Message from Dr. Smith
Hello Bruin Families,
This week has been one that we have been waiting for all summer long, to connect with our students and families. We held our first ever Virtual Orientation for Students and released our Back to School Orientation for Families site. We hope that you have gotten a chance to review our Back to School Orientation website to get to know our teachers, see their syllabus and take a look at some the Digital Tricks and Tips resource. https://lakebraddockss.fcps.edu/orientation_families
We also kicked off our Parent Academy Series this week with several events related to Family Life Education (FLE), Special Education and general Back to School information. Some of the recordings and resources are below for you to reference. In the coming weeks we will offer sessions on technology, the library in a virtual setting and part 2 of our Survival Guide for Parents in a Virtual Setting. We realize the start to this school year looks different than it ever has before and our goal is for the Parent Academy events to provide you the support to help your child be successful.
This week was our first attempt at connecting in a virtual setting with our Virtual Orientation for Students on Thursday this week. It was an opportunity for our Advisory classes to get to know each other and give students the opportunity to find their class links and experience logging in before the first day of school. Working through these challenges in advance, we believe, will help us to have an outstanding start to the school year next week. If you do not have class links or there are questions as we start this school year, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your child’s teachers, counselors or administrators.
As we reflect on the last three weeks, it is incredibly important that we take a moment to thank our teachers and staff for all their hard work. I have been truly amazed by their incredible work and their passion that is evident about connecting with our students. Our theme this year is #BruinsCARE and focuses on ensuring that all of our students are connected, adaptable, resilient and engaged. We know that the well-being of each student is our most important work and we will continually work to engage and support each child. Our teacher and staff have worked tirelessly together to create engaging lessons for students that create authentic learning experiences in a virtual environment. Many of them will be trying new online tools for the first time next week to ensure they are connecting with students and providing dynamic learning opportunities. We ask for your patience and grace as we open the school year. We are incredibly grateful for the dedication and commitment of our teachers and staff these last few weeks and throughout the summer. We are excited for your children to experience and reap the benefits of their hard work and to be connected together again.
We look forward to continuing to partner with you this school year as we make it the very best school year possible. Thank you for all that you do and for your incredible support of Lake Braddock Secondary School.
United as Bruins,
Daniel W. Smith, Ed.D.
Important for Next Week
School Offices Closed on Labor Day
Our offices will be closed on Monday, September 7th, in honor of Labor Day, and we will reopen Tuesday morning at 7:30 am by appointment and on the phone.
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Digital Student Planner Link
Students who were not able to access the digital student planner on Wednesday can now access it through this link. Students must be logged into their @fcpsschools.net email account to access it the planner. This document link requires a forced copy, which means the students must click the blue “make a copy” button to access it. Students can also re-watch the video shown during Advisory to learn how to access their BBCU links and add them to the student planner.
In addition, some teachers have sent out multiple links to their class. Please use the most recently emailed link for your planner. In order to complete your digital planner, check your schedule in SIS so that you can place your links correctly.
Blackboard Collaborate Ultra Tech Tips
Please see the infographic below with technology tips for troubleshooting Blackboard Collaborate Ultra. Additionally, if you do not see the links for all of your teachers, we encourage you to try the following steps:
- Search the teacher's name in the search bar of your fcpsschools.net account
- Look in the folder on the left of your inbox that is titled BBCU Links
- Look in the starred folder of your inbox
- Contact your teacher to have the link resent to you
 
School Photos
It’s time for Underclassmen Picture Day! Victor O’Neill Studios will be at Lake Braddock on Saturdays and Mondays, starting September 12, to take your child’s school photo. You must sign up online for a time slot for your child’s session. Walk-ins will not be accepted.
For Middle School Students, click here.
For High School Students, click here.
Victor O’Neill Studios will send a confirmation email that will include a link to preorder your photos.
When you arrive at Lake Braddock, please drive around to the back of the building and enter at Door 7 (by the cafeteria). High School students will be directed into the gym and will exit the building through Door 10. Middle School students will be directed into the cafeteria and will exit the building through Door 6.
Masks are required at all times, with the exception of the actual photo time.
If you have questions, please contact Victor O’Neill at underclass@vosphoto.com.
Senior Portraits
The second round of senior portraits will happen on September 28 and 29. Parents should look for an email with sign up option to arrive no later than September 12.
School-Issued Laptop pick-up
The final pick-up for school-issued laptops was Thursday, September 3. If your student still does not have a laptop, we will be contacting you next week to schedule a date and time for pick up.
If you received an email from us last week regarding picking up a laptop and you already have a school-issued computer, please email the bar code on that computer to Ms. Cathy McCormick.
If you are choosing not to have a school laptop for your child, please go to this link to complete the Opt Out Form. Please note that you must have a meeting with your child's administrator to finalize the opt out process.
