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Dear Families,
As you know we are entering a new phase of the pandemic that will bring about changes to our health and safety measures. Know that the health and safety of our students and staff is our highest priority.
State law now allows parents/guardians to elect for their children to not wear masks at school starting March 1, regardless of health metrics in our community. We highly recommend students participate in universal masking for the protection of students and staff who have health concerns.
In addition, late Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released updated health guidance that included new metrics for determining COVID-19 community levels. Based on this new guidance, Fairfax County’s current COVID-19 community level is low.
Based on these new metrics and CDC guidance, FCPS will now adjust our roll back plan and allow everyone - staff and parents/guardians of FCPS students - to make a choice whether or not they will wear a mask starting TOMORROW TUESDAY, March 1.
At CWES, all students will be treated the same regardless of their masking choice. Students will not be separated based on who is wearing a mask or not. Our interactions with all students will be based on care and respect. Remember, our students look to us as examples of how to treat each other and how to work through these situations.
We will continue to use layered prevention strategies in all classrooms. Families of special needs children who may need additional consideration for health reasons should work with their IEP or 504 teams. Per FCPS guidance, instead of weekly communications, we will send a COVID notification letter each day a positive case is reported at school.
We know for some of our families the masking policy change is most welcome, and for others it is a source of anxiety.
TALK TO YOUR CHILD BEFORE SCHOOL TOMORROW to ensure they know your expectations for masking. Teachers will not be able to enforce individualized expectations for students and we recognize that preferences may shift over time, so it is essential that you and your child are in regular communication about masking.
Tomorrow is Spring Picture Day and class photos will be taken. Please let your child know whether or not you wish for them to keep a mask on when their class group photo is being taken.
I assure all students and families that CWES will remain a caring and supportive place to learn. I will briefly review what the masking policy change will mean for CWES during our PTA General Membership meeting TONIGHT AT 7:00 PM. Join us at
https://myfcpsk12.zoom.us/j/95184744922?pwd=MVZ2aE5FUEorcHM4RkUvU0RBd0JrQT09
As always, please reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns.
Thank you,
Diane Leipzig, Dr. L
PTA General Membership Meeting and Presentation
Monday, February 28th at 7:00 pm
JOIN US TONIGHT AT
https://myfcpsk12.zoom.us/j/95184744922?pwd=MVZ2aE5FUEorcHM4RkUvU0RBd0JrQT09
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Have you been thinking about the results of the Social Emotional Learning Screener we received recently?
Do you have concerns about how the the school year has impacted your student?
Are you looking for more ways to support your child emotionally?
If so, then please join us for a presentation by Lauren Cusner and Lauren Ebenstein of Partners in Parenthood.
Their presentation, "How to Foster Positive Self-Esteem in Your Children", will highlight the following topics:
- Learn strategies to boost self-esteem and confidence from a school psychologist and former FCPS elementary educator
- Innate differences in self-esteem do exist; however, all self-esteem can be bolstered!
- Practical, immediate takeaways for you to implement in your day-to-day life to improve your child's self-esteem
- The "Goldilocks" rule of praise--what kind of praise is meaningful and how much is too much?
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We saw lots of SILLINESS in outfit choices today! Join in the fun to celebrate diverse books for diverse readers with this week's SPIRIT WEEK!
We are excited to celebrate our annual CWES International Day on Wednesday, April 20, 2022! This day serves as an opportunity for everyone to learn about all the wonderful countries and cultures represented within our school community.
We are inviting our families to come dressed to represent your country, bring international dishes to share, songs to sing, and music for dancing. If you are interested in securing a table to display your country’s information, please complete the interest form that was included in Tuesday folders and send it in or email it to tsutton@fcps.edu by the deadline on Friday, March 4th. Whether you decide to create a display or not, save the date to come out and join the fun.
NEW OPTION: Fill out this Google Form to indicate your interest!
Order Oath online or in store on Wednesday March 16th and they will donate 25% of your purchase! IN STORE: Visit the Mosaic District location and order from our team! Must mention Canterbury Woods Elementary School PTA Fundraiser or show the flier for your donation to count. ONLINE: Order pickup, curbside, or delivery from the Mosaic District location at order.oathpizza.com or on the Oath app! Enter code CANTERBURY22 for your donation to count.
