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October 25th, 2009
Did You Know?
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Mrs. Whistler posts a blog entry every week?
Boundary Survey and Town Hall Meeting
If you have not already done so, please take the Boundary Survey (emailed to you on October 21) by Wednesday, October 28. Our Boundary Task Force representatives Cathy Cox and Molly Austin will use the survey results to work toward the best possible outcomes for our school. They are specifically charged with representing your views at the Task Force meetings and it’s important that our school community’s opinions be heard. We also hope you can attend the Oak Hill Elementary Boundary Town Hall meeting on Tuesday, October 27, at 6:30 p.m. in the Main Building Cafeteria. At this meeting, Austin ISD facilities staff will give an overview of the boundary process. You will also hear from Cathy and Molly about concerns specific to our school so you can be as informed as possible about how potential boundary changes might affect you and your family. Please contact boundaryreps@ohepta.org if you have any questions.
What to help out? Can you give 45 minutes each week?
Who: We need any parent, grandparent or interested adult either English speaking or Bilingual to volunteer (all necessary training provided for you)
When: 8:00 to 8:45am on either Tuesday or Wednesday morning (early enough that you might be able to fit it in before work)
What: To participate in a reading program developed by Austin Partners in Reading designed to help readers at all levels working in small groups of 2-4 kids
Where: In 2nd grade classrooms
Why: Because it is a amazing experience to work with these children, the teachers are very excited to have this program in their classrooms and the more volunteers we have the more children we get to help! You could call that a win-win-win scenario that will help Oakhill Eagles Soar!
How: Contact Hannah Neill (892-2935) or DeeDee Eastwood (892-8765) ASAP - our program starts soon!!
It is
election time
for Student Council!
Student Council elections will be held
Tuesday, November 3rd. Fourth
graders may run for vice-president and treasurer. Fifth
graders may run for president and
secretary. Each third, fourth and fifth
grade class chooses two representatives (one boy and one girl) and an
alternate. Officer candidates will
deliver speeches on Tuesday, November 3rd, then the students will
return to their class to vote. After
the officer voting is held, the class will then vote for their
representatives. Please refer to the web site for campaign guidelines,
election timeline and officer descriptions.
The Oak Hill Student Council is comprised of
roughly sixty
third, fourth and fifth graders. The student
council meets one Friday per month
from 2 to 2:40pm. The group promotes
school spirit, participates in leadership building activities, holds
fundraisers and uses the money raised to improve the school. The student council members are responsible
for voicing the ideas and opinions of their classmates and sharing the
results
of the student council meeting with their class.
If you have any questions about student council,
please contact
Ashley Waggoner.
AISD Community Conversation
AISD is currently in the process of developing a strategic plan to
help the district successfully navigate the next few years. There will
be a community conversation held on October 27 to give input to the
AISD Strategic Plan 2010-2013 at the Cornerstone Community Church, 1011
Reinli Street. For more information, click here.
  
Donuts for Dudes was a great hit thanks to the PTA Welcome Committee
and all the kids and parents that dropped by on Thursday, October 22!
The Oak Hill PTA wants to thank Scooters, Krispy Kreme and HEB for
their support of this event! Scooters donated our hot coffee, Krispy
Kreme helped us with donuts and HEB donated bananas, orange juice and
all the coffee fixins to make the first annual Donuts for Dudes event a
success!!
Read On... Library News
SIRSI DYNIX / IBISTRO
Want to know if we have a book or find certain books of interest BEFORE you come to the library?
Well, just log onto AISD's online library catalog (SIRSI DYNIX...or as we like to call it...ibistro) and search Oak Hill Library's collection.
Go to http://ibistro.austinisd.org and click on Oak Hill. Students can search by author, title, or subject.
They can also find books similar to the books they already enjoy by using the "find more books by this author" or "find more books on these topics" options once they are inside the book's record.
Students can even make a list (like a shopping cart) by selecting KEEP as they find books they like. Students can either print this list or write down the call numbers of the books they want so they are prepared ahead of time for their next visit.
We continue to practice with this tool in the library day, but if YOU are interested in learning a little more, stop by the library, and I can give a quick tutorial so you and your family can use it at home.
Looking for some safe educational online resources to help with research or to learn more on a topic of interest?
A great feature of our online catalog is the Knowledge Portal, AISD's FREE available databases.
AISD Library Online Resources 2009-10
To access these resources from school, no login is needed; Open a web browser and type in ibistro in the address bar select “Knowledge Portal.”
