Greetings Thunderbirds! E-folder 04/14/21

HAPPY WEDNESDAY THUNDERBIRDS!

April Morning Assembly
Good morning Thunderbirds! Check out the April Friday Morning Assembly!

Celebrate AISD Earth Week, April 19-23
We invite all students and school communities to help make the earth and our community a better place.

Visit the AISD Earth Week web page for fun and meaningful ways to engage and take action from home, including:

• Climate Challenge Pledge: Students, teachers, and staff can pledge to take action all year to make our earth and communities more sustainable.
• Earth Day Bingo: Download the Earth Day Bingo Card, available in English and Spanish, to see how many eco-actions you can do from home, your backyard, on a walk and in other places away from school.
• Earth Week Activities: Check out the activities and tips for families and students of all ages to take action in climate justice, energy and water conservation, zero waste, air quality and nature. These activities can also be used to complete your Earth Day bingo card!

How are you celebrating? Share your activities via Twitter and Instagram. Tag @AustinISDGreen and use the #AISDGreen hashtag.

THES Virtual Book Fair
Dates: 4/19-5/2
Our Book Fair is this year is online. Every purchase earns our school rewards for much needed resources. Plus, shipping is free on book-only purchases over $25.

Use the promo code SHARE10 for 10% off every order, applied at checkout! Remember, every purchase means 25% in rewards back to your school.**

Link will be active until May 2nd.

https://bookfairs.scholastic.com/bookfairs/cptoolkit/homepage.do?method=homepage&url=travisheightselementary

Austin ISD Poetry Appreciation Month
The Transportation team is partnering with the Library Media Services to celebrate Year 4 of the love with poetry. This collaborative project instills the love of poetry in AISD students and staff through inspiring and heartfelt poems. We look forward to building an appreciation and understanding of poetry and its relevance in our everyday lives. AISD transportation will add selected poetry posters inside our school buses for students as appropriate. For more information, contact Ms. Underwood.

AISD Pride Week is April 19-24, 2021
Every year, to celebrate LGBTQIA+ students, staff and families, Austin ISD hosts its own pride week, a time to highlight the district’s commitment to creating a safe, supportive and inclusive environment. AISD Pride Week is April 19-24, 2021, and will include the following themes and virtual events:

• Monday 4/19 – All Are Welcome/Pride History
  6:30 P.M. – Virtual Family Pride 101 – “Don’t Wait to Become an Ally!”
• Tuesday 4/20 – Local Pride/Spirit Day
  6:30 P.M. – Virtual Community Pride Circle
• Wednesday 4/21 – Know Your Rights
  12:30 P.M. – Virtual Staff Pride Circle
• Thursday 4/22 – Pride and You – Creative Expression

Principal Update & Coffee Chat April 30
Our next schedule Principal Update & Coffee Chat is Friday, Apr 30, 10-11am. The Coffee Chat theme is:

How to get Children to Help with Chores is the topic for our next coffee. We will share tips on ways to have our kids do chores around the house as a way to contribute to the family household.

• April 30 at 10:00am
• https://zoom.us/j/96476232276?pwd=d2xsYlhGb3U0NVVXR2hsdXVlWllMQT09
• Meeting ID: 964 7623 2276
• Passcode: joinus

Hooray for PreK and Kindergarten Orientation Day!
Leap Into Kindergarten and Hop into PreK Orientation will be offered on the week of April 12 – April 16, 2021 at all elementary schools in the Austin Independent School District.

Hop into PreK and Leap into Kindergarten: At these orientation events, parents will receive information about the Austin School District’s prekindergarten and kindergarten programs. This includes curriculum, daily schedules, attendance requirements, the school year calendar, how to help a child prepare for school, and information specific to the individual campus.

Please find the orientation packet with materials for kindergarten and prekindergarten orientation here.

Prekindergarten Registration: Prekindergarten eligibility confirmation for the 2021-2022 school year can begin on April 1, 2021. This year families will complete an eligibility screener. All eligibility except language qualifications will be approved by the Early Childhood team. Campus staff will continue to provide language testing for those students who qualify for PreK as an emergent bilingual. Please find the steps for the screening process here.

Dual Language
Austin ISD parents and families are invited to a series of virtual conversations to discuss the district’s recommitment to Dual Language and understand Dual Language programming’s benefits.

These sessions will occur at several of our schools, planning exciting changes in their Dual Language programming for the upcoming school year. The format will be an interactive panel discussion with campus leadership, parents, and the AISD Multilingual Education Team members.

All events will include both a Spanish and an English session back-to-back. These events are part of an ongoing effort to expand access to quality Dual Language programming and embrace the value of multilingualism in AISD.

Event details and registration links are included below and can be found on the AISD website.

Prime Time Summer Program
The summer program is free for AISD students in kindergarten through fourth grade. Program features include:

• Virtual field trips
• Engaging activities: arts, technology, sports, science and moreLive,
• Interactive sessions and fun video sessions

Contact Info :

• • primetime@austinisd.org
  • https://www.austinisd.org/prime-time
  • 512-414-0154
  • https://www.austinisd.org/prime-time/virtual-classes

New and Returning Student Registration for 2021-2022 School Year
Online Registration for the 2021-2022 school year is open! Parents will need to access the online registration through the Parent Portal. You can find specific registration directions HERE. If you need assistance please call the AISD Parent Support Line at 512-414-9187.

Student Registration Plans
Student Registration Plans for School Year 2021-2022 survey will be deployed through the parent portal on Monday, March 8, 2021. The invitation emails will be sent to parents’ primary email addresses. The survey is set to close on Friday, April 30, 2021.

STAAR Testing Dates @ THES
2nd Administration – Window opens Tuesday, May 11th and closes Friday, May 14th

• 3-5 Grade Math – Tuesday, May 11th
• 3-5 Grade Reading – Wednesday, May 12th
• 5 Grade Science – Thursday, May 13th

Student Survey
We recognize that this has been an extremely difficult year for our AISD community, especially for our students and campus-based staff. As such, the AISD Student Climate Survey deadline has been extended to April 30, 2021. The original deadline was March 12, 2021.

Please connect with your child’s teacher to ensure students in grades 3-11 have an opportunity to take the survey. As a reminder, parents/caregivers have the choice to opt-out students from taking the survey. Please contact your campus contact, Ms. Cano, for information regarding the opt-out process.

Bike to School Training
Join Bike to School Day on May 5. AISD’s transportation and sustainability teams have partnered with Ghisallo Cycling Initiative for students to learn about biking, engage in physical activity and celebrate sustainable transportation in Austin.

Schools can participate by using the Bicycle Skills Challenge at Home program, a guided lesson plan for students to learn and practice bicycle safety and riding skills. The program is a modified version of the advanced bike rodeo clinic that the Ghisallo Cycling Initiative provides through AISD physical education programs. The dual-language, 30-minute program in English and Spanish can support both synchronous and asynchronous instruction.

Mental Health Resources and Strategies
We are excited to announce that our third 2-sided flyer with mental health resources/strategies will be distributed to parents/families during Austin ISD food distributions next week. We plan to create a new Mental Wellness flyer/Smore every two weeks. These resources are part of a collaboration between Child Study Systems, Social and Emotional Learning, Health Services, Family and Community Engagement, and Austin ISD Communications.
https://www.smore.com/gbed9
https://www.smore.com/sb3kf
https://www.smore.com/e7cxk

Other Resources
AISD health guidelines: https://www.travisheightselementary.com/blog/2021/04/07/health-guidelines/
THES Parent Resource Facebook Page:
https://www.facebook.com/TravisHeightsES/