Dear ACE Families, I hope you've had an enjoyable weekend, whether you trick-or-treated, raced for the cure, browsed the Texas Book Festival, hung out in the garden, or deliberately slept that "extra hour" we got last night--or did it all. Friday's Halloween party for the Primary classes was a pure delight. Activity tables, snack and games such as the Witch Hat Toss and Put the Sticker on the Mummy made for all-age fun. Big thank go to organizer Jill Pruitt and all the parents who helped set up and have fun. The older students had great costumes Friday and shared some awesome treats (thanks, parents!). Special kudos to Zach Osborne for his handmade caramels--yum. This Tuesday right after school (3:10, Room 310-311), there will be a very brief meeting (15 minutes) for parents and students about science fair projects. The meeting is optional, but it's a great way to get first-hand information from science teachers Deanna Buckley, Laura Zahm, and Andrew Wildman about what your child will be doing in science class for the next 5 weeks, and to get an introduction to the great new equipment now available to your child in the science lab. All students will be taught how to choose and develop a project, and project work will be done in class. Thanks to our Spring Gala fundraiser last May, there are some wonderful new machines and materials in the lab to help your child measure and interpret data. Our ACE science fair will be Dec. 8 and 9. Tomorrow we welcome Colin Bowling to ACE. Colin will be one of our upstairs elementary students. If you see new faces, they may belong to Mary Evelyn or John Bowling--please introduce yourself and make them welcome. Any extra Halloween candy that you know you won't eat? This is the time of year that Mobile Loaves and Fishes, a local organization thet feeds the homeless, collects a few sweets for its patrons. If you have any extra candy, please send it to school marked "Donate" and I will see that it gets to Mobile Loaves and Fishes. It's going to be a great week-- Donna

Dear ACE Families, Field Day: Last Friday's Field Day was a wonderful event, from the perfectly dry, cool, sunny weather to the fun games and flying chickens. BIG THANKS go to Coach Bob and his parent helpers, particularly April Garsson and Jessica Conn. They braved the chilly wet both the day before and the morning of, in order to set up play areas, set out equipment, and set up a water table. Thanks to all the parents and extended family who joined us and cheered on our young athletes and chicken launchers. Photos: The vagaries of the weather continue, but as of now, the upstairs students will have photos made tomorrow, Tuesday 10/27, in the morning. If it rains, we'll reschedule, but for now plan on your child looking good AGAIN. Halloween: This Friday, Oct. 30, is a costume-friendly day at ACE. Students (and parents and teachers) are welcome to dress according to their favorite fantasy. The only requirements are that a child be able to move freely and safely in costume, and be able to perform all the regular activities of the day. Masks are not encouraged; a child in mask may be asked to remove it during class or anytime it interferes with safety or learning. The Primary classes will have a Halloween party outside in the afternoon. See you teacher for details. Older students are welcome to bring treats to share at lunch. Please remember our no-nuts policy for all foods. No-Nuts Policy: There have been a few grumbly responses to Elizabeth's reminder last week about ACE's no-nuts policy. There will be no change in our policy. Eat all the nuts you choose at home, but please do not send them to school in any form, not even in a package that says "processed in a facility that...." As a parent with over 16 years of Epi-pens, I can assure you that no theory or statistical doubt is worth the life or breath of a single child. This ban is NOT arbitrary. As long as ACE has a single student who can be affected adversely and severely by nuts, we will do our best to keep nuts off our campus. There are many appealing and healthy alternatives, and we are happy to suggest some. We're even thinking about setting up a "snack rack" in the office with healthy, inexpensive, nut-free snack options. The first 9 weeks grading period ends this Friday. Report cards will come out shortly after, and we will be setting up fall parent-teacher conferences. Stay tuned for details. It's going to be a great week-- Donna

Dear ACE Families, We don't dare complain about rain here, but we do need to work around it. Status as of tonight: Thursday: Elementary and middle school photos postponed until next Tuesday. Friday: Primary trip to the Pumpkin Patch is ON Friday: Field Day at Ramsey Park is on, beginning about 11:00. If you have an extra picnic blanket, we'd love to use it in case the ground is still wet in places. Wear those ACE T-shirts! Friday: Little Rockets photos are ON. Thursday night: Austin Gifted was chosen as one of the featured non-profits at the Greenlights Board Summit at the LBJ School from 5:30-8:00. Karen and I will have a table there to introduce Austin Gifted to potential volunteers and board members. It's still a great week- Donna

