Wednesday eFolder – March 11, 2020

HAPPY WEDNESDAY THUNDERBIRDS!

Spring has almost sprung and it’s time for Spring Break! We hope you have a safe and fun week next week during your time off, March 16-20. This is the last week of Prime time. Also, don’t forget that this Friday (3/13) is Lower Grade Assembly (PK-1st). See you in the gym at 7:35 rocking your Thunderbird t-shirt!

TONIGHT! AISD NEW HEALTH CURRICULUM INFORMATION SESSION
Wednesday, March 11, 5-6pm
You are invited to attend a Parent Orientation night to preview health topics covered under the new Austin ISD Health curriculum. No child care will be available. Austin ISD believes that a valuable element of education is the development of respect for all individuals, regardless of race, color, creed, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, disability or other personal attributes. The district is committed to providing all students with a positive learning environment. We encourage you to review the lesson overviews for each grade level by visiting https://www.austinisd.org/pe-health/health-education/hsr. This is an opportunity to have an advanced look at the important lessons your child will be offered in May. You will be provided an opportunity to opt-out of any or all of the lessons at this meeting. If you do not want your student to receive one or more of these lessons, you must actively opt-out by using the AISD opt-out letter. This letter is available online at the above link. It will be available in print at the meeting and will be sent home again on March 23rd. The deadline for returning opt-out letters is April 29.

SUPPORT THES: Buy Mañana cookies!

The THES holiday cookie fundraiser was such a success ($250 raised) that South Congress Hotel’s coffee and bakeshop, Mañana, wants to continue their donation through 2020! They will donate $1 from every purchase of the monthly cookie (created uniquely for THES). This month they are featuring an M&M Blondie Bar—while you are on Spring Break treat yourself ! If you are interested in purchasing cookies by the dozen, the kitchen needs a 72 hours notice. Please email Sophia Stout: sophia.stout@mananaaustin.com

2020 CENSUS FAMILY NIGHT
Wednesday, March 25th, 5-7pm
The Census begins this month and our school will be hosting a 2020 Census Family Night on March 25, 2020 from 5-7pm. This is a Travis Vertical Team event and we will be sharing hosting duties with Linder, Dawson, Lively Middle School, and Travis High School. This fun event makes completing the Census really easy! There will first be a PowerPoint presentation with helpful information, then folks can visit the many community partner booths. There will be translators available, and computers to fill out your census. We have door prizes and pizza and water is provided! Questions about the Census? Please see these fliers for more information.
Census 101
What is the Census?
AISD Census TrainingFlyer – 3-6-20

Please spread the word about CENSUS NIGHT and help me make the event memorable for ALL families. Please contact Ms. Perez at 512-841-0855 if you are able to donate a door prize, or have a local business in mind who may be able to support this event.

FAMILY FUN AND FITNESS DAY (3rd-5th grade)

Friday, March 27
We are excited to have fun, move our bodies, and eat healthy snacks during this beloved annual event! Each grade level is requested to donate food items to stock the healthy snack station so we can fuel our students (see below). Parents and caretakers are welcome to join us, and we encourage you to volunteer for this fun family day. If you are available to help, please sign-up on the THES website under the volunteer page link: 

Help us make this day a success by contributing to the snack station:
3rd grade – Whole Pickles
4th grade – Bananas
5th grade – Oranges

MONTHLY PARENT COFFEE CHAT

Friday, March 27
Join us March 27th at 8:30 for a helpful training on managing different forms of anxiety with our students. Testing, seperation, and school anxiety are emotions our students are sometimes faced with at school. Our THES counselors will share some quick strategies to try at home, at school, and how to coach your child with managing their strong emotions.  

STAAR Testing

April 9 – 11
Due to STAAR testing for 4th & 5th grades, visitors will not be allowed on campus Tuesday, April 7th through Thursday, April 9th in order to create a quiet testing environment. This means you will not be able to eat lunch with your child on Wednesday, April 8th. Please do not call 4th & 5th-grade classrooms directly; you may send a Dojo message, email your child’s teacher, or relay your message to the office to be delivered when testing is completed.  We appreciate your cooperation and support!

STAAR Testing Dates:
April 7:4th Writing & 5th Grade Math
April 8: 5th Grade Reading
April 9: STAAR Make-up Sessions
May 12: 3rd-4th Math, 5th  (retest)
May13:Reading (retest)
May 14: 5th Grade Science
May 15:STAAR Make-up Sessions

REGISTER FOR THE 2020/21 SCHOOL YEAR
All returning students must REGISTER ONLINE for the upcoming school year. If your child is not registered online, they will not be placed in a classroom for the 2020/2021 school year. We are asking all parents to register their students online at https://my.austinisd.org. It is crucial that we have 100% registration complete by the end of March as it will affect our staffing and funding. If you have trouble with the online registration process, please call the AISD Parent Technology Helpline at 512.414.9187 between 7am–5pm, M-F. We have laptops available in the office for parents to use—please ask Ms. Gio or the PSS, Ms. Perez!

NEEDED: PTA LEADERS FOR 2020-2021
JOIN US AT A FUN INFORMATIONAL HAPPY HOUR MARCH 26!

Are you interested in learning more about what is going on at school? Would you like to help make your child’s school experience better? We are looking for parents of children in lower grades to start getting more involved in volunteering next year! Have you thought about getting involved but aren’t sure where to start? Now is the time to find out more about all the wonderful ways you can get involved with the school and help support and shape the education of your children. We are organizing an informal happy hour gathering at a nearby establishment, and most of the current PTA board will be there to chat and answer your questions! We can help get you matched up with the right opportunity. Please save the afternoon/early evening of March 26–location to be announced soon. We are also hoping to have a second gathering in April.

We are currently looking for help in many different areas for next school year, everything from Teacher Appreciation to Carnival to Hospitality. With almost 50 leadership opportunities, there is something for everyone! There will be mentors with experience available to help/guide, and many positions are co-chair positions where you can work as a team. Most roles require only a limited time commitment. You can also check out the school volunteering page for more information or contact Gretchen Otto ptapresident@travisheightselementary.com with questions.

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Thank you!