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Timy Baranoff Elementary 12009 Buckingham Gate Road

Austin, TX 78748 www.baranoffschool.org

Follow us on Twitter @BaranoffSchool

Baranoff Buffalo Newsletter November 2017 “Trail Blazers of the Future”

FROM THE

Principal Megan Counihan

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

Ø Nov. 3 ~ PTA FUN RUN

Ø Nov. 7 ~ Student Council elections

Ø Nov. 9 ~ PTA meeting and choir performance at 6:30 pm

Ø Nov. 13 ~ Student Council Installations at 8:00 am

Ø Nov. 20-24 ~ Thanksgiving Break

Dear Buffalo Parents, I am thankful to be a part of the Baranoff community (this is my 10th

year) and am blessed to work with amazing children, strong educators, and dedicated parents each day. By working together, we make this a great place for kids. There can be challenges for us all as a community of learners at a large school and we continue to refine our systems to ensure we address our changing needs. One example is how we changed our pick up procedures to ensure safety of our students and to expedite the dismissal process in an efficient manner. Even more importantly, is ensuring everyone at Baranoff feels they have effective lines of communication in place. The Baranoff teaching staff provides, at minimum, a monthly newsletter. Some grade levels choose instead to communicate information via their teacher/grade level websites. Either way, you should get communication from your child’s teacher/grade level about upcoming events, areas of study, and things to know. Teachers also send communications through behavior folders or BDRs. Often times this communication is focused on behavioral concerns, academic notes, or general reminders. As the Principal, I provide weekly electronic communication (Thursday eblasts) for parents that include announcements, reminders, and list upcoming school events. There is also a monthly school wide newsletter which includes columns from key support staff-Art, Music, PE, Library, and Counselors. We have an active school website and a twitter account. While we would like to think our communication is clear, the reality is it isn’t always. Whenever parents have ANY questions about academics or behavior, or any other issue that occurs with your child, it is vital that you go to the source as quickly as possible to seek clarification. When your child shares or you overhear something, or you are just not sure, please follow the mantra “when in doubt, ask to find out”. All of our staff, including administration, appreciates your involvement and want to have the opportunity to talk any concerns over with you. We understand busy lives do not always allow face-to-face conversations. So even if communication must be via email, note, phone, please make that contact. Help us work with you to ensure that miscommunications, misunderstandings, or misinformation is addressed before a small thing grows into a bigger problem. Please also share kudos and celebrations with us so we know what is working well! We sincerely appreciate your partnership. Even with the fast pace of each school day, it is important to stop and reflect on the amazing strengths of this community. Thank you for being caring and committed adults and for recognizing that our staff shares that same commitment for each child’s success!

Megan Counihan ~ Proud Principal of Timy Baranoff

ART IN ACTION… 2 MUSIC INFO… 4

WELLNESS INFO… 2 CHOIR NOTES… 4

CAFETERIA NEWS… 2 COUNSELORS’ CORNER… 5

LIBRARY NEWS… 3

AP ADVENTURES… 3

UPCOMING EVENTS

We Are Wellness The second 9 week grading period begins our rhythms unit in Wellness Class. The first skill we are practicing for 1st - 5th is jump rope! Kindergarten students are focusing on locomotor skills and travelling in their own space (but will be introduced to jump rope too).

All of our classes have met our friend Mr. Bones as we practice learning the names and locations of bones in the human body. We review in these concepts in class, but please review at home since we only see your child(ren) every three days. Allgradelevelscanfindbonesstudyguidesonlineatbaranoffwellness.weebly.com under the Study Guides tab. The assessment for bones will be 11/15 - 11/17. In a few weeks our younger students will be introduced to the concept of continuously dribbling a ball and all students will work toward dribbling under control. Also, this month we will learn how tobacco use affects the human body. We will pass along that assessment date in the future. Athletic footwear is required in Wellness for your child’s safety and academic success. If you are unsure which days your child attends Wellness, please take a look at our website baranoffwellness.weebly.com for the Shoe Calendar as well as other important information. In addition, your child(ren) is participating daily in the MarathonKids program. They are accumulating mileage on the track daily during W.O.W. time so athletic shoes are appropriate every day at Baranoff. Be well, The Wellness Department PS please follow @BaranoffWelllness on twitter to keep in touch!

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Art in Action Kindergarten students are learning about geometric shapes and will soon be creating a robot with cut paper. First grade students are finishing up Kandinsky trees. Our next project will be studying color mixing in order to create interesting cupcake paintings. Second grade will create a geometric cityscape. Students will use collage techniques and coordinated colors to create their buildings. Third grade students are working with the James Rizzi style of creating using complex shapes. Students will make a fun cityscape using personification to animate the buildings. Fourth grade will learn about drawing using contour lines. The subject of these drawings will be one of their shoes. Fifth grade, will concentrate on skill building, incorporating line, value and movement to create a drawing while their clay projects dry and prepare for firing. We will then move on to proportion of the human figure. We want to give a huge thank you to those able to participate in our yearly art fundraiser. Participation in this fundraiser is optional but greatly appreciated. The money we make goes toward enhancing our art program at Baranoff Elementary.

