Glasgow Community Gazette - April 26

Glasgow Community:

This weekend, and for the past several weekends, my family and I have gone on ten-mile hikes on the Appalachian Trail to fulfill requirements for the Boy Scout hiking merit badge. Each week, this time with my boys, husband, and dogs is a welcome breath from the intensity of the week. I feel lucky to live in such a beautiful part of the country - seeing the forests turn green and the flowers blooming makes me grateful and reminds me that we will get through this challenging time. 

Glasgow staff have been very hard at work this past week setting up new Blackboard Collaborate Ultra sessions to support synchronous learning, which will begin on Wednesday, April 29, according to the Distance Learning Schedule. Teachers are very excited to connect with your students! Please remind your students to check their fcpsschools.net emails every day. They will be receiving emails from Blackboard Collaborate for each of their core classes (English, Math, Science Social Studies and World Languages).

I enjoyed speaking, connecting and "seeing" many of you at the virtual Parent Coffee this past week. Your feedback and questions help to shape our next steps, if you were unable to attend the link is here.

I hope you and your family are well and always, please reach if you have any questions.

Katie Madigan, Acting Principal

Contact Information:
Twitter: @ktmadigan
Email: kemadigan@fcps.edu
Website: http://www.fcps.edu/GlasgowMS/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GlasgowMS.FCPS/

Distance Learning

Distance Learning will continue throughout FCPS this week. Glasgow students and families will be able to access asynchronous lessons in all content areas through Blackboard, as well as through emails students received fcpsschools.net email with their personalized schedules, and through our glasgowms.fcps.edu website. 

Here is the link to the FCPS Distance Learning website that will provide you detailed information.

Our Glasgow Website has been updated with many important links for distance learning. In the announcements section, there are two banners that will take you to the Distance Learning Hub and to the Distance Learning Resources section. Students can access their course homepages through the Distance Learning Hub and many of your questions can be answered in the Distance Learning Resources section.  In addition, like all FCPS websites, they can be translated into many different languages.

Synchronous Sessions - Synchronous Sessions are starting Wednesday, April 29. Students will follow the bell schedule outlined below. Students will attend secure synchronous sessions via Blackboard Collaborate Ultra, without needing to log in to Blackboard FCPS 24-7 Learn.

Students will receive an email from Blackboard Collaborate Invitee, inviting them to attend each of their classes’ sessions. These emails will be stacked in your student’s fcpsschools.net email. These links are associated with your student’s individual account and should not be shared with anyone else. If the name in a student’s email is not their own, please contact the student’s teacher immediately before proceeding.

Students have also received an email in their fcpsschools.net email that includes directions on how to access the links and a link organizer. Keep a look out for this information as well in your student's Google email as well.

Parent Coffee

Thank you to everyone who attended the parent coffee.  If you were unable to attend the coffee or would like to go back for your reference, here is a link to the parent coffee, for your reference. I look forward to seeing you at the upcoming PTA meeting for more updates and conversation around distance learning.

Grading Update

3rd Quarter Grading Update - Quarter Extended - Per FCPS grading policy during COVID-19 closures, 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 Friday, May 1 in order to be applied in the calculation of students’ third quarter grades. Note: ParentVUE/StudentVUE access will be turned off to allow for teachers to enter grades from Friday, May 1 through Friday, May 8. Grades will be available in ParentVUE/StudentVUE on Saturday, May 9. 3rd quarter report cards will be mailed out by FCPS central office.

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. You may see some “feedback” entered into the grade-book already. Each of these assignments are “Not for Grading” and can only have a positive impact on your students final mark. Only final grades will be shown on transcripts; a “no mark” will not show on a student’s final transcript.

Volunteer Opportunities

Get Involved, Run for the PTA Board - The PTA is looking for interested parties to serve on the board, there are a number of opportunities available. Some positions are easily performed remotely. Please email the PTA if interested: glasgowms.pta@gmail.com. 

Food Donation - Fortunately our feeder neighborhoods have several pre-existing food truck delivery programs through Food For Others. If you are interested in donating food, we recommend that families donate using information from the website: https://www.foodforothers.org/

Important Dates

April 29 - Synchronous Sessions - Odd Day

May 1 - Synchronous Sessions - Even Day

May 1 - May 14 - Virtual Book Fair

May 5 - Virtual PTA Meeting

April 29 & May 1 - Synchronous Sessions - Following your students regular class schedule and the distance learning schedule synchronous schedule. Students can engage in synchronous learning on Wednesday and Friday this week. Our teachers are looking forward to reconnecting with them online.

May 1 - May 14 - Virtual Spring Book Fair - It’s time for the Glasgow MS Spring Book Fair!  We invite you to shop our Book Fair online from May 1 - May14, 2020! Even though our school is closed, we still want to make the Book Fair available for our entire school community. Scholastic Book Fair link

Take advantage of free shipping on book-only orders over $25. If you choose a non-book item free shipping is NOT available. Plus, all purchases benefit our school. Click the SHOP NOW button to start shopping and show your support. The SHOP NOW button will not appear until the fair opens on May 1. See these links for a small sampling of books that will be offered: Pre-K Booklist , K-6 Booklist , Middle School Booklist  Please contact Tara Sanz, Glasgow MS librarian, at tmsanz@fcps.edu if you have any questions. Thanks for supporting the Glasgow MS library!

