 All dressed up for jersey day!
The end of the year inevitably brings changes to our West Springfield staff and we are saying goodbye to some staff who have made significant impactson our school.
Classroom teacher, Ms. Katelyn Kovalesky is moving to Chicago and Ms. Esther Tran is leaving the teaching profession to pursue a career in the Government. Librarian, Shane Rigsby, has accepted a promotion to be the lead librarian at Centreville High School and PE Teacher, Lizzy Swenson, is moving to Boston. Strings teacher, Jeannine Sturm, has accepted a High School position in Maryland and Special Education teacher, Amy Harper, has accepted a position in another FCPS school.
Due to enrollment decline, we have to say goodbye to fabulous Instructional Assistants, Danielle St. Clair and Rebecca Payne. We also thank Tierney McCaughrin, who served as a classroom monitor this year and congratulate Gina Hibbits, part-time music teacher, who accepted a full-time position. Autism Instructional assistant, Emily Quinlan, has accepted an instructional assistant position at the Burke School.
We congratulate DeeAnn Best on her retirement and extend best wishes to Instructional Assistant, Katie Alexander, who is also retiring at the end of this school year.
Please be sure to convey your appreciation to the fabulous West Springfield staff members who are leaving us. We wish them the very best!
We have some teachers who are moving grade levels for the 2021-22 school year. Ms. Carrie Gilbert is moving to second grade, Ms. Katrina Glista is moving to third grade and Ms. Brooke Greilsheimer is moving to first grade. We welcome Rachel Acosta, whom we know well as an Instructional Assistant and previous teacher, to fifth grade and Brittany Lee, an experienced teacher from Arlington County, to First Grade. We will share more about our new hires in a future communication.
Lastly, I wanted to thank parents, Janelle Bradford, Tahnee Blauser and Frederick Landry who participated on interview panels this year to assist us in hiring for the 2021-22 school year. We appreciate their time and parent perspective on our hires!
Virtual Family Paint Night
Join our fabulous art teachers Mrs. Whitbourne and Mrs. Mahon for a fun night of painting! We will look at some paintings to inspire us and then paint a still life of flowers in a vase. Your art teachers will guide you step by step. All you need to do is have your art supplies ready and join us in BBCU! All ages welcome to participate.
Supplies: Your art teachers will be demonstrating with a black sharpie, watercolors, and sketchbook paper but you are welcome to use any supplies of your choice! Other supplies that would work great include canvas and tempera paint, pencil, crayons, colored pencils, markers…or even a cut paper collage. Creativity is always encouraged!
All Students are Virtual on June 8 Due to Democratic Primary Election
Tuesday, June 8, is the Democratic Primary Election. Because the Fairfax County Electoral Board and City of Fairfax Electoral Board will be using 165 school facilities as polling locations, June 8 will be a virtual synchronous learning day (no In-Person classes) for students.
Blind Spot Community Book Talk
Our final book talk is next Thursday, May 27 at 7:00 p.m. Please check your email for more information and the link to join the conversation if you signed up to participate in our community book talk.
Rising Grades 4, 5 and 6 Band and Strings Sign Up
In grades 4 – 6, students have the opportunity to start/continue an instrument. Fourth graders can choose strings, Fifth and Sixth graders can choose band OR strings. Students will receive one band/strings class a week. They will still have one general music class and will not miss any other instruction. Students must choose their selection prior to the end of the school year so that we can determine our band/strings staffing and schedule.
Classroom Library Wish List
Books are sometimes windows, offering views of worlds that may be real or imagined, familiar or unknown. These windows are also sliding glass doors, and readers have only to walk through in imagination to become part of whatever world has been created and recreated by the author. Children also need books that are mirrors, that allow them to see themselves and their own experiences through the books they read.
We want to ensure we have representation of our diverse cultures in our classroom libraries at each grade level and provide our students opportunity for books that are mirrors, windows and sliding glass doors.
To do so, we ask for your assistance in purchasing from a wish list below to help fill our classroom libraries for the 2021-22 school year with books that offer windows, mirrors and sliding doors.
