Annandale Community Insider - September 7

Fairfax County Public Schools sent this bulletin at 09/07/2020 07:52 AM EDT
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Annandale Community:

The start of the school year has arrived! The faculty and staff have done an amazing job over the past three weeks to prepare for the opening of school. We have created a “Virtual Learning Hub” for students to easily access all of their classes. In addition, the site also includes a lesson grid with the daily learning target and evidence of learning for each class. 

The grid allows teachers to build open communication as to what is expected from students each day in a way that is simple and clear. From the student’s perspective they will have an understanding of what they are learning and what they will need to turn in. We have created this video that includes step by step directions on how students can access the “Virtual Learning Hub.” 

Thank you to those who attended the Town Hall meetings on Thursday. At the event, we reviewed the day in the life of an Annandale High School student, including how to access their classes, what they should expect while attending classes and how to reach out if they need support. For those of you who were not able to attend, here is a recording of the event.  

For ninth grade and new students to Annandale, we have created a set of videos to support their transition to high school that have been posted on the school’s website. The videos provide a virtual tour of Annandale High School and introduction to some of their leadership classmates, teachers, counselors, and administrators. In addition, students will also learn about mental health resources, activities, academics, and technology.

If you have any questions, please reach out to me or your student’s administrator or counselor. I have included their contact information below for your reference. Thank you for all of your support.

Shawn DeRose, Principal

 

Contact Information:
Twitter: @ShawnDeRose
Website: https://annandalehs.fcps.edu/
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Important Dates

September 8 - First Day of School

September 15 - PTSA Meeting

September 23 - Back to School Night (New Date)

 

PTSA Meeting - September 15 - Mark your calendar and please join us for the first PTSA meeting of the school year on Tuesday, September 15 at 7:00pm. To join the PTSA meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone. https://www.gotomeet.me/NormaFoti or you can dial in using your phone: +1 (312) 757-3121, Access Code: 456-663-117  

 

Back to School Night Moved to September 23 - Due to a conflict with one of our feeder elementary schools, we have moved out Back to School Night date to Wednesday, September 23.
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Important Information

We Need Your Consent for Select Digital Resources: At Annandale High School, our teachers will use a variety of powerful digital resources to support student learning and promote communication and collaboration with students and families. Some of the digital resources your child may use this year will require your consent before they can be used. Without consent, teachers will need to plan additional lessons or deviate from a useful application altogether. You can find our school’s list of the resources here: https://annandalehs.fcps.edu/adopteddigitalresources

Please follow this link to indicate whether or not your student is allowed to use the list of digital resources this year. This page also provides more information about how FCPS carefully reviews digital resources for approval.

 

Set Your Student Up for Success: To assist your student as we begin the school year, please help them find a dedicated space to work. Remind them to keep their laptop charged and stored in a safe spot. Encourage them to get plenty of rest, move in between classes, and limit screen time during non-school hours. Encourage them to reach out to their teachers, counselors, and/or administrators with questions and concerns - we are all eager to help!

 

Technology Support for Parents and Students: The FCPS Parent Technology Resource page provides tip sheets and support in multiple languages. These tip sheets provide answers to basic questions about FCPS technologies. Often you can find the answer to your question in these resources. For technical support questions about your online parent accounts, your student’s FCPS laptop, or technology your student uses for online learning, contact the Parent Technology Help Desk (toll free) at 833-921-3277 or enter a support request ticket via the Parent and Student IT Portal.

The Parent Technology Help Desk will be answered 7 a.m. -11 p.m., seven days a week. Parents who need help in a language other than English should let help desk staff know, and an interpreter will join them on the line. (FCPS has Parent Information Phone Lines available in eight languages to assist with general questions about FCPS).

 

Schedule Change Requests: To begin the school year, schedule changes will be made for students with errors on their schedule. We will be communicating the process for elective schedule changes next week. Please keep in mind that space is extremely limited for electives and we are continuing to enroll new students.

