Eagle Update: August 18, 2023

What a great first week of school! The classrooms have been filled with joyful voices and learning every day. It was a great week, full of smiles, hugs, and happiness at seeing friends again.

This upcoming week we have several things happening.

First is the return of the Monday Morning Assembly! We will start on Monday, August 18th at 7:40 gathered as a school community to start our week, share announcements, celebrate the week's Birthdays and build community. All students will come to the cafeteria at 7:30 and sit with their class. Parents/Guests will be invited to attend starting August 28th. To ensure there is enough space and to adhere to safety protocols, any parent or guest who wants to attend the Monday assembly must RSVP through a Google doc that will be sent out in the Friday newsletter beginning August 25th. We will limit the number of guests to 30. RSVP's will be provided a guest sticker when you check-in. If you do not RSVP (and space is still available), you will have to wait in the office for our staff to scan your driver's license and print a sticker). The assembly starts promptly at 7:40. We look forward to re-starting this school-wide event.

Our second event is our Back to School Night. Please see the information section below for the time details. Child care will not be available. We ask that students stay at home so attendees can listen attentively to the presentations and ask any questions they may have.

This week on Thursday morning, we will do our first safety drills of the year. This will be a fire and lockdown drill. We practice a drill every month of the school year as required and refine our processes and procedures if needed. During our drills, staff cannot answer phones or call students from class. Thank you for your understanding and patience. We are usually able to conclude our drills in about 15 minutes.

We are so excited about this school year! We appreciate your continued support of our students, teachers, and community!

Kati Achtermann

August 21 - Monday Morning Assembly - all students start the day in the cafeteria at 7:40.

August 24 - Back To School Night - see flyer below

August 28 -Monday Morning Assembly - all students start the day in the cafeteria at 7:40.

September 4 - School Holiday - Labor Day

September 15 - International Dot Day - Spirit Day

• 6:30 Austin High Vertical Team Night at House Park (more details to come)

September 25 - Parent Teacher Conference Day - Student Holiday

Back to School Night is Thursday, August 24th. Grade-level presentations will be conducted twice. Once from 5:00 - 5:30 and then repeated from 6:30 - 7:00. In between, we will have a Principal/PTA Information session from 5:45 - 6:15.

You might be wondering what PE looks like during these hot weeks. As part of our warm-up routine in P.E., students go to the track at the start of class. For no more than ten minutes, students can either walk or jog to complete as many laps as they'd like during that time. Students can take their water bottles outside and take breaks if needed. Today, the upper-grade levels enjoyed their first Fun Friday in P.E. and were given indoor and outdoor play options. Please know that the health and safety of our students are the top priority, and along with the AISD guidelines, our coaches will use their best judgment.

Texas Education Agency released the results of last spring’s State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness tests for students who were in the 3rd–8th grade during the 2022-23 school year.

To see a student’s STAAR results and other resources, families can follow these five steps:

1. Log in to the Austin ISD Parent Portal.
2. Navigate to the Frontline SIS Parent Self Service tile.
3. You will be directed to log into Frontline Education using your same User ID and Password as the Austin ISD parent portal.
4. Once logged in, click on the Texas Assessment Parent Portal link next to your child’s name.
5. The Texas Assessment page will open and list all STAAR results, with the most recent listed at the top.

These results will include detailed breakdowns in each subject, identifying your child’s strengths and areas where they may need additional information for each test question.

For more information about STAAR or to access your child’s test results, please visit the Texas Education Agency’s Texas Assessment website.

You have probably noticed by now that streets in the school neighborhood are closed and/or have limited parking due to city construction and maintenance. The current Wilke and Barton Parkway work makes driving, parking, and walking challenging. Please make sure as students and families are walking to/from school, they are staying on the sidewalks, following the crossing guard's directions, and being aware of their surroundings.

The Austin ISD Student Success Guide (Student Code of Conduct) is now available on the Austin ISD District website for students, parents, and guardians to review. One important legislative update is that ALL e-cigarettes (THC and Tobacco) are prohibited. House Bill 114 requires a student to be placed in the District Alternative Education Program (DAEP) if the student possesses, uses, is under the influence, sells, gives, or delivers marijuana, THC, or an e-cigarette (new) while on campus, within 300 feet of school property, or at a school-related event. Under Austin ISD guidelines, this is a 20-day DAEP placement. Parents and guardians are strongly urged to talk to their students about this new policy and review the Student Success Guide to help keep our schools safe for students and staff. For resources to use when talking with your student about the harmful effects of e-cigarettes visit https://e-cigarettes.surgeongeneral.gov/.

