Believe in Your Shelf
ARS Library Newsletter 23-24
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Looking for last week's library newsletter? Just scroll down! This will be the permanent spot for all ARS Library Smore Newsletters this year--we will be updating this page.
January 19
Million Minute Reading Challenge WIN!!
We are excited to share that we WON the high school category of the Million Minute Challenge in the 2nd 9 weeks! We also won HIGHEST number of minutes in the district, by an embarassingly large margin. Go Stars!
I love that at a STEM school our students still show a love of reading...they know the value of stories & how reading can open new worlds. So beautiful!
This means that next Friday January 26th will be a spirit dress day for all students. They can wear:
- their uniform
- uniform bottoms or jeans with an Ann Richards tshirt
- uniform bottoms or jeans with a library or reading themed tshirt
- a book character themed costume, as long as it follows the AISD dress code
Teachers are invited to participate as well! Huge thanks to our students for logging their reading minutes & all parents & teachers who helped encourage them...congratulations!
Overdue Books
We will run another overdue report on Wednesday so please ask your child if they have overdue books and help them remember to turn them in ASAP.
Myth: Students cannot check out library books if they have an overdue book.
Myth Busted: Students CAN check out library books if they have an overdue book! They just need our permission (we give it!) and to not be over the 4 book limit.
Please let us know if you have any questions!
Hosting Internship Interviews
We were honored to host internship interviews for our juniors in the library this week. They are so prepared, knowledgeable, and impressive! Good luck to them!
Staff Reading Challenge
You might be interested to learn of the winners of our Staff Reading Challenge...
- 1st place: Jennifer Fabila Ramirez, Special Education TA
- 2nd place: Steffanie Ho, Nurse
- 3rd place: Doc White, Sports Med
I love that staff from all areas participated! Our nurse commented "The past 2 years, I probably finished 1 book a year. I think I've finished more than 20 now. I'm glad I revived my love of reading!"
Intersession in the Library
We had a blast curling up in our beautiful library during Intersession to read! We also hosted former librarian Shawn Mauser and student leader Ariana Herrera to teach some book binding and junk journaling techniques.
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December 15
HS Highlight Night in the Library
It was so great to see so many 8th grade students and families at our HS Highlight Night this week! Here are some HS library opportunities for our ARS students you might not know about...
Alumnae Event
We were honored to help the ARS Foundation host a coffee & tea mingle event for our alumnae in the library this week. We had a blast seeing graduates & catching up--we look forward to connecting with your kiddos even after they graduate as well!
Overdue Books
Now is the time to turn in or renew all overdue books! Please ask your child if they have overdue books (they are sent a list weekly) and help them remember to turn them in before Wednesday.
Students are welcome and invited to check out books to read over the Winter Break!
Final Exam Help
We are supporting our Stars taking HS final exams in lots of different ways! Students have been using the library to study, research, print materials for final projects, take a break by doing a puzzle, coloring, using the Student Mindfulness Room, have a "spot of tea"...and reading, of course!
December 8
One Last Push!
We are hoping to win the district's reading challenge so are doing one last push for students to log their reading minutes! The challenge ends at the end of the 9 weeks so please encourage your kiddo to participate.
We are currently in 3rd place in the district--track our progress here!
Library Logo for Letter Jackets!
This year we debuted a library logo patch for our juniors' letter jackets. Check it out above!
Did you know? - Divine Canines
Retired ARS Teacher-Librarian Shawn Mauser & her dog Dipper are regular visitors with the therapy dog program Divine Canines. They visit once a month with some of their dog friends--here's one that visited this week!
Showcase & HS Highlight Night
We have some fantastic student volunteers who shared about all things library-related at the Showcase last week with our 5th grade visitors & families. We also have some student leaders who will be talking about HS book club & library opportunities at the Highlight Night next week. Shoutout to these students for volunteering their time!
December 1
Did you know?
We are also running a Staff Reading Challenge with just ARS faculty & staff, alongside the district Million Minute Reading Challenge. Both challenges finish at the end of the 9 weeks.
Prizes are BookPeople gift cards!
Current rankings:
1st - Sharon Roy (7th grade Stars)
2nd - Steffanie Ho (Nurse)
3rd - Doc White (Sports Med)
4th - Jennifer Fabila Ramirez (Special Education Teaching Assistant)
5th - Victoria Sanchez (6th grade World Cultures)
Million Minute Reading Challenge
Looks like we've been bumped out of 2nd place district-wide by Oak Springs Elementary! Track our progress here.
