Jaguar Tales

Hello, Jaguar Family!

We enjoyed connecting with our families at Wednesday's Open House event. We hope you were able to get a glimpse into your students day. If you were not able to make it, many of our teachers will be sending out the information they reviewed on Wednesday night. Please feel free to email them if you have additional questions.

Please be reminded that there is no school on Monday, September 2, 2024. Classes will resume on Tuesday, September 3, 2024. We hope everyone is able to rest and relax on this day off.

Have a great three day weekend! Go Jags!

Larissa Ortiz

Cedar Valley Middle School Principal

Larissa_ortiz@roundrockisd.org

512-428-2307

Congrats to our volleyball teams this week for their performance in their first games of the season. They took on Chisholm Trail Middle School. 7th grade B Team, 8th grade B Team, and 8th grade A team all had wins! Way to go!

We are excited to share that our school will be using a Mathematics and Reading program called i-Ready. This will be our second year using the Reading iReady program and our first year to use the Math iReady program. Our students have demonstrated significant growth in their reading abilities through the use of iReady. We are excited to expand this resource to our math classes this year!

What is i-Ready?

i-Ready is an online program that will help us determine your child’s strengths and areas for growth, personalize their learning, and monitor their progress throughout the school year. i-Ready allows us to meet your child where they are and provides us with data to inform instruction.

The i-Ready Diagnostic is an adaptive assessment that adjusts its questions based on student responses. Each item a student receives is based on their answer to the previous question. For example, a series of correct answers will result in slightly harder questions, while a series of incorrect answers will yield slightly easier ones. The purpose of this is not to give your child a score or grade but to determine how to best support their learning.

i-Ready Instruction provides students with lessons based on their individual strengths and areas for growth. These lessons are interactive and provide strategic supports to keep your child engaged as they learn.

When is the Diagnostic?

• The diagnostic can take a students up to 2-3 days to complete. We have planned for ample time to allow students to take their time and try their best.
• Math will be taken in class on 8/26, 8/27, and 8/28 (if needed)
• Reading will be taking in class on 9/4, 9/5, and 9/6 (if needed)

What can I do to help?

To help prepare your child for the i-Ready Diagnostic, encourage them to:

• Try their best on each question and try not to rush.

• Try not to worry about questions they do not know—remind them that it is expected they will get only about half of the questions correct.

• Be respectful of other students who take longer to finish.

• Remind them to charge their chromebook.

• Remind them to bring headphones/ earbuds.

To support your child’s learning with online lessons, you can:

• Discuss your child’s progress on their i-Ready lessons.

• Celebrate your child’s learning and growth.

• If your child’s teacher encourages them to use i-Ready lessons at home, reference these Fridge Tips to provide support.

Thank you for your continued support and for being a partner in your child’s learning! We look forward to sharing i-Ready information with you throughout the year. If you have any questions about i-Ready, please reach out to your child's math or ELA teacher. You can also learn more about i-Ready by visiting i-ReadyCentral.com/FamilyCenter.

This is a friendly reminder about medication drop-off times. Please make an appointment before coming to drop off your child's medication(s). With your appointment on my calendar, I will have all the paperwork ready for your visit. Alternatively, please consider a walk-in after 2:30 pm. The clinic is less busy after 2:30 pm.

The medical forms are available on my Cedar Valley Nurse's Office website. Please read the medication procedure, fill out the form entirely and bring it with the medication(s). Thank you for being understanding.

We'd love to see you get involved in a club this year! Take a look at the club offerings and consider joining!

Please keep in mind the list is still being updated for this school year. We should have everything updated over the next week.

The Cedar Valley Debate Club will hold its first meeting on Tuesday morning, September 10th in the Lecture Hall. We'll introduce the club, future tournaments, and begin learning important skills to prepare you for debate both this year and in high school. Students, If you would like to attend, please join the debate club Google Classroom! Classroom code hys2bnt. See you there!

The first FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) meeting of the new school year will take place on Thursday, August 29 at 7:45 a.m. before school in the lecture hall. Students from all grades (athletes and non-athletes) are welcome and can show up at the meeting whenever they arrive on campus.

Next two meetings: September 12 & 26. With questions, contact Mr. Kaltenbacher (robert_kaltenbacher@roundrockisd.org).

Advanced learners may be more cognitively developed, but often have challenges with things like organization, goal setting, and underachievement. To assist parents in supporting students with these challenges, TAGT is providing a free parent webinar on executive function and mental health in gifted kids on September 10 at 6:30 pm. Advanced Academics and TAGPAC are partnering to host a viewing event in the Cedar Ridge HS auditorium with a roundtable discussion opportunity to follow. Please join us as we partner to support our gifted students.

