The Spear
March 21-25 | Austin Middle School
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- Doors open at 7:00 am. Breakfast is available until 7:25 am. Tardy Bell at 7:30 am.
- The school day ends at 3:10 pm.
- Early Dismissal Days end at 11:15 am.
- Bring your supplies, GISD Chromebook, Earbuds/Headphones, and a clear or mesh backpack.
- Snack Bar Open- https://www2.mypaymentsplus.com/welcome
- If your child would like to wear a mask during the school day, please provide one.
March 21-25 @ AUSTIN
Monday, March 21
- IAHW: Theme: Seeking Support Special Dress: Superhero Shirts with uniform bottoms; Khaki and black only
Tuesday, March 22
- FIrst Day of 4th Nine Weeks A+
- High School counselors meet with 8th grade for course selections
- IAHW: Theme: Substance Use Special Dress: Crazy Socks Day (Full Uniform)
Wednesday, March 23
- IAHW: Theme: Lifestyle Balance Activity: Positive Affirmation Day (Full Uniform)
Students will be given positive affirmation badges to wear and trade!
Thursday, March 24
- A+
- IAHW: Theme: Vaccines Special Dress: Sports Shirts Day with uniform bottoms; Khaki and black only
Friday, March 25
Spirit Dress Day
IAHW: Theme: Young Adult Transitions Special Dress: Green Out Day (Wear Green!)
Weekend
Relax and Enjoy
Upcoming in March:
March 25-April 1: Scholastic Book Fair
March 30: Early Release Day at 11:15 am
March 30: Pre-ACT for 8th grade
March 30: Night at the Wax Museum 5:30-6:30
IMPORTANT REMINDERS:
- Bring a Water Bottle!
- Austin will no longer accept lunch deliveries from restaurants, fast food, or delivery services. If lunch is forgotten, a parent/guardian may drop off lunch at the front office.
- If your child would like to wear a mask during school, please provide one.
Students must have their ID badges around their necks before entering the building. If students forget their ID, they can get a temporary one at the front office. The charge is $1 per day. Students that do not have the money will be charged. Students that need a new badge can purchase one for $5.
**All Device forms must be completed through Skyward before a device can be checked out to a student.
DRESS CODE
Students MUST be in dress code each day.
- Dress Code
- Remember Hoodies/Sweaters/Sweatshirts worn inside the building MUST BE Grade-level COLOR
International Adolescent Health Week
Teen Health Center, Inc. is excited to host International Adolescent Health Week (IAHW) at Austin Middle School.
Monday, March 21st – Friday, March 25th *First week back from Spring Break*
International Adolescent Health Week (IAHW) is an annual week-long designation to raise the profile of adolescent health. This international celebration consists of dynamic participatory events to inspire adolescents and their communities to advocate for a successful transition into adulthood.
Teen Health Center will play games with the students during lunches, educate students about the subject of the day, and raffle off grand prizes to 2 participating students at the end of each day! Teachers and staff can help celebrate IAHW by participating in Spirit Days! Themes, Spirit Days, and more details on IAHW are below.
GRAND PRIZE RAFFLE *Austin Middle School Students Only*
- Students may enter the grand prize raffle by completing the Teen Health IAHW survey found on Canvas or linked HERE.
- Students will have until Friday, March 25th to enter the raffle.
- Only 1 submission per student
- Winners will be announced at the end of each day of IAHW (3/21 – 3/25)
- Donors of our prizes include Gringo's, Hey Mikey's, Target, Starbucks, Academy, 5 Below, Mod Coffee, and more!
SUBJECTS & SPIRIT DAYS *All Spirit Days Are FREE*
Congratulations to Austin Middle School students, Colby Clift and Ajani Washington for representing Galveston ISD at the Science and Engineering Fair of Houston. Their winning project ALOE vs Fire received the Award for the project that showed the Most Creative Excellence in Science and Engineering in Life Science.
Congratulations also go out to Austin Middle school student Wayne McCulloch who presented their projects at the Regional Fair in Houston. Way to go students! GISD is extremely proud of your performance.
Special thanks to Mrs. Cathy Nall who chaperoned the GISD team. A job well done.
