Fall is full of fun activities for the entire family.  Here at Willard South the fun is just beginning!  We had several very special events that took place this week.  Tuesday was our annual Kindergarten Fire Safety night for parents and students.  Families were busy eating fire engine snacks, making books, meeting firefighters and even climbing aboard a fire truck.  Wednesday was our Title One Parent Information night.  Our Title One teachers presented information to parents while students constructed “All About Me” posters.  Afterwards everyone enjoyed pizza, drinks and cookies!

Don’t miss Willard South McTeacher Night on Tuesday, October 9th from 4:00-8:00 at the McDonald’s on Chestnut Expressway!

Kindergarten Fire Safety Night

 INTERNATIONAL PEACE DAY

The first Pinwheels for Peace were installed on Sept. 21, 2005 and over 500,000 pinwheels were planted in over 1,350 locations throughout the world! On September 21, 2006, approximately 1 million pinwheels were planted in 2,500+ locations! This is the second year that Willard South Elementary has participated in this international event.  A special thanks to our counselor, David Suits and our art teacher, Ann Kynion for their hard work and dedication in this memorable event. 

Don’t miss the annual Willard South Garage Sale this Saturday from 7:00-12:00 in the cafeteria!  You never know what bargains and treasures you will find.  All of the proceeds will help families and students in the entire Willard School District.

Have a WONDERFUL weekend & enjoy the weather!

This morning we had our FIGHT FREE kick-off assembly.  A BIG thank you goes out to Ashleigh, Emily, Anna, Tristyn, Bailey, Dylan and our very own SUPER TIGER for helping with the assembly.  Students also received their Accelerated School tshirt.  I appreciate the continued support of our PTO for purchasing these shirts for all of our students and staff.  It is a wonderful way to show our unity by wearing these each Friday.

This afternoon our second graders showed their true appreciation to their grandparents by hosting a tea in their honor.  We had a wonderful turn out and lots of cookies were consumed! 

Have a WONDERFUL weekend!

We are off to a GREAT start here at Willard South. We have an amazing staff and several new students who have made Willard South their new “home”. Our enrollment is up from the beginning of last year by almost 40 students! It just goes to show you that the Willard School District has a great reputation. As this area continues to grow, I am sure our enrollment will do the same. Have a WONDERFUL three day weekend!
Please make sure you mark your calendar for the upcoming events at Willard South.
September 3rd-NO SCHOOL
September 7th-School wide picture/assembly 9:00
September 10th-PTO mtg 6:00

Willard South SUPER TIGERS are on the prowl! We are off to a great start for the 2007-2008 school year.  I want to welcome all of our new students and staff members to Willard South.  I am looking forward to working with every student, parent and staff member this year. 

New Members of the Willard South Staff:

• Mrs. Lindsay Wallace-Kindergarten
• Mrs. Jeri Washington-2nd Grade
• Mrs. Clara Hayter-3rd Grade
• Mrs. Colleen Appleby-Early Childhood Special Education
• Mrs. Susan Shikany-Speech/Language
• Mrs. LeaAnn Smith-ASSIST
• Mrs. Candace Follis-ESL Paraprofessional
• Mrs. Mary McKee-Paraprofessional
• Mrs. Nancy Jones-Paraprofessional
• Mrs. JoAnn Provinge-Cook
• Mrs. Dana Pratt-Cook
• Mr. Dennis Dye-Custodian

On Monday we honored Cathy Bennett and Vicki Webster, two very special members of the Willard School District.  They are on the count down to retirement with only five days remaining!  It has been on honor working with both of these outstanding teachers.   They will truly be missed by everyone.  As several of Cathy’s former students stated, “Have fun mowing the yard twice a day, spending time with your family, going to the zoo, sleeping late and doing anything you please.”  Best wishes to both of you in your retirement!