We are also still ~1,000 minutes behind Crockett HS...encourage your child to read and log their minutes so we can win!
Club Highlight
Two of our fantastic 7th grade student leaders have been running a MS Book Club biweekly during Mission Mondays. They chose the book, planned out the schedule, created discussion questions, and have been taking the lead with students 6th-8th grades.
We plan to choose a new book for the spring semester. Encourage your middle schooler to sign up during Mission Monday A5 sessions if interested!
November 17
Texas Book Festival Highlights
Had to say hi to Ann!
Stars volunteering at the book sales tent for service hours
ARS English teacher & teacher-librarian heaven!
Minda moderating an author panel
Stars met their favorite authors!
And their teachers did too ;)
Million Minute Reading Challenge
We are still in 2nd place in the district Million Minute Reading Challenge!
Only 1,000 minutes behind Crockett HS...while your child is reading over the break, encourage them to log their minutes!
Have a restful break!
Hope y'all enjoy the break & take some time to curl up with a good book!
November 10
Thank you!
Huge thanks to all our fantastic inventory volunteers that helped us this week! We got through it in record time and so appreciate your support.
Texas Book Festival
This weekend! Bring your kiddo to meet hundreds of authors like Angie Thomas, Neal Shusterman, and Celia C. Pérez. This is a FREE event on Congress Ave. & the Capitol! Learn more and check out the schedule here:
Author Visit
Author Saadia Faruqi spoke with some students today about her writing. We were honored to host her and look forward to her panel at the Festival tomorrow!
Want to purchase a signed copy of her books? Click here:
Club Highlight
We'll be shining a spotlight on the various clubs that run through the library this year. The first one we'd like to share with you is our HS Battle of the Books team!
The Battle of the Books (or BOB as we like to call it) is a high school book trivia competition between participating schools in the Austin and Round Rock area. Students read a variety of books during the school year and compete in a trivia competition about those books in the spring. Questions about the setting, character motivation, author, and more are all fair game!
The ARS team won 6th place last year and is determined to place higher this year! The team is mostly student-driven, with students creating practice quizzes, organizing practice sessions, and planning strategy. High schoolers are welcome to join--we are starting this month!
Upcoming Events
- Texas Book Festival - Nov. 11 & 12
- Thanksgiving Break - Nov 20-24 (curl up & read!)
October 27
Thank you!
Some of you may be aware of the recent controversy about Scholastic, so we wanted to take a moment to address potential concerns. We did not choose to "opt out" of diverse books in the fair and in fact were working hard to ensure we had titles that represent all of our students. Please read Scholastic's update linked here and know that we are looking forward to supporting our local independent bookstore BookPeople with a book fair from them in March. The Ann Richards SYWL Library does not condone censorship and you can read more about our self selection policy here.
Also, hold on to your books for our used book fair! This will be every other year (2023, 2025, etc.) to give everyone some time to build up books to donate. Thanks in advance!
Please contact Minda Anderson with any questions or concerns at minda.anderson@austinisd.org. Se habla español.
Beep beep! - Library Inventory
Volunteers are needed to assist with our annual library inventory on Tuesday, Nov 7 - Thursday, Nov 9. No experience necessary! We need to scan each material that is barcoded for the library (that's tens of thousands) so all help welcome.
Book Returns
Please help your child(ren) remember to turn in their library books--especially if they've had them checked out since August! If you don't know, do us a favor & ask them ;)
Texas Book Festival - Nov. 11 & 12
Save the date! The Texas Book Festival is FREE and open to the public at the Capitol/Congress Ave. There are tons of authors speaking about their books, activities, & more!
We are organizing a group of Ann Richards students to attend. Please fill out this form if you are interested in being a parent chaperone. We will be meeting at Ann Richards on Saturday Nov. 11 at 10am. We will ride the city bus to the festival on the Capitol grounds and return to Ann Richards by 5pm. Please contact Minda Anderson with any questions at minda.anderson@austinisd.org.
October 20
Donate to Your Child's Classroom Library!
Thank you for your support!
We're in 2nd place!
- We are in 2nd place in the district in the Million Minute Reading Challenge!
