Thank you to Ms. Gee and all of our BW families who were able to attend our Family SEL Night. We hope you were able to take away a few fun ideas and pointers for playing and interacting with games as a family.

Ms. Gee and I are also working on a Google Form that will survey family needs. We know that families may be struggling with food resources, daily basic needs, mental health, and how to support their kids through the many challenges that have been presented this past year. We will have that survey out to families this week as well as communicate dates and times for additional support. We are working with Ensemble Therapy to create a family/caregiver presentation as well as a counselor's coffee. If anyone is in need of any support, please let us know. We are here to support our Panthers big and small!

As you may have seen from AISD Communications, AISD and BW are still requiring all students, staff, families, and visitors to wear a mask. We ask that everyone who comes to the school please wear a mask and continue to follow our safety procedures. We appreciate your help and support to keep everyone safe and healthy.

This week we have our make up Picture Day as well as our Spring Dance. Please see below for more information. Have a wonderful weekend!

Peace, Love, Panthers!

Kris Muehling

Proud Principal

Online Registration for new and returning students is now available. The online registration system is available only through the Parent Portal at portal.austinisd.org. To create a Parent Portal account, visit portal.austinisd.org.

Visit https://www.austinisd.org/transfer for more information about transfers and applications for transfers.

Current Kinder Through 5th Grade Students

Students who have previously attended an AISD school must be registered as a returning student. The returning student online registration process consists of the same process for new student registration. However, the returning student registration forms will have pre-populated information from the student’s current record. Some data (appears grayed out) will be view-only. Please call the Bryker Woods office to make changes to these fields.

All returning students who have had a recent change of address must submit proof of residency to their campus for the 2021-22 school year.

Note: Use Google Chrome as your web browser.

New Students

For parents registering students new to AISD, a Parent Portal account must be created before you can access the online registration system. To create a Parent Portal account, visit portal.austinisd.org.

Parents registering students new to AISD will need to provide the following documentation at the child’s campus, or upload the documents in online registration:

• Child’s birth certificate
• Child’s social security card (optional)
• Child’s immunization records
• Child’s withdrawal form/last report card (if applicable)
• Parent/Guardian photo ID
• Proof of guardianship (if applicable)
• Proof of residency

Family Support Help Line

512-414-9187

As library classes have started up again it has been easier to see which books are overdue for individual students. If your child has an overdue library book I will send home a report listing the titles. Any assistance I can get finding and returning these books would be greatly appreciated.

If you cannot locate the missing books:

While all books lost in 2020 will ultimately be forgiven at the end of the school year any monetary or book donations I can get would be extremely helpful in replacing the missing books and maintaining our awesome library collection.

Thank you for your support and assistance!

During the last weeks, per the recommendation of the district, we have provided families with the flexibility to participate in remote learning after participating in on-campus learning. The district is now fully re-opened for on-campus learning and we are moving back to the initial requirements set forth by the district for families to choose in-person or remote learning.

What does this mean for our students?

• Remote learning is an option for all students through the end of the school year.
• On-campus learning is an option for all students through the end of the school year.
• Families will only be able to make one change per grading period (9 weeks)
  

Starting February 8th, if your student is learning on-campus, remote instruction will not be an option when your student is off campus. Frequent changes make it very difficult for teachers to offer meaningful instruction to all students. Some teachers are assigned to all in-person instruction, just as some teachers are assigned to all remote instruction.

If you request a change in instructional setting for your student, you will not be able to change back until the next grading period. For example, if your student is learning on campus and you would like to switch to remote instruction, your student cannot return until the next grading period (after Spring Break).

Frequent Questions:

Q: Our family is going on vacation and would like to have our students switch to remote learning for the week and then come back to campus. Can we do this?

A: No. If you would like for your student to learn remotely after being on campus, this would count as a change and your student would not be able to return until the next grading period.

Q: We want to try on-campus learning but not we're not sure if we will want to continue. Can we try it and then switch back to remote?

A: Yes, remote learning is an option for the remainder of the school year. However, if you choose on-campus learning and then move back to remote learning, this will count as a change and your student would not be able to return until the next grading period.

Q: My child isn't feeling well enough to come to school today, can we just log on to Zoom and do remote learning?

A: No. If your child needs to be at home for illness, please have your child rest and get well! As always, if your child is out for more than two days, your child's teacher will work with you on make-up assignments.

Q: My family needs to change our instructional setting; will my child stay in the same class?

