful time tasting cider and donuts, picking an apple, feeding goats and playing with their friends. Thank you to the chaperones that joined them and the wonderful PTO for funding the trip. 💛💙🐝🍎🍏🐐

Mrs. Whitford's students read Ten Apples Up On Top in STEAM lab this week and were challenged to create hats that could hold "ten apples up on top"! The working designs made all of us chuckle!

In STEAM lab this week, first graders made models to demonstrate how some animals experience day when others experience night. These super scientists were able to use their models to explain how facing the sun creates daylight and facing away causes darkness.

Teaching about expectations and how to navigate the classroom are very important concepts that help make Kindergarten rooms run smoothly! Mr. Whitford's Kindergarteners explored puzzle resources using teamwork and then independently rotated to alternate stations after completions!

🛠️ Attendance Support Starts Early 🛠️
Transportation issues? Morning stress? Family schedule changes? Reach out early—schools can connect you to supports before absences add up.

Need support or want to learn more? Visit fewerthan5.com for family resources. Funding for Strive for Fewer than Five is supported by the Region 5 MiFamily Engagement Center.

First graders in Mrs. Groeneveld's classroom also celebrated Constitution Day on Thursday. They also wrote their own constitution and played a roll and add math game and colored a constitution poem.

Happy Constitution Day! Today these first graders learned about the importance of the Constitution. They wrote their own classroom Constitution and signed it. They also learned about the symbolism of the American flag. Students then created their own American flags!

Our preschool playground has brand new equipment that was just installed in August! We are excited to see our Junior Jackets sliding, climbing, rocking, pedaling, and playing all year long. A special thanks to our Maintenance and Custodial Department at Ithaca Public Schools who played a huge role this summer in preparing and putting the finishing touches on this new play space.

Our 1st and 2nd grade students had the opportunity to travel to the Heritage Center at Alma College on Tuesday to watch a dance performance. The dancers are students at the Academy of Performing Arts in Alma. Our Junior Jackets had a wonderful experience and were polite and well-mannered during the show. Bravo!

Each week, students receive Junior Jacket Tickets for demonstrating excellent behavior and setting a positive example at South Elementary. On Fridays, we draw one 'winner' from each classroom as our Junior Jacket Ticket Winners for the week. Here are the first winners for the 2026-27 school year.

This week in STEAM lab kindergarteners read a story about a girl who designed a fancy new school bus. They were then challenged to create their own new school buses. Our lab was filled with creativity!