The Explorer

My how the time flies as we have made it through the first quarter and parent-teacher conferences. Conferences play a significant role in a student’s development and academic success. Teachers and parents often see different aspects of a student’s personality. By maintaining an open dialogue and comparing notes on student achievements or behavior can these perspectives be helpful for both.

When parents take advantage of conferences and other opportunities to speak with teachers, it allows parents to learn of any challenges - academic or otherwise - their child might be having. Similarly, parents can relay any special circumstances at home that might have some bearing on the student’s performance or behavior. When parents and teachers work together to try and provide the best environment for learning, the child stands to benefit the most.

Winter is knocking at our door. Please make sure your student is dressed appropriately for the weather. Students who want to play in the snow need to have the proper snow gear: winter coat, snow pants, snow boots, gloves, and hat/hood. When the temperature and/or wind chill is zero and below, students will be inside before school and during recess. Also, please read the inclement weather information included in this newsletter.

Students will be off from school for a few days in honor of Thanksgiving. We hope you have a wonderful holiday with many things to be thankful for!

“We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.” - Inventor, Frederick Koenig

Mr. Dan Fischer, Principal

Mrs. Kristina Becker, Administrator Intern

• November 3: 5th Grade Orchestra and Band Concert at 7:00 pm.
• November 10: 4th Grade Orchestra Concert at 7:00 pm.
• November 11: No school in observance of Veteran's Day.
• November 15: PTO Meeting at 6:30 pm in the Discovery library.
• November 17: 5th Grade Music Concert at 7:00 pm.
• November 23: No school for Compensatory Day.
• November 24: No school for Thanksgiving Break.
• November 25: No school for Thanksgiving Break.

Daylight Savings Time ends on Sunday, November 6! Turn your clocks back one hour (fall back) before you go to bed on Saturday, November 5.

A HUGE thank you to everyone who volunteered and helped at PTO's Fall Dance! It was a success, and we couldn't have done it without you. You are appreciated!

Every school year, from October - March, classrooms have the opportunity to participate in the BOOK IT and Pizza Hut Reading Program. The program promotes reading literacy by encouraging teachers to set monthly reading goals for their students. When students meet their goal, they are recognized with a Reading Award Certificate, which is good for a free one topping Personal Pan Pizza® at Pizza Hut.

Eligible parents of enrolled students who earn a certificate for all six months of the program may enter to win $1,000 in cash and books for their child and one family has a chance to win the grand prize, a $10,000 College Plan for their child, along with a $5,000 grant for their child’s school library!

We are proud to announce that the 2021-22 grand prize winner was Discovery student, Ari, in Miss Georgianne Wornson’s kindergarten class. We want to recognize Ari and her family for this great accomplishment, and for promoting reading literacy in their home. Congratulations, Ari!

- Discovery has four designated handicapped/disabled parking spots. Do not park there if you do not have the proper permit and/or license plates.

- Do not make your own parking spot. If there are no parking spots available, you will have to park on the street.

- Please do not block vehicles by parking behind them in the parking lot.

- If you are dropping off or picking up your child in the circle drive, stay in your vehicle.

- If you are meeting your student on the playground or by the recess door, please park in the parking lot or on the street. Do not park your vehicle and leave it in the circle drive.

- When dropping off in the circle drive, please pull all the way up so we can prevent a back-up of traffic on Discovery Ave. Children should exit the car on the passenger side of the vehicle.

- Discovery Elementary is tobacco free. Smoking is not allowed on the grounds, parking lot, or sidewalks surrounding the school.

It is important to be prepared for the winter storms and extreme cold that every South Dakota winter brings. Please read the following information so you are aware of the procedures for school related cancellations and postponements.

LATE START OR CANCELLED

In the event that school needs to be cancelled or delayed, families will be alerted via a phone call. You can also check the District’s website at www.sf.k12.sd.us for updated information. Announcements will also be made on local radio and television stations. Please avoid calling the school or the Instructional Planning Center. Phone lines are needed for emergency communications.

• If school is one hour late, school busses will run and breakfast will be served.
• If school is two hours late, school busses will run and breakfast will NOT be served.

EARLY DISMISSAL

Storms occasionally move in during the day. If school is dismissed early, families will receive a phone call and the information will appear on the District’s website at www.sf.k12.sd.us. Dismissals will be referred to as “one hour early” or “two hours early” due to the number of different building schedules.

It is very important that every family has a plan for early dismissal. Be sure your student knows where to go in case no one is at home. Talk to your student about his/her safety during winter weather emergencies. Make sure students are properly dressed for predicted weather conditions: walking home, waiting for the bus, or being delayed on a bus in a weather-related situation.

School officials use their best judgment about school closings, late starts, or early dismissals; however, please remember that as a parent you have the right to keep your child(ren) home or to pick them up from school early if you feel weather conditions require this action.

Discovery's main entrance got an update, and it looks great!

Parenting is hard. Growing up is, too. The SFSD and Avera Health are partnering to strengthen families in the 2022-23 school year. Experts from Avera and SFSD will host free VIRTUAL forums once each month. You can watch the most recent forum on Anxiety at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osKalwQ7SPI. Also visit https://www.sf.k12.sd.us/page/counseling-services for upcoming forums and additional information.

"Guilt. Shame. Anger. Fear. We’ve all experienced these uncomfortable feelings, sometimes at intensities that are hard to tolerate. Painful emotions are part of being human, and learning how to respond to them in healthy and sustainable ways is one of the most important lessons a child can learn." The Child Mind Institute shares how to model healthy coping skills here: https://childmind.org/article/how-to-model-healthy-coping-skills/.

Fifth grade students participated in an event called Career Café. This is an event where community guest speakers talk and share about their careers. Thank you to the following speakers:

• Tim Kinches, Dairy Nutritionist and Consultant, and Etsy Designer
• Cassidy Phen and Cole Jenkins, Weller Brothers Landscaping
• Allison Gates, Chatterkick Social Media Agency
• Melissa Knudson, Sanford Radiology
• Ryan Miller, J & L Harley Davidson

A special thank you to Weller Brothers Landscaping for providing cookies today.

If you would like to speak about your career at an upcoming Career Café or if you would like to donate a treat for the event, please contact Karmyn.Marchand@k12.sd.us.

Fourth grade students have been working on solving conflict. Below are the steps on how to solve conflict effectively. Remember - we can't solve anything if our lids are flipped, both people need to be calm before solving a conflict.

We want to celebrate and thank our generous PTO for granting us 15 additional Zenimal devices. These devices can be used for playing calm music or playing relaxation scripts for individual students or an entire class. Thank you, PTO! For more information about Zenimals, visit https://zenimals.com/.

Principal: Mr. Dan Fischer

Email: Daniel.Fischer@k12.sd.us

Administrative Intern: Mrs. Kristina Becker

Email: Kristina.Becker@k12.sd.us

Website: https://www.des.sf.k12.sd.us/o/des
Location: 1506 South Discovery Avenue, Sioux Falls, SD, USA
Phone: (605) 362-3530
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SFSD-Discovery-Elementary