Austinville Elementary School
September 28 - October 2 News
Annual Parent Meeting Held at Austinville
Breakfast with the Classics
Due to the generosity of private donors, Austinville has been chosen as a school site for the Breakfast with the Classics violin program. Sharon Landis, from the Decatur Youth Symphony, has begun teaching private violin lessons to twelve third grade students. These students were chosen to help develop a strings program at our school. Dr. Gilbreath shadowed the program at Woodmeade Elementary last year to see how the program works and was able to encourage the symphony to work in our school. The annual violin lessons begin on November 9 for all third graders. However, these twelve students will be continuing their study all school year long and will be able to continue their lessons when they are promoted to fourth and fifth grades.
Annual Title I Meeting and Open House
Outdoor Classroom Fall Picture Fundraiser
Outdoor Classroom Fruit and Veggie Fundraiser
Shaved Ice Fundraiser for a New Digital Sign
Solar Energy Studies in Fifth Grade
A Future Picasso in Pre-K?
La Raspa
Dr. G is teaching Austinville students the Mexican folk dance called "La Raspa." The focus of the lesson is musical form. The A section always sounds the same, and the same dance steps are performed every time the A section returns. The B section sounds different, and different dance steps are performed. A rasp is a tool used to shave down wood in order to make it smooth. The dancer's feet are supposed to look like a rasp scraping on wood. The students are learning about musical form, how to listen carefully to the repeating music sections, and about Mexican folk dances while getting their heart rates up. Look at the smiles on their faces!
Students Learn the Importance of Following Directions Through Fall Art Project
Volunteers Make Time for Reading
Ninth Street Methodist and First United Methodist Keep Austinville's Backpacks Full of Food on Fridays
Muralist, Markus Tracy Speaks to Faculty
Markus Tracy, a nationally known muralist, spoke at Austinville this past Monday at 3:15. Mrs. Beth Young, art instructor invited the faculties of all three schools where she works with students. The upbeat muralist works with a lot of at risk kids throughout the country. Mr. Tracy plans to stay in town for a month, during which time, Austinville, Walter Jackson, and Nungester will work on a mural. The murals will be donated to the Morgan County Archives. In fact, the community will be invited to participate in the process.
Club Meetings Continue to Motivate Students
The Joy of Learning!
¡Mariachi Madness! Guitars for Austinville
There aren't any mariachi bands in Decatur City Schools. However, many of our students come from areas where mariachi is part of their culture. Guitars are crucial instruments to a mariachi band. It is an instrument that can easily be mastered with little formal instruction. Help us reach our students by providing 15, 3/4 size guitars for our music classroom. There are approximately 125 students in 4th and 5th grades who will be studying guitar. Two students will partner per guitar in class. Students showing promise for playing mariachi or other specific types of music can be identified and put into ensembles for more musical development. My hope is to eventually build a mariachi program for the entire system, allowing students to experience music from other cultures and giving our Hispanic community a way to be involved and invested in our schools. Rubrics will be used to evaluate student musical development. Hopefully, one day our school system can have mariachi bands that compete with other schools and participate in community events. If you are interested in donating to this grant, please contact Dr. Gilbreath at jeffrey.gilbreath@dcs.edu
Mark Your Calendars!
October
- 7 Yearbook Pictures
- 12 & 13 Fall Holidays - Schools Closed
- 16 Kindergarten Disney Field Trip
- 16 Club Day
- 22 Report Cards Go Home
- 23 Jump Rope for Heart
- 30 Club Day
November
- 1 Daylight Savings Time
- 6 Club Day
- 11 Veteran's Day ~ Schools Closed
- 20 Club Day
- 25 Thanksgiving Holidays ~ Schools Closed
- 26 Thanksgiving Holidays ~ Schools Closed
- 27 Thanksgiving Holidays ~ Schools Closed