Maize South Elementary School

Principal

Maize South Elementary

Visit our school website at www.usd266.com/mses.

Connect with Mrs. Thrash at cthrash@usd266.com or 316-462-8300.

Follow us on Facebook at Facebook.com/MaizeSouthElementary and Instagram

Maize South Elementary School is located at 3404 N. Maize Rd. in Wichita.

Hello Maize South Families!

What a wonderful start to the school year! It has been a joy to see our students back in the building, reconnecting with friends, meeting new teachers, and settling into their routines. As we move through September, we are continuing to reinforce our school-wide expectations so that every student feels safe, supported, and ready to learn. Families play an important role in this work, and we appreciate your partnership in talking with your child about kindness, respect, responsibility, and making positive choices each day. Together, we can help make this a successful year for every student!

A quick reminder: Picture Day is Thursday, September 17. We look forward to capturing those special school-year memories!

Christina Eck

Assistant Principal

Maize South Elementary

This month we will be focusing our lessons on friendships and for our 4th graders, digital citizenship. Sometimes students struggle making and keeping friends. Attached are some helpful tips for helping your child make friends. Technology is a topic that is always on parents' minds when it comes to their children, especially when it comes to being safe on the internet and social media. Attached are some tips for talking to your kids about internet safety and what to do if they ever feel unsafe when on the internet. Please let us know if you have any questions!!

Did you know that the Maize School District partners with Simply Hygiene to provide free hygiene resources to our families that may need them? Please see the flyer below for available products and reach out to your school nurse, counselor, or teacher if you have any questions.

Simply Hygiene Flyer

Maslow’s Pantry Flyer

Our STEAM students have been busy teaming up and learning all about the engineering and design process! In Quarter 1, we’ve been focusing on teamwork and perseverance through lots of fun, hands-on challenges. We have also started to incorporate our new We WILL Build It Better Curriculum into one of the STEAM rooms. We WILL Build It Better is a hands-on, career-tech STEAM program designed for elementary students. It bridges classroom learning with real-world workforce skills by turning the classroom into an interactive workplace.

• Students in grades 1-4 will be introduced to and begin using different tools such as hammers, screwdrivers, pliers, measuring tape, and more through the Build It program!

• Our K–1 students will continue working on hands-on building STEAM challenges this quarter. These activities give them the chance to practice working together, sharing ideas, and problem-solving in fun and creative ways. It’s always amazing to see how much they can accomplish as a team!
• Coming up, our 2nd–4th graders will jump into a technology unit—some will explore tech stations, while others will take on the exciting role of an inventor to create their own projects. We can’t wait to see their creativity shine!

We will leave you with the mantras that we say at the end of our STEAM classes. "Always believe in YOURSELF!" and "We've got what it takes!"

Dear Families,

September is here, and our library is buzzing with excitement! Students are settling into their routines, discovering new books, and finding stories that make them laugh, learn, and imagine.

This month, we’ll be exploring new books, favorite authors, and the joy of reading. Students will have opportunities to choose books that interest them and practice being respectful, responsible, and safe library users.

A friendly reminder: library books are checked out for one week. Please help your child remember to return their books on their scheduled library day so they can choose something new to read and earn a punch on their Media Center Punch Card. After every 5 punches they earn a small prize.

Thank you for supporting your child’s love of reading.

Happy Reading!

Kelly Hallacy

Media Center Specialist

Hello Everyone,

I hope everyone is having a great start to the school year! Here in PE, we are continuing to learn and follow the rules and expectations of the gym. This week, we are practicing our throwing skills and learning what it means to be a good team player.

It has been amazing having the students back in the gym and seeing them interact, have fun, and work together through different games and activities!

Upcoming Fitness Testing

A quick reminder that our PACER Test and Sit-Up Test will be coming up September 14–18.

Please have your 4th, 3rd, and 2nd graders wear tennis shoes on their testing days. Kindergarten and 1st grade students will also be practicing these tests, so please try to have them wear tennis shoes as well.

Next week, you will receive more information regarding the PACER Test and Sit-Up Test, including additional details for your child.

Thank you for your continued support, and I’m looking forward to another great week in PE!

Kind Regards,

Rachel LaBarge

P.E. Teacher

Maize South Elementary

"HEART is what separates the good from the great" - Michael Jordan

1st/2nd-Review of Steady Beat, Rhythm of the words, So, Mi, La, Do pitches

3rd/4th-Review of Solfege pitches, major scale, known rhythms ta, titi, tao, ta rest, tikatika, ti-tika, tika-ti, vocal warm ups, learning program music

Save the Date!

3rd and 4th Grade Big! Programs

Tuesday, Nov 17th, 3rd at 6pm, 4th at 7pm.

1st and 2nd Grade In the Jungle Programs

Tuesday, March 9th, 1st at 6pm, 2nd at 7pm

Dress Rehearsals

Please make note that your students will be bused to MPAAC and back to MSE during the day of their program at the following times:

3rd Grade Tuesday Nov. 17th 9am-10:30 am 4th Grade Tuesday Nov. 17th 12:30pm-2pm

1st Grade Tuesday March 9th 9am-10:30am

2nd Grade Tuesday March 9th 12:30pm-2pm

All performances and dress rehearsals will take place at:

Maize Performing Arts and Aquatic Center

1155 W Academy Ave

Maize KS 67101

Looking forward to a great school year!

