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October 12, 2018
 Dear
Willow Springs,
On Monday, our staff gathered to celebrate each other, have
fun, and engage in meaningful professional development to enhance our
Responsive Classroom instructional learning strategies. As a school we are
committed to creating safe, joyful, and engaging learning communities where all
students have a sense of belonging and feel significant. As we continue to
study the FCPS Portrait of a Graduate, we are
focusing our work on the Collaborator attribute. A
lot of collaboration went into our staff pumpkin redesign project, and we
enjoyed our problem solving discussions just as much as
we did our final outcomes. Click here for some tips on how to support
these skills at home.
National Walk to School Day was also a huge success
this week. This event was driven by donations and support
from parents. It helped facilitate discussions on a healthy
lifestyle, as well as the impact that our carbon footprint has on the world.
Thank you to all who participated and helped make this happen. We loved
seeing families actively exercising to get to
school, while also promoting environmental awareness. As
always, we want to encourage the use of buses and walking/biking to
school. Additionally, we want to send a reminder to that the walking paths
are for the neighborhood only. They should not be used as secondary kiss
and ride lines. We have a lot of students using that area to walk to
school, and do not have any supervision to ensure the safety of those kids.
Additional traffic really adds a dangerous element to what should be a nice
path to walk to school.
Today students braved the windy weather and engaged in many
activities for our annual Field Day! We would like to thank our outstanding PE
teachers, Mr. Burda and Mr. Silvis, for facilitating today's events and the 80+
parent volunteers who worked so hard to make it happen.
Next week is Digital Citizenship Week! We
look forward to having meaningful discussions with students about a variety of
digital citizen topics. If you are interested in supporting these conversations
at home, read more details below and visit our website for family resources.
Be sure
to follow us on twitter @WSESfox
to see the magic happen every day.
Sincerely,
Dylan Taylor,
Principal
Rashida Green,
Assistant Principal
Sara Van Aalst,
Assistant Principal
Pick Your Pumpkin
View the gallery
Skip the gallery, and vote!
 Our teachers spiced up pumpkins and they want your vote!
View the gallery
Skip the gallery, and vote!
Final penny voting closes Monday, October 15th, at 9 a.m.
Voting will be open until Monday, October 15th, at 4 p.m.
Did you hear that our Garden Club challenged teachers to collaborate in small groups to decorate pumpkins and our teachers accepted the challenge? And did you also hear that we want you to help us select the winner?!?!
Their pumpkins look extraordinary! Our staff has so much creativity! In just 30 minutes, our amazing teachers created 11 teams and created the pumpkins you see below! In direct alignment with Portrait of a Graduate and specifically the collaborator attribute, teachers supported one another, sought feedback from their team, adapted ideas, and persisted in accomplishing the task.
The last day of voting is this Monday, October 15, at 4:00 p.m. Electronic votes will count for 50% of the overall score. The second 50% will be determined by which pumpkin collects the most pennies (or whatever loose change students can find hiding in the cushions of their couch). Monday, from 9:00 - 9:15 a.m. students are encouraged to cast their final votes by placing pennies into the jar with the picture of their favorite pumpkin. Votes will be tallied on Monday after school and the winning group of teachers will be announced Tuesday, October 16th. Students may bring in as many pennies as they want.
The winning group of teachers will get breakfast sponsored by the PTA and all money collected will go toward supporting gardening/outdoor learning initiatives around the school. Our top two goals are to plant a sensory garden (per teacher request) and creating a bird blind.
Walk to School Day Success
 We joined schools across the country and celebrated National Walk to School Day on Wednesday morning. The welcome table behind the bus loop near the walking path was filled with student laughter, many smiling faces, and neighbors greeting one another! #WillowPride
October GRACE Art Inspired by Piet Mondrian
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GRACE is a Willow Springs PTA sponsored art-history program. Our curriculum is provided to us by the Greater Reston Arts Center (GRACE), it is coordinated by parent coordinators and presented to each class in K-6 by parent volunteers, "Docents". This is a great opportunity to have an incredibly good time, get to know your child's class room and, just maybe, learn a little bit about Art. |
WSES Summer 2018 Reading Bingo Challenge Winners
Digital Citizenship Week
October 15-19
 Digital Citizenship Week is here October 15th – 19th! This year’s focus is on Building a Culture of Shared Responsibility. We hope Digital Citizenship Week will spark some educationally valuable conversations that can be promoted and supported all year long, by both parents and teachers. Visit our website for complementary activities and conversation starters that can begin at school and extend into the home. FCPS utilizes the Common Sense Education K-12 curriculum to provide students with knowledge and skills they need to approach their digital participation with empathy, ethics and a sense of individual, social and civic responsibility. In addition, teachers embed digital citizenship education daily as students engage with technology for learning and when possible, make connections to curriculum concepts being taught.