- Track our progress here...
- Keep encouraging your child(ren) to log their reading minutes through their Portal.
- Let's go Stars!
Help Your Child Stay Safe Online!
During Cybersecurity Awareness Month, we’re highlighting a few ways we support and protect our students online.
- Report blocked emails through AISD Help (Cybersecurity) or a Let’s Talk dialogue (Technology Support).
- Report a suspicious or spam email to junkmail@austinisd.org.
Online safety and education for families and students:
- Common Sense Media offers information for families on media content, including movies, video games and more.
- Children can learn to be cybersecurity experts for fun (and free!) in online competitions such as Cyber Start America and Palo Alto’s: Secure the Future.
Got a question about Chromebooks or digital safety for our students? Contact Minda at minda.anderson@austinisd.org.
October 16
Million Minute Reading Challenge
What: Encourage your child(ren) to log their reading minutes!
Why: So we can win the district reading competition--again!
How: Through the "Million Minute Challenge" tile in their Portal
Bonus: students will also win a free dress spirit day if we win!
Volunteer for the Boooook Fair!
It's almost time for our annual Fall Boook Fair!
Lots of great books and gifts will be available.
Cash, checks, credit cards and Scholastic eWallets are accepted.
Go to https://www.scholastic.com/bf/ARS to see what books are available, shop the fair online, sign up to volunteer, and set up an eWallet.
Students may visit the fair before school, during lunch, after school, or with their ELA class.
Parents are welcome to shop any time during school hours. Just check in at the office first.
We need your help!
Volunteers are needed to help kids find great Scholastic books, run the cash register, and straighten up the book fair after classes visit the fair.
No experience necessary!
Please use this link to sign up: https://signup.com/go/VkJUnfG
Shifts are just suggestions. If you need to modify your times, just sign up for the shift closest to the times you can work and email carey.mayo@austinisd.org to let her know the hours you'll work.
October 9
About Mayo
I have a degree in Speech Pathology from the University of Iowa and am a classically trained singer! My favorite season is fall and some of my hobbies are Zumba, travel, & brain puzzles.
This is my 11th year working in the ARS Library as a Library Assistant/Clerk. I love to read and chat with the students about what they are reading! I have been working in AISD Libraries since my children were little (over 25 years!). I also love to be crafty so the book displays and creative signs in the library are usually mine 😊
Minda says: the ARS Library would fall apart without Mayo!
Library Wish List
Looks like we accidentally shared last year's wish list in the PTSA #clearthelist campaign--whoops! We have shared the updated link but here it is just in case. We are wishing for pillows for comfy reading spots, coloring sheets for brain breaks, & other supplies:
Upcoming Events
- Booooook Fair! - Oct. 23-27
- Inventory (volunteers will be needed!) - the month of November
- Author/Illustrator Huda Fahmy Visit - TBD
October 2
ARS Library Staff
About Minda
I graduated from Agnes Scott College in Atlanta, GA with a Bachelor’s in Religion and Social Justice and received my Master’s in Information Science from the University of Texas at Austin. I worked in Spain after college for 1.5 years and attended 2 language schools.
This is my 11th year as a teacher-librarian and my 13th year teaching. I was previously at the Dual Language school Becker Elementary (¡Viva Becker!). I am bilingual certified and a National Board Certified Teacher-Librarian.
I consider myself lucky to be your child's librarian! I am all about encouraging a lifelong love of reading, helping your child succeed through research skills & digital citizenship, and getting nerdy together 😉 Fun fact--my last name is Anderson. The kids call me Minda or Ms. Minda so they don't get me confused with our fabulous Parent Support Specialist Ms. Anderson!
The best thing you can do at home to support your child is encourage them to read for pleasure. Our students work hard and can easily get burnt out--help them find how to balance this workload and keep the joy of reading. Research shows that students succeed when they love to read! Let me know if you ever need recommendations or ideas...I love to talk books 😄
Banned Books Week
This week the American Library Association is recognizing Banned Books Week in order to highlight the value of free and open access to information. Please read more about the Self Selection Policy for the ARS Library at the link below and let us know if you have any questions!
Upcoming Events
- Booooook Fair! - Oct. 23-27
- Inventory (volunteers will be needed!) - the month of November
- Author/Illustrator Huda Fahmy Visit - TBD