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January 18, 2019
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Students Dismissed 3 hours Early Today, 1/18, for a School Planning Day.
Also, schools will be closed on Monday, 1/21, for the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, and for a Teacher Workday on Friday, 1/25. View 2018-19 School Year Calendar:
http://bit.ly/2OC8USe
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 Fifth graders explore volcanoes around the world using virtual reality goggles.
Dear Willow Springs,
We are always looking for new ways to engage our students, so when a few teachers recently pulled out the virtual reality headsets, their students were excited to experience learning in a new, three-dimensional way. Earlier this year, fifth-graders explored volcanoes around the world and more recently visited the Great Wall of China on a virtual expedition to enhance a social studies lesson. One student said, "We have been using computers and paper to look at famous landmarks around the world, but now I get to feel like I am there and can look around to see everything."
Earlier this week, we retweeted a few of our third graders on a virtual field trip exploring Ancient Egypt. When students entered their classroom that morning, a message on the board read, "We are going to Ancient Egypt today!" and she was not kidding. It was as if she was Ms. Frizzle and brought her Magic School Bus to life for her students. Virtual field trips like these teach a variety of lessons from ancient cultures to ecosystems. The solar system is also a favorite, but Expeditions are not limited to science and social studies. Visit the Expeditions website to learn more about this exciting technology.
With so much enthusiasm surrounding the recent weather, this is a reminder that we have our very own WeatherSTEM station here at Willow Springs. Willow Springs is honored to have one of three Weather STEM stations of its kind in the state of Virginia. Students use the live data about rainfall, lightning strikes, wind speed, and so much more. The weather station even has a cloud camera and a device that uses sensors to measure soil moisture. Fourth-grade teacher, Diana Martin, implemented a lesson this week to reinforce a concept from their weather unit surrounding wind and its energy.
FCPS schools will be closed this Monday, 1/21, for the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, and on Friday, 1/25, for a teacher workday. Students have a very short three day week ahead.
Have a wonderful long weekend. We are looking forward to seeing our students for full days of meaningful learning on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday next week!
Dylan Taylor, Principal
Rashida Green, Assistant Principal
Sara Van Aalst, Assistant Principal
Ms. Golden Recognized on FCPS Instagram
 "My passion for teaching is rooted in my own love of learning and my belief that all children can learn. It is an honor and a privilege to come to work everyday and teach my students—not just Spanish language—but also about all of the things that will help them grow into creative, productive global citizens in this world. Modeling being a lifelong learner and focusing on building strong relationships is at the center of my teaching practice." - Emily Golden, Spanish FLES Teacher (Click here to see FCPS Instagram posts)
 Willow Springs is the first school in Virginia with its own WeatherSTEM weather station! University of Virginia and Virginia Tech are the only other schools currently in Virginia with a full WeatherSTEM station. The WeatherSTEM unit is a full-service weather station that measures everything from wind speed to soil moisture to solar radiation. All of the data from the unit can be accessed in real time through our WeatherSTEM website or other social media outlets mentioned below. The data is used by our school to teach children about meteorology, science, and math.
To learn more about WeatherSTEM, visit their webpage. To access WSES's weather station download the app and select Willow Springs as your closest unit. You can also access our weather station via Twitter and Facebook.
A Message from the Clinic
We need your support to ensure that our school continues to promote a healthy environment for all students and staff. Recently, we have seen students come to school who were medicated to lower their fever or reduce other communicable symptoms such as diarrhea and vomiting. Unfortunately, students who are sick will resume their symptoms once the medications has worn off. At that point it is not safe, nor is it in the best interest of any student, to remain in school, as he/she may be also contagious to others. As a result, parents are called to pick up their child.
After your child has been ill, please be sure of the following before sending him/her back to school:
- Children with an elevated temperature should be FEVER FREE and MEDICATION FREE (including over-the-counter fever-reducing medications) for 24 hours before coming to school.
- Children must not have experienced diarrhea for 24 hours before coming back to school.
- Children must not have experienced vomiting for 24 hours before coming back to school.
This measure helps prevent the spread of communicable diseases to other students and staff.
We thank you for your continued cooperation and support!
Renata Claudio, School Health Aide
Fairfax County Health Department
Willow Springs Elementary School
703-679-6010
FCPS Announces Third Hiring Event for Furloughed Federal Employees
Fairfax County Public Schools will offer a third hiring event for furloughed federal employees interested in substitute teaching positions on Wednesday, January 23, from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at the FCPS Administration Center, 8115 Gatehouse Road, Falls Church, VA 22042.
“Approximately 350 furloughed employees attended our first two hiring events, and we recognized the need to add a third event to show our support for our neighbors who, in many cases, are parents of FCPS students,” said School Board chair Karen Corbett Sanders. “We always have a need for substitute teachers; on average, we hire 900 to 1,100 subs every day. We will continue to work with applicants to expedite the hiring process and get them into the classroom as soon as possible.”
Anyone interested in serving as a substitute teacher should complete an application for employment. Individuals interested in attending the January 23 event should also complete the Eventbrite registration. Candidates should bring to the hiring event original documents required for form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. Background checks are required for all FCPS employees and volunteers. Attendees are asked to fill out an application for employment prior to the event. Additional details, including a link to the employment application, can be found online.
Substitutes facilitate the instructional process and contribute to providing for a safe, educationally productive environment at school. Duties may include the planning, delivery, and assessment of classroom instruction along with safety and management of a classroom or assigned instructional setting.
For more information about the hiring event, contact the FCPS Department of Human Resources at 571-423-3000.
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@WSESfox: Sharing our Story #WillowPride
Share your weekend & evening activities!
So many great things happen in WSES every single day. Share the awesome examples of innovation, creativity, collaboration, and pride in our school and community by tagging us @WSESfox and using the #WillowPride hashtag on Twitter.
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Once you have selected your favorite photos to post on social media or to text to your family and friends, please consider uploading them to our yearbook site. The more pictures that our coordinators can choose from, the better our yearbook will be. Uploads can be made at community.lifetouch.com and our school access code is CXZCHH.
WSES Looking Ahead
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Friday, January 18th - Students Released Three Hours Early at 1:00 p.m.
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Monday, January 21st - Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Birthday - School Closed
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Friday, January 25th - Student Holiday
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Thursday, January 31st - 4th Grade Strings Concert, 7:00 p.m. (Lanier MS)
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Friday, February 1st - 4th Grade Colonial Day
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Friday, February 1st - Bingo Night, 6:00 p.m. (Cafeteria)
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Monday, February 4th - Student Holiday
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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