Summer 2024

This is the final newsletter for the 23-24 school year! We hope you've enjoyed following along with the fun and interesting things that happen at Longfellow. You'll find info as well as lots and lots of pictures. So much happened in the month of May! Please ask your Lion to explain some of these photos. They'll have some awesome stories for you!

Parents, if you have a child who will be turning 5 before September 1st of 2024 and have not yet filled out your paperwork, it's not too late! Please get in contact with us NOW so we can have a seat ready for your child in the fall. We are excited to meet our newest lions!

Those 5th grade band students who have made it a priority to practice regularly, show up for lessons, and put in the effort, were able to take a trip with Mrs. Krell to the High School to hang out with the band students. They even got to speak with former Lions who encouraged them to stick with it.

Please have your child arrive early if he/she wishes to utilize the free breakfast or lunch program.

If your child is going to be late or absent, please let Miss Jira and Mrs. Abts know via Remind.

If you have any questions regarding LEAP, please reach out to Mrs. Abts or Miss Jira.

Jacey.Jira@k12.sd.us

Marissa.Abts@k12.sd.us

Mr. Bruna and our 5th grade Lions did a fabulous job at their show choir concert! At the end, they gave us all a little taste of how hard it can be to learn everything they are expected to learn. Each student could bring a person on stage to learn just a little bit of their song. It's not as easy as it looks!

Our Longfellow families really embraced the fitness challenges Mrs. Eitemiller set for them again this year! Whether they participated every month or every once in awhile, families were able to get active, have fun and make memories.....and it didn't have to cost them any money! Mrs. Eitemiller was able to come up with fun options for families whether they had a huge yard to play football in or if they were stuck inside, baking together. Three cheers for all of her hard work and forethought into coming up with a set of new and fun challenges each month. Congratulations to all of our families who participated! Way to make your family a priority while staying active and healthy!

5th Grade Recognition is a fun evening where we take a moment to recognize the accomplishments of these lions before they move on to Middle School. Mrs. Heckenlaible and the 5th grade teachers love this night as the teachers work hard to make it a personal and memorable evening for their students.

Lions are recognized for their academic achievements, involvement in band, and 3 are selected for Citizenship Awards. Throughout the school year, we recognized students who had perfect attendance for an individual quarter. At recognition, we also acknowledge the students who received a "Present Every Day" award. These students made their education a priority buy being in school for a portion of each day of the year! Even if they had a doctor appointment, they returned to school when it was done. We chose to acknowledge that as we know it is not an easy task but we appreciate these students, and their parents, making their attendance important!

Will Prunty went to school at Longfellow and graduated from Mitchell High School this year. He was the recipient of the Longfellow $500 scholarship! Will wrote a short essay about what education and Longfellow means to him, submitted it as part of the Longfellow Scholarship Application, and was awarded the honor. He told our students that their plans may change over time and that it's ok to be unsure or to change your mind. He encouraged them to try new things and to get involved with lots of extracurriculars, while still making your academics a priority. Congratulations, Will, and thank you for speaking to our 5th graders. We are proud to call you a Lion and excited to see where your hard work and dedication will take you!

We truly feel it is a pleasure and honor to work with your children each day and we do not take our role in their lives lightly. Some days are hard, yes, but the end result is so worth it! From the kitchen staff to the principal, and everyone in between, we thank you for sharing your child(ren) with us and hope you have a wonderful summer. We will miss your kids and look forward to seeing them next fall and hopefully around town this summer. Have a safe and memorable summer!!

We won't share the pictures of the red-blotchy faces (staff and students), but trust us, tears were shed. We send you on with lots of love. Come back and see us!!

To all of our returning Lions, we can't wait to see you in August. Well, maybe we'll be ok waiting through June and July.

Goodbye school and hello pool!!!