Olde Creek Weekly Update
Important Upcoming Dates
August 27: Woodson Instrument Petting Zoo - 10:00AM-12:00PM
September 2: No School
September 5: No School - Labor Day
September 7: PTA Meeting - 6:30PM - Virtual
September 8: Back to School Night - (Hybrid event: in-person/virtual) 6:00PM
September 22: Fall AAP Parent Information Session - 6:00PM
September 26: Student Holiday in observance of Rosh Hashanah (Staff Professional Workday)
October 1: Laps for Learning
 OC Staff were so excited to welcome our Bears back to the building this week!
New This Week
1. Message from Mrs. Miller
2. Woodson Instrument Petting Zoo
3. Welcome New OC Team Members
4. Calendar Reminders
5. Welcome Walk Feedback
6. Back to School Night - September 8
7. Digital Resources Permission
8. Bears in the Spotlight
9. Bears Care Outreach
10. Birthday Treats
11. COVID Updates
12. Text Messages from FCPS
13. Family Life Education
Reminders
14. Laps for Learning
15. 2022 Student Rights & Responsibilities Includes Cell Phone Usage Update
16. Paperless Opt-outs Available
17. Annual Notice of Survey, Records, Curriculum, Privacy, and Related Rights
18. Contacts
19. Be Informed, Stay Involved!
1. Message from Mrs. Miller
Dear Olde Creek Families and Friends,
Thank you to all of our families who joined us for our Popsicles on the Playground and Back to School Movie Night events-they were great ways to kick off our school year!
Our Olde Creek Bears had an amazing first week of school! It was thrilling to welcome our new and returning students and fill our classrooms and hallways with student voices, laughter, and learning. Our Bears have been reconnecting with old friends and making new friends. Each of our classrooms have been focused on building relationships, learning school-wide and classroom expectations, and practicing routines and procedures. You can ask your student what PAWS means and what it looks like in our hallways, bathrooms, at recess, and in our cafeteria.
 Thank you for an outstanding first week; it is going to be an exceptional year!
Our Best,
Melissa Miller, Principal
Alison Butler, Assistant Principal
Megan Jeter, Acting Assistant Principal
2. Woodson Instrument Petting Zoo
3. Welcome New OC Team Members!
Amy Talbot - Librarian
My name is Amy Talbot and I am so excited to be the new OCES librarian. I’m a native Virginian and attended FCPS for K-12. I now have three FCPS kiddos of my own. My favorite things are books, readers, and reading of every type! I am also a huge soccer fan: Go Liverpool FC, the USWNT and the Washington Spirit! I love to hike with my family, walk my goldendoodle Junie, visit bookstores and libraries, and grow flowers in my yard. I've happily worked as a professional writer/editor and as an English teacher but being an FCPS school librarian is absolutely the best job in the world! 😊
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Karla Bueso - Instructional Assistant
I’m from Guatemala and I came here in 2005. I have 3 kids - 28 and 15 year old boys and one 13 year old girl. My two young kids went to Olde Creek from Kindergarten to 6th grade. I was involved here at Olde Creek as a volunteer and then I was so fortunate to work in the cafeteria when my kids were at Olde Creek. I am now even more fortunate to work closely with the Bears. I am looking forward for this exciting year.
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Michele Belisle - 6th Grade Teacher
After an extended pause in her teaching journey to be with her four daughters, including twin girls who are almost 2, Michele is excited to return to FCPS. She was an English teacher at Rocky Run Middle School for 12 years. During her time away from FCPS, she taught for 3 years at Good Shepherd Preschool. She is also a graduate of Fairfax County Public Schools. Outside of school, Michele is a Girl Scout leader, a beginner quilter, and a mystery novel reader. She looks forward to this new chapter in elementary school!
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4. Calendar Reminders
Friday, Sept, 2, and Monday, Sept. 5, are Labor Day holidays for all FCPS employees and students. We hope everyone takes the long weekend to celebrate a strong start to the school year and enjoy time with family and friends.
See the complete 2022-23 school year calendar
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5. Welcome Walk Feedback
We had an amazing time visiting our students during our annual welcome walk! We would love to get your feedback on this event as we plan for upcoming events. Please submit your feedback through this Welcome Walk Feedback Form. Thank you to everyone who has already shared feedback!
6. Back to School Night - September 8
Please join us for Back to School Night on Thursday, September 8. This evening, our teachers will be presenting sessions, you can meet our specialists, and hear important FCPS information on what to expect this school year. You are able to join classroom sessions in-person or virtually. We look forward to seeing you!
