Annandale Community Insider - October 17

Annandale Students, Parents and Community:

Fall is finally here! I hope you are enjoying the cooler weather and having a good time with friends and family this weekend. My children and I drove 430+ miles back to Ohio to meet up with my sister. We spent Friday and Saturday riding roller coasters and enjoying “Halloweekend” at Cedar Point. 

This past week, I had the opportunity to visit several classrooms. Students were engaged in high level academic tasks like determining if the American Revolution was avoidable in Social Studies class, building models of houses to practice measurement and scale in Physics, and writing computer code to create original images in Computer Science. It is so rewarding to see our students engaged in learning each and every day.

Though it is hard to believe, we are nearing the end of the first quarter, which is Friday, October 29. We encourage all students and families to check SIS and Schoology regularly to ensure all assignments have been turned in and any assessment retakes have been completed. Once again this year, we are using a rolling gradebook. This means that a student’s final grade is not an average of the grades from each quarter, but an average of all assignments completed throughout the year. Quarter grades provide a snapshot of the student’s progress and are not used to determine final grades. We encourage you to reach out to your student’s teachers if you have questions.

As a reminder, October 29 will be a two-hour early release for students, and November 1 and 2 are teacher workdays, which means there will be no school for students.

As always, please let me know if you have any questions.

Shawn DeRose, Principal

Important Dates

October 18 - Underclassmen Make-up Pictures

October 19 - PTSA Meeting, 7pm

October 19, 20, 26, 27 - Vision and Hearing Screening

October 20 - SEL Screener

October 20 & 25 - College Essay Workshop

October 21 - Annandale Choirs Concert, 7pm

October 29 - End of 1st Quarter

October 29 - 2 Hour Early Release

November 1 & 2 - Teacher Workday 

November 11 - 2 Hour Early Release

Underclassmen Picture Make-Ups - October 18: Make-up pictures for underclassmen who have not taken their picture yet will be held on Monday, October 18 in the library. This is a White Day. Students must let their W4 teacher know they need to take their picture before reporting to the library.

PTSA Meeting - October 19: The next PTSA Meeting will be held this Tuesday, October 19 at 7:00pm in the Library. Participants can also join virtually using this link. Meetings are held in Spanish and English. Also, if you have not done so already, please consider joining the PTSA by filling out the online 2021–2022 Membership Form. For more information about membership, visit our Membership page.

Vision and Hearing Screening - October 19, 20, 26, 27: Vision and hearing screening will be held on October 19, 20, 26, 27. Additional dates may be added to accommodate students who were virtual and could not be screened during the previous school year. If your child wears glasses, please be sure they have them at school on screening days. The purpose of screening is to identify students who need further evaluation because they have difficulty seeing the screening chart or hearing the screening tones.

Parents will be notified by letter if screening results indicate that further testing is needed. Vision and hearing difficulties can interfere with learning. Prompt follow-up is recommended if you receive a referral letter suggesting further testing. If you have any questions regarding hearing and vision screening, please contact the school health room at 703-642-4110.

Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Screener - October 20: This Wednesday, Annandale will administer our first Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Screener during our W4 lesson. Annandale’s Student Support Team will use the screener to identify strengths and needs for our students related to SEL skills. SEL skills include self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making. The screener will review these skills, as well as students’ relationships, feelings of belonging, feelings about their school environment, and mood. Learn more about the screener and review the questions here.

College Essay Workshop - October 20 & 25: The Atoms Writing Center will be offering the College Essay Workshop two times before the November 1 early decision deadlines: Wednesday, October 20 and Monday, October 25. Students can come to Room 274 after school for tips on the college essay and to get feedback on your college essay draft from Atoms Writing Center Tutors.

We Sing Live Concert - October 21: After 20 months of not having live concerts, the Annandale Choirs are thrilled to present our first choral concert of the 2021-22 season - We Sing on Thursday, October 21 at 7:00pm.

After not singing together for so long, our students are excited to share a concert of hope, compassion and resilience. If you have never attended a concert from our choirs, I encourage you to come listen to the 100+ voices of Atom Chorale, Men’s Chorale, Women’s Chamber Ensemble and the Annandale Singers. You won’t be disappointed! 

Awesome Atoms!

Marching Atoms Win First Place!: Congratulations to our Marching Atoms who spent Saturday competing in the Marching Band Assessment at the Navy and Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, MD. The Marching Atoms received first place with best in class in the categories of music, percussion, and overall. 

Congratulations Coach Cragin Eres and Students Jasmine and Ta’niyah!: Jasmine and Ta’niyah were elected to Second Team all District for their excellence in cheer. Coach Cragin Eres was named coach of the year. In addition to coaching cheer, Cragin serves on the MTSS team at Annandale High School, supporting students in their academic, behavioral, and wellness needs.

Welcome Melina Merino, Front Office Admin Assistant: Please join me in welcoming Melina Merino, our new Front Office Administrative Assistant. Melina served as a Maintenance Management Chief and Logistics Clerk in the U. S. Marine Corps in Iwakuni, Japan and North Carolina. After leaving the military, Melina worked as the Operations Coordinator for the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants. She will be supporting our administrative staff and our Special Education department.

