Glasgow Community Gazette - June 7

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Glasgow Community:

I am so grateful for the many conversations I had with several of you, our Glasgow staff, and educators throughout FCPS this past week about racism. Many of you reached out and shared your own experiences as well as the conversations you are having with your families. These are conversations we must continue. Let us be unrelenting in our responsibility to each other, our students and community, and society to confront and combat hate. We will continue this conversation with the Glasgow Equity Team Leads, Claire White and Dennis Nolasco at the PTA meeting on Tuesday evening at 7:00pm. See below for more information. 

As we close out the 2019-2020 school year, I want to share with you what I shared with Glasgow staff: the message that they did great. As a growth-centered staff, as a staff committed to ensuring all students learn at the highest levels, it would have been easy for us to feel that the challenges this spring were insurmountable - but we made it, stronger than ever. As a staff, together we:

  • Committed to our vision, mindsets, and instructional focus to ensure the best instruction for our students
  • Collectively helped our teams grow into super collaborators
  • Worked every single day to welcome every student into our classrooms, pushed and encouraged them to be successful 
  • Reached out to families to gain and provide support and perspective
  • Celebrated our students by using Panther Cards, identifying students of the month, Panther Postcards
  • Celebrated each other through Fred Cards, FCPS Honors, and various gatherings 
  • Made a complete and impressive shift into distance learning and collaboration
  • And much, much more!

More than any other topic, our “super collaboration” and our pride in how well we shifted into distance learning were mentioned as celebrations on the end of year staff survey. Below you will find some examples of the thoughtful reflections teachers shared on their personalized PD plans. I hope you find them as inspiring as I do.

Take time this summer to relax and rejuvenate with loved ones. I will keep you updated periodically as we hear more about what the upcoming school year will look like. 

 

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/


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PERSONALIZED PD PLAN REFLECTIONS

Reading through teacher reflections, it is clear why our students achieve at the highest of levels and why we were able to transition so seamlessly into distance learning: we are dedicated to improving instruction through evidence, feedback and reflection. 

Art & Design - The best thing about the walkthroughs and observations is that we as teachers are able to grow in a positive and safe manner.  Even though I have been teaching for 27 years, I am always looking for ways to make improvements.  I believe the WT's have been meaningful and worth the time.  I feel that over the past couple of years, I continue to learn new strategies for my classroom.  And then as an added bonus, when I meet with the other Design teachers, we discuss our observations, suggestions, etc. and learn more from each other.  Talk about a great way to learn from your peers!

English Teacher - This year, I also tried the technique of modeling my thinking instead of giving directions. Modeling my thinking was an adjustment to my teaching in a positive way because it allowed my students to have more confidence in their own work. Before modeling my thinking, I feel that students would think: "What were the list of directions I had to follow"? After modeling my thinking, I feel that students would think: "I remember how Mrs. B modeled this to us...". I feel that the adjustment from "what to do" and "how to do" was a great adjustment in my teaching and in student success. 

Math Teacher - The feedback I received from observations allow me to focus on a few key areas to improve. The walkthroughs give me information about student engagement, which helps to improve being more student-specific focused. It also gives me a glimpse of what the class looks like from outside (spacing, co-teacher placement, student movement) which helps me better plan the layout and organization. 

ESOL Teacher - Compared to the beginning of the school year, my teaching has improved a lot. I have restructured the flow of my lessons so that students are able to do the core lesson and activities relatively independently. This has allowed me to pull small groups and work with students on their individual needs. 

History Teacher - Helped me embed dedicated time in my lessons for collaboration with peers. I was able to explore different methods and strategies to promote collaboration.

Science Teacher - I have changed my teaching style to make it more student-centered and to set me up to pull small groups. Giving students more responsibility and ownership of their learning has taken some weight off my own shoulders and helped them become more independent critical thinkers. Allowing them to make connections without me doing the heavy lifting for them benefits everyone in the long run. They are able to retain concepts better, and I am able to focus on helping students (clearing up misunderstandings, providing more support to certain students, etc). 


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Rising 9th Grade News

Request to Expunge High School Course Taken in Middle School - Parents of students who take a high school credit-bearing course in middle school may request that the grade be omitted from the student’s high school transcript and the student not earn high school credit for the course. Parents must make this request no later than the end of the first nine weeks of the school year following completion of the course. For all students taking a credit bearing class including rising freshmen at Justice, parents must make the request no later than the end of the first quarter. Once expunged, a course cannot be reinstated. The Request to Expunge form must be completed to make this request. Please contact your child’s school counselor if you would like to discuss expunging a course.

