Noticias de la Manada

As we continue our learning journey this school year, it’s a great time to pause, reflect, and set goals with your child based on their recent Measure of Academic Progress (MAP) scores. These results were also shared with families in early September and provide valuable insight into how much your child has grown in reading and math since the beginning of the year.

We are thrilled to celebrate our students’ success! Sixty percent of our students demonstrated HIGH growth in math, and 65% showed HIGH growth in reading. This is an incredible accomplishment and a testament to the hard work of students, teachers, and families working together. Now is a perfect opportunity to ask: How much has my child grown? What helped them reach—or move toward—their goals?

Goal review and goal setting are powerful tools for student success. Take time to review your child’s MAP results together and celebrate their progress. Then, talk about what helped them grow. At home, consider the routines that support learning. Is your child reading at least 20 minutes each night in English? Are you having conversations about what they’re reading—asking questions, making connections, and encouraging curiosity? These simple practices greatly support reading growth.

For math, reflect on habits that build consistency and confidence. Is your child completing the minimum of five DreamBox lessons per week? Are they on track to complete their grade-level standards as shown on the DreamBox Parent Dashboard? Regular practice and monitoring progress help students stay engaged and motivated.

Setting new goals together—based on data, effort, and reflection—empowers students to take ownership of their learning. Thank you for partnering with us to support your child’s growth and success!

We do not send physical copies of our students’ report cards home. You can view their grades through the Parent Portal on Infinite Campus. If you don't have an active Parent Portal account or need access to an existing account, we can help! Please email the school office (mary.boen@k12.sd.us and andrea.fowler@k12.sd.us) and we'd be happy to send you an initial set-up information or reset your password. You can access the Parent Portal here. There is also an app you can download on your mobile device.

As winter approaches, families should be prepared for school closures, late starts, or early dismissals due to severe weather. The Sioux Falls School District (SFSD) notifies families via phone, text, website, app, and local media.

• Late Starts & Closures: Decisions are made by 5:00 AM; notifications follow shortly after.

• Remote Learning:Devices will be sent home if it is decided it will be a Remote Learning Day. Attendance is tracked through participation.

• Early Dismissals: Families are notified, and dismissal times may vary by school.

Tips for Families: Stay informed via SFSD channels, plan ahead for early dismissals, and ensure students have devices ready for remote learning.

For full details, visit: SFSD Closing & Delays

As winter approaches, we want to make sure all families are prepared in case we experience an emergency or weather-related school closure. If a remote learning day is needed, the decision will be made by the end of the school day prior to the weather event. When this happens, Chromebooks and iPads will be sent home with students so they are ready for learning the next day.

To help everyone know what to expect on a remote learning day, we’ve shared our Remote Learning Guidelines and Expectations.

Please use the links below to review important information about how remote learning will work if we have a snow day in the coming months.

We know attendance letters can sometimes be confusing, so here’s a quick explanation of how they work.

Each absence is rounded to either a half day or full day if a student is gone for more than 60 minutes. For example, if your child arrives more than an hour late or leaves for an appointment and returns later, it will be counted as a half-day absence.

Attendance letters are automatically sent at 5 days, 8 days, 10 days, 17 days, and 25 days of absences.

• The 5-day and 8-day letters are simply to inform parents and guardians of where their student stands with attendance. These include all types of absences, whether excused or unexcused.

• The 10-day, 17-day, and 25-day letters include only qualifying absences that count toward truancy. These may include:

  • Parent/Guardian Requests

  • Skipping School

  • Unnotified Absences

  • Illnesses without a medical note

  • Appointments without a medical note

To help ensure your child’s attendance record is accurate, we recommend bringing a doctor’s note for any appointment or illness.

If you have any questions, please contact the office — we’re happy to help!

We are grateful for our amazing lunch volunteers and are now signing up helpers for Second Semester, beginning January 12. Lunch volunteering is a great way to support our school and see your student during the day.

Volunteers assist with supervision, tables, and simple lunch help. Please arrive 5 minutes early and plan to stay 5 minutes after your assigned time.

Thank you for supporting our school community!

Second Semester Lunch Volunteer Sign Up

Reminder: Collect tabs from any can (soda, soup, pet food, and more) and send them to school. Students can drop tabs in our RMHC Pop Tab House in the building. Pop tabs are recycled to support families with children facing medical emergencies, proving small items can make a big impact.

The competition runs through April, making now a great time to start collecting.