We sincerely appreciate your assistance in our efforts, we couldn’t meet this goal without you!
Thank You PTA Board!
We wish to also extend our gratitude to the PTA board for the countless hours spent supporting our school, teachers and families. Specifically, we thank Franny Jessup, PTA President, and her PTA Board (Angela Shogren, Tierney McCaughrin and Frederick Landry) for their countless hours, enthusiasm and support. Thank you all for helping make West Springfield the special place it is and your support through our Covid-19 school year!
Respecting Our Neighbors
Just a gentle reminder to please be mindful when visiting the school and to take care not to block our neighbors' mailboxes, driveways, etc. when parking.
Summer Practice Books
Summer Practice Books will be mailed home to FCPS students to provide suggested activities for students to support continued learning. Families who have opted-out of paper mailings from the division will only receive digital copies of the Summer Practice Books. Books will be mailed home to families in early June to arrive before the last day of school, June 11, 2021. Families will receive email communication in May about upcoming book arrival. Digital versions of books will be emailed to the enrolling parent SIS account in PDF format the week of June 7, 2021.
- Pre-Kindergarten students will receive one interdisciplinary Summer Practice Book.
- Students enrolled in grades K-8 in 2020-21 will receive one Language Arts Practice Book and one Math Practice Book by course enrollment. These books will also include information and guidance about digital tools that can be accessed by students and families to support learning throughout the summer.
- English Learners and Special Education students may receive additional or customized books.
More information can be accessed on the Summer Practice Books public webpage.
Technology Assistance
If you need technology support at home, please consult the FCPS Technology Support for Families page for troubleshooting assistance. If you need additional support, please contact the Parent Technology Help Desk at 833-921-3277 (833-921-FCPS). This will be answered by staff members between 7 a.m. and 11 p.m., seven days a week. They will forward your issue to WSES staff if it is something that needs to be resolved by the school.
Military Student Groups
If your military connected child is interested in participating in any of the virtual and/or In-Person student military support groups, please contact Kristen Mahoney for more information (mahoneyk@magellanfederal.com).
Caregivers have the right to refuse SOL assessments if they have concerns about participation related to the pandemic, including health, social-emotional, and instructional time concerns. For questions about SOL testing or to refuse testing contact our AP, Ms. Hibner.
If your student is absent, we will make every effort to test them on the day they return. If you know in advance that your child will not be in school on a testing day, please let your child’s teacher know so that other arrangements can be made.
The WSES SOL Schedule is the Following:
Grade 5 In Person:
Grade 4 In Person:
Grade 3 In Person:
Do You Have a Rising Kindergarten Student for the 2021-22 School Year?
You may register now by completing the FCPS registration forms and remitting your registration documents to Rita Rice, rarice1@fcps.edu.
In order to collect additional information regarding your child, we request that you complete this form. Completion will help us with placement information and ensure that we have proper staffing based on enrollment.
To ensure that you receive future communications, we encourage you to self-enroll and subscribe to News You Choose and select West Springfield Elementary. We look forward to seeing and meeting your child in 2021-2022.
Virtual Kindergarten Orientation
Our Kindergarten Orientation Power Point Presentation can be viewed here.
Resources
Family Guide to Return to School
For those who have recently returned to In-Person learning, the Return to School Guide is a great resource.
Attendance Matters
Here is how you may report your child’s absence, including tardies, and asynchronous participation:
Attendance Line | 703-912-4444
Main Office | 703-912-4400
Online | westspringfieldelem.attendance@fcps.edu
UPDATE – FCPS Meal Service When School is in Session
These webpages are continuing to be updated as the situation for the 2020-21 school year evolves. The FAQ page includes a date by each question to identify the latest updates.
Save the Date
- May 27 - Blind Spot Community Book Talk @ 7:00 p.m.
- May 31 – Memorial Day (Holiday)
- June 3 - School Paint Night @ 6:30 p.m.
- June 8 - Virtual Synchronous Learning Day (No students in building)
- June 11 - Last Day of School (2 Hour Early Release @ 1:30 p.m.)
|