Themovefromthe4digitnumbertostudentId'sforlunchcodesisgoingwell.StudentsaredoingagreatjobwithlearningtheirstudentId.Pleaserememberthatyoucanfindourdailymenuonthenewwebsiteschoolcafe.comaswellasaddingmoneyintoyourchild'saccount.Thankyou!SharonStevensCafeteriaManagerBaranoffElementary(512)841-7154FollowusonTwitter@AustinISDFood

Cafeteria News

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Scholastic Book Fair Thank you Baranoff families for a very successful book fair. Our total sales were over $21,000. That entitled us to a cash profit of $4900 for books, technology apps, and supplies for our students. We were also able to purchase $600 in books using our Scholastic dollars. We truly appreciate the support you have shown our library! Library Activities Students are currently participating in fall lessons in the library for Kindergarten through 2nd grade. Our upcoming units consist of a Thanksgiving lesson and activity for Kinder – 2nd grade and STEM projects for 3rd – 5th graders. Upcoming Events Wall of Honor – We would like to honor the veterans in our lives by posting his/her picture in the main hallway at Baranoff. Please send in a picture with the veteran’s name, title, and relation to the Baranoff student by Wednesday, November 8th. Pictures will be returned to the families at the beginning of December. Pictures can be sent to school through your student’s take home folder in an envelope labeled c/o Angie Merriman, or emailed to Angie Merriman at angie.merriman@austinisd.org. Please help us honor the veterans in our lives by participating in the Wall of Honor! On Monday, November 13th, veterans will speak to our students. If you are an active or retired military personal and would like to speak to a group of students, please contact Angie Merriman at angie.merriman@austinisd.org.

Gifted and Talented Program Information The Gifted and Talented committee will meet before Thanksgiving Break to review the Cogat scores and student portfolios for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades. Parents will be notified of the committee’s decisions by letter via the US Postal System. Notification letters will be sent before Winter Break. The kindergarten-2nd grade nomination window opens in January of 2018. Simple Ways You Can Help Improve Attendance • Get your child to school on time, every day, and make sure homework assignments are completed on time. • Absences due to car trouble, a late bus, and bad weather are considered Unexcused and will go on your child's

permanent record. • Extended vacations, long weekends, and frequent doctor appointments scheduled during school hours will cause

your child to fall behind in class. • Being in school every day raises your child's chances for scoring well on important tests throughout the year. • Follow the proper school guidelines for reporting excused absences in a timely manner. • Allow your child to stay home only when he/she has a contagious illness or is too sick to be comfortable. • Make sure your child exercises, eats a balanced diet, and gets plenty of sleep. This will help him/her to be

mentally and physically ready to learn, and strengthen the immune system. • Read all information sent home by the school. Post important dates on a family bulletin board or on the

refrigerator. • Give your child enough time to get ready for school in the morning. Prepare lunches, pack school bags, and lay

out clothing the night before. • Monitor your child's attendance through Parent Self Serve (https://grades.austinisd.org).

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ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL ADVENTURES

Library News

Music

As we move ahead in Music this year, we begin a new semester of discovery and learning in the month of November. Each grade level will continue learning the musical building blocks that can be used to create, compose and experience music with movement, listening skills, and playing various games and instruments.

In an effort to help our students become increasingly self-motivated and self – reflective, we felt like it was important to review participation and citizenship expectations. Below are the revised and expanded expectations for the music classroom. These charts are posted in each music classroom in an effort to be transparent and pro-active in our communication with students and families.

Are Your Actions Noteworthy?

4 = 1. I am consistently self-directed to the best musician I can be for this day. 2. I can consistently try to sing and participate in each activity as a leader or collaborator. 3. I can consistently continue work on and use my various musical skill sets. 4. Teachers/others will consistently see me modeling positive musical expectations. 3 = 1. Frequently, I am self-directed to the best musician I can be for this day. 2. Frequently, I can try to sing and participate in each activity as a leader or collaborator. 3. Frequently, I can continue work on and use my various musical skill sets. 2 = 1. Sometimes, I am self-directed to be the best musician I can be for this day. 2. Sometimes, I can try to sing and participate in each activity. 1 = 1. Rarely am I able to get my work done, and collaborate with others.

The Trailblazers and the Buffalo Chorale are gearing up for two performances in the next 8 weeks. Our next performance will be November 9, 2017 at Baranoff at 6:30 pm. Students should arrive by 6:10pm. We will celebrate the uniqueness of Austin and all of the amazing landmarks and points of interest. Come enjoy a variety of music from folksongs, to a parody on Beethoven’s “Ode To Joy”(Ode To Thanksgiving). Our next Concert will be December 7, 2017 at Baranoff at 6:30 pm. This concert is full of amazing seasonal songs based on the melodies of the Masters: Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, Purcell, and others. We will continue our yearly theme, “Keep Baranoff Weird”, and these songs will delight and inspire you. We want to recognize seven Fifth Grade members from Buffalo Chorale that were selected to participate in the All-City Choral Festival on October 24th , 2017. They are: Lauren Benoit, Ryan Cruz, Sophia Dawson, Emily Hewitt, Mahliouxphre Mingus, Addie Newland, Haley Robertson.

Counseling Lessons In November, Mrs. Ornelas, Ms. Tackett and Mrs. Solis will focus on first, second and fifth grade classroom guidance lessons. We will cover topics such as bullying, self-awareness and accepting others’ differences.NoPlaceforHateActivityBaranoff will work on our first No Place For Hate activity. Students will meet up with their buddies and Read for Respect. This will be an opportunity for students to identify characters in a book and recognize how we can observe differences without judging one another. Mindfulness Activity Try this mindfulness activity with your child.Listen to the Chime - Close your eyes or gaze down while the sound of the bell plays. When you can no longer hear the sound, open your eyes or bring your gaze up (alternate: raise hand when sound goes away).

Important Student Council Dates

• November7th-StudentCouncilOfficerelections• November13th-StudentCouncilInstallationCeremonyat8:00aminthecafeteria• Meetingdates:

o December7tho January25tho February-NoMeetingo March1sto April5tho May3rdo May24th-Endofyearevent

• Allmeetingsstartat3:10pmandendat3:45pm.

COUNSELOR’S CORNER

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Student Council