Dear ACE Families, We have several school activities in the next week, as well as some great community events, and I want to be sure you get these on your calendar. Individual and Class Photos-Tuesday 10/20 for Primary students, Thursday 10/22 for upper elementary and middle school students. Little Rockets will be scheduled separately. Photos will be early in the day, starting during homeroom time. Field Day Fri. 10/23-Coach Bob has been preparing a roster of field day events similar to the fun we had last May. Field Day will be at Ramsey Park from 11:00 AM to 2:30, including picnic lunch. Wear those ACE t-shirts! Parents are welcome-wear your running shoes. Keeping Current-Elizabeth Lay keeps an updated calendar of events, with pertinent details, at the following link: http://sites.google.com/site/aceparentteacherzone/program-coordinator The events below are described in detail on that webpage. Fencing Tournament this weekend at UT-The UT Fencing Club is hosting the Longhorn Open tournament, one of the largest and most prestigious competitions in the southern United States. This tournament will feature several hundred fencers, of all ages and skill levels, including ACE students Michael Cravey and ACE fencing coach Joshua Pero, as well as many Olympians and national champions from various countries. La Boheme Performance-Tickets must be reserved by Oct. 19; perfomance will be Nov. 5. See the link below and the flyer coming home today with your child. Health update-The flu, the congestion crud, the stomach bug, and other ailments subsided a bit this week, but please don't let your guard down. Fever always means something, as does unusual fatigue. We are still stressing clean hands, plenty of water, and covered coughs and sneezes with the students. We do have two more cases of pertussis (siblings); we don't believe it was passed along at school, but germs are everywhere. Check out those coughs. I hope to see you at the Wine and Cheese party Saturday evening. It's going to be a great weekend. Donna

Dear ACE Families, Just a single message tonight, for those of you who have not yet seen our wonderful teacher websites. If you have ANY trouble accessing a teacher website send an e-mail to Andrew Wildman, Science Teacher and Computer Guy, at awildman(at)AustinGifted.org. Enjoy your field trips/dentist appointments/long weekend! It's going to be a great week- Donna

Dear ACE Families, School has had such a smooth start! Orientation gave way last week to "real school," and schedules sifted into place. We are still (and ever will be) assessing where each child needs to be, but most of our placements are done and our students in their classes. Friday brought robotics, Shoal Creek, chess, and drama--there were looks of satisfaction all around. After-school classes launched successfully last week. Your child can still join a class, or try one out to see if it's a good fit. Check with Elizabeth in the office fir availability. This week, Mr. Wildman is beginning a new offering BEFORE school--the "Casual Tennis Group." On Monday and Wednesday, Mr. Wildman is happy to meet any interested ACE students (and parents) at the Ramsey Park tennis courts between 7 and 8 AM. Bring your own racket; Mr. Wildman will provide balls. Students are encouraged to bring a change of clothes and deodorant. There's no charge, as long as you remember the deodorant. Teacher Websites and the Parent/Teacher Zone-Our teachers are still setting up websites, with the goal of having a website for each teacher. The invite function of the Google pages manager has been a little erratic-some people have gotten invites, some have not. Every parent at ACE is on the list, but it's hard to tell who has and has not received the actual invitation. If you have not received an invitation to access teacher webpages, please email Andrew Wildman directly at awildman (at) AustinGifted.org. If you have received the invitation and want to change your email address on the list, contact him for that, too. It's going to be a great week- Donna

Dear ACE Families, We had a wonderful first week of school, complete with rockets, dropping eggs, towns made of boxes, student-led school tours, a whole-school photo under dripping greenery, and even our first indoor recess! We had two "Boo Hoo" breakfasts and one "No Place for Hate" banner presentation. Our Little Rockets launched our new three-year-olds program with smiling faces and t-shirts hanging near their ankles (!). The older students met with the UT Architecture class that has taken on ACE as a semester-long project, and the conversation back and forth was delightfully energized and mature as they debated green building concepts and the aesthetics of space. We even held a ACE Information Session in the middle of it all. I'm so glad we're back in school. After a week of getting to know each other, the staff, and the building, our students will settle into a more normal academic routine beginning tomorrow. Primary classes will begin a regular daily schedule that includes PE, Spanish, art, yoga, and music. P4 will have chess and robotics options on Friday. The older students will receive individual schedules tomorrow. Please consider the schedules as working drafts for at least the first week, as we will continue to fine-tune groupings. Our mission to place children in the right level class regardless of age is not a simple accomplishment, as we have to mesh student and teacher schedules. Watch this week for notes from your child's teachers. The notes will give you some background on the teacher, contact information, and a general idea of what will be going on in the classes. Thanks to all who bought tickets to the first Taste North Austin event on Saturday at the Domain. Tents held off most of the rain as tasters tried generous portions of food and drink from Austin restaurants. A passive fundraiser, this event brought in about $300 for ACE Academy, which has been designated for teacher training in special areas. We are grateful to Taste North Austin for offering ACE the opportunity to participate as a non-profit beneficiary, and also to the ACE families and friends that indulged on our behalf. Thanks also to those of you who sent a note by e-mail to let us know your child's pleasure in being back at school. The beginning of school can be full of uncertainties, and your notes of singing kids and happy car-time conversations remind us of the joy that comes from being in the right place. It's going to be a great week- Donna