The Bark

I hope that everyone had a wonderful first week of school. We were so excited to welcome our students to Lamar! We spent a lot of time this week building connections and learning routines and procedures. Students were eager to dive into learning new materials, instruments, and sports.

The first few newsletters are typically filled with information. Be sure to read to the end to catch announcements from teachers about picture day, clubs, and more!

Don't forget to mark your calendars for Back To School Night and Picture Day! Picture day(s) will be Thursday, September 1 and Friday, September 2. Back to School Night is on on Wednesday, September 7th.

Starting on Monday, we welcome Mr. Gratz, our new PE/Health teacher!

We also welcome Ms. Rand and Ms. Neal as new teaching assistants

This year, we are asking that all students have a district issued Chromebook instead of allowing “Bring Your Own Device” or BYOD. Many programs and apps used for instruction and assessment are not accessible on BYOD. STAAR testing will be all online this year and cannot be taken on a BYOD. With each student using a district device, we will be able to have a shorter testing period and reduce interruptions to instruction.

Students were surveyed on Friday in Scottie Seminar if they had a district-issued device. Mr. Willenberg will be working in the next several days to issue devices. AISD has committed support to ensure that we have enough devices for all our students.

Students are encouraged to continue to bring their BYODs until they are issued a district Chromebook.

Blend is AISD’s Learning Management System (LMS). You may think of it like a virtual classroom. Teachers post important information and links to assignments that will be taken for a grade. During the first few weeks of school, many teachers are using more traditional instructional methods until all students are issued a device. Don’t worry if a teacher’s BLEND page isn’t visible yet - it’s coming soon!

Parents have access to BLEND through their Parent Portal. Please be aware that BLEND has features that teachers do not use such as the gradebook and at times, email. Frontline or Parent Self-Serve is the official gradebook.

ELA class rotations to the Lamar library start the week of August 22, beginning with our sixth grade students.

Here are some good facts to know:

✅ Students may check out two books for two weeks

✅ ELA classes come monthly. However, students may use a pass to come to the library at other times in school to browse.

✅ There’s a book drop in front of the library so

Students can return books at any time. No need to wait until your next ELA visit.

Questions? Contact Mrs. Bowman at tara.bowman@austinisd.org.

Students may request a schedule change for electives beginning August 22nd using this form: https://forms.gle/BDGHfMS2GzPTm8CY7. They must get a “taste” of the course before deciding to change it. This form will also be available on the counselors' BLEND page and on your Scottie Seminar BLEND page. This deadline to request a change is 4PM on Friday, August 26th.

Things to note:

• There must be an available seat in the course you are requesting

• We cannot move any core classes to make a change

• We cannot make teacher or period changes

• No elective schedule changes will occur after August 26th

Exceptions:

• A core class level change - if a student wants to move from Academic to Advanced, or Advanced to Academic, must have parent and teacher approval

• Student is missing a core class or a required elective for Fine Arts majors

Due to the number of requests we receive, you will only be contacted if your request can be accommodated.

In addition to schedule change requests, counselors are also working on reducing class sizes in certain courses through leveling. We know that change is hard and so are large classes. We appreciate your understanding as we work through this process.

A limited number of lockers are available for students to request. Students wishing to request a locker will be invited to the cafeteria during Scottie Seminar on Tuesday, August 23rd.

In alignment with our focus on supporting students to be Respectful/Responsible, Inclusive, Safe, and Engaged, Lamar has implemented some new procedures that will become routines. In order for a procedure to become a routine, we must teach and practice our desired behaviors. This is true with many areas of school such as hallways, arrival, dismissal, and…lunch. What I’m about to share may seem like a lot of information but I think it is important to understand the context and factors that lead to our decisions.

Lamar serves 1,200 students and our cafeteria holds 350 students. In order for us to seat all of our students, we have four, thirty-minute lunch periods. Feeding and cleaning after that many students in a 2 hour period takes a lot of coordination and collaboration. Add staffing shortages in cafeteria, custodial, and supervisory staff and we find ourselves in need of even more structure. At this time, we have two custodians during lunch and only enough cafeteria staff to have one line open.

The lunch procedures are that teachers walk their students down to the cafeteria and then students are seated accordingly. Students are then dismissed a table row at a time to get food from the cafeteria as needed.

If, after all students have made their way through the lunch line there is at least 10 minutes remaining in lunch, we provide students with a few minutes of free socialization outside. This is after we have ensured that all students have cleaned up their trash.

The first few days of school, it was taking a while for students to proceed through the lines and we were not able to provide students with outside time. By Thursday, we were able to get 3 out of 4 lunch periods some outside time where they are able to socialize with whomever they choose.