This year we will have TWO events to welcome our newest class of CWES Cougars!
Wednesday, March 30, 6:30 PM-7:30 PM: Parents will join our K team for a virtual presentation of our kindergarten program.
Thursday, March 31, 3:00 PM-4:15 PM: Rising kindergartners will come to our school for an in-person orientation, rotating through all of our kindergarten classrooms to experience a slice of life in kindergarten. (NOTE: This is an early release day for current students).
Do you know a neighbor with a rising kindergartner, or a family with a rising first grader who isn't attending CWES yet? Please encourage them to register on our website ASAP so we have accurate numbers for staffing our classes for next year!
Woodson HS is hosting Band Camp, June 14 - July 1 8:30 AM - 12:00 PM.
Cost is $250.
Each day includes a small group lesson, sectional and 2 band rehearsals.
Open to rising fifth through rising ninth graders.
Beginners encouraged to join -- no experience necessary.
Staffed by professional musicians and educators.
4 levels of band offered.
End of camp concert, July 1, Woodson HS.
Details and application online at https://www.rbopomusic.org/central-fairfax-band-camp.html
(STEAM = Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math)
Each month, we will feature one of our specials programs so you can learn a bit more about these amazing elements of your child's school experience.
 The Engineering Design Process
STEAM students have been busy designing and building. In STEAM, students create solutions to open-ended challenges. Some challenges are designed to be completed during one class session, while others may take several weeks to complete. Regardless of the STEAM challenge, students practice applying the steps of the Engineering Design Process. They learn how to ask questions, imagine solutions, make plans, create and test, and improve upon their creations. Students do all this while incorporating Portrait of a Graduate skills. As students work with partners they utilize communication, collaboration, problem solving, creative and critical thinking, and resiliency skills. The STEAM room is an exciting place to witness students taking risks, learning from mistakes, and developing growth mindsets. Here are a few of the STEAM challenges students have been working on:
 2nd Grade – Bridge Building Challenge
Students focus on the driving question, “How can you, as an engineer, design and build a bridge strong enough to hold a load?” while working on the bridge building challenge. Using two wooden blocks separated by a ruler as anchors, students engineer ways to build the rest of the bridge with only binder clips and craft sticks. Students test the strength of their bridges with books to represent the load. Many students are striving to build bridges that can hold 40 books!
  5th grade Lego WeDo 2.0 robotics and coding
Fifth grade students enjoyed exploring Lego WeDo 2.0 kits which combine traditional Lego building with motorized Lego pieces and coding. Students began this unit by following guided step by step directions. By the end of the unit, students were able to design, build, and code their own open creations. BattleBots were a popular design choice for 5th graders.
Kindergarten – 3D shape building
Kindergarten STEAM students explore ways to build shapes. We started this exploration by building flat shapes using Play Doh and toothpicks. Next, students learned how to change two dimensional shapes into three dimensional shapes. It took lots of problem solving to learn how to make sure the Play Doh wasn’t too heavy so the shapes could stand up. Students then had fun creating three dimensional structures using miniature marshmallows and toothpicks.
6th grade Lego robotics and coding combined with science space curriculum
Sixth grade students took the Lego WeDo 2.0 kits to a deeper level by combining a topic learned in their science or social studies curriculum with the Lego robotics to show their knowledge in a new way. Students had two parts to this STEAM challenge. First, they had to design, build, and code a robotic Lego invention without support of Lego directions. Then they had to incorporate their Lego invention with a handmade setting. Projects connected to their studies of space and explorers were popular 6th grade choices.
Tuesday, March 1: Lifetouch Spring Picture Day (Includes class photos); RAA Spirit Day--Wear something to celebrate your culture and read about a culture or holiday
Wednesday, March 2: RAA Spirit Day--Wear your favorite team's jersey and read about an influential athlete.
Thursday, March 3: RAA Spirit Day--Wear your favorite color and read your favorite book; Two-hour Early Release
Friday, March 4: No school
Wednesday, March 16: Restaurant Fundraiser, Oath Pizza
Wednesday, March 30, 6:30 PM: Virtual Kindergarten Parent Information Session
Thursday, March 31, 3:00 PM-4:15 PM: In-person Kindergarten Orientation
Wednesday, April 20: International Day
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