 Dear Wakefield Forest Families,
We were so excited to welcome our amazing staff back to school this week. We had a fun virtual kickoff. Later in the week, the PTA and parent community certainly made us feel special with the lovely signs and boxed lunches. Your positive messages were great fuel for the hard work happening to prepare for the start of school.
Many families and students have expressed that they are eager to find out who their teacher will be for this school year. Due to the impact of COVID19, our numbers have been declining, as families select to homeschool or attend private school. These changes can impact the number of teachers for which we qualify. Our plan is for your child’s classroom teacher to be shared via email as soon as possible. Please know that staffing can continue to shift even after class assignments have been announced. I will work to keep the staff and community as informed as possible about these possible changes. I have received countless requests for considerations in placement; unfortunately, these cannot all be honored. We have done our very best to create balanced classrooms and set students up for a successful virtual start. We respectfully ask that you do not make any requests for a change to the teacher. We plan to host whole grade level class meetings on Mondays from 8:30 – 9:00 AM and students will then have the opportunity to work with different teachers and students.
Our next family information session will be Wednesday, August 26, 2020 at 9:00 AM. At this virtual meeting, we will review any updates and answer questions. Join me here:
https://us.bbcollab.com/guest/f3a0b4d64aad4bb4a6a95aefc8276439
I will be hosting another session with WFES students next Wednesday, August 26, at 2:30 pm. Join me here:
https://us.bbcollab.com/guest/f3a0b4d64aad4bb4a6a95aefc8276439
Our Wakefield Forest School renovation planning is continuing to progress. Our architect team have designed a beautiful plan for our expanding community. We will host an opportunity to hear about these plans on Wednesday, September 2, 2020 at 9:00 AM. We will publish the link in an upcoming message.
Thank you.
Sharyn Prindle
Principal
Attendance
Attendance will be recorded Monday – Friday. Attendance is expected during all synchronous instruction. However, if your child is not able to attend synchronously, please contact your teacher and the attendance line (see below) to indicate that your student is reviewing the videos and completing work asynchronously. If a student is not in attendance during the day and neither the teacher nor the front office has heard from the parents/guardians, the student will be marked “unverified” and the parent will receive an electronic message to that effect in the evening. If the parent does not contact the school office to update attendance, this will become an unexcused absence. If a student has 3 or more unexcused absences, families will be contacted by counselors or social worker. If a student cannot participate synchronously/asynchronously for the duration of a school day, families should contact the school by submitting the online attendance form on the home page of the WFES website or calling the 24-7 attendance line at 703-503-2323.
Band/Strings/Music Exploration (new)
Parents/guardians of 4th, 5th and 6th graders, please join Ms. Cradler (Band), Ms. Sleeman (Strings) and Ms. Hibbitts (Music Exploration) for a live information session on Monday, August 31, 2020 at 7:00 PM. At that time we will discuss our virtual music programs, registration and answer your questions. A link will be provided in future communication.
Contact Information
For parents to stay up to date on school news and plans, current contact information is essential. This is especially important because schools will need to regularly notify parents about program changes and opportunities, such as laptop distributions, school supply lists, and other essentials. Once school begins, your school team may need to reach parents about student absences and academic and other concerns.
Parents may update their information through Parent View. http://www.fcps.edu/WakefieldForestES/
Internet
Cox Communication has announced that new customers that qualify will receive Connect2Compete, the company's low-cost internet, for two months at no cost. New customers must sign up between July 21 and September 30 for free service, which also includes free technical support.
A summary of enhancements and benefits of Cox's Connect2Compete program include:
• 2 months of free Connect2Compete service and remote desktop and phone support through Cox Complete Care for eligible new customers who apply between July 21 and September 30, $9.95/month thereafter
• Easy referral for discounted, refurbished equipment through PCs for People
• Student and family access to the Cox Digital Academy, which provides computer literacy training and educational resources for students
• Free WiFi modem rental
• Access to over 3M+ Cox Hotspots nationwide
The Cox Connect2Compete program is available to families who:
• Have at least one child that is a K-12 student at home
• Participate in one of these government subsidies programs: The National School Lunch Program, SNAP, TANF, Head Start, WIC, LIHEAP, or Public Housing
Families can qualify for Connect2Compete easily from anywhere whether on their mobile device or desktop by visiting www.cox.com/c2c
Library – Public Library Equity Access Pass (new)
As part of the One Fairfax initiative, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, Fairfax County Public Library (FCPL), and FCPS Library Information Services have partnered in the Library Equity Access Pass (LEAP) pilot program.
On October 1, 2020 the LEAP program will go division-wide, providing FCPS PreK-12 students with public library checkout privileges for books automatically, without the need to register for a physical library card. Student names and ID numbers will be provided to FCPL through an automated data download. Families who do not wish to participate shall select the opt-out for LEAP in the 2020-21 SR&R document.
Participating in the LEAP program provides:
• The ability to checkout up to three public library books at a time. At any FCPL library branch, students or parents simply share their name and indicated they are an FCPS student. A virtual account exists and identification is not required.
• Lost or overdue books will not be charged a fine or replacement fee. However, only three books can be on a virtual account at a time.
• Checkouts are limited to physical books. eBooks and public library digital resources cannot be accessed through this account. Students are welcome to establish a standard public library card for full access.
Not returning to WFES for SY 20-21?
For membership and staffing purposes, we would like to hear from families who are not returning to Wakefield Forest in September for the 20-21 school year. If your children (K-6) will not be attending WFES in the fall, please email Ms. Holmes directly at ksholmes@fcps.edu and let her know.
School Supplies
If you ordered school supplies through the PTA, they will be delivered to the school and we will schedule an opportunity for you to pick them up. We have modified the school supplies we think students will need in a virtual environment. These are posted on our school website on the homepage under announcements: https://wakefieldforestes.fcps.edu/
We want all of our students to have access to what they need; if your family needs support in getting supplies, please reach out to our school counselors Nancy Garcia-Henderson nagarciahend@fcps.edu or Chelsea Boateng cmboateng@fcps.edu
Website
We have been working to keep our website updated with important information. We added a tab called Return to School 2020-21
https://wakefieldforestes.fcps.edu/return-school-2020-21
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