Spicewood Elementary School Dear families and community,
I hope you are able to enjoy the rest of the long weekend! We look forward to seeing you on Tuesday for student led conferences and welcoming students back on Wednesday. October will be a very full month- there will be many opportunities for student celebrations (Principal Pride Ceremonies & 4th Grade Choir Concert) and parent and community engagement (Fall Work Day, PTA meeting and Math Night). Please mark your calendars so that you don’t miss any of these important events.
CELEBRATIONS
Book Fair – THANK YOU!
WOW! The Spicewood Book Fair had a phenomenal week and there simply are not enough words to express our gratitude. THANK YOU to all the fearless volunteers who gave their time, THANK YOU to all the fabulous visitors who shopped the fair, THANK YOU to our wonderful sponsors (Stephen Roberts CMG Financial, Laura Watts Pacesetter Properties, Nadia Cortes Farmers Insurance, and CCR Roofing), and THANK YOU to everyone who purchased books for donation to Book Spring. It’s the boundless generosity of this community that helps make the Spicewood Elementary Library one of the best libraries in the district. We grossed over $36,000, of which the Spicewood Library will receive 25% cash back from Scholastic (after-taxes). Ms. Reeb uses Book Fair proceeds to pay for things such as author visits, storytellers, online resources (TumbleBooks, PebbleGo, and e-books), and of course, BOOKS. Additionally, the Book Fair’s donation drive, sponsored by Junior Troop 644, received over 300 new books which will be delivered to the Book Spring organization for Austin children in need. Thank you again to everyone who helped make this year’s Book Fair a HUGE success!
Literacy Library
Over the past year, Spicewood PTA spent almost $13,000 for new books and supplies for the Literacy Library. This meant over 1,800 new books for our students in the spring and 600 new books to be shelved in the next week. The new books will include fiction and non-fiction texts for reading levels A-R. We focused on non-fiction texts that would be current and reflect the interests of our students. While the literacy library is a resource primarily used in kindergarten through second grade, other grade levels use the literacy library to supplement their units of inquiry.We are excited to have plenty of options for teachers to choose from when considering the instructional needs of our students.
THIS WEEK’S NEWS
BrightBytes Questionnaire
Dear Parents and/or Guardians,
We are partnering with BrightBytes, an educational data analytics company, in order to learn more about our students’ school and home technology use for learning. We are reaching out to ask you to take part in our questionnaire.
Your participation is essential in helping us form a more complete picture of technology use for learning in our students’ lives. Please know that all of your responses will remain anonymous to protect your privacy and they will help your child’s school choose the right technology for their classrooms. It will take approximately 5 minutes to complete.
The last day to complete this questionnaire is Monday, October 22, 2018. Please go to here to complete questionnaire
https://bbyt.es/start/7Z6MC
Thank you for taking part in this important initiative!
Bond 2018
Visit the RRISD Bond 2018 website to learn more about the Bond election on November 6, 2018. Here is the list of projects specific to Spicewood Elementary.
Math Information Night for Parents
Parents/guardians of elementary students from Laurel Mountain, Caraway, and Spicewood are invited to attend a Math Night on October 15th at Canyon Vista Middle to learn about the math continuum from elementary school, to middle school, to high school. There will be a presentation from Canyon Vista & Westwood math teachers and counselors to explain the variety of math pathways available to meet the needs of all students.
Spicewood Auction – Friday, Nov. 9th
Mark your calendars! Spicewood PTA’s annual Gala Night and Auction is taking place on Friday, November 9th from 6pm – midnight at Balcones Country Club. Tickets go on sale on Monday, October 15th at 6am.
Spicewood Auction – Baskets
As part of the event, there are baskets created by parents that will be included in the silent auction portion of the evening. We are asking parents to consider donating a small monetary amount. Donating is completely optional. You can make a donation online here or submit your donations to your child’s teacher by Monday, Oct. 15th. Checks can be made out to Spicewood PTA. As always, we thank you for your generous support of our amazing school!
Spicewood Auction – Sponsorship
CALLING ALL BUSINESSES! We are looking for local businesses to help sponsor our Gala Night and Auction. Your donation will help us meet our fundraising goal. We have three levels of sponsorship available. Gold: $750, Silver: $500 and Bronze: $250. Interested please contact Nicole Giannetta at niknick1@yahoo.com for additional information!
