Casis Weekly (5/6/2024 - 5/10/2024)

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Cougar PRIDE Families,

It’s going to be another great week at Casis! April is gone and May has arrived. In these next few weeks, there will be so many action-packed activities all the way to the last day of school. This week is ‘Teacher Appreciation Week’ and ‘Math Week’, which will be two very exciting celebratory events. As the remaining happenings in the month of May will bring closure to this school year, we are also planning for the next school year. We will also continue to focus on student learning growth and enrichment opportunities, as well as on safe and secure practices. Please see important information for the week below.

Mr. Tinnon

LATEST SCHOOL NEWS


Silver RAVE Award Pin for May

The RAVE (Recognizing All Valuable Employees) program exists to recognize AISD employees who take the extra steps to provide equitable and exceptional experiences for our students, families, staff, and community members. Campus Principals have been provided with ‘Silver Rave’ pins to acknowledge local staff members each month. The recipients for the month of May are our Pre-Kindergarten & Physical Education Teacher Assistants: Samiya Alexander, James Bourque, Mika Carr, and Kevin Mouton. These two Teacher Assistant positions were new to the district staffing structure a few years ago and we are so very proud of the individuals who fulfill these roles on our campus.Not only do each of these persons show how much they care daily about our students, but they all are highly engaged and participatory team members in all other aspects of our school. They willingly perform additional duties and responsibilities that help to ensure that our school processes run smoothly. Ms. Alexander is so kind, Ms. Carr is so positive, Mr. Bourque is so accommodating, and Mr. Mouton is so energetic. Our Pre-K & P.E. Teacher Assistants are the absolute best around and we’re so very ‘Casis Cougar Proud’ of them all!


TEACHER APPRECIATION WEEK

Monday, May 6 – Friday, May 10 is Teacher Appreciation Week! This week is set aside to recognize our excellent Teaching Staff, our amazing Teacher Assistants, and our irreplaceable Substitute Teachers. Teachers are responsible for ensuring that the daily instruction of our children takes place at a very high level. Teachers constantly challenge students to be better learners in school and to be better individuals for life. Teacher Assistants and Substitute Teachers are also instrumental in supporting the work of educating students on a daily basis. Some very special activities will be taking place during this week, in honor of the hard work and dedication that all teachers put into educating our children. We salute Teachers, Teacher Assistants, and Substitute Teachers every day, but particularly so, this week!


CASIS MATH WEEK

Monday, May 6 – Friday, May 10 is Math Week at Casis Elementary. During this week, we will emphasize the importance of home/school connections and support, in ensuring that Casis students are engaged in meaningful numeracy and place value practices. When students participate in math activities, like number talks, fluency games, and number sense lessons, they become more confident and proficient in demonstrating the use of flexible thinking in mathematics. Teachers and Teams will coordinate various activities for both home and school to celebrate the importance of Math in our lives. This year, we’re also very fortunate to have a Math Interventionist back on our campus and apart of our math programming, in the person of Mayan Nelson. We really love Math at Casis!


NATIONAL WALK, BIKE & ROLL TO SCHOOL DAY

Wednesday, May 8 is National Walk, Bike, & Roll To School Day! In collaboration with the City of Austin ‘Safe Routes To School’ program, Casis Elementary will celebrate this special day as well. We are encouraging as many Casis families as possible to walk or bike to Casis. Our P.E. Team will be emphasizing the importance of days like this and will have some free promotional items to share with students during their classes. Looking forward to this day that promotes the healthy activities of biking and walking, as well as highlighting the importance of families having safe routes to their neighborhood schools. For more information about this day, see link here: https://www.walkbiketoschool.org/.

NEWS FROM THE PRINCIPAL


AISD SALUTE RECOGNITION CEREMONY

Salute is AISD’s annual awards event, co-hosted by the district and Austin Partners in Education (APIE). The Salute Awards ceremony will recognize finalists and winners in various categories: PTA, Librarian, Counselor, Assistant Principal, and Principal of the year. Additionally, new expanded categories this year are: Campus Clerical/Office Support, Teaching Assistant, Custodial/Facilities Maintenance Staff, Transportation Staff, Food Service/Warehouse Staff, and Campus Safety & Security Staff of the Year. Our own Cafeteria Manager, Wilson Gonzalez, has been named as a Finalist in the category of Food Service/Warehouse Staff of the Year. Congratulations to Mr. Gonzalez! Two of the main recognitions that will occur at this event will honor district Teachers of Promise and Teachers of the Year from all campuses. As a reminder, our campus Teacher of the Year is Samantha Sridharan, Pre-Kindergarten Teacher. And our campus Teacher of Promise is Nina Danilovich, Physical Education Teacher. These two educators are so very deserving of this recognition and will be honored by our district in this year’s event, which will be held on Wednesday, May 8 at the Austin ISD Performing Arts Center (PAC). We are ‘Casis Cougar Proud’ of Ms. Sridharan and Ms. Danilovich!


CASIS CAREER DAY IS COMING!

