Chillicothe Elementary - Home of the Hornets

It’s Public School Volunteer Week, and we are shining a bright spotlight on the incredible individuals who pour their time, talent, and energy into Chillicothe Elementary School. From our dedicated Oasis Volunteers and the hardworking PTO to our cheerful recess helpers and everyone in between—you make the "CES Way" possible. Volunteers bridge the gap between our classrooms and the community, providing our students with the extra support, inspiration, and opportunities they need to reach their highest potential. 📸 Pictured are just a few of the amazing faces that make CES a better place. To every person who has signed a sheet, joined a committee, or shared even a single hour of their day: Thank you. We truly couldn’t do it without you!

CES Testing We are so proud of the hard work our students have put in all year, and we know they are ready to show what they’ve learned. This is their time to shine! A few encouraging words at home from our CES families can make a big difference in boosting their confidence. Thank you to our student leadership team for creating a fun hype video with helpful tips and a sneak peek at some exciting testing incentives! https://canva.link/19mhimrmfewc72b

“Let Your Kind Shine” Kindness is everywhere at CES! The three recipients of this week's awards were nominated by a teacher or staff member for showing exceptional kindness. They received a sunshine keepsake and the opportunity to sit in the yellow sunshine chair over the next week to promote kindness throughout CES! Raelynn Peniston (Mrs. Hayen’s Kindergarten) Raelynn lights up whatever room she walks into. She is patient, kind to all, and has a giving heart. One of the best reasons Raelynn deserves the Kindness chair is she chooses to sit with her classmate, in a quieter spot, every lunch period. She is such a caring classmate. Haley Williams (Mrs. Hawkins’ 3rd Grade) Haley has such a good attitude and is a cheerleader for the other students when they are working on something. She stays very positive, is the first one to show concern, and is always willing to lend a helping hand to anyone who needs itl Addison Nixdorf (Mrs. Jones’ 5th Grade) Addi is always so kind in the cafeteria! She thanks the cooks and janitors every meal. Addi offers to help and helps when staff are busy. Addi’s kind words brighten the day of all our cafeteria staff. What a world this would be if everyone were as kind and thoughtful as Addi. You are a ray of sunshine at CES and we are so glad you are here. Your kindness matters!

Mrs. Bonderer’s 1st grade class visited their partner in education, BTC Bank. The students toured the new building and were given small terrariums with seeds to plant in them. Thank you BTC Bank!

Mrs. Howe's class visited their Partners in Education, Investors Community Bank. They toured the bank and learned how all parts of the bank worked. Thank you to Investors Bank!

Thank you, Bright Futures, for your generous donation of snacks and for providing funds to help us purchase additional treats for our 3rd–5th graders! These snacks are a wonderful perk for our hardworking Hornets. We truly appreciate your generosity and support.

CES Snapshots

Oliver knows his letters and sounds!

Goal Getters!!!

More April and Summer Birthdays!! 🎂

Mrs. Thompson’s 4th graders enjoyed a visit to the Fire Department as their Partner in Education.

Spring testing is underway at CES! We love seeing our students’ focus, determination, and commitment to doing their best. Testing continues through the end of April, and students are being rewarded with incentives for their hard work—keep it up!

Building confidence, giving their best effort on testing, helping keep our school clean, encouraging friends, and spreading positivity—just a few of the amazing reasons our students earned a Positive Principal Phone Call today at CES! 🎉

The final Chilli MO PTO meeting of the year was held on Tuesday, April 14th, marking a significant milestone for our school community. The evening was filled with productivity as we installed our new Executive Officers, gathered numerous volunteer sign-ups, and finalized key decisions for the upcoming 2026-27 school year. We want to extend a heartfelt thank you to our founding executive officers—Kayla Leatherman, Shannon Mason, and Amanda Shaw—for their two years of dedicated service and for laying such a strong foundation for this organization. We are also excited to announce our leadership team for the next chapter. Joining Mary Cady, Whitney Tan, and Libby Howe are our newest officers: Molly Owens, Kayla Thompson, and Allison Jeffries. Our PTO is an integral part of the CES community, and with such a passionate group of parents and staff, we look forward to watching this partnership grow even stronger in the years to come!

Today marked our last Warrior Wednesday of the 2025–26 school year! A huge thank you to all of our heroes who visited CES—we’re so grateful for you!

We are beyond proud of the seven 5th graders who represented our school at the District Math League contest last Saturday. They all did an incredible job tackling some seriously tough problems and showed off their amazing math skills! A huge round of applause for our individual winners: Sprint Test: Jax Brown 1st Place Target Test: Kristian Winfrey 4th Place, Bridger Green 5th Place Overall 5th Grade Placements: Jax Brown 3rd Place, Bridger Green 5th Place, Harper Fairley 9th Place, Kristian Winfrey 10th Place State Qualifiers: Jax Brown, Bridger Green, Harper Fairley, and Kristian Winfrey — See you at the next level! To top off a fantastic day, our school took home 5th Place Overall in the contest sweepstakes! Congratulations to all our students for their hard work, after school practice, and for representing us so well. You all rock!

On Monday, April 13th, CES was thrilled to host our annual Kindergarten Orientation, welcoming over 70 future Hornets and their families to campus! Our future kindergarten students had a fun time exploring their new school. They met our amazing teachers, enjoyed cookies and milk in the cafeteria, and had a blast on the playground. To top it all off, they even got to practice sitting on the school bus! It was a wonderful sneak peek at all the fun and learning ahead. We are so excited to officially welcome the Class of 2039 this August—we can’t wait to watch you grow and shine!

“Let Your Kind Shine” Kindness is everywhere at CES! The three recipients of this week's awards were nominated by a teacher or staff member for showing exceptional kindness. They received a sunshine keepsake and the opportunity to sit in the yellow sunshine chair over the next week to promote kindness throughout CES! Thea Jones (Mrs. Wolf’s 1st Grade) Thea never stops smiling. She is honest, trustworthy, and a great leader. Thea will be partners with anyone and is quick to encourage or lift someone’s spirits. Thea is thoughtful and sweet and shows her kindness daily. Kenzie Lowe (Mrs. Comstock’s 3rd Grade) Kenzie is such a helpful student. She is kind to everyone and she notices when other people are kind. She always lets the teacher know when she sees other people doing the right thing. I am so thankful that she is in my class because not only does she do the right thing, but she recognizes and praises others when they do the same. She chooses kindness every single day and continues to let her kind shine, making our classroom even more of a bright and happy place. Maci Sheetz (Mrs. Davis’ 5th Grade) Maci is such a good student and kind friend. Maci does the right thing and is kind and encouraging to her classmates. We are so glad Maci is part of our classroom this year!

Our April Terrific Kids are "Capable"