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Upcoming Parent Academy Events
Survival Guide for Parents in a Virtual Environment Part 2 – Live Q&A
- Question may be submitted in advance here:
- By: MS and HS Students Services
- September 9th from 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM for MS and 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM for HS with separate links
Back to School Orientation Updates
- Meet the admin, FCPS School Board videos, welcome message from Dr. Smith and Ms. Kearns, Parent Academy information, and more!
- Updated on September 11th
Technology Night – Get tech help, access to ParentVue, Mifi’s and more
- By: LBSS SBTS and TSPECS
- September 22nd from 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Library Services and Resources in a Virtual World
- By: LBSS Librarians
- September 29th from 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Past Parent Academy Events
The recordings and slides for our recent Parent Academy events are listed below:
- August 27 LBSS Survival Guide for Parents in a Virtual Learning Environment:
- September 1 Special Education Parent Coffee
- September 2 Return to Learn Parent Coffee
Important Information for All
Back to School Forms
Please remember that there are certain forms that are required for your student:
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Emergency Care Form: All students must have accurate emergency care information. Parents can update this information through WeCare@School via their SIS ParentVue account. Please note, in order to log into Parent View it is necessary to have an active SIS Parent Account.
- To update your Emergency Care form, please complete the following steps:
- Log into your SIS ParentVUE account
- Go to FCPS Links located in the left-hand menu
- Go to FCPS 24/7 and Log in using the same username and password as your SIS ParentVUE account
- Go to WeCare @ School on the top right of your screen.
Optional forms can be found on our web site at https://lakebraddockss.fcps.edu/forms.
After you have completed the necessary forms, please email them to the appropriate subschool office:
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New Visitor Guidelines
Per the School Board and Superintendent, our implemented safety protocols will continue to require that we limit the number of individuals who move in and out of our facilities. To promote social distancing during the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, we will be adhering to the following guidelines:
- Facility visitors will be limited and should occur by scheduled appointment only.
- No walk-in visitors are permitted.
- As much as possible, appointments to meet with parents and customers should be accommodated via telephone, video conference, or other suitable technology.
- When a face-to-face appointment must occur, the following guidelines shall be maintained:
Appointments
- Visitors must have an appointment and, prior to the appointment, must:
- complete the Covid-19 Health Questionnaire listed on the Announcement page of our web site (must be completed by every person coming in);
- call the Main Office upon arrival at LBSS.
Online Learning Success Page
A webpage has been published to support students with distance learning. The Tips for Online Learning Success page has suggestions for students; technology tips for families; troubleshooting guides; and links to the parent and student tech support sites. Please consider linking it in your Google Classroom or Blackboard courses to help your students navigate our digital world. As a bonus, it’s also a great resource for staff members!
SIS ParentVUE Activation Codes
SIS ParentVUE activation codes were mailed this week via USPS to new families enrolled prior to August 22nd and those families who have not yet set up an account. You can use these codes to set up your account on the SIS ParentVUE help page. Families enrolled after August 22nd will be sent codes in mid-September. Do you have an account, but can’t remember your password? Reset it by going to the SISParentVUE login page.
Healthy Minds Blog
Healthy Minds is a blog for parents, educators, and community-based providers who are interested in supporting student mental health and wellness.
As a part of the Healthy Minds Fairfax initiative, the FCPS Office of Intervention and Prevention Services develops posts with timely information for all. Recent topics have included social and emotional learning, countering stigma and racism, and building resilience to handle challenging times. Healthy Minds includes tips and strategies for increasing wellness and resiliency, as well as fostering success at home, school, and in the community.
New content is posted weekly. Visit the Healthy Minds Blog.
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HS Information
2020 Lake Braddock Bell Schedule
Please see the revised bell schedule. Note that 4th period is our Advisory period.
HS Transition Information
See our 9th grade and new HS student orientation page on our web site for information to help you start the new year.
SAT School Day Test for 12th Graders
On Wednesday, September 23, 2020, Lake Braddock Secondary School 12th graders will have the opportunity to take the SAT School Day test. FCPS will cover the cost for any 12th-grade student to take the SAT. The optional essay component and subject tests will not be offered on this date.
General information about the SAT test format is available on the College Board webpage. September 23 has been designated for asynchronous learning, so students who choose to take the SAT will not miss synchronous learning time with their teachers.
We will share more details about test day schedules, bus transportation, and specific safety protocols in the coming weeks. Final confirmation of SAT School Day testing will be based on health department guidance in September.
If you have questions about the SAT School Day administration on Wednesday, September 23, please contact Lake Braddock Secondary School Assessment Coach, Jennifer Bury, at JABury@fcps.edu .
HS Counselors
Our counselors are back for the 2020-21 school year! We wanted to share with you the counselor assignments. We also wanted to welcome our new counselor Sierra Alexander!
MS Information
MS Counselors
Our counselors are back in the MS Student Services office! If you have questions, please contact them at 703-426-1030.
FCPS Resources
FCPS website for Mental Health Resources and information for emergency mental health services:
How to Stay In-Touch
Please stay in touch with us throughout the year by:
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