The first half of the 2020-2021 school year is drawing to a close. A huge thank you goes out to all of our students, families, teachers, staff members, and administrators for the hard work that went into this unprecedented semester! I am so proud to be a part of our Mustang family, and I am in awe of all of the effort and learning that has happened during this first semester. We have certainly faced new challenges related to the pandemic and virtual learning, and the future remains unknown, but together, our Mustang family is strong!

These students and classes have been the top users of myON and have been earning points from their AR quizzes! Keep up the great work, Mustangs! For the upcoming semester, Mrs. Alvarez will be utilizing the goals generated by Renaissance in AR to track student progress. Each student will have a personalized goal, based on their most recent Star assessment and with the expectation of reading for 20 minutes each day. Students can track their progress toward their goal by clicking the trophy icon from their AR homepage.

TX Library Standards: 3.2- The school library program supports, supplements, and elevates literacy instruction through research-based strategies and participation in national, state, and local reading initiatives.

TX Library Standards: 6.4- The school library program activities are evaluated

using data analysis in order to improve student outcomes.

Ford first graders conducted a project-based-inquiry project about zoo animals during the week of November 30. Our amazing first grade teachers collaborated to prepare the students, help each student choose an animal, and guide them through research steps. Students were able to learn about their animals by reading books and utilizing online resources. The week culminated with each student presenting their findings! Mrs. Alvarez was invited to visit each 1st grade class twice to read books with the students and discuss the traits of their animals. Thank you to Ms. A. Enriquez, Ms. Arciniega, Mrs. Keefer, Ms. Noyola, and Ms. Rojas for this opportunity for learning! We had so much fun learning about the habitats and lifestyle of monkeys, tigers, kangaroos, elephants, giraffes, and more!

1st grade students presented their zoo animal research projects to their peers. Way to go, Mustangs!

TEKS 1st Grade Science- 10A: Investigate how the external characteristics of an animal are related to where it lives, how it moves, and what it eats.

TEKS 1st Grade English/Language Arts- 23A: generate a list of topics of class-wide interest and formulate open-ended questions about one or two of the topics; 24C: record basic information in simple visual formats (e.g., notes, charts, picture graphs, diagrams); 25: revise the topic as a result of answers to initial research questions; 26: students organize and present their ideas and information according to the purpose of the research and their audience. Students (with adult assistance) are expected to create a visual display or dramatization to convey the results of the research.

TX Library Standards: 1.1- Learners and educators use information to effectively accomplish a specific purpose; they also access and evaluate print and digital resources for their inquiry needs, academic needs, and/or personal needs.

Mrs. Alvarez loves visiting classes to read and support student learning! Here is a picture from Mrs. Alvarez's visit with Mrs. Fuentes's Pre-K class. We read The Ninjabread Man and practiced the skill of retelling by sequencing events from the story.

Mrs. Alvarez will share a January calendar for teachers to sign up for a session. During a visit, Mrs. Alvarez can read a story, present our available online resources, teach a lesson on digital citizenship, or curate resources to accompany the curriculum.

Mrs. Alvarez hosted a virtual family literacy night on Wednesday, December 9, at 5:45 p.m., via Google Meet. Mrs. Alvarez shared some resources for accessing books, including a Google Slides presentation and choice boards that are posted in all Google Classrooms, with links to myON, MackinVIA, and Epic! Mrs. Alvarez used the app Novel Effect to share a read-aloud of Twas the Night Before Christmas with sound effects. As a group, we collaborated on a Jamboard holiday card, and Mrs. Alvarez announced an upcoming visit with author Eliud George Garcia. Nicolas, Scarlett, and Abigail were winners of the raffle for attending! In case you missed it, a recording of the event has been posted in all Google Classrooms!

TX Library Standards: 5.3- The school library program extends library-based learning opportunities for families through community-centered activities.

On Wednesday, January 13 at 5:45 p.m., author Eliud George Garcia will join us via Google Meet! He is the author of the book How the Star Got its Twinkle. This is an inspirational story about being yourself and standing out in a crowd. From now through January 17, he is offering a 50% discount with the code PSJA for anyone interested in purchasing a copy of the book from his website, howthestar.com.

Choice boards of books from myON and Epic! were shared via Google Classroom. Visiting with classes to read Gracias/Thanks by Pat Mora was one of Mrs. Alvarez's Thanksgiving season highlights!

TEKS 1st Grade Social Studies- 1B: Compare the observance of holidays and celebrations.

TX Library Standards: 3.1- The library encourages students to read a variety of literature for information and pleasure. The library provides access to physical and virtual collections of high quality, current resources in a variety of formats (print, audio, electronic) and platforms (readable on most devices) which reflect input from stakeholders.

Our Mighty Mustang artists finished this beautiful picture of festive Christmas trees within a matter of hours!