However, to access these resources at home, you will need to follow the instructions below:
Go to http://ibistro.austinisd.org.
Click on your school
Click the tab labeled “Knowledge Portal” to access these resources.
Use the Login ID and Password when prompted
**due to internet sharing safety, CONTACT MS. UNDERWOOD (512-414-5151) for a specific username/password
Throughout the year, I try to introduce different databases to the students through lessons that correlate with what they are learning in the classroom.
One GREAT database that may help during Science Fair is Curriculum Resource Center:
This resource offers biographical information (with photos and other reproducible handout materials), historical information, flags, timelines, career information, science project experiments and science diagrams.
We have not used this in the library yet this year, but may be a good spring board at home to get ideas or background information for projects.
SAVE THE DATE!!!
1st ever OHE PTA Movie Night
Friday, November 13th, 2009
OHE Cafeteria
6:30-8:30pm
More details coming soon!!!
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Mark your calendars!
*please see our website calendar for the most up-to-date dates and more information
Reflections
DUE MONDAY!!!! Reflections is an art program sponsored by the
PTA. The categories for entries are Literature, Music, Visual Arts,
Photography, Film and Dance. The theme for 2009-10 is "Beauty Is..."
Deadline for entries is Monday, October 26th. More information was sent home in your child's folder and can also be found on our website here. If you have any questions, please contact Amy Sasser.
T-shirt Order forms DUE FRIDAY, Oct 30
This
year we will again be offering OHE T-shirts in a short-sleeve style as
well as a full-zip hooded sweatshirt jacket option.
The T-shirts are
100% cotton in a dark navy color. This year we have pre-ordered the
shirts so they will be for sale at random school events as well as
through this order form.
The
sweatshirts are a 50/50 cotton/polyester blend in a black color. The
jacket design is the same as the jackets sold last year and will have a
small eagle surrounded by the school name and the phrase “Home of the
Soaring Eagles” on the left chest.
Samples
of both the shirt and sweatshirt can be seen near the offices in the
annex and the main building. Orders for sweatshirts will be accepted
through Friday, October 30th and T-shirt orders will be accepted all year. Please complete the order form
and return it to your child’s teacher along with your payment. We are
able to accept cash or checks made payable to OHE PTA. Any overpayment
will be treated as a donation to the PTA. T-shirts will be delivered
within 10 days of the receipt of the order and jackets are expected to
be
delivered by mid-November.
Please note: the youth T's run big and that the youth jackets run small. The adult sizes (of both) run about the right size.
Science Fair Boards Now On Sale!!!
The PTA is now selling science fair display boards for $5. The boards are light blue colored and include project titles. If you would like a board, please fill out this order form (also in Spanish) and return it to your child's teacher with payment in cash or check. Please make checks payable to OHE PTA. Boards will be sold on a first-come, first-serve basis while supplies last, so get your order in early! Contact Ileana Abounader with questions.
1st Grade Teacher Pamela Calabrese Awarded ABC Grant
Oak
Hill Elementary 1st grade teacher Pamela Calabrese has received a
$461.84 grant from The Junior League of Austin’s ABC (Aid for Better
Classrooms) Grants Program. The grant will fund a project called
“Circles of Life: Exploring the Life Cycle of Living Things,” which
will use visual aids, literature, and student projects to bring life
cycles alive in class, including opportunities to observe live animals
brought to the classroom. The ABC Grants Program, funded by 3M, AMD,
and The Junior League of Austin, provides grants of up to $500 for
teachers in Travis and Williamson Counties for innovative classroom
projects. Ms. Calabrese and Ms. Whistler attended a reception on
October 20 where all 23 grant recipients were honored. Kudos to Ms.
Calabrese for applying for and winning this grant! The ABC Grants
Program was established in 1991 and has awarded over $100,000 in grants
to area teachers since its inception.
Ms. Calabrese receives her ABC Grant plaque and award check
From left to right: Kathi Haralson of the Junior League, Karin Dicks of AMD, Ms. Calabrese, and Melanie Schwitters of 3M
Shop for the holidays and earn 20% for Oak Hill!
The new Learning Express toy store is donating 20% of sales to the
Oak Hill PTA when you shop from 4 to 8 PM on Thursday, November 5.
Mark your calendars for a night of holiday shopping - and enjoy
refreshments while your items are gift wrapped free too! Shop from 4
to 8 PM and 20% helps our school programs! Learning Express is located
near Kohl's and DSW.
Texas Book Festival
A celebration of books
by Texans and about Texas, and of the joys of reading.
