Churchill Chatter - Issue 15, December 11, 2019
In This Week's Issue
- Retirement reception for Mr. Hutzel on December 18
- Getting to Know Churchill: Sara Aicher, Second Grade Teacher
- Deadline for Parent AAP referrals is January 9, 2020
- CRS Calendar of Upcoming Events
- CRS PTA News - Winter ASA registration underway
Retirement Reception for Mr. Hutzel
You are cordially invited to join students, families and members of the Churchill Road community in celebration of Mr. Hutzel's retirement on Wednesday, December 18 at 6:00 p.m. in the Churchill Road gym. Please take a moment to chat with Mr. Hutzel and enjoy some cake and coffee prior to the 7:00 p.m. band concert.
We look forward to seeing you there!
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Getting to Know Churchill: Sarah Aicher,
Second Grade Teacher
Ms. Aicher with her niece at Disney.
Ms. Aicher’s love for physical fitness and staying active is perfectly suited for teaching an energetic group of second graders. She’s an expert at keeping the students moving while learning.
Ms Aicher’s family moved every few years because of her father’s job in the government. She was born in Indiana, then attended elementary schools in California, Arizona and Northern Virginia. She spent her middle school and high school years in Roanoke, Virginia, considering that “home” as she lived there the longest and has the fondest memories, especially the mountain views and small-town perks it encompassed.
As part of a large, close-knit, family. Ms. Aicher has traveled the eastern half of the United States, from Michigan to Georgia to visit her cousins. She has even traveled to Germany to visit extended family there. Her parents and both of her older brothers and their families live in Virginia Beach. Ms. Aicher tries to visit her two nieces and a nephew every chance she gets. She looks forward to the time she spends every spring break and at the end of summer in the Outer Banks with her family. The family takes it easy, relaxing, swimming, playing games and enjoying each other’s company.
Ms. Aicher is thoroughly enjoying her first year at Churchill Road as a second grade teacher. She sums it up by saying, “I love how welcoming the Churchill Road community has been to me. Having a strong collaborative and motivating staff has been a positive experience. I am very grateful to be working at CRS with so many wonderful students and families.”
Ms. Aicher received her B.S. from George Mason University, then attended UVA for an M.Ed. in Kinesiology for individuals with disabilities. Ms. Aicher’s move to the classroom represents a bit of a career switch. Before coming to Churchill Road, she worked for three years in FCPS teaching Adapted Physical Education for students with disabilities. While teaching full time, she completed her second M.Ed. in elementary education from Marymount University. As if this didn’t keep her busy enough, Ms. Aicher has also coached JV girl’s lacrosse at Lake Braddock Secondary School for the past three seasons.
When not at school, Ms. Aicher spends her free time reading fiction books, always searching for a new series or author to try out. When the weather is nice, she gets exercise walking her dog, hiking local trails and spending time in the outdoors. She also tries to attend a few Atlanta Falcons games every season. She considers herself an avid fan and felt extremely fortunate that she and her dad got see them in person at the 2017 Super Bowl! During school breaks, Ms. Aicher enjoys experiencing different cultures and trying new foods, particularly relishing her trips to Canada, Ireland, Austria, Czech Republic, Mexico, Jamaica, Dominican Republic and many of the United States.
We are thrilled that Ms. Aicher has brought her enthusiasm for life and love of physical fitness to Churchill Road. Perhaps she will demonstrate her athleticism in the upcoming Parent-Faculty Basketball game this spring! We hope that she’s found her niche as a second grade teacher and is at Churchill Road for many years to come.
4th Grade Colonial Day
Fourth graders participated in their annual Colonial Day event last Friday. Thanks to the efforts of music specialists Ms. Judkins and Ms. Shipman, students performed the Virginia Reel as expertly as if they'd been doing it all their lives. Students also had the opportunity to practice a variety of colonial crafts including quilting, tin punching, weaving, soap carving and making sachets (below) to name a few. Thank you to the fourth grade team -- Ms. Bolger, Ms. Del Signore, Ms. Diorio, Ms. Kwon and Ms. Rook -- along with the many parent volunteers for organizing this event and ensuring that it went off flawlessly!
Wellness: Benefits of Live Music
 Mrs. Robertson leads the students in a final rehearsal before the winter strings concert.
Sound has a powerful influence on us. Comforting, pleasant sounds can calm us while irritating noises can cause stress. Like most animals, hearing is our primary warning sense and an unexpected sound starts a process—releasing cortisol, increasing our heart rate, and changing our breathing. Our bodies consider an unexplained noise a threat and we intuitively assume a state of fight or flight. Although it is impossible to eliminate aggravating sounds, we can be aware of the impact of noise on our bodies and minds and work to use it to our benefit. A bird’s song can reassure us that we are in a safe environment and relax us. Similarly, music can improve our mood and create an emotional response. As the year winds down, and commitments may increase, consider tapping into music you enjoy to create a soothing environment and to reduce stress. Options for great music abound at CRS: tonight is the 4th grade strings concert and the 4th, 5th, and 6th advanced strings concert; next Tuesday evening is the chorus concert and next Wednesday is the band concert. Enjoy the benefits of beautiful live music!