Monday, May 13 will be Career Day at Casis Elementary. Some of our parents will be invited to classrooms to participate in this special day. Each grade-level team has coordinated presentations, so that parents can highlight their careers, education, interests, and character traits, related to their various occupations. We are excited to have some of our families sign up to present. Both staff and students are looking forward to this upcoming special day of presentations!

NEW ENROLLMENT SYSTEM NOW OPEN

AISD has moved to a new unified enrollment system for families interested in their neighborhood school, transfer schools, application-based programs, or Pre-Kindergarten. The move to this new “Enroll Austin” system is meant to make enrollment more accessible and equitable by providing a more streamlined platform all in one place. Registration will be split into two periods: (1) Priority Registration Period (Nov. 8, 2023 – Feb. 6, 2024) and (2) General Registration Period (April, 2024 – Summer, 2024). Visit www.austinisd.org/enroll to access the enrollment application or go to portal.austinisd.org and find the “Enroll Austin” tile. If families have questions, please go to the Find Your Seat Call Center at (512) 414-SEAT (7328) between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. during the weekday. Want to learn more? Please explore the Enroll Austin FAQs.


SPRING LOST & FOUND REMINDER

As we go into the final months of this school year, we want to reunite as many lost items as possible with their owners. Because a large number of our families have made sure that their student items were labeled, labeled, labeled (First & Last Name), it has been much easier to reunite those items with the students. During these last months of April and May, students should be encouraged to regularly check the Lost & Found Bins that are located in the front and back of our school. During morning drop-offs or lunch-visits, Parents are encouraged to regularly check for lost items as well. Casis Parents, Michele Karp, Morgan Gaddis and Mary Polan, are our ‘Lost & Found Coordinators’ and we truly appreciate their support and leadership in this area. Thanks in advance to everyone for your cooperation and vigilance.


FAMILY LEARNING AND ENGAGEMENT SESSIONS

AISD’s Special Education, Section 504, and Dyslexia Departments are sponsoring Empower Hour Sessions for families throughout the 2023 – 2024 school year. These one-hour sessions are designed to provide valuable information, resources, and support to families on various topics. Both virtual and in-person sessions are available. We hope that families will avail themselves of these community learning and engagement opportunities.


SEL & EQUITY PRACTICES 

In Austin ISD and at Casis Elementary, we believe that Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is at the heart of equity-centered systems and structures. Our goal is to use and grow our social and emotional skills, while creating brave, respectful, collaborative spaces that support all students, staff, families and communities throughout our district and in our learning community. Throughout the school year, we will teach specific skills-building strategies to our students, in order to develop important character traits, like respect, empathy, compassion, and friendships. Mindfulness strategies and principles will also be a common core of this instruction as well. Administration, Teachers, and Support Staff will all be working with students throughout the school year to develop a strong social/emotional foundation, that includes building a lens of fairness and equity for all, no matter the differences among us.

The SEL word for the months of April & May is Integrity. Integrity is when you are strong enough to do what is right, even when it’s difficult, and even when no one is watching. It can be hard to do the right thing when your friends aren’t making the same choice. It’s important to act with integrity in our community. When we do, it makes our school a kinder, more inclusive, and more just place for everyone!

The Equity word for the months of April & May is Justice. Justice means people behave in ways that are fair, equal, and balanced. When we work to create a more just and equitable community, we interrupt stereotypes or biased language, we are allies and friends, and we work to make things fair for everyone. When we all work hard for justice, we create a kinder, safer, more welcoming community for all.

Following is a resources sheet for the months of April & May that will help support these two important concepts, both at school and at home. APRIL/MAY RESOURCES SHEET 

IMPORTANT DATES

 

TRAFFIC SAFETY PROCEDURES

Please adhere to the guidelines in your particular arrival/dismissal area (Front Circle Drive or North Parking Lot). See Arrival & Dismissal Plan here. We continually ask for your patience and cooperation in exercising safe practices in your area.

Additionally, please see the following reminders/updates:

  • Walkers should use crosswalks at all times.
  • Bikers should park bikes at bike racks and walk bikes through crosswalks.
  • Drivers should ALWAYS be aware of our foot and bike traffic.
  • Drivers should consider TURNING OFF ENGINES when not moving forward.
  • Avoid Parking in the Casis Village, if conducting school business.
    • Front Circle Drive & Hillview areavailable for parent parking during the day.
    • The North Parking Lot is designated for staff parking only.
  • Vehicles using the North Parking Lot during arrival and dismissal (3rd – 5th) should be aware of all walkers who are using the parking lot crosswalks.
  • Vehicles cued on Northwood for Circle Drive afternoon pick-up should remain in one moving line to avoid double-parking.
  • Vehicles who need to enter the North Parking Lot for morning/afternoon drop-offs/pick-ups of 3rd – 5th graders may safely by-pass the ‘Circle Drive’ vehicles to enter the parking lot.

We ask that everyone exercise extra caution and patience. Adherence will help to maintain safety for all. We truly appreciate everyone’s compliance with the above requests.

PTA NEWS

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