Message from Principal Standish
Dear Parents/Guardians/Community Members, November flew by and the December school year is almost over. Student’s last school day is Friday, December 18th. There are still many more days of learning. Please remember that instruction begins at 7:45 AM. The school doors open at 7:10 AM.
Please remind your students to not open school doors without their teacher’s permission/guidance. It has been observed that students have been opening the front door to adults when there is not a school staff member around. This is very unsafe. People entering the building are to ring the front bell in order for the door to be opened by a staff member.
I wish everyone Happy Holidays and a restful break. See the children on Tuesday, January 5th, 2016.
Dedra Standish, Principal
Summitt Family Night on Thursday
Summitt Family Night will be at Panda Express on Thursday, Dec. 10th from 5-9 p.m. at the Parmer Lane and MOPAC location. We earn 20% of the sales at our event! Please come out and support our great students and eat yummy Chinese food. You must present this printed flyer or show it on your smartphone in order for us to get credit:
https://www.pandaexpress.com/PandaFundraiser/ViewFlyer?guid=1c13c045-3cfc-4a1c-831b-085f145706d9.
Don’t want to stand in line? Order online at www.pandaexpress.com
Pencil Orphanage in Summitt Library
Second Grader Willa Fischer has created a “Pencil Orphanage” for lost pencils that might otherwise be thrown away. If you find a lone pencil on the ground, even ones that are broken or missing erasers, please bring it to the Summitt Library and deposit it into the pink and blue Pencil Orphanage box. Pencils will be cleaned up and sharpened and sent to areas of the world where children are in need of writing utensils. Thank you to Mrs. Richey for finding a spot for the Pencil Orphanage in the Summitt Library.
Save the Date: Spring Fling
Believe it or not we are already working on and planning this year’s Spring Fling to be held on April 30th at Abel’s North. Last year’s event was amazing and this year’s is going to be even better!! There are a few ways that you can begin to help make this event a success.
1). Are you or someone you know looking for somewhere to make a last minute tax deductible donation before year end??? Make it to the Summitt Elementary PTA and be a sponsor for the event!! Check out our donation request letter to find out more about how Spring Fling supports our school and students. (Please include Spring Fling sponsorship on the memo line of the check.)
2). Start making a list of the all businesses you frequent while out shopping this holiday season or business owners you are connected to and share them with us at [email protected] so that we can hit the ground running with our donation requests in January.
3). Sign up to help with the planning of Spring Fling. Starting in January, we need lots of help making donation requests so that we can have our best silent auction yet. Email [email protected] if you are interested in being on the Spring Fling team in any capacity.
Thank you for supporting our students!!
Lacey Lake
Spring Fling Chair
Tuition-based PreK registration
Do you have a child who is turning four on or before September 1, 2016? If the answer is yes and you are interested in Summitt’s tuition-based PreK program, then please stop by the school office beginning January 4, 2016 to fill out a student application. Please don’t wait–there is a waiting list for tuition PreK every year at Summitt, so spots will fill up fast!
Counselors’ Chronicle
Attendance News
Congratulations to Ms. Tracy Tran’s First Grade; they won the attendance party with attendance of 99.3% for the month of November. Congratulations to Ms. Andrea Pearson’s Kindergarten; they won the highest percentage of children arriving on time… 99.7%. Thank you to all of teachers who participated; we had some great percentages. A special thank you to all the children and parents who came to school as much as possible and arrived on time. Below are the results for all the teachers who submitted calendars.
Teacher’s name Attendance % Arriving on time
Guerrero 98.2%
Banovic 95.6% 95.7%
Winslow 93.2% 98.5%
Cao 96.6%
Cooper 98.5% 99.1%
Pearson 98.5% 99.7%
O’Connell 95.6% 97.5%
Farnsworth 95.7% 99.4%
Skalaban 99.0% 99.0%
Tran 99.3% 97.7%
Donton/Hutka 96.7% 99.4%
Jones 95.5% 98.6%
Carstenson 96.3%
Newberry 97.4% 96.2%
Again thank you to everyone who participated. For December we will be tracking attendance.
Middle School Information
– December 11 @ 1:10pm- Murchison principal has rescheduled the student/parent presentation that was originally supposed to happen on November 2. Due to unexpected circumstances, she was unable to attend
– January 11-14, 2016- Student shadow dates for current 5th graders. Contact the MMS counseling office to participate
– January 23, 2016- Instrument Test Drive at Murchison from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the school foyer and cafeteria. It’s also on Thursday, January 28, 2016 from 4:30–7:30 pm.