Let’s do this, Lobos—help us become the TOP collector! 🐺

As an alternative to food treats, the Birthday Book Program provides a way to celebrate a student’s birthday while building the Library collection at the same time! This is a VOLUNTARY program and you have 2 options: Prior to the student’s birthday, parents can bring a NEW book to the Office/ Library to donate. Parents are welcome to come read the book to the class or Mrs. Egstad will read it during Library class. The Library staff will then put a special sticker in the book indicating who donated the book and noting the child’s birthday. After that, the book will be added to the Sotomayor Library. To allow for wear and tear of books in our Library, we ask that books be hardcover. They can be English or Spanish and must be appropriate for all students. We highly encourage the student to be involved in the selection of their Birthday Book, but if parents have questions, they can ask Mrs. Egstad for suggestions.

OR: Parents can donate $10 to the Sotomayor Library and the student will be able to choose from a selection of recently purchased Library bound books to then dedicate with a Birthday Book sticker as their Birthday Book. We will talk about and read this book with their class, same as the first option.

We love to highlight our students and their success! Take a look below at all the amazing things some of our students have accomplished this last month. If your student would like to share their achievements, please email the information and pictures to mary.boen@k12.sd.us. #UnaManada

"For the strength of the pack is the wolf, and the strength of the wolf is the pack"

-Rudyard Kipling

Each month, we take time to celebrate students who truly shine by living out our school values: Leader, Aware, Responsible, and Kind. One student from each classroom is nominated by their teacher for consistently showing these qualities.

This special recognition reminds us that being part of Una Manada—One Pack—means looking out for each other, making good choices, and being role models in our school community.

👏 Congratulations to this month’s honorees! We are proud of the way you lead with heart and show what it means to be a true Lobo! 🐺

The Smoothie Queens, which include Adri Studer, Grace Hendrickson and Kat Krumvieda (not pictured Ruby Putzke) went 3-0 in the Dells Classic Tournament and won the 4th grade division. We are proud of their hard work!

Showing up to school every day is one of the best ways to show our value of being Responsible. To earn this recognition, students needed to be present at school every single day in in the month—even if it was just for part of the day.

Click on the picture to view each grade's perfect attendance winners!

2025-26 Year Books are available for pre-order from Lifetouch. You can purchase using the link below. Our Yearbook ID is 13018626. Yearbooks will be delivered at the end of the school year.

With winter weather here, we want to share a few reminders about our playground expectations to help keep all students safe. Please talk with your student(s) about these:

• Snow pants and boots are required for students to leave the blacktop and play in the snow.

• Jackets, coats, hats, and mittens/gloves are encouraged, but ultimately up to each family.

• Snow must stay on the ground at all times to prevent injuries—no throwing snow.

Thank you for helping us keep recess safe and enjoyable for everyone! If you have any questions, please reach out. And one more reminder… Please label everything!

Having involved parents/guardians is a huge blessing to our school! It takes a team and thank you for being apart of it! Every school year, we do need to have a current Volunteer Registration Form on file. If you plan on Volunteering in any capacity during the school day, please fill out the Google Form below. While filling it out, you will not need to complete the background check. This is only if you will ever be with students without staff present. If it is needed in the future, we will contact you to complete it.

Volunteer Registration Google Form

Student safety is our highest priority. To help us maintain a secure environment, all visitors and volunteers must check in at the school office with a valid government-issued photo ID—every time you enter the building.

This policy applies to all adults, including regular volunteers.
Please remember to bring your ID each time you visit.

Thank you for partnering with us to keep our school safe and welcoming for all!

If your student(s) requires medication, the school requires paperwork signed by a parent and a medical doctor. We will need to have a doctors order prior to being able to administer any medication. To start the paperwork process, please call our school nurse, Mariana Mauss, at 605-367-4655.

Parents/guardians must deliver any medication in its original labeled container to the school office. Students should not bring medications to school.

Parents now have a time-saving option to report student absences within the Parent Portal. To report an absence you can either call or email the school office or use the Absence Request option within your Parent Portal account. You are only able to use the Absence Request Processor for Full Day requests. For all other requests, please email (mary.boen@k12.sd.us and andrea.fowler@k12.sd.us) or call the office (605)367-4655.

To submit an absence, simply log in to your Parent Portal account, select 'More' and then 'Absence Requests.' From here you will be able to submit either a full day for any of the students in your household.

Email: tracy.vik@k12.sd.us
Website: https://www.sses.sf.k12.sd.us/o/ssspes
Location: Sioux Falls, SD, USA
Phone: 605-367-4655
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SFSpanishImmersion/