October 31 – November 1
State Capitol Building
Take time out of your busy schedules
to enjoy the world of reading at this year’s Texas Book Festival. Don’t
miss the Family Life Center (1300 Lavaca) featuring authors such as Skippyjon
Jones' creator Judy Schachner, Jon Scieszka, and Mac Barnett. Some authors
in the Children's Chapter Read Me a Story Tent include Mo Willems, Janie
Bynum, and Phil Bildner. The Children's Entertainment Tent (11th &
Congress) Joe McDermott, Hand-to-Mouth puppet Theater, and much more. There
will also be a Children's Demonstration & Activity Tent featuring Fun
Experiments with Oobleck, Slime, & Dancing Spaghetti and lots more
fun. Enjoy some great tunes in the Music Tent featuring Patricia
Vonne, Jimmy Lafave, and The Moonlight Towers, and many more.
For official event information
including featured authors, schedules, venues, and details on how to attend
(parking!) visit this link.
Have a great time at the Texas
Book Festival!
AUTHOR PSEUDONYMOUS BOSCH WILL VISIT OAK HILL'S 3rd GRADE CLASSES NOVEMBER 2!!!!
After
appearing at the Texas Book festival next weekend, Pseudonymous Bosch,
author of The Name of This Book is Secret and If You’re Reading
This, It’s Too Late, will visit Oak Hill Elementary Monday, November
2, 2009. He will present and discuss his new book, This Book is Not
Good For You, to 3rd grade classes in the library. Due to
his time constraints, he is unable to present to the entire school, but
would like to give the opportunity for other students to purchase his books.
This is a great opportunity to get a signed copy of a book by the author! Look for the forms in your child's folder.
All orders are due Thurs. Oct.
29th. Turn orders into student's teacher or to Ms. Underwood
in the library. Forms were sent home Friday, Oct. 23rd. If you need an
additional form they can be found in front of the office or in the library.
Pseudonymous Bosch (Age
Range: 8 to 12) This
Book Is Not Good for You(#3) begins with chapter 15 as Bosch gives
us a tease as to later events. We meet Simone, imprisoned by the three
enigmatic strangers she's unofficially christened the Doctor, Barbie Doll,
and the Pirate. Her captors summon her from her cell periodically to sample
their latest attempt at the perfect chocolate. Flash back to chapter one
and join Cass and Max-Ernest in the bowels of the junk store rummaging
for clues to Cass' birth mother while pondering the whereabouts of the
evil and mysterious Midnight Sun. Bosch delivers the latest installment
of his adventure series for young readers and chocoholics alike. His "recipe
for disaster" includes "one evil chef, two kidnappings, three
desperate kids, six man-eating lions, 100 chocolate-producing monkeys,
and one BIG secret." Bosch's conversational and intimate style draws
us into the action while rotting our teeth and engaging our minds. This
Book Is Not Good for You is the follow-up to The Name of This Book
Is Secret and If You're Reading This, It's Too Late. Not only
is the title of book one a secret, but so is the real name of the author.
From his secluded lair, Bosch turns out his delectable page-turners.
 The
Name of This Book is Secret (#1)Warning: this description has not
been authorized by Pseudonymous Bosch. As much as he'd love to sing the
praises of his book (he is very vain), he wouldn't want you to hear about
his brave 11-year old heroes, Cass and Max-Ernest. Or about how a mysterious
box of vials, the Symphony of Smells, sends them on the trail of a magician
who has vanished under strange (and stinky) circumstances. And he certainly
wouldn't want you to know about the hair-raising adventures that follow
and the nefarious villains they face.
 If
You're Reading This, It's Too Late (#2)Max Ernest and Cass wait impatiently
to be contacted by the Terces Society after their prior adventures (explored
in the last book, The Name of this Book Is Secret). Leaving hairs
strategically around the house and searching alphabet cereal for some mysterious
contact, the friends eventually find the message in the form of a grocery
list supposedly left by Cass's mother. Codes and other puzzles abound in
this book and readers can join the friends in working to figure them out.
Adventures lead these friends into the clutches of their enemies, and then
masterful escapes lead to finding the real Terces Society as well as discovering
secrets about Cass's unknown father. Embedded in the story are the always-interesting
comments of P.S. Bosch, including definitions of challenging words, random
advice regarding the plot, and even digressions about his hesitation to
continue telling the story. It's this humor as well as the adventures that
make the life lessons about true friendship, tenacity, ingenuity and the
meaning of lineage fully accessible and interesting to younger YAs.
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