STAY CONNECTED

At South Elementary School, we are a learning community nurturing a culture to provide students the skills necessary to be active, productive, and responsible citizens while empowering students through communications.

January 5 School Resumes

January 6 PTO Meeting 5PM

January 7 Report Cards
January 9 Martinsville Fire Dept visit during lunches
January 12 Kickoff for GAME ON fundraiser through PE

January 15 PTO South Social 6-7:30PM

January 16 Spelling Bee 1:45PM

January 16 Club & Candid pictures for the yearbook

January 19 No School-Martin Luther KIng, Jr. Day

January 22 PTO After School Movie until 5:30PM

January 24 Martinsville hosted Robotics Competitions at BIA

Click the graphic above to view the menus at Arties Cafe.

Student Drop Off

Please do not drop your student off in the morning until staff is outside for supervision. Staff arrives outside at approximately 8:20AM (9:20AM on Wednesdays). The bell rings for students to go to class at 8:25AM (9:25AM on Wednesdays) with school starting at 8:40AM (9:40AM on Wednesdays).

Please do not block traffic in the circle lot. If you are going to get out of your vehicle, please pull around the circle or use a different lot.

Student Pick Up

During dismissal, the circle lot is for kindergarten and daycare pick up. The main lot in front of the school is for grades 1-4 pick up. No traffic should move until staff dismisses the lot. This to ensure everyone stays safe. Staff is loading vehicles and will dismiss the lot when all cars are loaded.

Thank you for your help on these safety matters!

Federal funding has been made available through school-wide Title I services to South Elementary for the purpose of providing students with extra support in reading and language arts. This extra support is available for all students at South Elementary. Classroom teachers, Title I teachers, and instructional assistants will provide assistance in reading, language arts, and math through small group and individual instruction as children demonstrate need for support. Please contact Jessica Shanafelt at 765-349-1486 Ext. 1628 with any questions about support your child may receive.

On Wednesday mornings, staff will be participating in professional development to improve student learning and success.

Therefore, doors will open at 9:25AM with school starting at 9:40AM for all students, including Pre-K.

Free childcare is provided on Wednesdays from 8:25-9:25 by South staff.Contact the South office if childcare is needed from 8:25-9:25 on Wednesdays.

The MSD of Martinsville uses ParentSquare for school and district communication, primarily with email, text and app notifications. ParentSquare automatically generates an account for each family, using their preferred email address and phone number.

Here’s what you can do with ParentSquare:

• Receive messages from the school and district via email, text or app notification.
• Choose to receive information as it comes or all at once with a daily digest at 6pm.
• Communicate in your preferred language.
• Comment on school postings to engage with your school community and more all from your desktop or mobile device.
• Report attendance for your child if your child is going to be absent.
• Receive District ArtieStories

Add the free app today!

For more information and training videos, please visit our

website www.msdofmartinsville.org/community.

Most South Elementary teachers will still be using Class Dojo to communicate with parents. Class Dojo is FREE. You do not need to pay for this app. Your child's teacher will send home more information to get connected.

• To report an absence for your child, please call the office at

(765) 349-1486 by 9:00AM. If you do not call the school by 9:30 a.m. and report the absence, the school messaging system, someone from the school, or the attendance officer may be calling your home. You can also dojo the teacher or put a message in ParentSquare to notify the office about your child's attendance.

• If you find that your child is still ill the next day, another phone call from you to the school is necessary. At this time, arrangements may be made to send home make up work for your child so that he/she does not fall behind in the classroom. Schoolwork will be sent with a sibling, neighbor, or you may pick the work up at the end of the day.

• Upon returning from home to school, a note should be sent to the teacher explaining the absence. A doctor visit should be documented with a statement from the doctor so that it can be entered in the school data system. Doctor statements should be faxed to 765-349-5247 or given to the office.

• Call the school office or send a note on the day before or the day of the appointment. This helps teachers plan for tests, homework, etc. The note should contain the date, the time, and the reason for the appointment/absence.

• If your child has a slip from the dentist/doctor’s office, please have your child drop it off at the office when your child returns to school.

• We ask that you not keep a child out of school for the entire day for a doctor or dental appointment.

