Ms. Simmons' Secondary Scoop

With all our snow days this year, we are anticipating several make-up school days at the end of May. To better balance out semester two, the last day of Q3 will be Thur, 3/16.

Students in grades 3-8 & 11 will take state assessments in ELA and Math and grades 5, 8 & 11 will also test in Science. CLICK HERE to access the parent information letters regarding testing for these grades as well as the schedule of testing sessions coming up in March and April! (These documents can also be accessed by going to the Documents link on the school website and choosing the Testing folder.)

I will be taking a group of 8th grade girls to attend Women in Science Day at STI in Sioux Falls on Mon, 3/6. We will have the privilege of learning from the following groups during our five breakout sessions:

• Brianna Wiebelhaus & Samantha Hayek – Sioux Falls Police Department, Forensic Science: A Local Perspective on a Global Career
• Connie Taylor – Avera Health, Amazing Brains!
  
• Brooke Muhlack & Megan Klasen – Braun Intertec, Discussion on Environmental Compliance, Site Investigation
  
• Rachel Kloos – ISG Inc., The Beauty of Wastewater
  
• Vicki Swier – Sanford Research, Learning About Pathology In Rare Human Diseases
  
• Plus lots of hands-on experiences set up in the exhibit hall

Registration is full, so only those that signed up with me and completed the waiver earlier this school year are eligible to attend. We will plan on leaving school at 8 AM and returning at 4 PM. It's sure to be an incredible day!

Attention Parents/Guardians of Current Juniors:

Last summer Humanity Launch hosted the inaugural Humanity Launch Service Leadership Academy at Augustana University in Sioux Falls. 70 rising high school seniors from all over South Dakota and SW Minnesota joined ten college students and their leadership team for 48 hours of leadership training and service opportunities. This summer they will be hosting two Service Leadership Academies at Augustana. They will host 70 members of the Class of 2024 from June 5-7 and a similar group on July 31-August 2. Due to the generosity of their sponsors, there is no charge for these 140 students to attend the Service Leadership Academy.

The goals of the academy are to grow participants’ leadership skills, nurture their service heart, connect rising seniors from the region, and have a lot of fun in the process. Humanity Launch has large group and small group activities, keynotes, panels, field trips, and lots and lots of fun activities. Some of the students coming to the SLA are familiar with The Humanity Launch as they have done retreats at their schools. The SLA will be similar to these retreats with more time to explore topics like leadership and service. A team of college students, area young leaders, and veteran educators are excited to make this a special event.

Anyone that has questions can talk to me directly, or contact senior Sydney Boersma as she attended the academy last summer and had a phenomenal experience. Current juniors interested in attending should complete an application ASAP by filling out this Google Form: https://forms.gle/vzqnzXDT9uNhiSFC7

• JH/HS student handbook

• JH/HS online lesson plans. Click the link below each email address for the staff member/course you’d like to see.

• Link to all school activities

As always, please let me know if there's anything I can do to serve you and our secondary students.

Sincerely in Education,

Website: https://www.elkton.k12.sd.us/
Phone: (605) 542-2541
Facebook: facebook.com/ElktonSchool53
Twitter: @ElktonSchool