5th/6th Grade AMS STEM Fair
Science Fair at Austin is now in full swing for our 5th and 6th graders! We are excited to see our students challenge themselves and apply scientific processes outside of the classroom. The 5th/6th Grade AMS STEM Fair Date to April 14th. Below, you will find a broad schedule of what students have and will be doing at the AMS STEM Fair.
Feb 28-Mar 4
Complete Proposal and Registration: Students and parents register through the Scienteer website to begin the project. Students submit ideas for the project to a teacher for approval.
Mar 7-11
Background Research: Research into their topic area to see what has been done before and begin getting ideas for designing their experiments.
Mar 21-25
Experimental Design: Complete all forms and submit a Research Plan in Scienteer, reviewed by teachers and safety committees.
Mar 28-Apr 1
Approval and Feedback: Teachers and safety committees review projects (in Scienteer) and provide approval or feedback for revisions. Once a project has been approved, students may begin experimentation.
Mar 28-Apr 4
Experimentation: Students are performing experiments, documenting progress, and preparing fair materials. Teachers are checking in on progress.
Apr 4-8
Submitting Final Project: Students submit all their finalized materials.
Apr 14
STEM Fair: Students present their projects to judges.
*** Please note that this schedule does not reflect all the required assignments or due dates associated with the AMS Science Fair. Please visit the science teachers Canvas class for those details.***
COVID
Please remember to report all COVID cases and exposures to the GISD website. Here are a few reminders
- We encourage you NOT to send your child to school if they have a pending COVID test results
- If your child is experiencing two or more COVID symptoms, we encourage you to have them tested
- Students in quarantine have all assignments on Canvas
- If a student is exposed/ close contact and is UNVACCINATED, they must quarantine for 10 days, or they may return to school on the 7th day with a negative test dated after the 5th day
- All positive cases are quarantined for 10 days
If you have any questions, feel free to contact the front office or the central administration building.
Has Your Child Been Absent?
The note should contain the following items:
- Student’s printed first and last name and GISD identification number
- Date of absence
- Reason for absence
Absentee notes must be received by the attendance clerk no later than three (3) days after the student’s return to school.
Austin Middle School's Academic Week At A Glance
ATTN: Parents/Guardians
RE: Canvas Observer Account Recommended
To view the Week At Glance Links below, you may need to set up your Parent Observer Account for Canvas. Many of you did this last year and will not need to set up a new account. If you need an account, please Click Here and go to the link under CANVAS OBSERVER GUIDE - TABLE OF CONTENTS for instructions.
- Math: Mrs. Mancil
- Science: Ms. Trevino
- Social Studies: Mr. Grasso
- Writing: Ms. Gonzales
- Reading: Ms. Salinas
- Tech Apps: Ms. Lee
- ELAR/MATH Co-Teach: Ms. Murphy
- Bilingual: Ms. Jones
6th Grade
- Math: Ms. Reyes
- Science: Ms. Diaz De Leon
- Social Studies: Ms. Terrell
- Reading: Ms. Root
- Writing: Mr. Murray
- Robotics: Ms. Marks
7th Grade
- Pre-Algebra: Mr. Ungurean
- Science: Ms. Costigan
- Social Studies: Ms. Ross
- Reading: Ms. Williams
- VEX Competition Robotics: Ms. Marks
8th Grade
- Algebra I: Ms. Cartmell
- Science: Ms. Carranza
- Social Studies: Mr. Williams
- ELAR: Mrs. Taras
- PLTW: Mr. Puccetti
Intervention
Electives
Athletics
Planning to Volunteer this year??
Please turn in completed forms to Mrs. Zavala in the front office of AMS. Thank you.
Teen Health Offers Vaccines
Medical
Moderna and Pfizer vaccines are available at all Teen Health Center Medical clinics. In order to receive their vaccinations, minors ages 5- 17 must have a Teen Health Consent Form (GISD families completed during school registration) and a Covid-19 Vaccine Consent Form signed by a parent or guardian. The Covid-19 consent may also be completed in Skyward Family Access or at www.teenhealthcenter.org. Call (409) 761-3530 to schedule an appointment at the Teen Health medical clinic of your choice.