 

2020-2021 Justice HS Course Registration Information - A special message from Justice HS for rising freshmen. Students and parents may access student course requests through their SIS Account. Please review the courses your child selected and contact your child’s counselor if you notice any errors. Justice HS staff spends considerable time assisting students with their selection of appropriate courses. All decisions regarding staffing, instructional supplies, etc. are made based on those selections and classes without sufficient enrollment will not be offered. We will try to accommodate changes up until June 1st but that may not always be possible due to space availability. Schedule changes in the new school year will not be made during the first weeks of school unless there is an error on the schedule. Students may be placed in support classes or general education classes based on end of year progress and assessments. Students who start the year in honors and IB courses will be required to stay in the course through October 1st. Courses dropped after 1st quarter will receive a “WP” or “WF”. The course offering catalog, where you can review information on course prerequisites, descriptions, fee requirements, and general FCPS information is available on the Justice HS website under Academics. Please contact your child’s school counselor if you would like to discuss your child’s course requests.

 

Justice High School Athletics Fall Sports Information - Glasgow 8th Graders!!! You are a little more than a month away from become official Justice High School 9th graders. We are excited to see you in August. www.justicesports.com

Interested in a fall sport??? Please fill out the below google form by clicking the embedded link. Contact information will be routed to the appropriate coach so that we can make sure you are included in any of their upcoming communication. Fall Interest Google Form.  In order to be eligible for tryouts, athletes must have the below items completed prior to the start dates: 2020-2021 Physical Form (must be dated after 5/1/2020), Emergency Care Card and Concussion Education (New Online Platform Under Construction). Golf starts July 30 and all other fall sports (Cross Country, Cheerleading, Field Hockey, Football and Volleyball) on August 3rd.

Coaches Contact Information

  • Cross Country - Ron Kronlage - rkronlage@fcps.edu 
  • Cheer-leading - Deborah O'Rourke - dworourke@fcps.edu 
  • Field Hockey - Stefanie Vestal - slvestal@fcps.edu 
  • Football - Greg Weisbecker - gpweisbecker@fcps.edu 
  • Golf - Ryan Kenna - rhkenna@fcps.edu 
  • Volleyball - Sharon Ponton - sponton@fcps.edu 

Summer Programs

Summer Learning Opportunities - FCPS recently sent out a message regarding summer learning opportunities. Please click here to see the message.  For more information about summer learning programs, please visit the FCPS website.

 

Continuity of Learning: Students across FCPS will have the opportunity to participate in Continuity of Learning over the summer. English and Math packets will be mailed home in June and a number of teachers will be available in the summer for scheduled office hours. More information to come - be on the look out for this in the coming weeks. Click here for more information about the free Continuity of Learning program in FCPS. 

 

Algebra I: Students who took Algebra I for the 2019-2020 school year have two opportunities for the summer--Virtual Credit Recovery and Algebra Intervention. Students who took Algebra 1 this school year may take the Virtual Credit Recovery course to repeat the class for a higher grade this summer through a self-directed online class.  Students who do not wish to retake Algebra I for a grade over the summer but wish to work on their skills and review course materials may choose to take a self-directed, online Algebra Intervention course. Note: While expunging grades is an option for middle school students, high school credit bearing classes taken during the summer between the 8th and 9th grade may not be expunged.

 

Middle School VIP Program - The Middle School VIP program will be going virtual for the summer!  During these unprecedented times of social distancing and virtual learning, we want to offer your child a summer experience that is safe and full of fitness, friends, fun and enrichment. FCPS and Fairfax County Department of Neighborhood and Community Services (DNCS) have teamed up to offer a 5- week virtual program for rising 7th and 8th graders in Fairfax County. We will also be extending this invitation to our rising 9th graders to help keep them connected this summer. Participants will have the opportunity to engage in virtual activities in the arts, music, STEM, physical fitness, cooking, games, puzzles, literature, and more – things students can do at home. The program is led by FCPS After-School Specialists and DNCS Teen/Community Center Staff. Both synchronous and asynchronous activities included. VIP runs Monday - Thursday, June 29th - July 30th. It is virtual and free! The Online Registration will be available by the beginning of June.  You will be sent another "News You Choose" email with a link to the application.  Participants will receive further details/instructions in mid-June. 

**Middle schools with 6th graders – please add rising 6th to the 1st paragraph and then delete this note and highlights!*


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Glasgow Goodies

End of Year Awards - Congratulations to recipients of Glasgow’s End of Year Award! Teachers across the school nominated two students from each course who demonstrated excellence. Recipients will be receiving their certificates in the mail at the end of the year as well as an email with a special message from Ms. Madigan. 

6th Grade End of Year Award Recipients

7th Grade End of Year Award Recipients

8th Grade End of Year Award Recipients

 

Student Art Show - Ms. Gillis and Ms. Schenker have created a virtual art show. See our Glasgow MS website homepage to view it. The art highlighted in this weeks gazette is a small sample of the amazing work that you will see in the art show. 

 

8th Grade Good-Byes - Be on the lookout this week via e-notify and 8th graders fcpsschools.net email for a special message to 8th graders. While we were not able to partake in many of our end of the year 8th grade rituals - please know that we have been thinking about them and a special message is coming their way. 