Join PTA (Parent Teacher Association)!
Thank you for your tremendous support! Spicewood Elementary PTA currently has 707 Members (84% representation of our student body). Help us reach our goal of 100% representation and join today. Together we CAN back the future!! Thank you for supporting Spicewood PTA.
REFLECTIONS Creativity Contest
This PTA-sponsored program allows your child to come up with her or his own way to express this year’s theme: Heroes Around Me. Children can enter as many pieces as they’d like across six categories (literature, visual arts, photography, film production, dance choreography, and musical composition). Your child does not have to be an accomplished artist or expert writer to enter. It’s all about a child’s interpretation and expression of the theme. The deadline for submitting entries is Friday, October 26, 2018. For more information, including rules and entry forms, check out the Spicewood PTA Reflections website. Please email Sharon Gu with any questions.
Spelling Bee
The registration deadline for the Spicewood Spelling Bee has been extended to midnight Nov-6-2018. Please sign up here. The classroom grade-level is on Nov-8-2018. The date for the school-level Spelling Bee will be announced later.
Spicewood Spirit Night is coming up at Jenna’s Asian Kitchen!
Inviting all Spicewood families to come together and enjoy some great food! Mention Spicewood Elementary at checkout/ to your server and part of the sales proceeds will be donated back to the school!
When: October 24, 2018 from 5pm – 9:30pm
Where: Jenna’s Asian Kitchen:
at 12300 Ranch Rd 620 N, Austin, TX 78750
All 1st grade teachers will be there for part of the night and the 1st grade class with the highest attendance will get to keep Woody till the next Spirit night!! Come in large numbers and make this Spirit Night a success! Thank you for your support!
Merchant Rebates Contest #1
Our first Merchant Rebates contest is just around the corner! Please trim and send in all of your labels, cap and codes to your child’s teacher by Friday, October 12th. The top submissions for K-2nd and 3-5th grades will win an item from their teacher’s wish list and the overall top submission from each grade level will receive a mini Spicewood Elementary frisbee for every student in that class.
Youth Lacrosse Festival
Spicewood boys and girls are invited to the free Youth Lacrosse Festival Sunday, October 21. There will be fun and games for children, plus a clinic where they can try out the sport. Kids will also get sideline access as our Westwood High School teams play McNeil! This year’s event is at McNeil High School on 10/21. At noon, the Westwood Women take on McNeil; at 1PM, there will be a free youth clinic; at 2:30PM, the Westwood Men will face off against McNeil. A piñata and treats will follow the men’s game. Kids are invited for any part of the Festival. Lacrosse, which originates from Native Americans, is the fastest-growing sport in the country. For more information, please visit https://www.texastomahawks.com/fallfestival.
DATES TO REMEMBER
Monday, October 8
No School – Student Holiday
Tuesday, October 9
No School – Student Led Conferences (Be sure to schedule a time with your child’s teacher)
Wednesday, October 10
Fall Picture Day
Thursday, October 11
Please do not Park at Hope Presbyterian Church
Friday, October 12
Please do not Park at Hope Presbyterian Church
Saturday, October 13
8:00AM – 11:00AM Fall Garden Work Day
Monday, October 15
8:00AM – 8:30AM Principal’s Pride (K-2)
6:00PM – 6:30PM Math Night at Canyon Vista Middle School
Tuesday, October 16
8:00AM – 8:30AM Principal’s Pride (3-5)
Thursday, October 18
5:00PM-5:30PM – 2018 Bond Informational Presentation
5:30PM-6:00PM – IB information Night (Play Based Learning)
6:00PM -7:00PM – PTA General Meeting #2
Thursday, October 25
6:00PM-7:00PM 4th grade Music Program
Tuesday, November 6
8:00AM-8:20AM – Veteran’s Day Program (K-2nd)
8:30AM-8:50AM – Veteran’s Day Program (3rd-5th)
Friday, November 9
6:00PM- Midnight Spicewood Auction
Have a wonderful week!
Sincerely,
Teyan Page
Dedicated Principal