October 1, 2020

PRINCIPALLY SPEAKING

“It’s Tricky, it’s Tricky, (Tricky) Tricky (Tricky)…” – “It’s Tricky” – Run DMC

 

Hello Falcon Families.  I hope all is well and you are out enjoying this amazing weather.  This edition of the newsletter is an important one with deadlines attached.  Please be sure to find time to read through this one entirely.

 

We’ve had a couple of weeks of routines in the books so it’s time to mix it up again.  You should have received a communication that the “R2R Re-Selection” process has begun.  As of 8:00 am yesterday morning, the selection process for the second nine-week grading period is open and will close October 6, at 5:00 pm.  The system has reset for everyone, and ALL FAMILIES MUST MAKE THEIR CHOICES TO SOLIDIFY CLASS SELECTIONS AND BUS ROUTES.  The primary contact in Skyward will need to log in and choose in-person or remote learning.  There is no timestamp this time.

 

Since your determination will be for the entire grading period, I wanted to pull the curtain back a bit and let you see how your decision affects the campus in hopes of helping those who may be struggling with this “tricky” decision.  I will start by committing to do all I can to preserve relationships and attempt to avoid a second, or in some cases, a third teacher for a child.  That said, I cannot promise movements won't happen or assignments won't change.  I cannot predict what will happen as a result of the new survey data, but I would like to share some lessons learned from the last time around.

 

1.    Please make your choice based on what is best for your family.  Many have sought advice about their decision and how it relates to staffing.  If choosing “x” will result in “y”.  True, there will be pivot points regardless of decisions.  We have found that when a choice is based on factors other than what is possible to manage at home, complications and problems spring up down the line.  If you choose remote on the survey, you are choosing remote for the whole quarter.

 

2.    Please make your intentions known early.  As previously stated, the system resets for everyone.  Please do not wait until October 6 at 4:59 to make your selection.  You can help set up our kids and teachers for a successful second quarter by completing the process as soon as possible.  We would love to avoid any last minute surprises and have this process completed well before the deadline.

 

3.    Please stick to it.   You are committing to a 9-week mode of instruction.  We understand that things happen, and circumstances present themselves that may force your hand.  That said, I would encourage you to be mindful of the dominoes associated with a format change.  When you move from in-school to remote learning, the planning, communication, relationships, and class sizes of the entire grade level could be affected.   Many stakeholders that know your child and their needs have assisted in putting your child in the best possible position.  As we steamroll towards the end of the semester, and the possibilities of those extended winter vacations arise, please be aware of the possible ripple effects that come with a change in commitment. 

 

Thank you for your efforts towards afternoon dismissal.  I know it may not always feel like it, depending on when you join the queue, but we have gotten our afternoon dismissal times down to about 16 minutes.  We release kids at 3:30, and yesterday we loaded that last kiddo at 3:45. Fifteen minutes, y’all; that’s amazing!

 

Lastly, thank you to Carissa Milam, Heather Campbell, and Elizabeth Hooks for the generous breakfast spread and special treats in the lounge.  I cannot express how happy it made everyone and how much of a boost the gestures provided.  Thanks for making our days better!

 

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

 

Cody Spraberry

Proud Principal

Forest Trail Elementary

Is there a FTE Staff Member You Would Like to Recognize...

 

Falcon Finest Acknowledgements

Please join me in spreading those feel good vibes around our campus.  Everyday our bus drivers, custodians, office staff, and teachers are doing incredible things.  If there is a FTE staff member you would like to recognize for their contributions, please let me know by clicking the link below.

SCHOOL NEWS

COUNSELING CORNER

 

Mrs. Burns and I are excited to kick off October focusing on the theme of Diversity and Acceptance as we move toward our celebration of Unity Day on October 21.  Unity Day is a day we all wear ORANGE to show that we are united against bullying but more importantly that we are united to create a culture of kindness and respect for everyone in the Forest Trail Community.  Mrs. Burns and I will be visiting classrooms this month to provide lessons on this topic.  

Our SEL Storytime this week is The Sandwich Swap by Raina-AlAbbdullah.      

As always, please reach out if we can support you in any way!

It’s Destination Imagination Creative Problem-Solving Time!
 

If you have a student who is a creative thinker and enjoys open-ended challenges, then “DI” is a great outlet!!  Become a Team Manager and create a team with up to seven members, and design a solution to an open-ended challenge in one of seven challenge areas such as science, structural engineering, improv, fine arts, service learning, and technical engineering (for grades 3-12), or Rising Stars (for primary grades). Although students may solve the challenges remotely or in-person, all tournaments will be virtual this year.  Please contact Carol Reese at creese@eanesisd.net for more information.