Grading Update

4th Quarter & Final Mark Grading Update - Students will be assigned a “no mark” for 4th quarter, with assignments submitted being allowed to positively influence the student’s overall grade for the year based on mastery of learning concepts. 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. 

Per FCPS grading policy for Distance Learning, a student’s final mark for year long courses will be the highest of the following:

  • Avg of Qtrs 1, 2, & 3
  • Avg of Qtrs 1, 2, & 3 w/ 1 grade distribution increase (if applicable)
  • 1st Semester Grade
  • 1st Semester Grade w/1 distribution increase (if applicable)

For semester long courses, a student’s final mark will be the highest of the following: 

  • Qtr 3 Average
  • Qtr 3 Average (w/up to a two grade distribution increase if applicable)

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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

June 8-9 - Student Item Pick-Up - HPE Lockers & Student Lockers

June 9 - PTA Meeting - Virtual

June 12 - Last Day of School and Synchronous Learning

 

June 8 & 9 - HPE Locker and Student Locker Item Pick-Up - We have scheduled student item pick-up for June 8th and 9th. Families are not obligated to retrieve items from their student’s locker, but they are welcome to do so. See the below pick-up times by student last name:

A-C: 9am - 12pm on June 8th

D-J: 1pm - 4pm on June 8th

K-P: 9am - 12pm on June 9th

Q-Z 1pm - 4pm on June 9th. 

Please use this Google form to let us know if you plan to pick up your student’s items. Pick-up will be at Door 3 (bus loop). Please arrive with your student’s name, student ID, and grade written on a piece of paper. A Glasgow staff member will retrieve your student’s items and bring them to your vehicle. Contact Deirdre Levin at dmcshea@fcps.edu if you have any questions. 

 

June 9 - PTA Meeting - Please join us for the final meeting of the year on June, 9th from 7:00 - 7:45pm! In addition to elections we will, the main program will be lead by the Glasgow Equity Team and focus on discussing discrimination, racism and the recent protests with middle school children. Once again, we will utilize the virtual format and consistent with last month. You may submit questions in advance to glasgowms.pta@gmail.com . Written questions will also be taken during the meeting. As a reminder, for those interested in serving on the PTA Executive Board, you may self declare candidacy during the PTA Meeting. Please complete this form if you would like to attend.

 

June 10 & June 12 - Synchronous Sessions - This the final week of synchronous classes. Students will follow a regular bell schedule on Friday, it is not early release. The links are the same each week, if your student needs a new link have them email their teacher.


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Library News

Glasgow MS Library Site -  The Glasgow LIbrary site http://bit.ly/GlasgowMSLibrary has been created for both teachers and students and can be included in Google Classroom. There are plenty of resources that will help you use databases, Collections, find Virginia Reader’s Choice books, and the library catalog. The librarians will host Lunch in the Library office hours on Mondays and Wednesdays from 11am – 12pm. Please join our Google Classroom (code: u74n5km) to attend our office hours on Google Meet. We will discuss books, help you access resources, take recommendations, and answer questions to assist with your school assignments.

 

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. Students can also check out books from MyON, here is a video that shows you how to access that resource. 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!


important information

Important Information 

Yearbook Distribution -  Yearbooks are not yet in, so details about end-of-year pickup are still on hold. Yearbooks should arrive in July, so we will update you on pick-up details in the coming weeks.

 

Academic and Career PlanFor Parents/Guardians of 8th Grade Students - In order to support our students’ academic and career development we’re asking our 8th grade students to use time during the last week of school, and possibly over the summer, to update their Naviance Student accounts. The Glasgow Academic and Career Grid walks them through accessing their Naviance plan, that includes:

  • Results of the strengths and career surveys
  • Goals
  • Resume Builder
  • Draft course plans for high school

Once you have talked with your student and reviewed your child’s plan in Naviance Student use this link to access a Google Form to complete the parents/guardian verification form. The completion of this form will serve as your signature. This must be completed by Wednesday, July 10, 2020. Note: students will need to be signed into their fcpsschools.net account to access the Academic and Career Grid.  For more information about your child’s ACP, visit https://www.fcps.edu/academics/graduation-requirements-and-course-planning/ or the ACP website. You may also contact Glasgow Counselor Gregory Frantz gdfrantz@fcps.edu with any questions.

 

Student Services - Counselors Available If you have concerns regarding your child’s socio-emotional health or mental well-being, 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

 

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.

Meals sites at ACCA and John Calvin Church are continuing on weekends into June. 

Saturdays - 2:30 – 4:30 PM, ACCA Child Development Center, Walkup Service

Sundays - 2:30 – 4:30 PM, John Calvin Presbyterian Church, Drive Up Service

FCPS Cares

FCPS Cares

Do you know a Glasgow Middle School staff member who went beyond what is expected? If so, then click here to submit a brief description so we can all acknowledge the good work of Glasgow faculty and staff members.


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     Be Informed, Stay Involved!