Churchill Chatter - Issue 9, December 17, 2021
Happy Winter Break from the Entire CRS Staff!
 Tradition Returns in 2021 - CRS staff holiday sweater photo.
Dear Churchill Road Families,
It has been a fun week filled with spirit wear and lots of learning. As we wind down the calendar year, the staff at Churchill Road would like to express their gratitude for your support of our school community. A huge THANK YOU to our PTA for this week’s Secret Snowman event. And we are so thankful for all of the treats that have been shared by our families – we truly appreciate them.
Before we begin our break, we are excited to recognize the following CRS teachers for the 2021-2022 FCPS Outstanding Employee Awards!
Outstanding New Teacher – Carly Pfaff
Outstanding Teacher – Patina Betchar
Outstanding Operational Employee – Sara Cleland
We are so proud of their hard work and dedication they provide to our school and their students. Additionally, we had four other teachers receive nominations from the community and their colleagues. Please also congratulate the following teachers for their accomplishments: Asta-Dianne Clark, M.J. Long, Amanda Andrews, and Tosha Morales.
With all of the busyness and excitement of the holiday season, the upcoming winter break offers us the opportunity to slow down with our loved ones and enjoy the best gift of all, time with one another. To ensure students take a well-deserved break, no homework will be assigned over winter break. No assignments will be due immediately following the break. We look forward to welcoming students back in the new year.
Warmly,
Jen Niccolls and Cherith Pierson
In This Week's Issue
School Board Member Visits Churchill Road
Earlier this month, Dranesville District School Board Representative Elaine Tholen visited Churchill Road to shadow school social worker Wes Smith. Ms. Tholen learned about the how our school supports student and family needs and asked about ways in which she might be able to provide additional support. Ms.Tholen participated in the yoga lessons Mr. Smith led with our second graders, demonstrating her abilities at the end of her visit.
Churchill Student Competes for Food Network Kids Baking Championship
Congratulations to fourth grader Finley S., who competed on the Food Network Kids Baking Championship! Finley took up baking during the Covid-19 shutdown in 2020 and has been baking ever since! Kids Baking Championship Season 10 airs on Monday, December 27 at 8:00 p.m. on the Food Network. Please join us in cheering on our local baker! You can follow Finley and her baking adventures on her Instagram page @FinleyBakes.
COVID-19 Information
COVID-19 Testing
Testing helps reduce the spread of COVID-19. FCPS’ diagnostic and optional screening testing sites will not be available from December 18-January 2. Testing will resume on January 3, 2022. If needed, other local providers are available for testing and vaccinations during that time.
Covid Vaccination Information
For locations and clinic hours, click here. The health department website has information about other options for children’s COVID-19 vaccinations.
Child's COVID Vaccination Status - Options
While not required, you may provide a copy of your child's official vaccination record to Mrs. Angie Kim, our registrar, if your child is fully vaccinated. Note that if fully vaccinated, your child will not need to pause nor quarantine if considered a close contact. You can provide a clear scan of the vaccine record in PDF format and email it to ackim@fcps.edu or drop by the office and deliver a copy of the vaccine record to Mrs. Kim.
New Parent Liaison
Beginning in January, Churchill Road is welcoming a new parent liaison. Charlotte Diorio, Churchill Road parent, is available to answer questions from new or existing parents may have as they navigate the school community and greater community. She has lived in the Churchill Road Elementary School area for years and is a wealth of knowledge. New to the area? Looking for fun family things to do? Looking for a parent perspective, and much much more. Please email her directly at cbdiorio@fcps.edu.
Dining Assistant Needed
We are looking for a part-time person to serve as our dining assistant. This is an hourly position who assists students during their lunch time, supervises student clean-up, maintains order and dismisses students to their teachers. This is a great opportunity for a parent who would like to see their child throughout their school day! Reach out to Ms. Niccolls, jniccolls@fcps.edu, if interested.
ESSER III Grant Funds and Focus
At the beginning of the school year FCPS announced the spending plan for the funds from the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER III) grant. The news release is linked here. As part of the plan, Churchill has begun implementing before and after school programming to support identified students, as well as increasing instructional supports during school. An overview of Churchill's ESSER II plan is linked on our website here. Additionally, with ESSER III funds we will be implementing new wellness programs to support students’ social and emotional needs. As the new initiatives are implemented, further information will continue to be released. We are excited for the opportunities that the ESSER III grant is providing for our students at Churchill.
New Technology Tools for Parents
FCPS has new tools to help parents and guardians know more about their child’s activity on any FCPS device. These tools are provided by Lightspeed, our internet content filtering service, at no cost to families. You may sign up for a weekly Parent Report, which will provide a list of the top sites your child visited. If you want more detailed information, sign up for the Internet Use Parent portal and log-in anytime to see more detail about your child’s browsing and “pause” access to the internet during non-school hours. Find out more and sign up for these services on our website.
SIS System Updates
To support the SIS upgrade over Winter Break, SIS, ParentVUE, and StudentVUE will be unavailable for all users from Friday, December 17 at 5:00 p.m. until Wednesday, December 22 at 6:00 a.m. for system updates.
School Office Closed
The Churchill Road main office will be closed during winter break beginning Monday, December 20 and will reopen on Monday, January 3.
Important Dates
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Monday, December 20 - Friday, December 31, Winter Break, School Closed (including Front Office)
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Monday, January 3, 2022 - Classes Resume after Winter Break
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Wednesday, January 12 - Virtual PTA Meeting, 7 PM
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Monday, January 17 - MLK Birthday Holiday, School Closed
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Thursday, January 20 - 2-Hour Early Dismissal at 1:20 PM (End of Quarter)
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Friday, January 21 & Monday, January 24 - Teacher Workdays
Please visit the FCPS School Year Calendar for more information
2021-22 School Year:
https://www.fcps.edu/calendars/2021-22-standard-school-year-calendar
Please visit the FCPS Return to School page for the most up-to-date information on student groups and the return to in-person learning: https://www.fcps.edu/returntoschool
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