Stay In-the-Know: This Week’s Top News You Can’t Miss
- This week is Principal Appreciation Week. Make sure to say thanks to Mr. Tinnon for making Casis such a special place for all our kids!
- Today is the last day to preorder from the Spirit Store! Store link in the PTA section below
- Wednesday is Walk, Bike & Roll to School Day
- Get ready for a 4-day weekend. There’s no school this Friday, October 1oth, and next Monday, October 13th
- Pay your field trip fees by October 17th. Links below
- Get excited for Carnival on October 24th! Links below to sponsor, volunteer, buy wristbands, and join the parade
Cougar PRIDE Families,
It’s going to be another great week at Casis! It was just awesome to see so many Casis families (former, current, and future) this past Thursday night at House Park Stadium for the Austin High Vertical Team ‘Future Maroon Night’ event. Casis was represented very well, both in number and in school spirit. Way to go! This week, we will encourage families to walk, bike, or roll to school and we’re all excited to have a 4-day weekend this week. Well October is here and it’s ‘Casis Carnival Month’! The planning for our ‘Enchanted Casis’ extravaganza is in full swing and you won’t want to miss it, so everyone should mark their calendars for Friday, October 24. It will be magical! Fall Parent Conferences are also getting underway, so families should be hearing from your teachers about that. And while learning certainly remains to be our top focus, we’re going to have a lot of fun too. Please see important information for the week below.
Mr. Tinnon
NEWS FROM THE PRINCIPAL
VISION AND HEARING SCREENINGS
The Texas Department of State Health Services requires that all children enrolled in public school have a vision and hearing screening. During the months of September and October, Casis Elementary Health Staff will be screening the following grades: Pre-Kindergarten, Kindergarten, Grades 1, 3, 5, and any new students to AISD. Here’s the Casis Health Screening Letter with additional information and the specific screening dates for our campus. If you have any additional questions, please contact Angela Evington, School Nurse, at (512) 414-7169.
WALK, BIKE & ROLL TO SCHOOL DAY
Wednesday, October 8, is ‘International Walk, Bike, & Roll To School Day’. Join children and adults around the world to celebrate the benefits of walking and bicycling, and in spotlighting the importance of traffic safety. Days like these intend to make routes to school safer for active trips or by encouraging children to be more physically active in their lives. We want to encourage as many Casis families as possible to participate. See more information HERE about this special community day. Get those steps in as much as you can!
FALL INDIVIDUAL PICTURE DAY
Thursday, October 16 will be Fall Individual Picture Day at Casis Elementary. All students will have their individual pictures taken and families will have the opportunity to purchase picture packages. Families may pre-order pictures by visiting www.mylifetouch.com (use either your Student ID or Picture Day ID: EVT994N4J). For more information and questions, visit www.lifetouch.com/support-us. The scheduled date for ‘Picture Re-Takes’ will be Tuesday, December 2. Note: This information does not apply to any families who have indicated, during enrollment, that their child is not to be photographed.
GIFTED & TALENTED REFERRAL WINDOW
The Gifted & Talented referral window is now open and will remain open until Friday, October 17. To learn more about GT services in AISD and to submit a referral, click here for the English link. Additional languages can be found here. Prior to submitting a referral, it is recommended that parents notify their child’s classroom teacher. For additional information, you may reach out to our campus GT Advocates and Classroom Teachers, Primary Grades K-2: Lauren Vienne (K) and Intermediate Grades 3-5: Vickie Price (3rd).
FIELD TRIP INFORMATION
Field trips are wonderful extension experiences for students outside of the classroom learning environment. At Casis Elementary, we will offer a few field trip opportunities for each grade level throughout the school year. Parents will be asked to pay a bulk one-time ‘Field Trip Fee’ to cover the costs of these planned educational outings. Please see the following letters from each grade level, sharing the planned field trips and their associated fees: Pre-K, Kinder, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade, 3rd Grade, 4th Grade, & 5th Grade. Additionally, here’s a flyer that gives guidance on how to process payment: Fee Payment Flyer. All families will be asked to pay this fee by Friday, October 17. We are hopeful to get full participation from all of our families, but regardless, please know that no student will be excluded from any of the year’s field trip events.
FALL PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES
Elementary Parent Fall Conference Day is scheduled on the AISD School Calendar to take place on Monday, October 20. This day will be a Student Holiday. At Casis Elementary, these important meetings will be scheduled within a ‘window of days’ during the month of October. Teachers will be scheduling times during the day and/or after school. During these meetings, Teachers will share information about your child(ren)’s academic and emotional well-being, with a specific focus on individual learning growth, as well as discussing any factors that might hinder that growth this year (learning needs, attendance, behavior, etc.). Parents can then expect ‘1st 9-Weeks Report Cards’ to be available in their AISD Parent Portal by November 4.
STUDENT HANDBOOK & STUDENT SUCCESS GUIDE
Please see the most updated editions of our campus Student-Parent Handbook and the district Student Success Guide for this school year. In alignment with AISD, both of these documents act as guidelines for our school community practices and policies. Please review and reference them throughout the 25 – 26 school year.
CHARACTER STRONG IMPLEMENTATION & PRACTICES
This year, AISD and Casis Elementary are implementing a new Character Education and Behavioral Support program called Character Strong. This program is meant to provide students with the necessary skills and strategies to be the very best humans that they can be in the world. Students will hear morning messages and receive lessons from their teachers about topics like respect, gratitude, honesty, courage and more. Teachers will be providing weekly lessons and sending home monthly information to families about the different program topics learned each month. The lessons derive from a program called, “Purposefull People”. Here’s a Family Introductory Letter about Purposefull People. Each month we will cover a different Character Strong topic and resources will be shared to help families have meaningful conversations at home about the learned trait. Here’s an Overview of the monthly topics that will be taught. The Character Strong trait for the month of October is Responsibility. Here’s the Family Connection Newsletter – Responsibility for this month’s theme. We are so excited to be ‘Character Strong’ at Casis Elementary!
IMPORTANT DATES
September – National Hispanic American Heritage Month 2025
Mon., Oct. 6 – Fri., Oct. 10 – AISD Principal Appreciation Week
Tues., Oct. 7 – CAC Meeting at 3:30pm (Community Room)
Fri., Oct. 10 – Student Holiday / PLED Day (No School for Staff)
Mon., Oct. 13 – School Holiday (Indigenous Peoples Day)
Thurs., Oct. 16 – Fall Individual Picture Day
Mon., Oct. 20 – Fall Parent Conference Day / Student Holiday (Diwali)
Mon., Oct. 20 – Fri., Oct. 24 – AISD Transportation Employee Appreciation Week
Thurs., Oct. 23 – Casis Carnival Parade at 8:10am (Front Circle Drive)
Fri., Oct. 24 – Administrators’ Coffee Chat at 8:00am (Library)
Fri., Oct. 24 – ‘Enchanted Casis’ Carnival Event at 5:00pm – 8:00pm
Fri., Oct. 31 – Annual School-Wide Crazy Hat Day
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 are available 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.