May 5 - Virtual PTA Meeting - Join us for the May PTA meeting. The meeting will include elections for the upcoming 2020 - 2021 school year. We will also host a round table with Katie Madigan, Principal, Joash Chung Director of Student Services and other members of the Glasgow Staff.  This meeting will replace our next Parent Coffee.  Please fill out this form to gain access to the link for the PTA meeting. Submit questions in advance to glasgowms.pta@gmail.com. Looking forward to seeing you there.

Glasgow Goodies

From the PTA - Teacher Appreciation Week - In honor of Teacher Appreciation Week (May 4th-8th) the PTA would like to send a video montage to raise their spirits and let them know how much we applaud them. This is where you can help!  We are asking that you have your student(s) send in a video or a picture thanking all teachers.  We ask that you keep the video to one minute or less. (If your student would rather hold a sign while you snap a picture that works, too!). Please note that by sending in your student’s video/picture you are giving us permission to use it for the video montage and send it to Glasgow to be distributed among the teachers. Deadline to send in videos:   May 1, 2020 If you have any questions please email us at: glasgowmspta.activities@gmail.com

From Student Services - Teacher Appreciation Week: May 4th-8th, 2020 – Community Contributions - Glasgow has some of the kindest & hardest working teachers out there. During Teacher Appreciation Week this year (May 4-8) we want to let them know how much they're valued. We’d love for our families & community members to complete this Google Form to share some thoughts about Glasgow teachers. Not all sections need to be completed, so feel free doing only what you’re comfortable filling out. With the feedback we receive we’ll be creating a collage to surprise our teachers throughout the week. Thank you!

Important Information 

Yearbooks Still on Sale! - Parents are encouraged to purchase a yearbook today! The cost is $30. You can purchase your yearbook on-line at https://www.balfour.com/virginia/alexandria/glasgow-middle-school. If you have any questions, please contact Mr. Perella at maperella@fcps.edu. We will update you on how yearbooks will be distributed with the closure of school as we get closer to the distribution date.

K-8 Learning Packets and Opt Out - The packets are available electronically in Blackboard FCPS 24/7 Learning so if a parent would like to print the packets at home, they may use the opt out link to stop receiving the printed instructional packets in the mail. They will need their student’s ID number and their e-mail address to access the opt out system. Please note, it may take up to 1 week to process the request to opt out.

Library Books and Resources - Please enjoy your school library books at home. No books are overdue and they can be returned when school buildings re-open in summer or fall. Please check out our audiobooks and eBooks available on MackinVIA.  See this video that will help you access MackinVIA: https://screencast-o-matic.com/watch/cqQ3rBt9wQ Students can also check out books from MyON. Here is a video that shows you how to access that resource: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITgJzPWMIBc&t=2s Feel free to email, Tara Sanz, Glasgow MS librarian and avid reader of middle grade & YA fiction, if you need any recommendations or help with accessing online library resources. tmsanz@fcps.edu Happy reading!

Student Services - Counselors Available If you have concerns regarding your child’s socioemotional health or mental wellbeing, please contact your child’s counselor for support. Counselors are available to check in with your child through email or the voice-dial feature on Google Meets. Unless your child has been opted out of counseling services, counselors may be reaching out to your child if they have requested an appointment or if staff members have noticed concerns that may prompt a check in. As always, counselors will stay in communication with parents whenever necessary. 

*Note* When counselors are calling during Distance Learning, they may be calling from a blocked caller ID number or a number starting with (347) which is the area code for Google Meets.

• A – C: Akon Otoyo - ajotoyo@fcps.edu
• D – J: Curtiss Barnes - crbarnes@fcps.edu
• K – Ph: Cynthia Pareja - cspareja@fcps.edu
• Pi - Z: Greg Frantz - gdfrantz@fcps.edu
• ESOL Level 1 &2: Irania Escalante - ivescalante@fcps.edu  
• TEAM 7&8: Jenn Pallotto (lead) - jkpallotto@fcps.edu

Support for Parents during COVID-19 Closures - We recognize that these extended closures are an unprecedented time for all members of our school community including staff, students, and also parents. Here is a guide for parents as to how you can continue to support your child at home to ensure their socio-emotional health and wellness. 

How to Support Your Child During COVID-19 Closures

2020-2021 Course Registration for Glasgow Students - Academic advising has concluded for all rising 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. You can view the courses that your child has selected through StudentVue and ParentVue selecting the “course request” tab.  Please note that all course request changes for Glasgow students were due by April 17, 2020. Finalizing requests by this date allows us to invest in staffing and resources based on students’ needs and interests. We will be finalizing schedules and placements throughout the late Spring and summer months. Please reach out to your child's counselor if you have any further questions about course registration.

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.

• 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

Click here for a list of local organizations that are providing food for students and families.