UPCOMING EVENTS:

• Tuesday, May 22nd-Transition Day for 4th grade to Willard Intermediate
• Wednesday, May 23rd-Willard South Field Day (rain date May 24th)
• Friday, May 25th-Tiger Pride Assembly at 9:00; students dismissed at 12:40

Our third and fourth grade students completed the math portion of the MAP test this week.  Students will be taking the communication arts test next week.  I want to thank all of the students, parents and teachers for working hard to ensure that students are present each day and trying their best!  We have also started our talent show try-outs for our Fine Arts Night on May 1st.   We have some very talented and unique acts.  We have seen magic tricks, dancing, singing, poetry, piano solos and much more. It will be a hard decision to narrow down our finalists. Next week we are looking forward to our kindergarten music program on Tuesday at 1:30 and 7:00.  On Thursday evening, we will be celebrating our annual Sock Hop from 6:30-8:00.  I know there are several teachers who are ready to show off their dance moves! We will also have a bond information meeting in the library at 7:00 on Thursday evening.  On Friday at 10:00, the WHS Fast Forward group will be performing for all of the students in the cafeteria. Have a wonderful weekend and enjoy the sunshine!

“Willard South is ROARING with excitement!”

Rain, rain, go away!  (Just a few chants I have been hearing from students and staff today!) We all expect the rain during spring.  However, the cold weather is a little too much.  This week our fourth grade students and parents enjoyed the annual Missouri Conservation and Soil banquet.  I would like to thank our wonderful food service staff members for providing the meal.  It was GREAT!  Have a good weekend and try to stay dry.

Upcoming Events

• April 18-19 Math MAP Testing for 3rd & 4th Grade

• April 24th-Kindergarten Music Program 1:30 & 7:00

• April 24-26 Com. Arts MAP Testing for 3rd & 4th Grade

• April 26th-Sock Hop 6:30-8:00; Bond Mtg in the library at 7:00

• April 30-May 1st-Kindergarten Screening

“Willard South is ROARING with excitement!”

   Today we celebrated our third quarter Tiger Pride Assembly.  Students were recognized for perfect attendance, exceptional behavior, teamwork and more!  We also honored the WHS boy’s basketball team for their exemplary season and a third place finish at state.  Congratulations to Coach Evans, Alex, Travis, Jon, Kyle, Eric, Kevin, Ben, Ronnie and Devin!  I also had the “honor” of becoming a human banana split during our assembly.  Students were challenged to bring in food for our district food pantry this week.  Each bag of groceries that was donated equaled one scoop of ice cream on the principal.  We had 175 bags of groceries donated this week!  Needless to say,  it was a cold and sticky scene today at Willard South.  I would like to thank everyone who donated food throughout the week.  Your generosity is appreciated by many families .  Have a safe holiday weekend! ”

Willard South is ROARING with excitement!”

I am not sure who is more excited and anxious about spring break.  Is it the students or the teachers?  I want to wish everyone a safe and relaxing week.  Please enjoy the warm weather and the time with your family.  When we return we look forward to the upcoming events.

• March 27th     3rd & 4th Grade Parent MAP Night 6:00-7:00
• March 28th    Chili Cook-off for staff at WHS starting at 4:00
• March 29th    4th Grade Flip Flop Girls Fashion Show at 6:00
• March 30th    PTO Carnival 6:00-8:00

I would also like to thank everyone who helped support Willard South last Tuesday during our McTeacher’s Night.  It was a huge success because of your participation.  THANK YOU!

It was another fast and furious week here at Willard South.  On Tuesday our first graders performed their music program “Making Music at School”. We also enjoyed a visit from the high school theater department on Wednesday.  They developed skits based on the 2006-2007 Show-Me Reader award books.  They are always entertaining and energetic! We truly appreciate their hard work and commitment.  Best of luck to our boy’s basketball team who will be playing Webb City tomorrow at Hammons Student Center at 1:00.  GO TIGERS! 

“Willard South is ROARING with excitement!”  Kara Crighton-Smith, Principal