The Panther

Newsletter Date:

March 1, 2024

March 15th- No school

March 20th- End of 3rd Qtr

March 22nd & 23rd- Musical "Wizard of Oz"

March 21st- Student of the Month & Orchestra concert at 6pm

March 26th- Band concert at 7pm

March 29th and April 1st- Spring break

Greetings Patrick Henry Families,

Ask your student, “what is the last book you read for fun?” If you can’t remember the last time you saw your middle schooler reading a book that was not required for school, you are not alone. Research shows in recent years, less than 20 percent of U.S. teens report reading a book, magazine, or newspaper daily for pleasure, while more than 80 percent say they use social media every day (according to the American Psychological Association). Research also shows that children who read at least 20 minutes a day are exposed to almost two million words a year, their reading performance in school dramatically increases, students develop a stronger vocabulary, learn different points of view, experience history, and overall improve their academic and achievement levels. In summary, reading matters!

The Sioux Falls School District is excited to partner with Siouxland Libraries again this March for a month-long community-wide reading initiative, “Rain or Shine, Everybody Reads.” Throughout the month of March, students, staff, parents, and community members are being encouraged to track how many books they read. The goal is to create a community of readers ages 0 –100! Starting in March you will see the start of a rainstorm displayed in the Patrick Henry Library. Throughout the month, the cloud will grow with rain drops when a book is read. Once your student(s) completes a book, they will receive a rain drop to add their name and the title of their book to add to our storm of readers. We are hopeful to have our library filled with rain drops by the end of the month! There will also be prizes for students who read the most throughout the month!

Wondering how you can get involved as a parent? Encourage your student to read at home! As mentioned, this is a community-wide reading initiative. Anytime YOU finish a book throughout the month of March, we would encourage you to stop by your local library to decorate your own rain drop.

Thank you for your support and let’s get reading!

Mrs. Sharping

If your child is going to be absent, please call the school (367-7639) prior to 8:40am. An absence must be reported either by note or phone in the day of the absence, or before if you know ahead of time. Absences can also be reported via voice mail outside of regular office hours. Students leaving during the day need to pick up a pass in the office by 9:00am and also check out with a parent/guardian at the office when leaving. If they come back during the school day, a pass from the front office needs to be issued in order for them to get back into the classroom. Student safety is the main concern and this procedure provides another check on a student’s absence.

Each student selected was invited to celebrate in the library during their pro time on February 23rd.

We have three fantastic school counselors at Patrick Henry! Please click on the "Counselor Corner" button below to view the counselor's newsletter for this month that houses many helpful resources, social, emotional learning information and much more. This information is provided to help both students and parents navigate the middle school years!

Mrs. Briana Nelsen - 6th Grade

Mrs. Chelsea Timm - 7th Grade

Ms. Hannah Serck - 8th Grade

You can also access the counseling website by clicking the link right next to our counseling phone number!

Website: https://sites.google.com/k12.sd.us/phms-counseling/home
Phone: (605) 367-8443

Lunch and breakfast are available each day at school. If you believe your family may qualify for free or reduced lunch/breakfast, please click on the link below or scan the QR code to fill out the application. https://www.myschoolapps.com/Application

If your child is going to be absent, please call the school (367-7639) prior to 8:40am. An absence must be reported either by note or phone in the day of the absence, or before if you know ahead of time. Absences can also be reported via voicemail outside of regular office hours. Students leaving during the day need to pick up a pass in the office by 9:00am and also check out with a parent/guardian at the office when leaving. If they come back during the school day, a pass from the front office needs to be issued in order for them to get back into the classroom.

After attendance is taken each morning, an automated call will go out to any family who has not notified the school regarding a student’s absence. Student safety is the main concern and this procedure provides another check on a student’s absence.

Sioux Falls Everybody Reads: March 1-March 22

Once again, PHMS will be participating with all the other schools and libraries in the city. For each book finished from March 1-March 22, students are encouraged to come and fill out a raindrop and add it to our display in the entry of the library.

As a city, we are trying to read 300,000 books in just 3 weeks. For every 100,000 books read, a donation will be made to REACH Literacy to further promote reading in Sioux Falls!

So what are you waiting for? Let's start reading!

Website: http://www.sf.k12.sd.us/patrick-henry/students-parents
Location: 2200 South 5th Avenue, Sioux Falls, SD, USA
Phone: 605-367-7639
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PanthersSF
Twitter: @PanthersSF