Panther Print

I hope you are staying warm on this frigid day! Thank you so much for your flexibility during our rainy and cold Thursday dismissal as well as your flexibility with today's remote learning.

This week we welcomed more students back to campus. We had an average of 215 students ( 56% of student enrollment) on campus and are excited to welcome more back next week. We continue to make classroom, cafeteria and special area adjustments as more students return to in-person learning. Thank you for your support with these continued changes.

This is a reminder that students do not have school on Monday. This is a professional learning day for our staff. Students will return on Tuesday and we will have our Valentine's celebrations as well as our Valentine's Day dance.

This week we will host our Annual SEL Family Night (see information below) as well as take individual school pictures. We invite all students (in-person and remote) to have their photos taken on Friday. I've included information below as well as a link to order photos.

Stay safe and warm this weekend!

Peace, Love, Panthers!

Kris Muehling

Proud Principal

Monday, February 15

• No School/Staff Professional Learning Day

Tuesday, February 16

• Valentine's Day Celebrations
• Valentine's Day Dance 1:45-2:30

• SEL Family Night

• Picture Day

February 26: Asynchronous Learning Day

March 2: PTA Meeting

March 8: CAC Meeting

March 15-19: Spring Break

Ms. Rustgi has taught for many years in second and fourth grade, most recently at Doss Elementary. We are excited to learn from and with her this school year! Welcome, Ms. Rustgi!

Mark your calendars Panthers for Thursday February 18th from 6:00-7:00. We will be having our annual SEL family night virtually this year. I am so excited to introduce Shana Merlin to you. She will be leading us through an amazing night of fun and laughter.

This year Parents and kids will be participating in "Remembering How to Play."

Play is a powerful tool for grown ups and kids alike to relieve stress, rejuvenate the spirit, increase connection, and be physically active. In this interactive session we will learn ways to play like a kid again with the right mindset. And we will practice a few games that you can play with your kids immediately. Remember what it's like to just play and let your kids experience games without screens!

More about Shana: Shana Merlin has been using the tools and techniques from improvisational comedy to teach team building, communication, sales, persuasion, leadership, making meetings matter, medical communications, and creativity. Some of her clients have included Dell, T-Mobile, Silicon Labs, Methodist Medical Center and Deloitte. Shana is an associate at the Center for Health Communication at the University of Texas and is the Dean of the Merlin Works Institute for Improvisation.

I will send out zoom information closer to the event. Can't wait to see you all on Thursday February 18th.

Picture Day: February 19th

On Friday Inter-State Studio Photography will come to campus to take individual yearbook pictures. Students on campus will have their photos taken during the morning. Remote students are invited to come to campus to have their photos taken between 12 pm and 2 pm.

You may place your picture order on the Interstate website.

Here are the details for remote learners:

• You DO NOT have to come to campus to be included in the yearbook. If you do not plan to come to campus and want your student to be in the yearbook, please see posts from Tristin Sullivan about submitting pictures.
• You do not need to sign up for a specific time or notify us that you are coming to campus, just arrive anytime between 12 pm and 2 pm.
• Upon arrival, please park on the street and have your student come to the library doors. At the door, students will have their temperature taken. No adults can enter the building.
• All students must wear a mask into the building but will take the mask off for their photo.
  
• Students will exit through the library door after having their picture taken.

As always, we will follow careful cleaning and safety protocol.

Please email Denise Wolfe at denise.wolfe@austinisd.org with any questions regarding on-campus pictures with Inter-State. Please email Tristin Sullivan at tristin.sullivan@austinisd.org with any questions regarding yearbooks.

Online Registration for new and returning students is now available. The online registration system is available only through the Parent Portal at portal.austinisd.org. To create a Parent Portal account, visit portal.austinisd.org.

Visit https://www.austinisd.org/parent-information/student-registration for more information about transfers and applications for transfers.

Current Kinder Through 5th Grade Students

Students who have previously attended an AISD school must be registered as a returning student. The returning student online registration process consists of the same process for new student registration. However, the returning student registration forms will have pre-populated information from the student’s current record. Some data (appears grayed out) will be view-only. Please call the Bryker Woods office to make changes to these fields.

All returning students who have had a recent change of address must submit proof of residency to their campus for the 2021-22 school year.

Note: Use Google Chrome as your web browser.

New Students

For parents registering students new to AISD, a Parent Portal account must be created before you can access the online registration system. To create a Parent Portal account, visit portal.austinisd.org.