Maintaining a safe and positive learning environment for our students is our top priority. This means that we'll continue with some of the practices we put in place last year. It is important to us that our safety protocols are in place AND that our students, families, and staff continue to feel a positive and welcoming environment each day.

Arrival:

• We will continue to have a secure morning arrival with families/caregivers saying goodbye before students enter the building. Parents/Caregivers may walk students to the front walkway during car drop off/walking drop off. Staff members will be outside and inside ready to greet, welcome, and support our students as they enter the building at 7:30. Parents will not be allowed to walk students to the classrooms and portables.
• The front doors will open for breakfast at 7:15 am. At 7:30 am, all students will enter the building.
• The first week our Kinder students will meet their teachers in the cafeteria before going to class. The teachers will be there to meet them and then walk together to the classroom.
• IMPORTANT: There is NO parking in the drive in front of the school between 7:00 - 8:00 am. This lane is reserved for drop off only. If you'd like to walk your child to the front door, please park in the neighborhood and walk to school together. Thank you!
• If you need to bring something to your child after they have entered the building, please leave it on the labeled cart outside the front doors with a clearly marked label. Please call the front office to let us know you are leaving an item (lunch, water bottle, device, etc.) and we will get it to your child.

Exterior Doors:

• All exterior doors will remain locked at all times during the school day. Portable classroom doors will also remain fully locked all day.
• Staff will check each exterior door weekly to ensure they close and lock as intended.

Dismissal:

• All kindergarten students will be dismissed with their homeroom teacher at 3:05pm.

• 1st- 5th grade car riders, walkers, and bikers will be dismissed from specific outdoor locations with their homeroom teacher at 3:10pm.

• Older siblings may join younger siblings at the younger sibling location.

• Extend-A-Care/YMCA After School Care students will go to the cafeteria.

• *See map below for dismissal locations by grade level.

• Students must leave by 3:20 at the latest.

• Please see map below and note that areas in RED are NO Parking Zones - even for drop off and pick up.

Visitors:

• Visitors are welcome at Barton Hills for the purposes of student support. This may include scheduled parent teacher conferences and meetings, registration, pre-arranged volunteer opportunities, and other scheduled events.
• Lunch Visitors: You may come have lunch with your child. You must sign in at the office prior to going to the cafeteria. Please note that if you plan to have lunch with your students, you will need to plan to eat outside or at a separate designated table. Provide lunch only for your child. Do not arrange to purchase lunch for a group of students and then have your child pass it out. You may only have lunch with your own child - please do not invite other students to join you. *No lunch visitors for the first two weeks of school so we can work on routines and expectations.
• The main front doors are the only entry doors to the campus for visitors. The door buzzer/office communicator is on the right side wall by the front doors. Please push the button to communicate with the office and, once verified, we will buzz you in to the building.
• All visitors MUST sign in at the front office upon arrival AND sign out at the front office when leaving. Please remember to bring your photo ID with you when visiting campus. We will be using the RAPTOR system to scan licenses and print out Visitor tags.
• IMPORTANT: Families, please do not ask a staff member to hold a side or back door open for you to enter the building. All students, parents, and visitors must enter through the front entry doors. Thank you!

Staff Training, Campus Drills, and Threat Assessment

• Our staff will be trained on safety prior to students entering the building.
• We will review safety plans and practices throughout the year.
• We will continue to hold all required safety drills with our students. Most of the drills will be announced drills so our students aren't surprised or alarmed by them.
• Barton Hills has an established threat assessment team comprised of administration, counseling and teaching staff. All members of the team have received Threat Assessment training from Texas State. Licensed Mental Health Providers and School Resource Officers are on call to assist when needed.

Phew! I know that's a lot to digest, but wanted everyone to know we're prepared for a strong, safe, and productive year.

AISD Weather Guidelines

• Temperature guidelines have been established in order to provide a safe and healthy environment for students participating in outdoor activities at Austin ISD.

• The listed temperatures, heat indexes, and wind-chill factors are designated figures for terminating and/or modifying outdoor activities including: Athletics, Fine Arts, PE, and recess.

• AISD_Temperature Weather Guidelines_2022-2023

Website: bartonhills.austinschools.org/schoool
Location: 2108 Barton Hills Drive, Austin, TX, USA
Phone: 512-414-2013
Facebook: facebook.com/BartonhillsPTA
Twitter: @bheeagles

Instagram: bheeagles