 

Attendance Matters: We have missed our students and are looking very forward to reconnecting with them! As a reminder if a student is not able to attend classes on a given day, parents should contact the attendance office. Parents may report absences by:

  • Calling the Attendance Line at 703-642-4151 or en Español 703-642-4153.
  • Parents have three days to excuse an absence.
  • If you receive a call-out message, and believe it is in error, please have your student check with the classroom teacher for that period.

 

Annandale Community Insider on our FCPS Website: The Community Insider is now featured in a banner on the homepage of our website. This serves as a one stop shop for archived gazette information and can be translated into many different languages. Click here to get started: https://annandalehs.fcps.edu/ 

 

Laptop Prep Before the Start of the School Year: To help prepare students for a successful virtual start to the school year, parents are asked to ensure children have the tools and connectivity that will be needed. If you currently have an FCPS issued laptop at home, please help your school’s technology team prepare devices to receive county updates by doing the following once per week until school starts:

  • Plug the laptop into an outlet.
  • Turn the laptop on and let it boot up.
  • Login to ensure it connects to the internet at that location.
  • Launch Google Chrome and visit the FCPS website to ensure the internet is connected on the computer.
  • Leave the laptop on and connected to the internet for 30 minutes.
  • After 30 minutes, the laptop may be shut down.

 

Athletic Physical Needed Starting September 8 - In order to continue to participate in athletic “Yellow Days-conditioning” and move into “Green Days-individual skill development”, athletes will need to have a physical dated after May 1, 2020.  We hope to start Green Days on September 8.  Physicals can be turned into the Activities Office now. The physical form and Emergency Care Form can be found at the following links. Physical Form and Emergency Care Form. Please email John Ellenberger if you have any questions.

Bus Route Meal Service

Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) buses are delivering grab and go meals along some bus routes. School buses will stop at designated intersections to deliver these meals. All FCPS students (regardless of age) are eligible for free grab and go breakfast and lunch, as well as other county children, under the age of 18. Adults picking up meals for children should let staff know how many children meals they need. Adults may pay $2 for the meals as well. Check out the current bus schedule.
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News from the PTSA

On behalf of the PTSA, welcome to the start of the school year, this year is already been one for the records and since we are unable to welcome you in person we created a short video to welcome you. We wanted to tell you about our membership campaign, meeting times, accomplishments, goals and mission of the PTSA.

Below are a couple of links of ways you can get involved and support our work through membership, no additional cost to you fundraising efforts. We also included a couple resources we hope you find helpful the link to our website for information, and a one-page printable calendar with all the school breaks and early release dates as well as additional useful contact phone numbers, websites and how to sign up for News You Choose. Again, welcome to Atom Nation!

Important Links:

AHS PTSA Website

Membership

No Additional Cost to You Fundraising - we earn when you shop

One-page Printable Calendar

 

AHS PTSA Membership Drive 2020: Join the PTSA before our first meeting on September 15 to be entered into our membership raffle. Winners will be drawn and announced during the PTSA meeting! Below are the prizes: 

  • Parent/Community Member prize - $25 Glory Days Grill gift card!
  • Student Member prize - $25 Paisano’s gift card!
  • Staff Member prize - $25 Amazon gift card

 

Top Reasons to Join the PTSA - Please consider joining the PTSA as it is a great way to become actively involved in your student's education and the AHS community.

In addition, the PTSA 1) provides resources and support to help ALL Annandale HS students, teachers and staff succeed. 2) PTSA educates members on issues and decisions impacting Annandale HS and FCPS. 3) Studies show active PTSAs improve overall student. Click here to join today!

 

PTSA Meeting - Dates and Times: Mark your calendar for monthly PTSA meetings which are held the 3rd Tuesday at 7:00pm. We will start the school year with virtual meetings and details will follow on how to join us. These dates include: September 15, October 20, November 17, December 15, January 19, February 16, March 16,  April 20, May 18, June 8.

 

Stay Connected - “Visit”, “Like” and “Follow” - Our e-newsletter, ATOMail, is sent the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of each month and highlights PTSA programs and opportunities to support our students, teachers, and staff. To receive ATOMail, please sign up and set your preferences on the FCPS "News You Choose" webpage. Select “Annandale High School” and check the box for “Annandale HS PTSA”. You can also stay up-to-date on our website, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.