Parents registering students new to AISD will need to provide the following documentation at the child’s campus, or upload the documents in online registration:

• Child’s birth certificate
• Child’s social security card (optional)
• Child’s immunization records
• Child’s withdrawal form/last report card (if applicable)
• Parent/Guardian photo ID
• Proof of guardianship (if applicable)
• Proof of residency

Family Support Help Line

512-414-9187

We welcome all Panthers, big and small, to our Valentine's Day Dance Party. We'll show each other love by sending virtual valentines that will be displayed during the zoom dance party and rock out to Valentine's playlist put together by our amazing 5th graders.

Virtual Valentines:

Please encourage your kiddos to submit virtual valentines by creating a Google Slide and sharing it with me- kristina.muehling@austinisd.org

Zoom Link:

https://austinisd-org.zoom.us/j/97313805087?pwd=T1dzRE5LYjU0VmVheHZHNTJSK1JCZz09

Meeting ID: 973 1380 5087

Passcode: 156983

This week we needed to move a classroom into the library to accommodate class changes and continue to keep our students and staff safe. Ms. Kettler will continue to provide biweekly lessons from the classrooms and allow students to check out books. We will have more information soon as we tweak our library systems and will communicate these changes to the students. Thanks for your flexibility.

During the last weeks, per the recommendation of the district, we have provided families with the flexibility to participate in remote learning after participating in on-campus learning. The district is now fully re-opened for on-campus learning and we are moving back to the initial requirements set forth by the district for families to choose in-person or remote learning.

What does this mean for our students?

• Remote learning is an option for all students through the end of the school year.
• On-campus learning is an option for all students through the end of the school year.
• Families will only be able to make one change per grading period (9 weeks)
  

Starting February 8th, if your student is learning on-campus, remote instruction will not be an option when your student is off campus. Frequent changes make it very difficult for teachers to offer meaningful instruction to all students. Some teachers are assigned to all in-person instruction, just as some teachers are assigned to all remote instruction.

If you request a change in instructional setting for your student, you will not be able to change back until the next grading period. For example, if your student is learning on campus and you would like to switch to remote instruction, your student cannot return until the next grading period (after Spring Break).

Frequent Questions:

Q: Our family is going on vacation and would like to have our students switch to remote learning for the week and then come back to campus. Can we do this?

A: No. If you would like for your student to learn remotely after being on campus, this would count as a change and your student would not be able to return until the next grading period.

Q: We want to try on-campus learning but not we're not sure if we will want to continue. Can we try it and then switch back to remote?

A: Yes, remote learning is an option for the remainder of the school year. However, if you choose on-campus learning and then move back to remote learning, this will count as a change and your student would not be able to return until the next grading period.

Q: My child isn't feeling well enough to come to school today, can we just log on to Zoom and do remote learning?

A: No. If your child needs to be at home for illness, please have your child rest and get well! As always, if your child is out for more than two days, your child's teacher will work with you on make-up assignments.

Q: My family needs to change our instructional setting; will my child stay in the same class?

A: Possibly. If your child is learning with a remote only teacher and requests to come to campus, your child will be placed with an in-person teacher. Likewise, if a teacher is assigned to in-person learners and you choose to go remote, your student will move to a teacher that provides remote instruction.

If you have questions or would like to change your student's instructional setting, please email admin at kristina.muehling@austinisd.org and emily.murr@austinisd.org.

Greetings Panthers!

Our annual Panther Fund Drive starts tomorrow, February 1st! Yes, this year it was postponed from September to allow everyone to get their bearings during these challenging times.

The Panther Fund is an opportunity for the BW PTA to raise funds for critical programs and services that make our school special:

• Teacher and Staff Salaries -- half of Vice Principal salary, Math and Tech Specialist salary
• Teacher and Office Supplies -- like teaching tools, art kits, gym and music equipment
• PTA Programs and Events -- like Arts By Bryker Woods (AXBW), Spelling Bee, Science Fair, Virtual Field Trips, etc....
• Various Operations and Expenses

Our primary goal for the Panther Fund Drive is always focused around participation! For years the average participation from our BW Community has been ~80%, yes, 8 out of every 10 BW families participate in supporting our beloved school. This is outstanding, but we can always do better!

Due to the ongoing challenges of this year, the BW PTA has decided to lower our financial goals. The PTA spends ~$237/child most years, but our goal this year is to raise ~$150/child. Participation is key, and any amount that works for your family will help reach our goal!

Make your Panther Fund donations at -- https://brykerwo.ejoinme.org/PantherFund

In order to be proactive and offer additional testing resources to our students and staff, Austin ISD will be offering mass COVID-19 testing once per week while we are in Stage 5 in Austin/Travis County.