• Please keep these appointments to a minimum. The best time to schedule appointments is toward the end of the day.

• If a child is sent home with a fever of 100.4 degrees or over, he/she is not to return to school until fever free for 24 hours without fever medication.

1. Call the school as soon as possible, informing us that your child is going to be late.

2. Bring your child in as soon as possible, as teachers start their lessons as early as 8:40 a.m.

3. Sign your child in at the office, with an explanation for the tardy.

*A number of unexcused or questionable absences and tardies for any child are reported to our district attendance officer. Daily records are kept on all students and weekly reports are made.

MARTINSVILLE SCHOOLS

IMPORTANT ATTENDANCE GUIDELINES

2025-2026

Regular attendance is essential for children to be successful in their educational endeavors. Students are bound by the requirements of the Indiana Compulsory Attendance Laws. Students are expected to attend school regularly and be on time for classes in order to benefit from instructional programs and develop responsible personal habits that are respected in society and therefore a part of the educational process.

MSD OF MARTINSVILLE ACTION PLAN:

In an effort to improve the safety, graduation rate, and overall individual personal success of students in the MSD of Martinsville, the District’s Attendance Team worked this past year to streamline the District’s Attendance Process. The effort has increased diligence, pursuance, and attention to details regarding the process, communication, academic options, follow-up, and records with school attendance.

Legislative updates now only focus on habitual truancy.

Habitual truancy equals 10 days of unexcused absences.

DISTRICT ATTENDANCE POLICY:

Due to updates with Indiana Code for Indiana Attendance Compulsory Laws, the District Attendance Policy was updated on July 25, 2024.

Attendance Guidelines

• AUTHORIZED ABSENCES: If documentation is not provided, these absences will be recorded as unexcused absences.

• DOCUMENTATION: All legal or medical documentation must be submitted within 5 days for the absence to be recorded as excused. The school’s fax # is 765-349-5247.

Attendance Letters

• Attendance letters are generated and sent via email on the 5th unexcused absence, 10th unexcused, and 18th unexcused absence.

Under IC 20-33-2-25, the “Superintendent or an attendance officer having jurisdiction shall report a child who is habitually absent from school in violation of this chapter to an intake officer of the juvenile court or the department of child services. The intake officer or the department of child services shall proceed in accord with IC 31-30- through IC 31-40.”

Everyone should report abuse or neglect. The reporting and investigating of suspected child abuse and neglect are not discretionary matters. They have been required by law (IC 31-33-5-1) since 1979.

Do Report When...

• Students have reached ten (10) or more unexcused absences.

• Educational neglect is suspected

• Students are missing and unaccounted for

*Complete details of attendance procedures and guidelines can be found in the student handbook.

Want to get involved?!? Join South Elementary School PTO!!! The monthly meetings will typically be the first Tuesday of each month at 5PM. Tuesday, January 6th in the school library is January's meeting.

PTO has spirit wear available for purchase.

PTO OFFICERS

President: Samantha McDaniel

Vice President: Joanna Chamberlain

Secretary: Jessica Hostetter

Treasurer: April Shover

South Elementary chess club will be held right after school on Tuesdays from 3:40-4:15pm in the library. Artesian Club meets every Wednesday from 5:30-6:30pm at Martinsville High School.
South Chess Club welcomes 2nd thru 4th graders interested in playing chess. (Younger students are welcomed if they already are familiar with the game.) Mrs. Hostetter, 3rd grade teacher, and Mrs. Pilat, Artesian Chess Club Coach, will be the coaches.
For any questions, please email Beth Pilat at artesianchess@gmail.com.

LEAP Club meets monthly. They are working on their Genius Hour Projects. Contact Mrs. Hostetter or Mrs. Brown with any questions.

These students were recognized for the social skills, Greeting Others and Accepting Compliments.

Thank you to everyone that was able to donate. We were able to donate over 500 food items to Gunner Burnam's Food Pantry.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/SouthElementarySchool

Twitter: @southdolphins1

Website: https://msdofmartinsville.org/south-elementary/

South YouTube South YouTube

*Please contact the office if you need this information provided in another language.

Location: 500 Artesian Ave, Martinsville, IN, USA
Phone: 7653491486