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Message from Principal Magliola
Dear Jackson Families,
What we’ve all experienced over the past two weeks has unfolded with significant challenges in many ways. To be completely honest and somewhat obvious, this is not the way any of us envisioned our year at LJMS unfolding. We had momentum and excitement in our building as our students were preparing themselves for meaningful challenges and robust opportunities in their learning. But in the face of adversity, I could not think of a more caring and dedicated community to go through this with than all of you. I am inspired by your unrelenting offering of support for our kids, your desire to improve outcomes for each other, and what you are all willing to do to make a difference. There is no playbook for what we are about to embark upon and while I am saddened by the sudden reality, I am confident that not all is lost at this time and that we will figure this out together!
I am honored to serve as Principal at LJMS and will continue to do my very best as we establish our Distance Learning Plan for our students. I know you also will give your absolute best. We will need to find peace with not having a perfect plan and uphold confidence as we try new approaches in our instructional delivery. Our students are ready to resume their learning and their teachers are ready to deliver virtual instruction. Tomorrow we will meet as a whole staff (virtually) to connect, hear messaging around DLP at LJMS, attend differentiated professional learning sessions, and work with collaborative teams to plan/prepare instruction. At LJMS, Distance Learning embodies the following philosophies:
- Provides meaningful learning opportunities for our students.
- Ensures access to lessons that are clear, purposeful and aligned.
- Preserves a level of connection and continuity for students during a time of uncertainty.
- Fosters confidence in our ability to continue to meet students’ needs in unexpected circumstances.
We know this will be a new process for us to learn and we are committed to meeting and supporting your needs. I will continue to send two weekly communications in order to share the most updated information from LJMS. You can expect these from me on Wednesdays and Sundays during our Distance Learning calendar. Enjoy your evening and please let me know if you have any further questions.
Mike
mjmagliola@fcps.edu
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Important Dates
April 6th-10th - SPRING BREAK
April 13th - NO SCHOOL, Teacher Workday
April 14th - Distance Learning Begins!
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Tigers Staying Connected
Staying Connected Photo Album - LJ would love to hear how you are spending your time and maybe even post some pictures in an upcoming newsletters. I have created a Google Photos album titled “LJMS Community - Staying Connected Photo Album” to share pictures of how you are spending your time while social distancing. |
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Middle School Grading Update
3rd Quarter Grading Update - The School Board was briefed that no student work assigned after March 13 will be graded, at the recommendation of VDOE; however, work assigned prior to March 13 will still be accepted up until April 24 in order to be applied in the calculation of students’ third quarter grades. Additionally, it is the intention of FCPS to use maximum flexibility in assessing and evaluating student learning for the remainder of the school year.
4th Quarter Grading Update - Middle school and high school students will be assigned a “no mark” for the fourth quarter, with assignments submitted being allowed to positively influence the student’s overall grade for the year based on mastery of learning concepts, in accordance with FCPS grading policy. Only final grades will be shown on transcripts; a “no mark” will not show on a student’s final transcript.
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FCPS Continuity of Learning Resources
The LJMS website has been updated to have the link to the Continuity of Learning Resources linked directly on our home page https://jacksonms.fcps.edu/. You may also access the learning activities on FCPS 24-7 (Blackboard). We will be given further direction before March 27, if additional school based distance learning will be created. Stay tuned for more updates about distance learning.
FCPS Cable Channels
Learning activities are now available on FCPS cable channels. New instructional videos are currently being developed and recorded and will be added to the programming shortly. Channel 21 includes elementary school programming, Channel 25 includes middle school programming, and Channel 99 includes high school programming. This content will also be available online at www.fcps.edu.
Free Internet Access
Comcast and Cox are providing free or low cost internet to families in need. Click the links below to learn more:Comcast free internet and Cox free internet.
Food Services Meal Distribution Sites
FCPS will continue to provide grab and go breakfasts and lunches at no cost for students at multiple sites to students, with breakfast from 8:00-10:30am and lunch from 10:30am to 2:00pm. School-age students are welcome to come to any of the nearest sites listed below to pick up a lunch during that time period. Other sites are also available on the FCPS homepage. All meals are available at no cost to children 18 years and under. Adult lunches are available for purchase for $2.
- Luther Jackson Middle School, 3020 Gallows Rd. Falls Church (11:00 to 11:30 M-F)
- Annandale Terrace, 7604 Herald St., Annandale
- Braddock Elementary, 7825 Heritage Dr., Annandale
- Bailey’s Elementary School, 6111 Knollwood Dr., Falls Church
- Crestwood ES, 6010 Hanover Ave., Springfield
- Glen Forest ES, 5829 Glen Forest Dr., Falls Church
- Parklawn ES, 4116 Braddock Road, Alexandria
- Bailey’s Community Center, 10-10:30 a.m., 5920 Summers Ln, Falls Church
- Graham Road Community Center
Sign Up for Weekly Progress Reports
All parents/guardians of middle and high school students who have registered for a SIS ParentVUE Account and have a primary email address recorded in SIS ParentVUE can receive Weekly Progress Reports via email. This report provides a summary of your student(s) grades for the current quarter.
To activate the Weekly Progress Reports via email, login to your SIS ParentVUE Account and first verify that you have a primary email address within the system. It is listed under the “My Account” tab. If it is blank, enter the email address where you would like to receive the progress reports and click on update account. Once confirmed, parents/guardians are able to activate and select their preferences for receiving these reports within the SIS ParentVUE “My Account” tab.
Weekly progress reports for middle and high school students will be included in one email. FCPS Elementary Schools do not use the SIS grade book and therefore are not included in these reports. For questions about a specific progress report or grade you can login into your SIS ParentVUE Account to find detailed grade book information. Additionally, your student’s teacher is always the best resource to answer any grade book questions that you may have. Weekly Progress Report Parent Quick Reference Guide.
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Be Informed, Stay Involved
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