Baranoff Newsletter

The Baranoff Buffalo December 2013From the PrincipalSeasons Greetings! WinterBreak is just a few short weeksaway. While that is an excitingthought, it is also a little scary.The return from Winter Break, inthe educator world, means thathalf of our instructional year haspassed!It may feel like your child isalways being assessed, and the realityis—they are. Our teachersare constantly monitoring and observingyour child—their responses,reactions, work products,reading ability, etc. It is those ongoingobservations that truly giveus a complete picture of yourchild’s strengths and challenges,since performance on any one daydoes not give us a full picture.Along with those informal assessments,there are also formal ones.For our primary students thismeans teachers will soon be administeringmiddle of year TPRI /DRA and TEMI assessments togauge reading and math progress.For intermediate students, teachershave scheduled and will be administeringMiddle of Year (MOY)benchmarks in reading, math, ( 3-5,) writing (4) and science (4-5.)Whether your child is inKinder or 5th, these middle of yearassessments are important. Theyhelp teachers know what instructionhas been effective—and forwhom. They also help teachersplan interventions—some of whichwill be provided during the day,and others which will begin afterschool once we return in January.Thank you for all that youdo every day to support yourchild(ren.) As busy as your livesare, and as many different waysas you find yourself being pulled,you all continue to give your childrenthe priceless gift of yourtime and attention.Linda Purvis, PrincipalThe Importance of RoutinesDuring the month of Decemberroutines change as students areout shopping with parents, attendingparties, or sometimes stayingup a bit later on school nights. Itis important to try and keep yourchild’s routine as normal as possible.Make sure they eat healthymeals, get exercise, have the samebedtime routine, and go to sleepon time. This will ensure they arenot tired during the school dayand can focus on learning. Wetend to see “melt downs” in thelower grades and more disciplineissues arise in the upper gradesduring the month of December.Often times this is attributed tostudents being tired and moreemotional. Thank you for yourcontinued support in helping yourchild be well rested and successfulemotionally, physically, and academically.Megan Counihan,Assistant PrincipalTimy Baranoff Elementary12009 Buckingham GateRoadAustin, TX 78748Special points of interest:Dec 2,3—Golden SpooncelebrationsDec 6—Picture Retake DayDec. 9—CAC meetingDec. 12—PTA mtg / HolidayChoir program - 6:30 pmDec. 19—Winter celebrationsall begin at 1:30Dec. 20—Students’ last dayof school before holidaybreakDec.23-Jan 6—Winter HolidayBreakJan 7—Students returnJan. 8—report card dayInside this issue:PE HAPPENINGS 2LIFE in the LIBRARY 2ART in ACTION 2MUSICAL MAGIC 3COUNSELORS”CORNERDECEMBERCALENDAR.45

Page 2PE HAPPENINGSLIFE in the LIBRARYThe Baranoff Buffalo December 2013Run Club will meet on days that theweather is 40 degrees with calmwinds or warmer. Please wearappropriate gear: gloves, hat orscarves are encouraged duringcold weather. If it is raining, itis cancelled.http://www.crh.noaa.gov/ddc/?n=windchillBaranoff Aces is the volleyballteam for 5 th graders, this willstart in January and our PlayDate at UT is in March. Lookfor the paper work in JanuaryThursday folders. Practice willbe on Tuesdays and possiblyWednesdays depending on numbers.Heads Up: Safety Patrol willbe switching to the 1 st /3 rdgroup in January.Keep practicing your jump ropeskills and ask your child toteach you a new foot pattern!The Fall Baranoff BookFair was a huge success!We greatly appreciate yoursupport and participation.Your support helps us purchasenew books and educationalsupplies for the library.Thank you to the many volunteerswho made thisevent possible. We couldnot put on a book fair ofthis size and quality withoutyour support.In December, we will bereading winter stories.Some of our stories includeBear Snores On and BearStays Up by Karma Wilson,My Penguin Osbert byElizabeth Kimmel, Hersheland the Hanukkah Goblinsby Eric Kimmel, The Tale ofJack Frost by David Melling,and Olive, the Other Reindeerby Vivian Walsh and J.otto Seibold.Go towww.tumblebooklibrary.comto find good books online. Theusername is austinisd andpassword is books.MUSIC DATES TOREMEMBERDecember 11 th : 3 rd grade fieldtrip to the presentation of “TheNutcracker” at 9:00am..December 12 th : Baranoff BuffaloChorale December program “Let’sCelebrate” 6:30 p.m. in the cafeteria.This program will featuresongs of Joy and Celebration fromaround the globe.Thank you, again, for supportingour art fundraiser! Items will bedistributed the week afterThanksgiving. Please be sure toread your E-Blast from Mrs. Purvisfor exact timing. If your childcan't put your order in a backpack,you will be contacted topick it up from school.5th grade students are continuingto work on their watercolor,both paint and pencil. We will beinspired by a study of stainedglass design using overlappinggeometric and organic shapes.4th grade is painting a still lifewith watercolor. We reviewedthe still life work of artists suchART in ACTIONas Cezanne and Van Gogh,along with the contemporaryrealistic still life artist JanetFish.3rd grade coil pots are dryingand will be fired soon. Afterthat, they will be glazed andfired again. In the meantime,we'll be working on a paintingproject.2nd grade has completed theirpots, and they will be dryingover Thanksgiving. Their smallpinch pots with either texturesor added features will fired inthe kiln then glazed and firedagain. In the meantime, we'llbe working on a painting project.1st grade Matisse paper cuts aredone. We will continue to talkabout symmetry, translations,patterns, repetition as we createcut paper puppets.Kindergarten continues to workon various skills in art, includingdrawing and painting, concentratingon the use of line andcolor. We will be using commonvocabulary for drawing lines,including vertical, horizontal,zigzag, wavy, spiral, dotted andbroken. For color, our vocabularyincludes primary and secondaryand warm and cool colors.