The benefits that we have already seen this week are that students are being more INCLUSIVE and eating lunch with new friends. Students are not faced with the dreaded, “Who do I sit with at lunch?” dilemma. Mr. Carlin, our head custodian, has remarked that the cafeteria is cleaner than ever before. The overall vibe of the cafeteria is more orderly, providing a calmer environment for all students.

How can parents help make lunch smoother so students can have more opportunities to socialize?

• Help your child memorize their student ID number, also known as an “s” number.

• Go cashless and create an account at Schoolcafe.com.

• Apply for meal assistance at Schoolcafe.com

Students may eat only food from the cafeteria or food provided by their parents/caregivers. We cannot accept food deliveries such as Doordash or UberEats.

Students are dismissed from school at 3:50 pm. Teachers will walk students out of their classrooms and direct students towards their necessary locations.

The majority of buses pick up in the bus lane along Burnet Rd, unless otherwise notified by AISD transportation or a teacher.

Once students exit the building, they will not be allowed in the building unless they have a pass from a teacher.

Students are again, encouraged to use designated crosswalks and avoid the same ones as described in the morning.

Students are encouraged to continue to RISE and show respect to our neighboring businesses. We discourage students from entering businesses without a parent.

So as to maximize learning and reduce distractions, Lamar practices the following electronics policy:

• Cell phones, airpods, and smart watches, are to be silent and in backpacks from 8:20 am to 3:50 pm.

• Staff will confiscate devices and turn them into the office. The first time a device is confiscated, students may retrieve them from an assistant principal after school. The second time a device is confiscated, a parent must retrieve the device. If a device is confiscated a third time, students will be placed on a device contract and disciplinary action may be taken.

We understand that after school pick up plans may change and you may need to send your child a message during the day. We have decided to allow, but not require, students a few minutes at lunch to check their phones or play games on their computers. Administrators announce when device time begins and ends.

Our friends at HEB will be only allowing students to enter with a parent. HEB staff will monitor the entrances to ensure compliance with this policy. Let’s support our neighborhood HEB by reminding students of our expectations

Reminder that we are not able to sign students out after 3:30 pm due to the proximity to dismissal.

Need to purchase PE shorts? Bring $10 (cash or check made out to Lamar Middle School) to PE and Coach Potter will provide students with the necessary shorts. Students may also purchase a PE t-shirt for $10, although any grey t-shirt is acceptable. See Coach Potter (dale.potter@austinisd.org) with questions.

• Picture Day is coming up! Thursday, September 1 and Friday, September 2.
• Order online at mylifetouch.com before picture day (Picture Day ID: EVTM7S84G)

Lamar community, want to help our teachers and staff in an easy, fuss-free way? Please donate to our Courtesy Fund!

You’ll be helping sponsor birthday cakes 🍰, flowers for important life events 🌷, and even a meal or two🍴.

As little as $5 goes a long way. Donate now at:

https://austinisd.schoolcashonline.com/Fee/Details/26329/63/False/True

2022 - 2023 A/B Calendar (updated 8.11.22)

Lunch Assignments (coming soon)

Student Handbook

Austin ISD Student Success Guide (FKA Student Code of Conduct) SPN Version

Day: Friday 9/2

Time: 7:50-8:15 am

Location: Dance portable 5

Dance majors student only

Lamar will begin hosting the Dungeons and Dragons Club starting Thursday, August 25th in the library from 4:00 pm to 5:00 pm.

Contact Mr. Smith (daniel.smith@austinisd.org) in Room 106 with any questions. Hope to see you there!

Students interested in Cross Country - Please attend an informational meeting after school, 4:00, on Monday, August 22 in room 204.

If you have any questions, contact Ms. Rowland: virginia.rowland@austinisd.org

GSA Club will meet at 3:55 in the library on certain Wednesdays. Meetings will end promptly at 4:30.

August 31 - first meeting!

September 14 and 28

October 12 and 26

November 9 & 30

December 14

To join, email catherine.vouvray@austinisd.org or join the Blend group by self-enrolling at this link: https://aisdblend.instructure.com/enroll/FAPHJD. Your parent will also be auto-enrolled in the Blend course. If you have trouble joining the Blend, you can stop by Portable 1 to get a club pass.

Don't forget about the free shuttles to the Austin Pride Parade! You can walk with Austin ISD and avoid searching for parking at the event! More information here: https://www.austinisd.org/calendar/events/2022/08/20/join-austin-isd-annual-pride-parade

We will hold our first meeting next Friday, Aug. 26th, promptly at 4:00 in the cafeteria. The meeting will end by 4:45. Please remember NJHS meeting attendance is mandatory.

During the meeting, we will rehearse for the NJHS Induction, which will take place on Tuesday evening, Aug. 30th, at 6:00 pm. Attending the Induction is a requirement for membership!

We look forward to seeing you next Friday,

Mrs. Sanders & Ms. Kestner

leticia.sanders@austinisd.org, ann.kestner@austinisd.org