Ellsworth Elementary School

🎉 Mrs. Therriault’s kindergarteners wrapped up Jump Start this week with lots of fun and learning!

They’ve been busy practicing their fine motor skills using playdoh and beads, and today they celebrated their last day in style wearing pajamas and making their own sleep masks! 💤💜

We can’t wait to see all of our students back in the building very soon! #PantherPride #JumpStart #KindergartenReady

We know summer school wrapped up almost a month ago, but we’re still thinking about those fun days with bubbles and popsicles! 🫧🍦

Ms. Ainsworth’s 5K Readiness kiddos had a blast soaking up the sunshine and making sweet memories. We loved seeing their smiles and we’re counting down the days until we get to welcome them (and all our students!) back into the building! 💜 #PantherPride

🎒 We're gearing up for our 8th Annual Back-to-School Supply Drive!

Each year, thanks to the generosity of our community, parents, and local businesses, we’re able to provide school supplies to students who need a little extra support. 💜

If your student could benefit from this program for the 2025-2026 school year, please fill out the request form below. Supplies are available for students with a demonstrated financial need.

📝 Request form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdoj6tSz24YqJky1uyQ_oraEYgJm3yv9siIdfjmSZI0fYgbtQ/viewform

Thank you to everyone who helps make this possible! 💛

📣 Welcome to ECSD! We’re excited to introduce the new Principal at Ellsworth Elementary School, Jeremy Nygaard! He brings great experience and a passion for education, and we’re looking forward to the positive energy he’ll bring to our school community. Read on to learn more about him and his family! 👇 Jeremy Nygaard has been named the new principal of Ellsworth Elementary School. He brings with him over 18 years of experience in elementary education, most recently serving in the Baldwin-Woodville School District. During the past year, he held multiple leadership roles, including assistant principal, transportation director, and 4K director. Prior to that, he spent 17 years in the district as a third- and fourth-grade teacher, instructional coach, and data analyst. His entire career has been dedicated to working with elementary-aged students—a population he is deeply passionate about serving. Mr. Nygaard and his wife, LeAnne, have four children. Their oldest, Marin, is a sophomore at Winona State University studying medical imaging. Cade and Kyler attend Baldwin-Woodville High School and Bram is in elementary school. In addition to raising their own children, the Nygaard family serves as a foster family for St. Croix County and is currently preparing for the reunification of their second placement, who has been with them for over a year. As an educator, Mr. Nygaard is committed to personalized learning and believes in leveraging innovative strategies to engage students in meaningful ways. He is enthusiastic about collaborating with the staff, students, and families of the Ellsworth community to build upon the school’s existing strengths. His decision to join Ellsworth Elementary stems from a desire to bring stable, student-centered instructional leadership to the school community. He is known for being a thoughtful listener and a collaborative leader who works closely with all stakeholders to set and achieve shared goals. Mr. Nygaard looks forward to officially joining the team in July and is eager to begin this next chapter in partnership with the Ellsworth community.

Our 4YK students had a blast tackling the Ninja Course as a reward for reaching the fundraising goal for the Glow Run! From climbing to crawling, they were all smiles as they worked their way through the obstacles. Huge thanks to everyone who supported this fundraiser and helped make this fun experience possible! 💜🎉

☀️ L is for Lunch Outside… and for Lucky! 🧺🍀 Ms. Heitman’s kindergarten class enjoyed a little sunshine and fresh air during their lunch break. These lucky kiddos got to eat outdoors and soak up the beautiful weather—what a fun way to enjoy the day! 🌞💜

✂️🌱 Snip, snip! Ms. Matter’s 4YK class turned into a mini hair salon last week! A couple of weeks ago, students made their own little pots and planted grass seeds—aka grass hair—and last week was haircut day! Each kiddo got to give their grassy friend a fresh new style. What a fun and creative way to celebrate growth and fine motor skills! 💇‍♂️💚

📣 Kindergarten Families! Please note that our Kindergarten End-of-Year Program will be held on May 30th, not May 23rd as mistakenly printed on the fold-out district calendar. We can’t wait to celebrate a fantastic year with our kindergartners! 🎉💜

Ellsworth Elementary was packed with Panther Pride ! 🐾 👏 Congratulations to our Top Dogs, Blakely and Clint — way to go!! 🐶💜 🏀 We also had a blast during Character Ed, filled with games, school spirit, and learning moments! 🌟 And a huge shoutout to our April Students of the Month for demonstrating honesty! Your integrity and leadership inspire us all! 🙌 💜 Keep up the great work, EES! We’re proud of each and every one of you!

