January 24 - End of Quarter
January 27-28 - No School
February 5 - AIM Jam session
February 7 - Wolftrap Spirit Day
February 11 - Dining for Dollars at Silver Diner
February 14 - PTA Meeting, 8:45am
February 17 - Holiday
February 19 - Edison Expo
February 29 - Skate Night
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Dear Wolftrap Families:
As you are aware, our 1st semester is quickly coming to a close and progress reports outlining your student's mastery of content standards will be distributed on January 31. You will be able to view the progress report in SIS Parent Vue on February 1. Please take time to review these reports with your child, celebrate successes, and set goals for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year.
INCLEMENT WEATHER: Now that winter is officially here, please take a few minutes to review procedures with your child in case of an early closing or delayed opening due to inclement weather. Parents and students should have a well-communicated plan in place in the event of these emergency situations. Children need to know where to go or what to do if a parent will not be home. The safety of students and staff is the number one priority any time a decision must be made regarding school closures and delays during a weather situation. Due to the speed of updating, the official @FCPSnews Twitter account (with blue checkmark) is generally the first and fastest mode of communication. Other communication channels will be updated as quickly as possible including email, text, website, other social media, and news stations. Please be aware, due to the large volume of emails sent there will likely be a lag between the FCPS Twitter alert and receipt of an email in your inbox.
KINDERGARTEN ORIENTATION: We will hold this annual event on Monday, April 13 at 1:00 PM. Please stay tuned for more information.
A NOTE FROM DR. GROVE: As a reminder, in elementary school, students may bring phones to school, but they must be silenced and in backpacks for the duration of the school day. They may be utilized on campus only before and after school. Teachers may allow usage of cell phones for instructional activities where they are the most appropriate tool, such as video creation or QR Code activities.
Watches that are connected to phones, such as Apple watches, that have texting capability must not be used during the day (the watches should not have this capability if phones are off and in backpacks). If you need to communicate with your child during the day, please contact the office or clinic directly. When the office and teachers are not made aware that students are sick or have a change in dismissal, this affects our ability to keep students safe, as we may not have the details needed to address a specific situation. Thank you!
BUDGET: Superintendent Brabrand presented a $3.2 billion Fiscal Year 2021 (FY 21) Proposed Budget to the School Board at its business meeting on January 9. The budget focuses on employee compensation. It also represents an increase of $172.2 million, or 5.8 percent, over the FY 20 Approved Budget. I highly encourage you to become informed about and involved in the budget process! Please see this site for detailed information: https://www.fcps.edu/about-fcps/budget
SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGIST: Did you know that there is a School Psychologist assigned to EVERY school in FCPS? FCPS School Psychologists are working hard to make a positive impact on the academic and social-emotional development of all FCPS students through the provision of mental health services that build resiliency, life competencies and good citizenship. Please follow them on Twitter @FCPSpsychs to find out more about how they impact students’ lives every day!
LOCKDOWN DRILL: Earlier today, Wolftrap ES conducted its third of four required lockdown drills this school year. Every school facility in Fairfax County Public Schools has in place crisis management and emergency preparedness plans, designed with the help of the school system’s security planning staff, local law enforcement, and emergency management officials. During a lockdown, students remain in their classrooms or are escorted to classrooms if they are in the halls, and all interior and exterior doors are closed and locked. Once the facility is rendered safe and students are accounted for, the school is returned to normal operation. While we have no reason to believe that any threat of violence will arise, it is always best to be prepared. It is important to train students and staff members so that we can effectively implement a lockdown in the event one becomes necessary. Training helps ensure a calmer, more effective lockdown. If you have any questions about these safety drills, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Please remember that there is no school on Monday, January 27 and Tuesday, January 28!
Sincerely,
Teresa Khuluki
Principal
Talent Show 2020 was a huge success with hidden staff talents, tear-inducing 6th graders and 43 acts of solid fun! Heartfelt thanks to Erin Tavernier, Debbie Rhoda, Tara Holtaway, the whole Talent Show team and all the parents who supported this event with their PTA donations.
Don't forget to check out all of the events this month in the Connection, including Edison Expo and volunteer opportunities. Post-winter break the signups get a little bare, please sign up to keep us going through June.
