From Principal Rosenbaum
Good afternoon AIS Community- a week and a half of school has flown by! It's hard to believe we are getting ready to enter our third week of school, but here we are. There is so much this school year happening. It's been a privilege to meet many of you daily as I say hello in the carline both morning and afternoon, as you've made a point to introduce yourselves and your children. Yes, those interactions have been brief, but they've been meaningful. I appreciate the kindness and the words of encouragement. These first weeks have been a whirlwind of getting to know your children, helping to get the school year started, and working with these amazing teachers, but everyone has helped me to feel a part of the community in this short time.
There will be challenges ahead, ups and downs, and moments of excitement this year. So, please feel free to message, to say hello, or contact me when you have questions.
I look forward to a great 2021-2022! Enjoy your weekend!
Virtual New Family Night
Thank you to all our newest AIS community members who joined us for our Virtual New Family Night this evening. We enjoyed mingling with you and look forward to visiting with you more at our Back to School Nights.
Fall Afterschool Activity Sign-Ups thru 8/30
We have some fantastic Afterschool Activities this fall. Classes are offered in French, Spanish, and English and are segmented by cycle. Check out the course offerings on this fall schedule including basketball, soccer, toy engineering, coding, STEM club, yoga, chess, study hall, piano, and more. Please check out the picture included for open spots - make sure to sign up so the classes aren't canceled to meet minimum registrations! Registration ends on Monday, 8/30/21, so sign up before the spaces are gone. The last day to change activities is 9/1/21. To register for a class(es):
- Log into your RenWeb Family Portal account using your credentials. The school code is: “ai-tx”.
- 2. Open up “Student” on Left Menu.
- 3. Click on: Course Requests
- 4. Register for your desired class from the pull-down menu.
- 5. The school will send you a confirmation email upon processing your registration.
If you have any questions, please reach out to our Extracurricular Programs Coordinator, Jhino Medrano who will follow up with you over the coming weeks to confirm registrations.
August School Spirit Night-Tue., 8/31 (please RSVP below)
AIS is excited to partner with Phil's Icehouse & Amy's Icecream for our first monthly Spirit Night of the year on Tuesday, August 31st at their Lake Creek location on 183N. AIS patrons may actually go all day from 11 am to 11 pm, so order your business lunch and then grab dinner with other members of the AIS community from 4:00 - 8:00 pm for dinner or to go. Phil's & Amy's will generously donate a portion of sales back to the school for anyone mentioning AIS at either/both Phil's & Amy's at the registers for dine-in or when ordering for pickup (simply enter Austin International School Spirit Night in the Chef's Tasting Notes section)! Thank you for RSVPing to the event link below to provide the restaurant an approximate headcount and thank you for participating in this fun community event and fundraiser.
Virtual Back to School Nights-Wed. & Thur., 9/1 & 9/2, 5:00 - 7:15 pm
Given current health data, this year’s Back to School Night events will be held virtually, as they were last year. Please mark your calendars for the following event. Our Back to School nights will include a school presentation followed by detailed virtual visits with classroom teachers to get to know the teaching teams, discuss an overview of the year, classroom expectations, and much more. More details and virtual links to come.
- Cycles 1 and 2 (PS - CE2/Pre-K3 - 3rd) on Wednesday, September 1st from 5:00 - 7:15 pm
- Cycles 3 and 4 (CM1 - 4è/4th - 8th) on Thursday, September 2nd from 5:00 - 7:15 pm
Head of School Virtual Coffee-Thur., 9/2, 9:00 - 10:00 am
Join our Head of School, Jacques Weber, for the first monthly coffee of the year. On the first Thursday of each month, the school and Parent Teacher Organization take turns hosting a monthly coffee. These are informal gatherings to chat with other school parents and staff or sometimes they are themed around a particular area of interest. This month's coffee will be a welcome coffee for our new Principal, Mark Rosenbaum. So, join us with this link, as we also welcome him to the AIS family!
Labor Day/No School-Mon., 9/6
The school will be closed in observance of the Labor Day holiday, and we will see you back on Tuesday, September 7th.
MAP Assessments Begin-Mon., 9/13
Austin International School uses the Northwest Education Association's (NWEA) Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) Growth assessment to track individual student growth during their time at AIS. Students in Kindergarten and up complete assessments three times per year, after which student growth data is shared with teachers and families. MAP Growth data points are important in identifying areas of strength and areas of focus for each student. As such, MAP forms an important part of the work that we do to support individualized student learning at AIS. The first round of MAP assessments will begin on September 13th. Stay tuned for more details or review this video here for more information.
Middle School Retreat-Mon.- Wed., 9/13 - 9/15
Also coming up fast for our Middle Schoolers is the Middle School retreat at The Outdoor School in Marble Falls from September 13-15. For three amazing days, our students will experience Team Building, a pirate ship rope course, climbing walls with ziplines, a compass course, battle canoes, and even archery and fishing! At night? Just as fun! The camp will guide us in learning astronomy and about the stars while we sit around the campfire and eat S'mores and other snacks. It's going to be a great time for our students to not only have fun, but to learn and to bond with each other. Hope they're excited to go!
Virtual Room Parent Coffee-Wed., 9/15 9:00 - 10:00 am
Becoming a Room Parent is a great way to be involved with other AIS parents while supporting your child(ren)'s teachers and the school. Join us with this link for a virtual Room Parent Coffee to learn what it entails and to sign up.
Save the dates
Mark these important upcoming dates on your calendars.
- 8/31 August Spirit Night-Phil's & Amy's Icecream
- 9/1 Cycles 1 & 2 Back to School Night
- 9/2 HoS & New Principal Coffee
- 9/2 Cycles 3 & 4 Back to School Night
- 9/6 Labor Day/No School
- 9/13 MAP Assessments Begin
- 9/15 Virtual Room Parent Coffee
- 9/25 AIS Board Retreat
- 9/30 AIS Medical Forms Due
