 Important Upcoming Dates
October 30: End of the First Quarter - 2 hour early release (Classes end at 1:15PM) & Request to Change Student Selection Due
November 2: No School for Students/No Library Curbside Pick-up/School Planning Day
November 3: No School for Students/Teacher Work Day
November 4: PTA Meeting-6:00PM
November 9: Library Curbside Pick-up-12:00PM-3:00PM & 4:00PM-6:00PM
November 11: Veterans Day & 2 hour early release (Classes end at 1:15PM)
November 12-13: Teacher Workdays for Kindergarten
Week of Nov 16: Tentative Start Date for In-Person Instruction for Kindergarten
November 20, 23-24: Teacher Workdays for Grades 1 & 2
New This Week
1. Message from Mrs. Miller
2. New Olde Creek Logo & Bear
3. Access to School Grounds
4. Specials Grading Information
5. 2020-2021 Outstanding Employee Award
6. Library Curbside Pick-Up
7. PTA Corner
Updates & Reminders
8. Friday, October 30
9. Veterans Day Event
10. OC Staff Shout-outs
11. Mental Health Team
12. Advanced Academics Program (AAP) Information
13. Olde Creek Bears Care Program Outreach
14. Reading Fitness Quest
15. Contacts
16. Be Informed, Stay Involved!
1. Message from Mrs. Miller
Dear Olde Creek Families and Friends,
It is hard to believe that tomorrow is the last day of the 1st quarter. It has been an exciting week at Olde Creek as we welcomed back students to in-person instruction. We have not had buses arrive since March 12, so it was an amazing feeling to see our buses pull in with our Bears on Tuesday morning. Our teachers and staff have done a phenomenal job with our transition and we can’t thank them enough for all of their preparation and planning to make this week so successful!
We want to thank all of our Bears and families who participated in our Virtual Spirit Week! We loved seeing all of the pictures throughout the week. We are also grateful for our families that were able to join us on Monday evening for our AAP screening information session and our Return to School Parent Session on Tuesday evening.
As we have previously shared, we are prepared to honor the virtual or in-person selection that you made in July. If you would like to change your selection, please complete this form by tomorrow, October 30. If you have already completed this form, thank you - no further action is needed. If you missed our session or wish to revisit it, the recording is linked here.
As we move forward with phasing in additional groups of students, we will hold specific information sessions for each group. Please be on the lookout as your student’s group approaches for the specific date and time. We will continue to answer as many questions as possible so you have the information you need.
We are also preparing to honor Veterans Day; please see the information below if you would be willing to volunteer to speak with our students. As a reminder, students do not have school on Monday and Tuesday. Classes will resume on Wednesday, November 4. We are full of gratitude as another positive week is coming to a close. Thank you for your ongoing support.
Stronger Together,
Melissa Miller, Principal, mhmiller@fcps.edu
Alison Butler, Assistant Principal, ajbutler@fcps.edu
Kelly Durso, Assistant Principal, kldurso@fcps.edu
2. New Olde Creek Logo & Bear
We are excited to reveal our updated Olde Creek logo designed by our own Mrs. Erin Henry! Our students suggested names, and then voted on their favorite. We are proud to introduce Buddy, the Olde Creek Bear!
3. Access to School Grounds
With the arrival of students back to campus, the playground, field, blacktop, etc. are closed to community guests to play on during school hours for students, which are 8:30AM-3:30PM. We appreciate your support in keeping all of our Bears, their families and staff safe.
4. Specials Grading Information
Please see the specialist (PE, Music, and Art) learning objectives document attached. This list includes examples of the content we will be teaching this year. Please don’t hesitate to contact Mrs. Alonso, PE (AMAlonso@fcps.edu) , Mrs. Cavanaugh, Music (amzientek@fcps.edu), or Mrs. Henry, Art (ehenry3@fcps.edu) with any specific questions.
5. 2020-2021 Olde Creek Outstanding Employee Awards
As you may know, every year Fairfax County Public Schools recognizes outstanding employees at all levels. Once again this year, all schools in FCPS are encouraged to nominate Outstanding Employees. You may nominate an employee in one or more categories. All that is required for a preliminary nomination is a paragraph or two about how this employee demonstrates exceptional work in the criteria for that category.
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Outstanding Teacher – a teacher, librarian or specialist with 3 or more years of experience.
