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Dear Columbia Families,
Welcome Back! We are looking forward to seeing everyone on Friday at Open House from 3:00 – 4:00.
Students will begin school on August 26. Just a reminder, parents are welcome to join their children on the first day of school and walk them to the classroom. It is important that we get routines in place beginning Tuesday so students will walk to class independently.
Remember August 30, 2019 is a HOLIDAY and schools are closed. The General Assembly passed legislation in July that requires school systems that start before Labor Day must make the Friday before a HOLIDAY.
We know you receive a great deal of information at the beginning of the year so we wanted to communicate to you some of the information early. We hope early access to the information can provide a head start for you regarding all the information you will be reviewing during the first few weeks of school.
Enjoy the last days of summer!
Columbia Elementary Staff
Family Life Education Instructional Program Information
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) provides a comprehensive, sequential Family Life Education (FLE) program for students in grades kindergarten through grade twelve. Instruction is seen as a partnership among parents and guardians, the school, and the community in supporting the learning essential to the development of strong families, positive relationships, and a healthy community.
Parents/guardians may choose to opt their child out of all or part of the Family Life Education program. Students who are opted out are provided with age-appropriate, nonpunitive alternative health instruction, and every effort is made to foster respect for family choices. If you wish to opt your child out of all or part of FLE for this school year, opt out forms will be included in your child’s back-to-school/orientation packets and are available online for Elementary (K-6) https://www.fcps.edu/academics/elementary-school-academics-k-6/elementary-family-life-education , Middle School (7-8) https://www.fcps.edu/academics/middle-school-academics-7-8/family-life-education-fle, and High School (9-12) https://www.fcps.edu/academics/high-school-academics-9-12/family-life-education-fle. Please fill in the opt-out form and return it to your child’s school prior to Family Life Education instruction.
Detailed grade-level program descriptions are available online at Elementary (K-6) , Middle School (7-8) , and High School (9-12). FLE grade level-specific lessons and media that FCPS has streaming rights for are available for parents online in FCPS 24-7 (Blackboard) Parent View https://fcps.blackboard.com/. Account information is available at your local school or online at http://www.fcps.edu/is/instructionaltechnology/247help/parents.shtml. Grade level-specific lessons are also available at the Fairfax County Regional Library in the City of Fairfax (this location does not have media). Grade level-specific lessons and media that is not streamed online are available for review at your child’s school library. Due to copyright permissions, we are unable to stream all media online.
Program questions may be addressed at your child’s school or by contacting Instructional Services at 571-423-4550 or by contacting Elizabeth Payne, Health and Physical Education Coordinator at etpayne@fcps.edu.
Important Information for ALL
Arrival and dismissal procedures.
The procedures are in place for the safety of all students arriving and departing Columbia Elementary School. Columbia has over 500 students arriving and departing daily. Please listen to and support the staff managing the implementation of these procedures; Student safety is our number one concern and we need your support. There are three modes of transportation: walking, buses, and cars. Our goal is to facilitate this process while meeting the needs of the various modes of transportation. Please follow these simple procedures to ensure the safety of all students regardless of mode of transportation.
WALKERS:
- Use designated crosswalks.
- Obey the safety patrols.
KISS N RIDE:
- Children will be supervised starting at 9:05 a.m. To keep our children
safe, walkers and car riders should arrive at school no earlier than
9:05 a.m. The building will open at 9:05 a.m
- Students should only be
unloaded at the designated Kiss N’ Ride area (Only the first three cars of
the line will be unloading child(ren).
- Watch for directions by
supervisors.
- Load and discharge children
from the passenger side of the car only, so they will not have to cross
the driveway in front of traffic.
- Remain in driver’s seat.
- Keep goodbyes brief; other
drivers will be waiting behind you to discharge children
- Do not pass other cars that
are loading or discharging children.
- Do not block cross walks and
yield to pedestrians.
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Drive
slowly
in the Kiss N Ride lane and refrain
from using the cell phone. (The staff and students crossing the
intersections and managing Kiss N Ride need your undivided attention to
ensure the safety of all students and staff.)
- No cars are permitted in the
bus lane.
- Use caution on Alpine Drive. (The street serves as the main arrival
area for car riders and we have walkers crossing the street too.)
- Do not drop your child(ren)
off on Alpine Drive.
- The lower parking lot is closed
as well to eliminate traffic exiting the building during arrival and
dismissal. If you park in this
area, please be prepared to wait until Kiss N’ Ride is complete to leave.
BUS RIDERS:
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- Obey driver.
- Obey bus safety rules
- Remain seated at all times.
It is our responsibility as a community to work together to facilitate the safe arrival and departure of students regardless of transportation mode. If you have questions, please contact the school. Thank you for your cooperation and assistance in facilitating the safe arrival and departure of students.
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Lunch Information
Lunch Schedule: School Information can be found here: https://columbiaes.fcps.edu/about/lunch-schedule
Lunch - Lunch account balances can be found online for students. https://www.myschoolbucks.com/
Free and Reduced Meal Information
The free and reduced meals application for the 2018-2019 school year is now available. The free and reduced meals application for the 2018-2019 school year includes an online application for parents to submit the application electronically for faster processing.
- The online free and reduced meals application will be available in the following languages: English, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Filipino, French, Vietnamese,
- To change the language of the application click on the Language link in the top right of the screen.
- The online application can be completed on mobile devices.
- If an email address is provided, notification will be e-mailed regarding approval.
PTA Updates and Happenings
Dear Parents and School Supporters,
Columbia Elementary PTA has joined Harris Teeter’s Together in Education (TIE) program again this year to help raise funds for our school. It’s easy to participate! Your support can and really does make a difference to students at our school.
There are three easy ways to join:
- Next time at checkout, simply give the cashier our school code, 4295, and your Harris Teeter VIC Card will be linked for the entire 2019-2020 school year. That’s it! You only have to link your VIC Card once each school year.
- Go online to link your VIC Card for this school year: https://www.harristeeter.com/user/login. Create an account or log on to your existing account, select MY ACCOUNT, then click the LINK YOUR VIC CARD button.
- Provide your last name, VIC card number (first 11 digits), and your phone number to your reward programs coordinator (Jan Pasternak), and she will link your card.
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Once your VIC Card is linked, Columbia Elementary will receive a percentage of your Harris Teeter brand purchases (Harris Teeter, H.T. Traders, Harris Teeter Organics, HT Farmers Market, and purchases in the HT Pharmacy) credited back to our account.
This program does not interfere with your VIC savings or cost you. If you have any questions or need more information, please contact Jan Pasternak, Grocery Store Reward Programs Volunteer, at janpast@hotmail.com.
Thank you for supporting our school. Go Cougars! Sincerely,
Columbia Elementary PTA
PLEASE NOTE:
If you previously registered your VIC Card to support Columbia in a prior academic year, you DO NEED to relink/register your card. VIC cards need to be linked once each school year. Please do so today!! Thanks.
 3 EASY WAYS TO DONATE
EVERY STUDENT COUNTS. EVERY GIFT COUNTS. ALL DONATIONS ARE GREATLY APPRECIATED
Calendar at Glance
- AUG 23 -- Open House -- 3 pm-4 pm
- AUG 26 -- First Day of School
- AUG 30 – SEP 02 -- Labor Day - Student Holiday
- SEP 11 Back to School Night (Kindergarten, 1st Grade, and 2nd Grade) 6 - 7 p.m.
- SEP 11 -- Back to School Night (3rd Grade, 4th Grade, & 5th Grade)
7:30 - 8:30 p.m.
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