Austin Elementary Newsletter
March 2021
A Message from Dr. Pierson,
The formula for success has a catalyst, and that is attendance.
Upcoming Events
February 24th to March 11th- TELPAS Online Testing
March 2- 3rd Grade Math Benchmark
March 3- 3rd Grade Reading Benchmark
March 9- 4th Grade Math Benchmark
March 12- No School
March 15 to 19- Spring Break (No School)
March 25- Color Run (PK-1st Grades)
March 26- Color Run (2nd-4th Grades)
April 2- No School
Hero Squad (formerly Pennies for Patients)
PK News
We will have a rainbow of learning activities as we head into spring. The children are doing a great job of learning the letters and the sounds. They are so excited to begin reading and writing. Please continue to reinforce this knowledge at home, and take time to read to them daily. We are having fun creating class books, individual books, and just getting excited about the writing process. Encourage your child to write at home as well. In math, we will continue to work on measuring-length, capacity, and weight. We will also continue to practice our counting skills, number recognition, and understanding patterns. In science, we will be learning about living and non-living. This is a great time of year to be observing the new life we see in springtime. We will do some fun exploring and have exciting activities to help us learn about our living and non-living world. Finally, we will be focusing on learning about Texas in social studies. There are so many thing to learn about this great state of ours. As always, please feel free to reach out if you have any questions or concerns, as we are always here to help in any way possible.
Kindergarten News
Spring is almost here! What an exciting time for fun outdoors and in kindergarten! We have lots of great topics we are going to learn all about through non-fiction books. Students love learning all about lifecycles! Butterflies and frogs will be hot topics! Our writing will also reflect the non-fiction genre that we are reading about. Students will be focusing on one animal and learning all about it. They will learn about the animal's habitat, diet, body features and fun facts. Each student will show off all they learned through an all about book about their animal.
Math will focus on length, capacity and weight. Cooking with your child is a great way to practice these skills! We also will be reviewing the penny, nickel and dime, but adding the quarter into the mix! Using real coins that may be laying around the house or in the car are a fun way to practice identifying these coins! Please continue to practice counting to 100 and backwards from 20. Also, reading nightly is extremely important to continue building fluency and keep our sight words sharp!
Pro Tip: Birthdays
**COVID-19 UPDATE: Cupcakes will not be allowed. Only items prepackaged and sealed by the manufacturer will be allowed.
1st Grade News
Let's spring into the last nine weeks!
There are two weeks left in the third nine weeks. We will be having two math assessments over all the kiddos have learned since January. We will move into using our addition and subtraction strategies to solve and generate word problems with numbers up to 20! Talk with your kid in the afternoons and practice fact fluency so they can build on their foundational knowledge of adding and subtracting!
In reading we will continue with fiction books and start Reader's Theater when we discuss drama! From there we will continue to build on the foundational knowledge of author's purpose, making inferences, and the elements of plot! At this time, kids should be working towards reading on a level G or H. The best advice we can give is to practice these skills at home and reinforce their reading! Reading books together at night is a great family activity that will help increase their reading skills.
In Science we will start learning about animals and their life cycles. There will also be a time when we learn about how baby animals look like their mothers and how their mothers take care of them. Social studies brings us the symbols and important facts about Texas. Kids will learn about the origins of our state and the state symbols we have. As always, if you have any questions or concerns about your child's academics, please reach out to their teacher!
2nd Grade News
3rd Grade News
4th Grade News
Math—4th grade students will be focusing on Fractions. The different concepts that are going to be discussed and taught are representing fractions, equivalent fractions, comparing fractions, and adding and subtracting fractions. Students will be using a variety of strategies that will deepen their understanding of fractions. Our 4th graders will be exposed to their academic math vocabulary which will be in addition to what has been taught previously. Please have your child to continue practice their multiplication facts each night. Students are issued homework each week to help reinforce skills that are being taught in the classroom. Please encourage your child to complete homework.
Social Studies--- The student understands the importance of the Indian Wars, Cowboy Culture, Railroads in Texas, and the Oil Boom and Growth of Industry. Students will be introduced to the past through videos, reading text, and journal notes.
Science --- Students are making informed choices in the use and conservation of natural resources and reusing and recycling of materials; exploring, illustrating, and comparing life cycles in living organisms; investigating that most producers need sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to make their own food, while consumers are dependent on other organisms for food; and describing the flow of energy through food webs.
Reading— Students will be continuing their work with literary nonfiction. This genre combines elements from fiction and nonfiction into one single story. The students are asked to look for fictional elements like characters, a plot, and setting. They are also asked to look for nonfiction elements such as facts in order to learn more about their topic. We will work with this genre until Spring Break. Once we return, students will begin working with historical fiction.
Writing—Students will continue to grow their revise and edit skills through classroom practice. We are also working on strengthening the structure and details found within each and every expository essay the students complete.
As always, we ask that students take the time to read each night to help increase their vocabulary, ideas, and stamina.
Upcoming Important Dates:
March 9th- Math Benchmark March
12th- Student Holiday
March 15th - 19th – Spring Break
Pro Tip: Student Check Out & Transportation Changes
- Always remember to bring your ID if you will be checking out a student.
- Students cannot be checked out of school after 2:30.
- Transportation changes can be made calling the front office no later than 2:00.
Lifeskills News
Correction from February newsletter: Conroe ISD will not be participating in the Sunshine Day at the Montgomery County Fair this year. The district decided not to participate out of precaution due to COVID 19. March's unit is Tell Me About the Weather and looks at seasons and weather. March kicks off our assessment time of year. We will begin March 1st with TELPAS ALT and continue through March 31st. March 29th our STAAR ALT windows opens and will test through April. Our Spring break is March 12-19 and March 11th is the end of the third grading period.
Specials News
In PE, we are working on our basketball skills. We have covered proper form for dribbling, passing, and shooting. From time to time, Caney Creek High School conducts a youth basketball league. If interested, look for announcements in our newsletter for future camp opportunities.
Third and fourth grade students have begun their fitness gram testing as mandated by the state. Students will perform curl ups, pushups, shoulder stretches and running laps to determine their level of fitness.
A strong body helps the immune system so have your children get outside and play if it is safe to do so.
Austin Elementary
14796 Highway 105 E, Conroe, TX 77306
936-709-8400