Our Mustang Book Club met on Friday, November 20 and on Friday, December 11 at 2:00 p.m. via Google Meet. We talked about our favorite recent reads, and created gingerbread people using Jamboard to share the traits of a character from one of our favorite books! Then, we read the first chapter of Bernice Buttman, Model Citizen, a Texas Bluebonnet Award title and one of our selections for Battle of the Books. Thank you to our book club and Battle of the Books team members! Stay tuned for upcoming meeting dates.

TX Library Standards: 5.3- The school library program extends library-based learning opportunities for families through community-centered activities.

During Thanksgiving break, Mrs. Alvarez finished reading the twenty titles on the 2020-2021 Texas Bluebonnet list! This list is comprised of a fantastic collection of books for 3rd-6th graders. Mrs. Alvarez especially recommends Sweep: The Story of a Girl and Her Monster, Caterpillar Summer, New Kid, and They Call Me Güero. These books are available for check-out on MackinVIA!

For the Battle of the Books, a team of students will compete to show off their knowledge of five Texas Bluebonnet Award books: Bernice Buttman, Model Citizen; Sweep: The Story of a Girl and Her Monster; Caterpillar Summer; Nightbooks; and The Rhino in Right Field. This competition is open to students in 4th and 5th grade, and will take place virtually this year. A big shout-out goes to students Analy G., Yadira S., and Allisson A., who will be competing as the Ford Mustang Battle of the Books team!

TX Library Standards: 3.2- The school library program supports, supplements, and elevates literacy instruction through research-based strategies and participation in national, state, and local reading initiatives.

When we get back to our Mustang library, we have some great new books to read! Mrs. Alvarez received orders for many picture books, chapter books, and middle grade novels. Many of these books are new and notable titles, appearing on the Texas 2x2 and Texas Bluebonnet Award list. The timeline for utilizing our library books will be determined based on the expectations of TEA and PSJA ISD and school leadership. Once we are able to check in and check out books, a sanitary process will be rolled out to ensure the safety of our students and staff. Books will be quarantined between check-outs, with the use of supplies that Mrs. Alvarez will receive through the funding of a DonorsChoose project.

TX Library Standards: 6.7- The school library program budgets are used to

purchase and update print and digital resources.

Mrs. Alvarez won a raffle from PITSCO Education to get a free STEM Explorer pack with materials to build five projects and complete 15 challenges and activities! The pack is intended for students in kindergarten through fifth grade, and will allow our students to build a maze, a musical instrument, a bird feeder, a parachute, and more!

Thanks to a promotion and the great deals from the First Book Marketplace book bank, Mrs. Alvarez was able to get 135 books for free!

Do you need assistance with using myON? Mrs. Alvarez used Wakelet, an online curation tool, to compile images, screenshots, and screencast videos for teachers, students, and parents. You can access the collection using the link or QR code below. If you have any questions, please reach out to rachel.alvarez@psjaisd.us.

1) Download the Open eBooks app from the Apple store or Google Play store.

2) Choose to connect using First Book.

3) Input the PIN and code (email Mrs. Alvarez at rachel.alvarez@psjaisd.us for this information).

4) Search for books.

5) Click "Get" and the book will be available to you immediately in the "My Books" section.

Books are simultaneous use, meaning the books will be available, even with many people reading the same book at the same time! The book will remain available for two months on your device.

TX Library Standards: 4.3- The library program actively provides an equitable, diverse, and open collection of digital and print resources, including open educational resources (OER), which support the academic and personal needs of students. Virtual library materials are available

at point of need.

Mrs. Alvarez participated in a Google Level 2 Bootcamp training through the Region One Megabyte courses, and successfully passed the Google Certified Educator Level 2 Exam! The 3-hour-long exam consisted of multiple choice questions and practical scenarios, and dealt with programs, apps, and extensions including Google Scholar, Blogger, Google Sites, Google Forms, Google Sheets, Google Calendar, and more. Mrs. Alvarez looks forward to continuing to assist and support students and teachers in using Google applications!

TX Library Standards: 6.1- The school library program incorporates leadership activities, best practices, and professional development across campus, district, and professional communities. The program includes opportunities for collaboration among members of the

learning community and opportunities to help learners become independent users and producers of ideas and information.

Always feel free to reach out with any questions! I am here to support our students, families, teachers, and staff in any way that I can. Let's continue reading and using our digital literacy skills.

Click here to see what Mrs. Alvarez is reading, and what's next on her list! https://app.edu.buncee.com/buncee/5a6e5179409941748e69752b18b3ca4c

Email: rachel.alvarez@psjaisd.us
Website: https://www.psjaisd.us/domain/2809
Location: 1110 East Polk Avenue, Pharr, TX, USA
Phone: (956) 354-2770
Facebook: facebook.com/HenryFordElementary
Twitter: @librarian_alva