Resources for Home
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Have you updated your child's default plan?
Smartphone link: https://app.pickuppatrol.net/parents
This is a friendly reminder to please use PickUp Patrol to report ALL ABSENCES AND CHANGES to your child’s dismissal plans. If your registration email has expired or you did not receive one, please let us know.
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Federal Impact Aid
Beginning October 16, FCPS will be asking all
families to fill out a Student-Parent Survey for Federal Impact Aid.
Returning this form is important because
information from this survey results in an anticipated $3 million dollars in
grant funds each year from the U.S. Department of Education. These funds are
used to support all Fairfax County public schools and centers.
For each school-aged child in your household,
please complete, sign, date, and return the survey to your child's school. If
sections 1 and 2 of the survey do not apply to you, just check the box in
Section 3. All forms must be signed, dated, and returned by October 26.
All results are CONFIDENTIAL.
Learn more by watching this short video
featuring Superintendent Scott Brabrand and the U.S. Army Garrison Commander
COL Michael Greenberg from Fort Belvoir.
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AAP PARENT INFORMATION MEETING
An AAP parent information meeting will be held at Willow Springs on Friday, October 19, 2018 from 9:30-10:30 a.m. in the Willow Springs Cafeteria. Mrs. Murray, the Advanced Academic Resource Teacher (AART) will provide information about levels of service at Willow Springs as well as explain and answer questions about the screening process for AAP services. The meeting is open to all K-6 parents. For more information visit our website.
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 The Virginia Tech
Maker Festival is entering its 4th year. For 3 years, the Virginia Tech Maker Festival has
hosted its STEM festival at the Virginia Tech Northern Virginia Center in Falls
Church, VA. The goal of this event is to increase STEM (Science, Technology,
Engineering, & Math) learning in all ages, nationalities, genders, and
socioeconomic backgrounds.
Virginia Tech is one of the leading research universities in
the country specializing in engineering, science, and math. Our very own
students and professors discovered the lead in the water in Flint, Michigan.
With our partnerships, and laboratories, Virginia Tech wants to expand the STEM
growth in the National Capital Region with the Virginia Tech Maker Festival. We
hope to inspire future generations of students, researchers, professors, and leaders in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math.
We will have robots, experiments, and interactive games.
Come join the fun and register now!
We are also in need of volunteers. This is a
great way for high school students to earn service hours, support the
local community, and learn more about STEM. As a thank you, lunch will be
provided and you will receive a Certificate of Appreciation. If you are interested, please sign up and complete the volunteer application.
WSES Looking Ahead
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Wednesday, October 17th - PTA Meeting 7:00 p.m. (Library)
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Friday, October 19th - AAP Parent Information Meeting 9:30 a.m. (Cafeteria)
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Friday, November 2nd - First Grading Period Ends
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Saturday, November 3rd - VA Tech Maker Festival
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Monday & Tuesday, November 5th & 6th - Student Holidays
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Sunday, November 11th - Book Fair, Barnes & Noble, 12193 Fair Lakes Promenade Drive Fairfax
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Wednesday, November 14th - PTA Meeting 7:00 p.m. (Library)
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Thursday, December 6th - Restaurant Night, Mezeh Mediterranean Grill, Fair Oaks Mall
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Tuesday, December 11th - School Garden “Green” Committee Meeting, 8:00 a.m. (Ms. Harris’ classroom)
Notable dates include Columbus Day, Monday 10/8, Student Holiday; Thanksgiving break, November 21-23; Winter break, December 24,
2018-January 4, 2019; Spring Break, April 15-19, 2019; and the last day of
school, June 13, 2019.
Visit the Willow Springs Elementary PTA website.
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