Kim Noller

Music/MSES

knoller@usd266.com

Hello MSES Families!

Kansas law requires every pupil enrolled in a school district or an accredited nonpublic school shall be provided basic hearing screening without charge during the first year of admission and not less than once every three years thereafter. Students in Kindergarten, 1st and 4th grade and all new students to our school will have a hearing screening September 23rd. If you wish for your student to not participate in hearing screenings, please send an email to Nurse Joni by September 18th. Only students that DO NOT pass will receive results home. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to me. You can reach me by phone at (316)462-8305 or email at jconsidine@usd266.com.

Joni Considine, RN

Maize South Elementary School Nurse

316/462-8305

• Join us for our next PTO meeting on Tues., Sept. 15th at 5PM in the STEAM room at MSE. We will be finalizing spirit nights for the remainder of this school year, planning out staff appreciation and more. Joining us is a great way to get involved in the school and any parent/guardian is welcome!

• Our spirit store is now open! Due to overwhelming demand from our pop up with Bittersweet they have opened an online store with all the fun designs they brought for our back to school conferences! The store will close on Mon. Sept. 14th, additional customizations such as shirt style & colors are available, simply contact Bittersweet to inquire.
• https://bittersweetderbyks.com/collections/maize-south-elementary-school

It's time to get together & have some fun! Our first Carousel Skate Night is on Thurs., Sept. 17th from 6-9PM, the class with the most students in attendance will win a PIZZA PARTY to be celebrated around 7:30PM at Carousel. Grab your socks, lace up your skates and get ready for a fun night out with our wolfpack!

Your FAVORITE days of the year are coming up soon, the most anticipated Spirit Days for many...JERSEY MIKE'S!!! Mark your calendars for Sept. 28th-30th and make plans to grab a sandwich or two. Cards will go home with students on Monday the 28th, extra cards can be requested to be sent home from your child's teacher or you may come into the office. Bring the family & bring your friends and make lunch & dinner delicious!

We want to get together and make some memories this year! Mark your calendars for the first Friday in October for a night of racing, golfing & more! Wristbands will be sold at the door and a portion of each wristband will go straight back to MSE PTO, bring your friends & family for a fun Friday!

7th- NO SCHOOL- Labor Day

8th- Family Watch Dog Pizza Night/ 5:30pm

11th- Den Meetings

14th- Wolf Pack Purple Pride Day

15th- PTO Meeting 5pm

17th- Fall Picture Day

17th- Carousel Skate Night

24th- Pastries with the pack A-K

25th- Pastries with the pack L-Z

25th- Pack Party

28th-30th- Jersey Mikes Days

29th- SITE Council Meeting 5pm

There is always a need for substitute teachers. On any given day, Maize will utilize 30-130 licensed substitute teachers across the district. Some of these individuals take long term assignments and others work one day a month. Any amount of time is beneficial.

You select the assignment you want based on your schedule, preferred grade level or school.

In the event of school being dismissed or canceled because of inclement weather, the district will send out an e-mail, phone notification, and for those who have opted to receive them, a text message to the primary contact associated with both Family 1 and Family 2, if applicable, for each student. Those phone notifications will go out as early as 5:30 a.m. on the day of the closure. If a decision is made the night before to call off school, calls and texts will go out no later than 10:30 p.m.

Please remember, traffic laws remain in effect and will be enforced during drop off and pick up. While I know it is tough to keep little ones in their seats to wait, they must be in their proper child restraint system before your vehicle moves.

If you need to make a change to your child’s after-school transportation, please get in touch with both your child’s classroom teacher and the school office secretaries before 2:00 PM. No transportation changes will be made after 2:00 PM.

To continue ensuring the safety of all students, we are increasing our safety measures during the parent pick-up process. Beginning Monday, September 8th, the following procedures will be in place:

• QR Codes Required: Any individual who comes through the pick-up line without a QR code will be asked to park and wait until the parent pick-up process is complete. At that time, they will need to come to the office for identification.

• Authorized Adults Only: For the safety of all children, students will only be released to individuals listed in Skyward.

• Parent Responsibility: Parents maintain control of their child’s safety by choosing carefully who they share their child’s QR code with. Please only share this code with individuals you trust to pick up your child.

• Need a QR Code? If you need an additional QR code, please contact your child’s classroom teacher directly.

We appreciate your cooperation and partnership in keeping our students safe. These steps will help us ensure an efficient and secure dismissal process each day.

When joining your child for lunch, please keep these friendly reminders in mind:

• Sign in at the office and wear your visitor badge.

• Visits are for lunchtime only — please don’t join recess or walk back to class.

• Sit with your child at the visitor table (friends may not join).

• Share food only with your child.

• Out of respect for all students, no photos or videos.

• Say goodbye when lunch ends and sign out in the office.

• Whenever possible, make other plans for younger siblings.

• Follow staff directions so everyone can enjoy lunch.

• Visits may be limited during special events or very busy days.

• Use this time for encouragement and connection with your child.

Thank you for partnering with us–your support helps make visits a safe and special experience for every child!