Round Rock ISD offers a wide array of services for advanced learners. To equip parents with information relative to department programming and opportunities, the Department of Gifted and Advanced Academics is hosting a state of the district event. During the event, staff will provide an overview of district gifted services and secondary advanced academic options and programming for students. Information about the TAGPAC and other parent engagement opportunities will also be highlighted. Please join us as we partner to support our advanced learners.

We look forward to having a crowd to cheer on our sports teams this year!

Football Schedule

Volleyball Schedule

Cross Country Schedule

It's an exciting time to be able to attend extracurricular events in RRISD. We all love it when a crowd shows up to cheer on our teams. Please keep in mind that attending such events comes with expectations. We ask that parents review these expectations with their students before each event.

Be Safe:

• Stay SEATED in the bleachers unless going to the restroom or concession stand.

• Items prohibited on campus are prohibited at games.

• Unsafe behavior such as horseplay, fighting, and running could result in being removed from the event.

Be Respectful:

• Use a voice level and appropriate language. Do not play music from your phone or portable speaker.
• Show school spirit with cheers or applause. Cheer for CeVMS not AGAINST the other team.
• Listen and respond quickly to instructions from adults.

Be Responsible:

• Follow guidelines for food & drinks.

• Throw away all trash before leaving the stands/gym.

• Call for a ride at the end of halftime. If a student is picked up after 15 minutes of the game ending, it may result in loss of privilege to attend the next game/ event.

These expectations apply to all RRISD extracurricular events. We hold high expectations for students as a spectator at Cedar Valley, but even higher ones when you are visiting another gym or stadium in Round Rock ISD.

Please be aware that students may be asked to leave the event if these expectations are not met. This will also result in losing privileges to attend other events for the school year.

Girls' Basketball tryouts will take place on October 21, 22, & 23, 2024.

7th Grade will be from 7AM into 1st Period Athletics.

8th Grade will be from 8th Period Athletics until 5 PM.

All athletes must have a physical on file with the coaching staff and all Rank One online forms completed to be eligible to tryout.

Athletes must attend all three days of tryouts to be considered for a team.

Please contact Coach Banks with any questions: kaytlynn_banks@roundrockisd.org.

Our teachers are here to help! In the event you need help with an assignment or understanding a concept better, please attend tutorials with your teacher. Please keep in mind, a pass is needed to attend tutorials in the morning.

CeVMS Tutorial Schedule

(posted in many areas at school, as well)

Spiritwear is now available to purchase through our online store! You can place an order anytime and it will be delivered to your child's advisory class within a few days!

Check out our new shirt design for the 2023/2024 school year! The shirt was designed by an eighth grade art student at Cedar Valley! Help support our school and teachers by purchasing a shirt today!!!

One of the best ways to show your student that education is important to you, is by volunteering at their school. There are lots of different ways to contribute your time, support and resources.

Please fill out the Volunteer Interest Form below to help us match your interests with the school's needs (such as Staff Appreciation, Concessions, Fundraising or School Dances).

CeVMS Volunteer Interest Form

This does NOT commit you to anything other than possibly receiving emails when we need help in your areas of interest.

Beginning the 2024-25 school year, PTA Memberships will be completed and paid directly from the Texas PTA site.

For further Information, please visit Memberships.

All events at Cedar Valley can be found on the Cedar Valley Master Calendar.

Did you know that you can add the Cedar Valley Master Calendar to your calendar? Simply click on this link to access it and add it to your calendar!

Visit our Cedar Valley PTA Online Store to make donations and purchase your Cedar Valley merchandise at our one stop shop! Merchandise will be back online shortly.

To join PTA, click here. We're happy to have you on board!

Vision: Fostering an inclusive community of lifelong learners

Website: https://cedarvalley.roundrockisd.org/
Location: 8139 Racine Trail, Austin, TX, USA
Phone: 512-428-2300
Facebook: facebook.com/rrisd.cedarvalley
Twitter: @cevmsjags

Front Office Staff

Administrative Associate - Principal's Office: Ms. Cristol Alvarez, 512-428-2316

Administrative Assistant - Counseling Office: Ms. Marilyn Beal, 512-428-2348

Attendance: Ms. Dana Harrison, 512-428-2305

Receptionist: Ms. Allison Samuelson, 512-428-2301

Registrar: Ms. Vicky Escruceria, 512-428-2315

Counselors

6th Grade Counselor: Ms. Gabrielle Kerr

7th Grade Counselor: Ms. Heather Mills

8th Grade Counselor: Ms. Elizabeth Guidry

Administration

Principal: Ms. Larissa Ortiz

6th Grade Assistant Principal: Ms. Jennifer Bingham

7th Grade Assistant Principal: Mr. Marc Scott

8th Grade Assistant Principal: Mr. Andrew Carroll

Nurse Clinic

Campus Nurse: Nurse Mina Shimomura

Records Specialist: Ms. Kristie_Rocheleau