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Outstanding New Teacher – a teacher or specialist with less than 3 years of experience
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Outstanding Principal
- Outstanding New Principal
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Outstanding Leader – Assistant Principals
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Outstanding Professional Employee - At least one year of experience in current position - these positions could include School-Based Technology Specialist, Technology Support Specialist, Psychologist, Social Worker, School Counselor, Reading Specialist, and Math Resource Teacher.
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Outstanding Operational Employee – a US-19 or below school-based employee with at least one year of experience in the position – these positions could include administrative and office staff, custodial staff, food service staff, Instructional Assistants, Public Health Assistants, Public Health Training Assistants, Parent Liaisons.
We are asking you, the Olde Creek community, to help us gather names for this process. Thank you for participating and helping us recognize the outstanding qualities of our staff members. To submit a nomination for Olde Creek Outstanding Employee in one or more of the categories , please complete the nomination using this google form link.
The deadline to submit a nomination is November 19. After that, a selection committee will meet to discuss each nominee and determine a winner. The discussion in this process will be confidential. If the person you nominated wins, you will be asked to complete a nomination form. These completed forms will be sent to the Woodson Pyramid Lead. The pyramid award liaisons will meet, read packets and determine a winner for the pyramid in each category. The winners of the pyramid, move on to the region.
Thank you in advance for your input! If you have any questions, please contact Julie Wilson at jmwilson1@fcps.edu.
6. Library Curbside Pick-Up
- Due to daylight saving hours curbside pick-up times are changing! Our new hours will be Mondays from 12:00-3:00 and 4:00-6:00.
- There will be no curbside pick-up on Monday, November 2nd, due to the student holiday. Have a great break and we will see you on Monday, November 9th.
- Students in grades 3-6 may place up to 5 books on hold for curbside pick-up. Not sure how to place books on hold for curbside pick-up? Watch this YouTube video to find out.
- Students in grades K-2 do not need to place books on hold to participate in curbside pick-up. Just show up at our Monday events and ask for a Mystery Bag. We will check-out 5 books on the spot and bring them right to your car.
- Not participating in curbside pick-up because you can’t make it to the Monday events? Email Patty Smalley at pssmalley@fcps.edu to arrange a contact-free drop off of books to your home.
- Frost M.S. now has an outside book drop available 24 hours a day in front of the school at the curb. OC families can return OC library books at the book drop and the Frost library will route the books back to OC. Here is what the book drop looks like:
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7. PTA Corner
Please join the PTA on Wednesday, November 4 at 6 PM for our monthly meeting. The link to enter the meeting is https://meet.google.com/ues-wjyx-vkn
Our Family Dinner Night for November will be Maggiano's of Springfield on November 19.The format will be a little different. You'll call in your order the day before and pick it up at the school via a delivery truck on the 19th. More details will be sent out closer to the date.
The Olde Creek PTA and The Future Brighter are offering a Virtual STEM club for OC students in grades 3-6. The Future Brighter is a non-profit organization founded by a junior at Thomas Jefferson High School. This club will meet every Monday starting 11/9/20. Please see the flyer and follow the link to sign up.
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8. Friday, October 30
Friday, October 30 is a 2-hour early release day for all students. Our students who returned in-person on Tuesday, October 27 will also be participating in virtual instruction and will not come to the building on Friday. Again, all instruction on Friday, October 30 will be provided through our virtual platforms and all classes will end at 1:15 p.m.
9. Veterans Day Event
Olde Creek would like to invite our community’s military family members to speak with students and share their experiences on the morning of Wednesday, November 11 to recognize Veterans Day. We are very proud to have so many military family members in our school community and we want our students and staff to have an opportunity to make a connection with all of you. We would like to invite all of the Active Duty, Reserve, and retired members of our Armed Forces in the Olde Creek community to join us on this important day.
On the morning of November 11 from 9:00-9:30, we invite veterans to visit a virtual classroom to share a little bit about themselves and their service to our country.
If you are an active Duty, Reserve, or retired member of our Armed Forces or have a family member or friend that is interested in joining us on Monday, November 11 from 9:00-9:30, please click on this link and fill out the survey by October 30. We look forward to seeing you on November 11.
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10. OC Staff Shout-outs!
We want to continue to celebrate the extraordinary efforts of our teachers and staff in our virtual learning environment. If your family would like to give a shout out to an OC staff member, please complete this survey.
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11. Mental Health Team
Olde Creek Elementary School’s mental health team provides support, services and consultation to any youth in the Olde Creek school community who needs mental health support services. Olde Creek Elementary School is concerned about your child’s overall well-being. The mental health team is here to help.