Volume 14, Number 4Page 3Music is at the heart of everyculture. Our music fills ourhearts and reflects our lives.As our students learn and growwith new musical skill sets eachmonth, we are continually remindedthat art reflects lifeand life reflects art.As you know, we teach our curriculumthrough traditionalAmerican folksongs and supplementwith other art songs orseasonal material that will enhanceour repertoire. By nowyou may be asking your childwhat their favorite song orgame in music and hopefullythey can sing that game as wellas tell you how to play thatgame. But that has not reallyanswered you query. Be assuredthat learning happens each day,but we hide it in the song or thegame until students are able tokinesthetically, aurally and visuallyrepresent what we havebeen talking and singing aboutfor several weeks. Once theyhave demonstrated their understandingof the new skill set,they receive the musical vocabulary.Much of their learningis focused on the process ofacquiring the knowledge toMUSICAL MAGICmove ahead vocally or rhythmically.So expect many new songsand games this month, reflectingthe season and our scopeand sequence.The primary grades will be addingmany new songs and learningto accompany themselves withvarious classrooms instrumentssuch as woods (rhythm sticksand woodblock) shaker(tambourine and maraca), skins(hand drums), metals (bells andtriangles). Kindergarten willcontinue to focus on musical oppositesand First and Secondgrades will be completingrhythm concepts such one andtwo sounds on a beat and willadd the 5 th , 3 rd , 6 th , and 1 stscale degrees in a major scale.Each concept will be used as afoundation to build upon for anotherrhythmic/melodic skillset.In the intermediate grades, wewill continue our music listening.To date, we have studied theworks of Bach, Palestrina, andHaydn. In December, we willexplore the music of Beethovenand Tchaikovsky. The 3 rd graderswill attend a performanceof The Nutcracker. They willsee Act I this year. SQUILTing(Super Quiet Un-Interrupted Listening Time)provides our students an opportunityto listen to, analyzeand write about differenttypes of music from the 1500’sto the 21 st century.In the midst of their listeningexperiences, all 3-5 th graderswill continue to discover advancedrhythmic and melodicconcepts. Starting the weekDec.2 nd , Third, Fourth andFifth graders will have the opportunityto purchase a recorderif they need one. Wewill collect money until Dec20 th and be ready to startplaying in early January. Thisyear the 4 th and 5 th gradershave the opportunity to playtheir recorders in performanceduring the Austin Symphony’sYoung People’s Concertin mid-May. Mrs. Keenan, Mrs.Creel and Mr. Wood will haverecorder order forms availablein their classrooms.December 20 th : RecorderOrders due ($4 each)If you ever have questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at 841-7105. You may also email me atwww.lpurvis@austinisd.org. Linda Purvis, Principal of Timy Baranoff Elementary School

OUR COUNSELEORS’ CORNERParents of 5 th grade students- check out thecounselor’s section of the Baranoff website. Wepost updated AISD Magnet Middle School informationas it arrives.Student Council officers were voted on and thefollowing students will lead the Baranoff StudentCouncil this year:Abbey Daigle- Sergeant-at-armsEleanore Nelson- SecretaryLauren Spencer- TreasurerDominick Incognito- Vice PresidentSeve Moya- PresidentThe student council has had one meeting so farand look forward to more throughout the year.They will discuss topics such as choosing a communityproject. If your child is a member of thestudent council, please look in his/her folder forinfo and important dates for the rest of the year.Let’s Be Thankful for Kindness Month continuesthrough 12/13/13. It is very impressive tosee the kindness shown every day here at Baranoff!Parents and other family members are encouragedto sign the “Parent and Family” Resolutionof Respect poster to support our Baranoff commitmentto treating all people with respect despiteour differences.Our Peer Mediation program continues to helpsmooth over little conflicts. Teacher training hasbeen done so Mr. Cartlidge, Ms. O’Keefe,Ms. Saucedo and Ms. Kelley have joined the PeerMediation staff.Parent ConnectionParent ConnectionAt times, we as parents do not know whether weare advocating for our children or whether we arebeing a “helicopter parent”. Here is an excerpt ofan article that may help. “Helicopter ParentingVS Helpful Parenting”, by Dr. Brad Schwall.We don’t want our children to fail or hurt but tosucceed. We must determine the best strategiesand techniques for helping our children grow,mature, and thrive. Here are key differences:Helicopter Parenting.Goal-avoid all pain and problemsStrategy-intervene and rescueTakes away problemsLeads to dependence and externallocus of controlHelpful ParentingGoal-teach how to face problemsStrategy- equip, listen, and guideHelps problem solveLeads to independence and internallocus of controlIf you rescue your children without helpingthem problem solve or reflect on the situation,they learn that there are forces outside themselvesthat can take away problems rather thanto rely on their own strengths and wisdom tohandle challenging situations.How to Be a Helpful Parent*Decide what values you want your child tolearn *Teach problem solving*Make expectations for behavior clear*Communicate positively*Set Limits*Teach accountability*Enforce consequencesWe must accept challenges, our own mistakes,and different personalities and choose to respondin the most respectful and responsibleway possible. Our children will learn to blameothers if we immediately blame a problem onanother child, a teacher, a coach, or anotherparent. There’s nothing wrong with watchingover our children it’s what we do when weswoop in when they have a problem that matters.Instead of intervening to take away theproblem, step in to guide and help your childthink, accept responsibility, and learn.