A: Possibly. If your child is learning with a remote only teacher and requests to come to campus, your child will be placed with an in-person teacher. Likewise, if a teacher is assigned to in-person learners and you choose to go remote, your student will move to a teacher that provides remote instruction.

Current Staff/Instructional Setting

Kinder:

Ms. Noid- Remote Only

Ms. Ruiz- In-Person Only

Ms. Reyes- In-Person Only

1st:

Ms. DiGaetano/Ms. Olle- Remote Only

Ms. Leifeste- In-Person Only

Ms. Morton- In-Person Only

2nd:

Ms. Rustgi- Remote Only

Ms. Doga- Hybrid

Ms. Loney- In-Person Only

Ms. Holloway- In-Person Only

3rd:

Ms. St. Germain- Remote

Ms. Eichner- Hybrid

Ms. Fairbrother- Hybrid

Ms. Rodgers- Hybrid

4th:

Mr. Dowell- Remote Only

Ms. Moss- In-Person Only

Ms. Morris- In-Person Only

5th:

Ms. Cross- Remote Only

Ms. Shirey- Hybrid

Ms. Vincent- Hybrid

If you have questions or would like to change your student's instructional setting, please email admin at kristina.muehling@austinisd.org and emily.murr@austinisd.org.

Greetings Panthers!

Our annual Panther Fund Drive starts tomorrow, February 1st! Yes, this year it was postponed from September to allow everyone to get their bearings during these challenging times.

The Panther Fund is an opportunity for the BW PTA to raise funds for critical programs and services that make our school special:

• Teacher and Staff Salaries -- half of Vice Principal salary, Math and Tech Specialist salary
• Teacher and Office Supplies -- like teaching tools, art kits, gym and music equipment
• PTA Programs and Events -- like Arts By Bryker Woods (AXBW), Spelling Bee, Science Fair, Virtual Field Trips, etc....
• Various Operations and Expenses

Our primary goal for the Panther Fund Drive is always focused around participation! For years the average participation from our BW Community has been ~80%, yes, 8 out of every 10 BW families participate in supporting our beloved school. This is outstanding, but we can always do better!

Due to the ongoing challenges of this year, the BW PTA has decided to lower our financial goals. The PTA spends ~$237/child most years, but our goal this year is to raise ~$150/child. Participation is key, and any amount that works for your family will help reach our goal!

Thank you for your continued support and stay tuned for further communications on this during February.

Make your Panther Fund donations at -- https://brykerwo.ejoinme.org/PantherFund

If you need to request a device, please reach out to Ms. Kettler.

carly.kettler@austinisd.org

Video Tutorial: How to Request Technology on the Parent Portal

Family Technology Q&A

iPad Home Screen/Layout Settings by The Time of Day

Beginning Friday, September 25, Austin ISD iPads have settings restrictions that vary by time of day. From 7:00 am-4:00 pm, Monday to Friday, apps will appear in the current pushed layout. Outside of those hours, the apps will revert to any customized layout caregivers have set, AND they will be able to delete apps they have added. (Note that the iPads have 32GB of storage, and currently 13GB is taken up by District-required content.)

Lost/Stolen student devices:

Families should follow the procedures outlined here.

Student devices in need of repair:

Families can take iPads, Chromebooks, and hotspots in need of repair to either your school or to one of the Curbside locations, where they can be swapped out as long as supplies allow.

“Power wash” Chromebooks to Update Zoom:

Students may notice that Zoom is out of date on their Chromebooks. Students and caregivers that Chromebooks must be “power washed” (restored to Austin ISD default settings) for Zoom to update automatically. Here is a step set as well as a link to a video.

MackinVia and Dreambox added to iPads:

The MackinVia and Dreambox apps have been added to iPads. Apps on the student iPads will soon be organized into logical folders to streamline student access and hide infrequently used apps and system apps.

Students use the Canvas Student app to access BLEND (and then Seesaw)

A video in English demonstrating this process can be seen here. A video in Spanish is in progress and a link will be provided as soon as it is available.

Student iPad Security and Student Safety

Please note: District-wide safety restrictions can be seen on the iPads under Settings> General > Device Management > JamfSchool MDM Management Profile > Restrictions. Families may see other options under Screen Time, but despite appearances, no Screen Time setting can be less restrictive than the General Restrictions pushed by the District. A flyer for distribution is available here.

Handbook for BLEND/Seesaw

• Sign up for a PTA Committee- BW PTA Committee Signup Sheet
• Reach out to our PTA president for additional information- jennrustgi@gmail.com