For more information, please contact:
Jeanna Squif, School Counselor: jmsquif@fcps.edu
Kim Close-Jensen, School Social Worker: ksclosejense@fcps.edu
Ellen Goldberger, School Psychologist: emgoldberger@fcps.edu
For information about children’s mental health education, supports, and resources in Fairfax County, please visit the Healthy Minds Fairfax website at:
https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/healthymindsfairfax/
12. Advanced Academics Program (AAP) Information
Olde Creek Advanced Academics Dates to Note:
November 2: 8:00-8:45 AM - Click here to join office hours with Mrs. Powell. This is for parents, guardians, and caregivers who have further advanced academic questions.
September 8th-December 1: Level IV AAP Parent Referrals submission window. Send referrals to empowell@fcps.edu in Word/PDF/JPG Format
March: Central Selection Committee Meets
April: Level IV Eligibility decisions will be mailed to homes from the AAP Office
October’s Critical and Creative Thinking Strategy
Fluency, Originality, Flexibility, and Elaboration
According to the FCPS website, “When students are able to come up with ideas (fluency), combine ideas in new ways or come up with unusual ideas (originality), then categorize and develop their ideas (flexibility and elaboration), they are more able to make inventive or creative connections between ideas. Students should become comfortable with generating lots of ideas without pre-judgment. The process of suspending judgment is important to brainstorming and maintaining an open mind. Fluency and flexibility open up the thinking of students to consider many possibilities, and originality and elaboration stretch the uniqueness of their thinking. This is a great strategy to use with your children to generate ideas for a family trip, a way to spend the weekend, the best pet for the family, creative solutions to problems that arise, and other situations that lend themselves to multiple ideas for consideration.”
Click here to watch a quick clip about this strategy.
SCAMPR is a tool we use to teach students this strategy. Please click here to read how you can use this tool at home. I look forward to working on this strategy with your children during their Innovation specials next week.
13. OC Bears Care Community Outreach Program
Help! Donations Needed for Bears Care Community Program
Although school looks different this year, we are still collecting donations for the Bears Care Food Pantry. The pantry distributes food provisions to Olde Creek students and their families in need for the week. Use this link to sign up for any donations you are able to provide during this extraordinary time!
Instead of the previous drop off procedure at the school, please email Lisa Goodwin at lisamarm@gmail.com about a drop off or for pick up time and date. Check out our list of item ideas on our PTA website. Most food items are welcome at this time. Gift cards are also greatly appreciated for families right now! Stores, such as Walmart, can mail gift cards without even having to make a trip to the store!
Or, order food items from our Bears Care Amazon Wish List and have it delivered directly. (Use Amazon Smile and have a percentage donated to OCE!). Thank you, as always, for your kindness and generosity!
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14. Reading Fitness Quest
Do you want to earn ribbons for keeping your mind and body in shape? You can participate in Olde Creek’s Reading Fitness Quest and do just that! To make it easier on students and families, we will be trying Reading Fitness Quest digitally this year!
All you have to do is exercise for 20 minutes and read for 20 minutes in a single day and that counts as 1 point. Accumulate 50 points and you will get your first ribbon!
Please see the Olde Creek PE website for more information and join the Reading Fitness Quest Google Classroom to get started tracking your points! (You will need to be logged into your child’s @fcpsschools.net account to access).
Let’s get moving and reading and keep our minds and bodies in shape!
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15. Contacts
Olde Creek Attendance Phone Line: 703-426-3192
Olde Creek Attendance mailbox: OldeCreekElem.Attendance@fcps.edu
Technology Support for Families/Parent Help Desk: 1-833-921-3277
Parent Information Phone Lines/Support for parents who do not speak English as their first language: Parent Information Phone Lines
Parent and Student technology support: IT Support Portal
Melissa Miller, Principal, mhmiller@fcps.edu
Alison Butler, Assistant Principal, ajbutler@fcps.edu
Kelly Durso, Assistant Principal, kldurso@fcps.edu
Sylvia Alverson, Administrative Assistant, sjalverson@fcps.edu
Ann Platenkamp, Administrative Assistant, amplatenkamp@fcps.edu
Lizardo Santos, Student Information Assistant, LISantos@fcps.edu
Sandy McCulloch, Office Assistant, slmcculloch@fcps.edu
16. Be Informed, Stay Involved!
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