Mental Health
Teen Health Center Offers Mental Health Therapy!
Galveston youth ages 0-21 are welcome. Mental Health therapy is provided via a secure telehealth platform and in person. If you feel your mental health is not where it should be, you can contact one of our Teen Health Center Mental Health Clinics!
To make a mental health therapy appointment, call: (409) 761-3530, ext. 7
SEL at AMS!
Relationship Skills:
Warning Signs of Unhealthy Relationships
As parents, you hope that your teen will choose healthy, supportive peers to have in their life. While almost no relationship is without stress, teens with healthy relationships overall feel connected and have peers they can go to for support. However, teens in less healthy relationships may feel more alone or misunderstood. They may be moodier, crying more often or seeming more irritable. Because relationships exist on a spectrum, it can be hard to tell when a behavior crosses the line from healthy to unhealthy or even abusive.
The following are warning signs of a relationship going in the wrong direction:
Constantly putting someone down
Extreme jealousy or insecurity
Explosive temper
Isolating someone from their family or friends, dictating who they can see or hang out with
Mood swings
Checking someone’s cell phone or social media without permission
Physically hurting someone in any way
Telling someone what to do or what to wear
If you ever become worried about relationship dynamics you see going on for your teen, try these tips:
Do a check-in with yourself about what kinds of relationship dynamics you’re modeling to your teen.
Check in with your teen. Do your best to be kind, open and not show judgment.
If you continue to observe or get a sense of unhealthy relationship dynamics, follow up with your teen.
Please don’t forbid your teen from seeing or talking to this friend or dating partner. (If abuse is happening, that may require a much more direct response, and professional support can be very helpful.)
Continue checking in with your teen, offering an opportunity to talk and sharing your concern.
For more tips on teen relationships check out these articles:
http://thrivetherapyandcounseling.com/blog/2018/5/30/healthy-vs-unhealthy-teen-relationships
https://opa.hhs.gov/adolescent-health/healthy-relationships-adolescence
Amy Argubright
Email: AmyArgubright@gisd.org
Principal's Corner
Welcome Back students!!
Thank you for a successful and fun Spring Fling! It was a great way to start the break. I hope everyone enjoyed themselves and recharged.
We are in the last nine weeks, and it will go by in a flash. Apply your whole self to all you do.
Principal
Austin Middle School
Perseverance
Our theme for this month is Perseverance! Perseverance is that drive that helps you keep working even when you want to quit.
Example: You’re doing school work and it’s your hardest subject. Maybe it is a hard math problem, or a long essay, or maybe you have to stand up in front of the class and present. Whatever it is for you, it’s tough. You are struggling. Maybe you even want to give up but you know the work needs to get done and you know you have to do your best work. So you try harder. You stick with it and after some frustration and focus, you do it!! You got it done and did it to the best of your ability.
Email: ErikaPuccetti@gisd.org
CONTEST OPPORTUNITY
The Galveston Noon Optimist Club is again conducting our Annual Oratorical Contest.
This year's Contest will be held on March 26, 2022, at Texas A&M University on Pelican Island. The topic for this year's Contest is "Staying Optimistic in Challenging Times."
The first-place winner will receive a $250.00 award; the second-place winner
will receive a $150.00 award; and the third-place winner will receive a $100.00 award. The top three finishers will also be awarded Olympic-style medallions. The top two finishers are eligible to compete in this area's Optimist Zone or Regional Contest, and the top two finishers at that Contest will compete at the South Texas District Contest where the first-place winner will receive a $2,500 scholarship, the second-place winner will receive a $1,500 scholarship, and the third- place winner will receive a $1,000 scholarship. The first-place District Winner will be eligible to represent the District at the Optimist International Regional Contest, where the winner will receive a $5,000 scholarship, and the Regional winner will be eligible to compete at the Optimist Oratorical World Championship, where the first-place winner will receive a $15,000 scholarship, the second-place winner will receive a $10,000 scholarship, and the third-place winner will receive a $5,000 scholarship.
All students born on or after October 2, 2002 (and not enrolled as a degree-seeking student at a post-secondary institution) are eligible to compete in the Contest.
Should you have any questions, please feel free to call Robert Bastien at 409-763-2454 x10.