We are also excited to announce that rapid tests (for mass testing events only) are now available to ALL Austin ISD students and staff, which includes those who learn and work in-person and remotely.

• Friday, Feb. 26 from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. (district asynchronous day)

March Dates and Times

• Friday, March 5 from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. (district asynchronous day)

Locations (for both days)

• North: Northeast Early College High School (Nelson Field) 7105 Berkman Dr. Austin, TX 78752
• South: Austin ISD Central Office 4000 S. IH-35 Austin, TX 78704

Registration

Participants must register to be guaranteed testing. REGISTER HERE: https://forms.gle/mv9ScYqSTftJiPP76

Items to Bring to Your Testing Appointment

• Austin ISD ID or Badge
• Completed Consent Form
• QR Code from Pre-Registering Online (not required, but strongly encouraged to help decrease wait times): https://register.txrapidtest.org/

Additional information

If you are unable to make either date listed above, or if you have non-AISD family members who wish to access testing, we encourage you to contact your primary care provider or schedule an appointment through Austin Public Health: https://www.austintexas.gov/covid-testinfo

Thank you,
Alexandra Copeland, Director of Health Services

The Austin ISD 2020–21 Family Survey is now available and is accepting responses online through March 5, 2020. Please click the link below to access the survey.

Families are encouraged to participate so they can share input on district and campus performance. The survey includes questions about how well school staff and leadership communicate with parents, as well as how easily parents may communicate about their students and how families learn about programs offered at their school. Due to COVID-19, it is especially important this year to provide your opinion to ensure we are providing a great experience for you and your child.

The results will help district leadership learn how to best to improve services for our students.

To take the survey:
https://tinyurl.com/AISD-Family-Survey-2021

Austin ISD is currently working on the calendars for the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 school years. The Calendar Task Force has worked very hard to prepare two (2) calendar options. Please take a minute to vote on the calendars that you prefer for each school year.

Please click on this link to view the calendars and to vote: Vote here

Or copy and paste the URL below into your internet browser:
https://austinisd.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9FakodMJbJHPro1

If you have technical issues with this survey, please contact Cinda Christian at survey@austinisd.org.

If you need to request a device, please reach out to Ms. Kettler.

carly.kettler@austinisd.org

Video Tutorial: How to Request Technology on the Parent Portal

Family Technology Q&A

iPad Home Screen/Layout Settings by The Time of Day

Beginning Friday, September 25, Austin ISD iPads have settings restrictions that vary by time of day. From 7:00 am-4:00 pm, Monday to Friday, apps will appear in the current pushed layout. Outside of those hours, the apps will revert to any customized layout caregivers have set, AND they will be able to delete apps they have added. (Note that the iPads have 32GB of storage, and currently 13GB is taken up by District-required content.)

Lost/Stolen student devices:

Families should follow the procedures outlined here.

Student devices in need of repair:

Families can take iPads, Chromebooks, and hotspots in need of repair to either your school or to one of the Curbside locations, where they can be swapped out as long as supplies allow.

“Power wash” Chromebooks to Update Zoom:

Students may notice that Zoom is out of date on their Chromebooks. Students and caregivers that Chromebooks must be “power washed” (restored to Austin ISD default settings) for Zoom to update automatically. Here is a step set as well as a link to a video.

MackinVia and Dreambox added to iPads:

The MackinVia and Dreambox apps have been added to iPads. Apps on the student iPads will soon be organized into logical folders to streamline student access and hide infrequently used apps and system apps.

Students use the Canvas Student app to access BLEND (and then Seesaw)

A video in English demonstrating this process can be seen here. A video in Spanish is in progress and a link will be provided as soon as it is available.

Student iPad Security and Student Safety

Please note: District-wide safety restrictions can be seen on the iPads under Settings> General > Device Management > JamfSchool MDM Management Profile > Restrictions. Families may see other options under Screen Time, but despite appearances, no Screen Time setting can be less restrictive than the General Restrictions pushed by the District. A flyer for distribution is available here.

Handbook for BLEND/Seesaw

• Sign up for a PTA Committee- BW PTA Committee Signup Sheet
• Reach out to our PTA president for additional information- jennrustgi@gmail.com

• AISD Covid-19 Updates
• AISD Summer Meals Sites
• BW Website
• AISD Asbestos Letter (see attachment below)

Email: kristina.muehling@austinisd.org
Website: byrkerwoods.austinschools.org
Location: 3309 Kerbey Lane, Austin, TX, USA
Phone: 512-414-2054