BOOSTER CLUB

NO-HASSLE FUNDRAISER UPDATE

HOME STRETCH!!! The No Hassle Fundraiser is quickly coming to a close! You have a little more than 24 hours to donate before the clock strikes midnight on October 3, if you haven’t donated yet, please consider doing so. Every dollar counts and goes directly to the Booster Club. Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone that has already donated! We understand this is a strange time and we are so appreciative of your support.  NHF is our primary fundraiser this semester, and we are so grateful to all that have participated so far. Our goal this year is 100% of families participating with a suggested donation of $100 per student. We are about $10k short of our overall monetary goal, so please remember that every little bit helps!

Link to donate online: http://tinyurl.com/ftenohassle2020

We are excited to be partnering with Woody’s Shave Ice! The class with the highest participation as of October 2, 2020 will win a gift card for EACH student in that grade. 

Here are the class rankings as of today... It's a nail-biter!

1. 4th grade - 62%
2. 3rd grade - 60%
3. 2nd grade - 58%
4. 5th and 1st grade are tied - 57%
5. Kindergarten - 52%

Congratulations to Lauren Quinones for winning our weekly donation drawing- Lola Savannah gift card! Elizabeth Thompson won our flash social media contest, a gift card Woody’s Shave Ice.  Watch the FTE Booster Club Facebook and Instagram pages for more fun No- Hassle Fundraiser contests. 

Questions? 

Contact our No- Hassle Fundraiser Co- Chairs

Michelle Brandl (651) 210-4787

Katie Tucker (512) 426- 4416

Ftenohassle1@gmail.com

 

GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING
Join us TOMORROW, October 2, 2020 at 8:25 AM for a quick FTE-specific Booster Club update.  We will Zoom for 15 minutes to take care of BC business; then, we'll break to join the other EISD elementary campuses for Dr. Leonard's State of the District presentation.  

 

To Join FTE-Specific Zoom Meeting:
https://eanesisd.zoom.us/j/88287325081?pwd=MjFZT0ZDRkVqaXFiVUtIc0wxL25Odz09

 

Meeting ID: 882 8732 5081
Passcode: booster

Dr. Leonard's Webinar Zoom information is listed below: 

SCHOOL STORE GRAB BAGS
Is your child missing the school store in a big way? Are you missing the constant influx of slime, stress balls, and smelly erasers? We've got the solution! Grow your kiddo's collection of tchotchkes and support FTE in one fell swoop by purchasing an official Forest Trail School Store Grab Bag on Membership Toolkit today! 

DEADLINE EXTENDED: Directories
October 9th is the new deadline to order directories (purchase yours today here!) and to have your child participate in the 2020/2021 Writing Contest. The overall winning writing will be featured on the cover of the FTE Directory.   Grade-Level winners will be featured in the directory with the class lists.   Please see guidelines below:

1. THEME:  KINDNESS

2.  WRITE a paragraph, a poem, an essay, a story about kindness, being kind, acts of kindness, etc.  (LESS THAN 50 WORDS)

3.  EMAIL your child’s writing to ftedirectory@gmail.com with the subject FTE DIRECTORY WRITING CONTEST.  

• Please include your child’s Name/Grade/Teacher.

4. DUE Friday, October 9th.  No late entries will be accepted.  Only one submission per student, please.  MUST BE LESS THAN 50 WORDS.

5. MOST IMPORTANT –  Please let your child do their own work! 

SCHOOL BOARD CANDIDATE FORUM
In collaboration with the other EISD Booster Clubs and PTOs, the FTE Booster Club will co-host a school board candidate forum on Sunday, October 4 at 2:00 PM.  Here's your chance to ask the candidates all your burning questions before you head out to vote!  Questions can be submitted via this Google Form.

SPIRIT NIGHT: Chick-fil-A
Our first Spirit Night of the year will be held Wednesday, Oct. 14th, at the Village at Westlake Chick-fil-a from 4-8PM.  Hit up the drive-thru for snacks and supper, and be sure to mention Forest Trail to have a portion of your meal donated back to our school!

 

Cheers, 
Kate Hall & Katie Ruback
Booster Club Co-Presidents
ftebccopres1@gmail.com

THE DISTRICT & BEYOND

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