🌿🧪 Our 3rd graders have been busy scientists during their latest STEM project on ecosystems! 🐾💡

🦋 Mrs. Mitchell’s third graders had an AMAZING experience watching the magic of metamorphosis! 🐛➡️🦋 They raised caterpillars in their classroom and got to witness each stage as they transformed into beautiful butterflies. The students were SO excited when it was time to release them, such a special moment! 💜 What a great hands-on learning opportunity! 🌞

On Friday, April 25, Ellsworth Elementary took 13 talented 5th graders to the 5th Grade Math Masters Competition at St. Croix Central! Throughout the school year, students were coached by Michelle Jansen and Riley Black, meeting monthly to practice and prepare. Thank you to Lisa Bench and Michelle Jansen for bringing our students to the competition! Our Panthers competed individually (among 88 students) and as teams (17 teams total) against students from 10 area schools. They were assessed in three areas: ✅ Fact Fluency (75 order of operations questions in 5 minutes) ✅ Individual Problem Solving ✅ Team Problem Solving (working together and discussing strategies) We are proud to announce that many of our students placed in the top spots! 🏅 Fact Fluency: Donnavan Westerberg — 6th Place Ellis Giedd — 3rd Place Eli Niven — 1st Place 🏅 Individual Problem Solving: Ellis Giedd — 5th Place Ryder Frosch — 2nd Place Kaiden Beach — 1st Place 🏅 Team Problem Solving: Kaiden Beach, Ryder Frosch, Eli Niven, and Ellis Giedd — 2nd Place Way to go, Panthers! We are so proud of your hard work, dedication, and Panther Pride! 💜🖤

📚✨ All of our 4th graders took a trip to the Ellsworth Public Library. Students enjoyed a fun scavenger hunt, listened to a story, and made a creative craft. It was so awesome to see our students getting involved in the community and learning about all the exciting opportunities the Ellsworth Public Library has to offer this summer! 📖 https://www.ellsworthlibrary.org/

Due to the expected inclement weather forecasted PKC will be closing at 5pm tonight Monday 4/28.

Middle School Cheerleading Tryouts — We’re Ready to Shine! We’re so excited to officially launch our Fall Middle School Cheerleading Squad and we’re looking for spirited, positive, and enthusiastic students to join the team! As part of this new middle school program, students will: 💜 Perform at middle school home football games 🤍 Lead cheers at middle school football games and events! 💜 Participate in parades and school events 🤍 Take part in fun team bonding activities 💜 Build confidence, school pride, and friendships! Open to current 5th, 6th & 7th grade students in the Ellsworth Community School District. No experience needed — just bring your energy and school spirit! 💜 Registration for tryouts is on our website: Www.ellsworthpanthers.com/cheerleading Parents: This is a wonderful opportunity for your student to stay active, make friends, and be part of something exciting and positive right here at our middle school. 🤍 See the flyer for full details — we can’t wait to see you there! 💜🤍

🌟 Happy Administrative Professionals Day! 🌟 Today, we celebrate and appreciate our incredible administrative professionals who keep everything running smoothly behind the scenes! From supporting students and families to assisting staff and keeping our schools organized, your hard work does not go unnoticed. We cannot thank you enough for all you do each and every day! 💜💻📚 Drop a thank you in the comments to show your appreciation! 👇👇

📚🐾 What a FUN night at EES last Tuesday! Over the past several weeks, 100 students and their families participated in our One School, One Book project, reading Fenway and Hattie together at home and completing fun activities along the way. 💜 We wrapped it all up with a celebration event that included: 🎉 A wild and exciting game of Kahoot 🍽️ A delicious meal 🎨 And a few more fun activities to end the night with smiles! Thank you to everyone who joined us—what an incredible way to build a love of reading as a school community! 📖