– January 29, 2016- Last day to submit 2016-17 school transfer requests
– February 2, 2016- Murchison Choice Sheet Night from 5:30-7 pm
– February 5, 2016- Murchison Choice Sheets are DUE.
College Shirt Day Every Monday– this will be on going for the whole year
Attendance Incentives– The focus for November was on being to school on time. The winning classes are being tabulated and will be announced soon.
SEL-The SEL skills we have been working on include: making conversation, joining in, avoiding assumptions, showing compassion, and identifying anger.
Save the date: Goodwill Fill a Truck
Starting to dejunk before the Holidays? Our school will be holding our annual Fill-the-truck event on Saturday, January 23, 2016 from 8:30-10:30 a.m. If we achieve our goal and fill the entire Semi we earn $1,000! Questions?Please contact Nicole at [email protected]
PE News
We would love for Summitt families to join in on the fun of the Jingle Bell 5K Run/Walk on December 13th!! This year it will be held at Camp Mabry at 8 am! The race benefits Mother’s Against Drunk Driving! They also have a kids 1K Fun Run! Summitt families will be able to register with a 10% discount by using the code “summitt”. http://austinjinglebell.com/
Due to a reschedule for the Murchison Choir, we have moved the Summitt Jingle Bell Jog for 4th and 5th grade students to Wednesday, December 16th. Students will run this race during their Special Area times…thanks!
Library News
The library pets, sweet Guinea pigs, Whiskas and Shelley, are looking for a holiday home during Winter break. If you have ever considered getting a Guinea pig this is a great opportunity to try it out. They are very chill and fairly low-maintenance. They can be left for a day or two, but need a climate controlled environment with food and water every 24 to 48 hours at a minimum. They do not bite. If you are interested, please contact Denise Richey at 512-414-4249 or [email protected].
Giving Opportunities
Here are opportunities for you to give to others this season:
Operation Blue Santa Toy Drive
Summitt Elementary has teamed up with Austin Police Department’s Operation Blue Santa to be a toy collection site. We are collecting NEW toys for both boys and girls, particularly between the ages of 0-2 and 11-14. You can also drop off donations at any Austin Fire Department stations. Please drop off toys in the Blue Santa boxes located near the office any time now until Dec. 15.
Food Drive at Aspire Dental
Aspire Dental (3951 W Parmer Ln Ste 200) has a food drive to benefit Covenant United Methodist Church’s food pantry. Drop off non-perishable foods at the dental office until Dec. 31. More info here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2U9EyoinyBNSE54VUg2cTVZS3JuVk5sb0FwWUxKZDJaS2Zv/view?usp=sharing
AISD AND COMMUNITY NEWS
Night of the Robots
Night of the Robots with the Anderson High School Robotics Team, Friday, Dec 11, from 5:30-9 pm. Enjoy a Parents Night Out for holiday shopping or parties while your kids (K-5th grade) enjoy an evening of robots: Fun VEX & humanoid robot activities, quadcopter demo, arts & crafts, LEGOs, pizza and the movie Jimmy Neutron. $30/child. Register at https://nightoftherobotsdec11.splashthat.com or get more info at [email protected]
Girl Scout Goodwill Donation Fundraiser
North Austin Girl Scouts are hosting a Goodwill Donation drive this Saturday December 12th, 11am-1pm, at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, 8134 Mesa Austin, TX 78759. If the Girl Scouts can fill a Goodwill truck, Goodwill will donate $1000 to the Austin-wide “Friends of Girl Scouting” scholarship fund. If you have household items, toys, and clothes that you are looking to get rid of before the holidays, please bring them to the Mesa-side parking lot of St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church.
Educational Series: Building Your Child’s Self Esteem
The Ranch Achievement Program, (located at Texas NeuroRehab Center, 1106 West Dittmar Road Austin, Texas 78745) is hosting an educational series on Wednesday, December 16, 2015. Dinner and Refreshments 6 – 6:30pm; Presentation begins at 6:30 – 7:30pm.
By definition, self-esteem is the way in which an individual perceives themselves. It is shaped not only by a child’s own perception and expectations, but also the perceptions and expectations of significant people in their lives. During this group we will discuss characteristics of healthy and unhealthy self-esteem and ways parents can help support and build healthy self-esteem in their children.
The series is free and open to the public. Please RSVP to Wendi at [email protected].
Minecraft class for 1st-5th graders
Minecraft Interactive Realm Class – The interactive realm class hosts a private realm for students to play and collaborate in a safe environment. Students will learn basic coding skills that will help them to advance to Java coding. Class starts at 2:45 p.m. on January 19th and runs every Tuesday through May 10th. Register at http://www.resetedu.com/store-2/?model_number=serviceABC127