Cheer Winners of the Week
Congratulations to our Churchill Cheer winners for the week of December 2. Cheers are given to students who follow the four R’s. This week’s winners are: Rania Ahmad (K); Shanath Pattabiraman (Grade 1); Emerson Hueber (Grade 2), Sam Machtinger (Grade 3) and Sean Bajaj (Grade 4). Our winners for Art are: Elyse Thomas (K-2) and Ryleen Poonjari (3-4). Remember, at CRS we follow the four R’s. We respect ourselves, we respect others, we respect property, we respect the Earth, and we are responsible.
Deadline for AAP Level IV Referrals
This is a friendly reminder that the deadline for submitting referral materials for students in Grades 2-7 for AAP full-time Level IV consideration is no later than January 9, 2020. (Please submit referral materials to the front office, in a sealed envelope.) Parents are welcome to submit early, but no late referrals will be accepted. We advise parents not to wait for pending abilities test scores if they would like their student screened. While the Grade 2 screening pool casts a starting point for screening some students, test scores are only one factor in the eligibility decision.
If you would like more information about Level IV AAP services or the screening process for Level IV, there are two parent presentations available on the AAP public website that have the same information that was shared at our local school information meetings. Please contact, Esther Lee, Churchill Road AART, eclee1@fpcs.edu, if you have any questions.
Please note: On Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2020, 9:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. in the Churchill Road front lobby, Esther Lee will be providing parents open office hours to drop by on a first come-first serve basis to have your child’s referral packet reviewed for completeness and adherence to submission guidelines. Please review part 2 of the parent presentation (AAP Screening and Identification Video), for details on submission guidelines.
Great Falls Elementary Japanese Immersion Program Information Night
This year’s World Language Japanese Immersion Program Information Night will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, January 16, 2020, in the Great Falls Elementary School cafeteria. If you wish to learn about how the Japanese Immersion Program works and see if it might be a good fit for your future first grader, please come to the presentation. You will have a rare opportunity to meet the school administrators and talk to the Japanese Immersion teachers directly to ask any questions you may have about the program.
Location: Great Falls Elementary
Time: 6:30 PM, Thursday, January 16 (or January 23 for the snow day)
Who: Parents of students who are rising 1st graders OR students who are fluent Japanese speakers
We hope to see you there!
CRS Calendar of Upcoming Events
Wednesday, December 11
4th Grade Strings Concert, Gym, 6 PM
6th/5th/4th Grade ADV Strings Concert, Gym, 7 PM
Thursday, December 12
6th/5th/4th Grade ADV Strings Concert for K,1,3,6, Gym, 9:15 AM
6th/5th/4th Grade ADV Strings Concert for 2,4,5, Gym, 10 AM
Tuesday, December 17
Chorus Concert for K,1,3,6, Gym, 9:00 AM
Chorus Concert for 2,4,5, Gym, 9:45 AM
Chorus Concert for Parents/Community, Gym, 7 PM
Wednesday, December 18
Retirement Reception for Mr. Hutzel, Gym, 6 PM
Band Concert for Parents/Community, Gym, 7 PM
Thursday, December 19
Band Concert for K,1,3,6, Gym, 9:15 AM
Band Concert for 2,4,5, Gym, 10 AM
Friday, December 20
SCA Holiday Party Wear Spirit Day
December 23 - January 3
Winter Break - School Closed
Monday, January 6, 2020
Classes resume at 8:35 AM
Winter After School Activities Registration
General registration is open for our winter session of After School Activities (ASA). Kindergartners can participate! Don’t forget to check out our classes taught by CRS teachers – Bobcat Fitness & Flag Football. Registration ends at 5 p.m. on Wednesday 12/18. https://www.churchillroadpta.org/asa
Links to PTA News
Link to the CRS PTA homepage:
http://www.churchillroadpta.org/
Link to the PTA Week-at-a-Glance:
https://churchillroadpta.membershiptoolkit.com/newsletters
As outlined by FCPS Regulation 1367.2, school principals shall offer options to nonprofit organizations that want to make their materials available to students and parents. At Churchill Road, non-profit organizations will be permitted to send home flyers in the take home folder 4 times during the year. The dates for the 2019-2020 school year are the weeks of September 16, December 2, March 2 and May 4. These fliers must be related to the school’s educational mission and be age-appropriate. Community organizations must submit their materials in advance to the school’s principal and must include the disclaimer “These materials are neither sponsored nor endorsed by the Fairfax County School Board, the Superintendent, or this School.” Once approved, the organization will be required to make the copies necessary for distribution. Any questions can be directed to Kim Moran, Churchill Road's Public Relations Liaison.
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