Opportunities

Yearbook and Senior Tribute Ads: The 2022 Antenna Yearbook and Senior Tribute Ads can be purchased now www.yearbookforever.com. Buy your yearbook now! Prices are currently $75 and will rise to $85 on November 1.

The A-Blast Subscriptions Available: The A-Blast published its first edition on September 29, and you can pick up a copy in the newsstand in the main lobby or subscribe for home delivery. It’s a great way to keep up with the news of AHS through the perspective of student journalists. The newspaper is published monthly and it is consistently ranked in the Top 10 of all high school newspapers nationwide. AHS is the only school to have a printing partnership with The Washington Post, which prints the newspaper for free. Donate at least $10 and email your home mailing address to ajweintraut@fcps.edu. 

Important Information

Impact Aid Forms Due October 28 - Impact Aid forms were distributed last week to all students in W4 (Advisory class).  FCPS is asking all families to fill out a Student-Parent Survey for Federal Impact Aid. Returning this form is important because information from this survey results in an additional $3 million in grants each year from the U.S. Department of Education. These funds are used to support all Fairfax County public schools and centers.

For each student in your household, please complete, sign, date, and return the survey to your student's W4 (Advisory) teacher. If sections 1 and 2 of the survey do not apply to you, just check the boxes in Section 3. All forms must be signed, dated, and returned by November 5. All results are confidential. More information is available online.

Scheduled Student Check-out: When checking your student out, the fastest and easiest way to ensure your student is released in a timely manner is to send a note to the Attendance Office with your student. Your student will be issued a check-out pass for the scheduled time. For your convenience, you may also call and leave a message with the Attendance Office at 703-642-4151. Please provide your student's name and the time you want your student dismissed. It is preferable for this to be completed in the morning in order to create the checkout information and pass for the student.

Unscheduled Student Check-out: The deadline for picking up a student for unscheduled checkout is 2:30pm. Parents and/or emergency contact(s) should report to the Attendance Office. Please allow at least 15 minutes and bring a photo ID to complete the checkout process.

News from the Activities Office

Check out this week's Atoms Athletics and Activities newsletter. You can also check out important information from the Activities Office on the Annandale High School Athletics and Activities website or AHS Athletics Twitter page. Please email John Ellenberger at jellenberger@fcps.edu if you have any questions.

This week's events:

Monday, October 18

Art Club - 3:00pm - Room 334

Improv Club - 3:00pm - Room 324

Girls Who Code - 3:10pm - Cafeteria

National Honor Society - Meeting - 3:00pm - Room 249

Boys’ Basketball - Meet Coach Hypnar - 3:15pm - Health Room

District Field Hockey Tournament vs. Hayfield - 7:00pm

Tuesday, October 19

Volleyball at Mt. Vernon - 5/6/7:15pm

Wednesday, October 20

Golf - Girls' Golf Zone 4A Championship - Twin Lakes - 10:00am

Atoms Writing Center - 3:00pm - Room 274

FBLA - 3:10pm - Cafeteria

AA LEAD - 3:15 - 4:30pm - Room 234

Region Cheer at South County - 4:30pm

XC - JV Championship at Burke Lake - Boys’ - 4:30pm / Girls’ - 5:00pm

District Field Hockey Tournament at TBD - 7:00pm

Thursday, October 21

AVID Club - College App Workshop - 3:00pm - Room 90

Volleyball at Edison - 5/6/7:15pm

F/JV Football at Falls Church - 5:30/7:15pm

Choirs of AHS - “We Sing” - 7:00pm

District Field Hockey Tournament at TBD - 7:00pm

Friday, October 22

District Field Hockey Championship at TBD - 7:00pm

Football vs. Falls Church - 7:00pm - It's a Pink Out (Senior Night)

Cheer - 7:00pm (Senior Night)

Band - 7:00pm - Halftime Show - "Rocky" (Senior Night)

News from the PTSA

PTSA Meeting - October 19: The next PTSA Meeting will be held this Tuesday, October 19 at 7:00pm in the Library. Participants can also join virtually using this link. Meetings are held in Spanish and English. Also, if you have not done so already, please consider joining the PTSA by filling out the online 2021–2022 Membership Form. For more information about membership, visit our Membership page.

PTSA Food Pantry Distribution: The PTSA sponsored AHS Pantry distributes food to AHS students and families in need. Distribution will take place on the second and fourth Fridays of each month from 3:15-4:15pm in Trailer 8 at the rear of the school. The pantry distribution schedule for the school year can be found here. Bags will contain several meals and fresh produce is also available and will be distributed first come, first served. There will also be a limited supply of household products (cleaning supplies, hygiene items, paper towels and toilet paper) available. Click here for additional food and community services. Contact Alissa Green, School Social Worker at adgreen@fcps.edu with questions related to resources. 

You can donate to the Pantry to help Atom families in need here. A back to school wish list of needed items can be found here. Also, please consider donating paper grocery bags (preferably with handles) to ease the distribution process. Paper bags and food donations for the Pantry can be dropped off in the main office. Contact Norma Foti, Pantry Coordinator at pantry@annandalehsptsa.org with questions . 

PTSA Pantry Needs Your Help! The AHS PTSA pantry is seeking the following items below to restock their shelves. Items can be dropped off in the main office. All donations to the AHS PTSA Pantry are tax deductible.