South Dakota Fun Facts
Information About South Dakota, South Dakota Geography,
and South Dakota Schools

South Dakota's capital is Pierre and the largest city is Sioux Falls. Residents of South Dakota are referred to as "South Dakotans." The unofficial nickname of South Dakota is, "The Mount Rushmore State." The state song of South Dakota is, "Hail, South Dakota."

South Dakota's motto is "Under God the People Rule."

South Dakota's state bird is the Chinese Red-necked Pheasant. The state flower is the American Pasque and the state tree is the Black Hills Spruce.

South Dakota is ranked 46th in population and received its statehood November 2, 1889.

Bordering states of South Dakota are Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota and Wyoming. The major bodies of water of South Dakota are the Missouri River, James River and White River.

There were 143,331 K12 students in the South Dakota public schools in 1996. Out of those students 10,625 were first grade students. There were also 9,625 K12 public school teachers in the South Dakota public schools system. There were a total of 832 South Dakota public schools in 1996. (Source: IES National Center for Education Statistics)

Want to know about preparing for the South Dakota State Test of Educational Progress or STEP Standardized Tests?

Are you interested in information on Homeschooling in South Dakota or a South Dakota homeschool parent support group?

The Time4Learning online learning system combines interactive lessons, multimedia reinforcement activities, printable worksheets, learning games, and assessments with reports into one Homeschool Curriculum.