Letter from Mr. Sammon
Smallville Community,
First week back from the December break has been filled with so many emotions and logistical puzzles. Our team remains committed as always to serving the needs of all our students. We are still in a holding pattern for what the future holds and have multiple plans in place to be ready for several scenarios. These plans include staffing, class locations, and other school related functions. Rest assured that in all situations we are always focused on how things will affect our students. We have learned the best lesson in all of this craziness and that is the power of being resourceful and united will always give us the best chance for success. Lesson learned.
We have had many positives through all of this and many of them are from what we are seeing and hearing in the classrooms and online. We spent our staff development day focused on one thing, how to best engage students in the classroom and virtually. Our teacher teams created plans that specifically targeted students to create positive, social, and engaging learning experiences. The plans were highlighted by relationship building, in person attention, movement within the classroom, and opportunities to have students connect. I am so impressed with what we have been seeing and how our staff has embraced the moment. I was speaking with another administrator on campus about the power of “thank you” and what it does for the people that do the heavy lifting. The staff continues to show the resiliency and focus that is required to make things work. So thank you to all of them and if you can spare a moment, please reach out to some of them and share a positive message. You could also complete a RAVE for any staff member by completing the information on this link: https://www.austinisd.org/hr/customer-service/rave Kudos to our students also, they are courageous and inspire us to put in the work to make this school year as good as it can be. Each student at Small has their own story and own level of resiliency, regardless of where they are learning from we are glad they are part of our school community and will always look out for them first. Have a great weekend and stay safe.
David Sammon
Administrator
Small Middle School
(512) 841-6708
PARENTS CAMPAIGN TO RAVE!
Parents, are you looking for a way to give back to teachers and staff at Small Middle School?
We (A handful of Small Parents) have found a free and very effective way to show some love and thought we would share it with you all.
RAVE: Recognizing All Valuable Employees
Let's send some sparkly gratitude to our faculty & staff this holiday season with an AISD RAVE submission!
- Does your student have a favorite teacher?
- Has someone at Small (or any other AISD School) gone above and beyond for you and your family?
- Do you want to support teachers and let everyone (Teacher, Principal, AISD District) know about it?
All of our faculty and staff have gone above and beyond this semester. The best free, easy, sparkly way to show our gratitude is via the RAVE form on the AISD website (link below.) It only takes a couple of minutes to complete!
This form is received by AISD administration. RAVE submissions mean a lot to teachers and staff. It's equivalent to a virtual hug! And, there's never been a better time to remind the Superintendent how indispensable they all are.
Please submit a RAVE for any teacher or staff member (current or from school years past.)
Maybe send one or two a day! You do need the first and last name of the employee you wish to RAVE about. Those can be sourced on Small's Staff Directory :
https://www.austinisd.org/schools/small/directory
Flooding AISD administration with positive feedback will make an important and lasting impact. Let's make this holiday season sparkle a little extra with RAVES!
https://www.austinisd.org/hr/customer-service/rave
Thank you,
Small Parents
Small PTA Info
PTA Hassle-Free November Fundraiser
This has been a crazy year for all of us, and Small’s PTA is no exception. Our Spring Carnival, which provides over half our annual budget didn’t take place, and it’s unlikely to happen in 2021. Our school store, the Cougar Cage, is closed indefinitely. We need your help more than ever!
The PTA budget will be used to fund unique supply needs of pandemic-era classrooms like chargers, extension cords, and headphones. We’ll provide guest speakers for parents - coming November 18th, Dr. Mike Brooks on screen time - and we’re working on creative community-building events that can be done virtually.
We hope to raise $30 per child. We know it's a hard time for many families in our community, and we appreciate any donation you can make. And don’t forget corporate matching if your employer participates. Thank you for your ongoing support!
Questions about the PTA? Contact SmallPTA2020@gmail.com
Clubs at Small
There are a lot of Clubs To choose from. Click Here to see a list and how to join.
Remember that these clubs are an extra service the teachers are offering you and that all school rules apply. Please come and take advantage of the extra social time with other students who are interested in the same thing as you are!
If you have questions, please email the club sponsor.
Yearbook Pictures
This is the announcement requesting pictures from Small families:
Please send pictures of your students or share them to Google Drive:
- camp outs
- trips
- backyard gardens
- next to Austin landmarks and murals
- with pets
- baby pics with name of student
- anything celebrating student success and creativity:
- costumes
- customs
- sports
- art
- playing an instrument
- holding up a favorite book
Our yearbook will be a colorful keepsake of the good things that happened this year.
It will be unique. But, this year our campus is Austin, our neighborhoods, cougar homes, and wherever our cougars roam.
We are looking into doing a drive by Picture Day - Look in future newsletters for more details.
Address the CAC Committee
If you are interested in speaking to our CAC using our Citizen Communication time, please email our CAC chair Co-Chair Chasee chappellhudgins@mac.com for the meeting Zoom details.
Citizens Communications. For all regular and other plenary meetings of the CAC, time at the beginning of the meeting shall be set aside for citizens communications. This time is specifically for non-members to make comments to the CAC. The Co-Chairs may limit the time for citizens communications and the time given to individual speakers. The Co-Chairs shall ensure that the district’s “Citizens Communications and Visitor Guidelines” are applied. Under these guidelines, except for requests for clarification, dialogue shall not occur between speakers and members. If the CAC is interested in hearing more from a speaker, the speaker may be invited to a future meeting and placed on the agenda specifically for that purpose. Or, the CAC may call a special meeting specifically for the purpose of open dialogue with non-members (e.g., a “community conversation”), but it must be posted for discussion on a specific topic or topics.
Clint Small, Jr. Middle School