PTA Parent Survey This is an annual survey to solicit feedback on various PTA topics. Last Connection, we reviewed spending priorities. Other insights:
- The majority felt the number of PTA events is just right and the PTA keeps parents informed.
- Parents use three main methods for information: the Connection, room parent emails and the Facebook page.
- Results were mixed, but the majority approved of eliminating evening PTA meetings due to the year over year low attendance (<5 people).
- Parents preferred not to pay to bring speakers to Wolftrap, but to advertise those offered within the Madison-Marshall pyramids.
Thank you for the kind comments about our parent volunteers, PTA and school. We’ll review the results further at February’s PTA meeting, hope to see you there!
Stay tuned for more in the next Connection.
Looking for some new ways to get involved at Wolftrap! We've got lots of ways for parents to get connected:
Library volunteering:
Our librarian, Ms. Stubbs still needs support in the library for winter and spring. Please email Ashley Binkowski, ashleybinkowski@gmail.com or Ms. Stubbs, srstubbs@fcps.edu) for your relevant class signup or stop by anytime to help return books to the shelves!
Food Recycling/Donation
Every week, Wolftrap students collect unused, leftover food from school lunches. This food make a difference for local families in need, but not if they don't get delivered! Pickup/delivery times are on Friday between 2-5pm to Food for Others in Merrifield,and can be a one-time commitment: please sign up if you're able!
Hallway Art Display
Ms. Mallino is looking for 2-3 volunteers to come in once a month to rotate out hallway art. Done the third Friday of the month, anytime before 1 pm. Signup here!
Walking Wednesdays Assistance
Help keep us warm at Walking Wednesday and grab the coffee container from Caffe Amouri! Sign up for pickup here.
Tuesday, Feb 11th - Dining for Dollars at the Silver Diner in Tysons, 5PM-8PM. Come out to support Wolftrap while enjoying a great meal with your Wolftrap friends! Silver Diner will donate a percentage of the amount you spend when you dine in. Hope to see you there!
Save the Date for the Edison Expo on Wednesday, February 19, 2020!
Hypothesize, Experiment, Analyze and Bring Results! The Edison Expo, Wolftrap’s STEAM Fair, is next month – Wednesday, February 19, 2020! The Edison Expo offers all students K-6 an opportunity to showcase a project in Science, Technology, Engineering, Architecture, or Math. Back by popular demand – for 5th and 6th graders – the Second Annual Edison Expo Egg Drop! For more information on the Edison Expo and Egg Drop -- and our Getting Started Guide: click here: https://wolftrappta.membershiptoolkit.com/Edison_expo.
To lend a hand, sign up here (https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F094DA5A72CA20-wolftrap2). We are looking for small number of volunteers to support student project collection, project reviews and egg drop support. Middle/High school student support welcome. Questions? Email edisonexpo@wolftrappta.org.
Early bird registration is now OPEN online for the 15th Annual Wolftrap 5K and Fun Run on Sunday, April 19, 2020! This is our school's largest fundraiser, raising over $53K for the school last year. This year we will be debuting a brand-new USATF-certified 5K course to make things even more exciting. This is an event your whole family does not want to miss!
Register online here to ensure early bird rates through February 28th. Early bird rates are 5K Adult -- $30, 5K Child -- $20, Fun Run -- $10. 5K rates go up by $5 on February 29th when regular registration begins. Register by March 30th to receive your free race t-shirt before the race.
Questions? Contact funrun@wolftrappta.org.
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Wolftrap Skate Night - Feb 29, 2020, SkateQuest in Reston, 6-8pm
Registration will open in February - stay tuned to the Connection and the PTA website for more information in the next few weeks!
Did you know that our Wolftrap PTA homepage has many Community Events listed? We get info from local scouting programs, after school care companies, opportunities for parents of students with special needs and more! Check it out at www.wolftrappta.org.
Great Falls/ McLean Eagles Rugby Spring Season 2020!
Be active! Be a leader!
Registration is now open: www.rugbyVA.com
Free to try. No experience necessary.
Boys & Girls: Ages Pre-K to 12th grade.
Tag and tackle teams offered year-round.
 Patrick Henry Library is hosting local author Julianna Miner on Saturday, February 1, 2020 at 1:30 PM, speaking on her book Raising a Screen Smart Kid.
https://librarycalendar.fairfaxcounty.gov/event/5815506
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