6:00-6:15PM - Meet our specialists in the cafeteria
6:15-6:20PM - Parents head to classrooms
6:20-6:30PM - Welcome Videos
6:30-7:00PM - Session 1
7:00-7:10PM - Welcome Videos Repeat
7:10-7:40PM - Session 2
7. Digital Resources Permission
At Olde Creek we use many digital resources in our classrooms. Some of these resources require permission for use. Our website (https://oldecreekes.fcps.edu/adopteddigitalresources) has the list of resources that require permission this year. Please review this list and then complete the digital resources permission form (https://isweb.fcps.edu/iscontacts/techpermform.cfm?secure=). Thanks for your assistance!
8. Bears in the Spotlight
We are excited to continue our News Show segment titled Bears in the Spotlight this year! If your student is interested in sharing what they did over the summer and/or their skills and talents outside of school, please complete this Google form! We can’t wait to feature our OC Bears on the News Show!
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9. Bears Care Outreach
The Bears Care food pantry provides weekend food provisions to our families in need. Please use this sign up for much needed items that can either be dropped off at the school or sent directly through places like Amazon, Costco, or Walmart, etc. Go through Amazon Smile to donate a percentage to Olde Creek! (Email Lisa at lisamarm@gmail.com for any questions.) Snacks are also greatly appreciated at this time.
New! You can donate through the OC PTA PayPal account. The funds will be used to purchase items and gift cards based on the greatest needs of our families. Access the OC PTA PayPal account here: https://paypal.me/OldeCreekPTA.
Bears Care is also looking for someone to help run the pantry and a Frost/Woodson student to help pack bags on Thursdays after school. (Please contact Lisa at lisamarm@gmail.com.)
Thank you, as always, for your kindness and generosity!
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10. Birthday Treats
In an effort to foster healthy food choices and avoid possible allergens in the classroom, food items will not be permitted for birthdays. If you would like to send in a small non-food item for all students in the class, you could consider erasers, stickers or birthday pencils on your child’s special day. These items would be handed out at the end of our instructional day.
We would like to remind families that parents are under no obligation to send in birthday treats. Our teachers will recognize birthdays in class and they are celebrated on our Morning News as well. We appreciate your support.
11. COVID Updates
Last week, FCPS sent an update on COVID-19 layered prevention strategies that will continue to be in place this school year. While we had hoped that the pandemic would be behind us, it seems that COVID will be something we must manage as a community for the foreseeable future. FCPS will continue to follow the guidance of national, state, and local health experts when determining the layered prevention strategies that are needed to keep our schools safe and open for learning. It is important that we all work together towards this goal.
Highlights from that guidance include:
- FCPS continues to require families to review the Daily Health Screening before sending students to school.
- The 5 Day Isolation Period will continue for COVID positive students and staff.
- The CDC recommends the COVID vaccine as a safe and effective way of significantly lowering your risk of severe illness, hospitalization, and death if you get infected. Vaccines are now available for our youngest students. However, COVID vaccines are not part of the required immunizations for school entry.
- At this time, masks are not required. The current CDC COVID-19 Community Level for Fairfax County is low. However, should the community level rise to “high,” FCPS would then require all students, staff, and visitors to wear a face covering when indoors on school property (to include the buildings, school buses and other school provided vehicles; except while actively eating/drinking). The Code of Virginia allows parents/legal guardians to elect for their child not to wear a face covering while on school property.
- Diagnostic testing will be available beginning Tuesday, August 16, for FCPS students and staff who are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 or have been in close contact with someone diagnosed with COVID-19. Information on diagnostic testing will continue to be updated on our website.
- FCPS will no longer send a daily or weekly COVID case update. Parents/Guardians will only receive an email from their child’s school when several cases of COVID-19 occur in a single classroom, sports team, or extracurricular activity within a 14-day period. Individual case reports will be available on the FCPS COVID-19 Dashboard on our website.
To stay up to date, please continue to review our Health and Safety Guidance on our website.
12. Parents Can Receive Text Messages from FCPS for Emergencies and Essential Information
Make sure your cell phone numbers are listed in the parent/guardian contact information section on the emergency care information form for each of your children. Parents and guardians can view and update emergency contact information online using weCare@school.
Text messages will be sent in the event of emergencies, delays or school closings, if buses are running more than 30 minutes late, if your student missed the morning attendance deadline, and for other important reminders.
Standard message and data charges may apply for text messages depending on your cell phone service plan. More about text messages is available online.
13. Family Life Education Instructional Program Information
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) provides a comprehensive, sequential Family Life Education (FLE) program for students in grades kindergarten through grade twelve. Instruction is seen as a partnership among parents and guardians, the school, and the community in supporting the learning essential to the development of strong families, positive relationships, and a healthy community.
Parents/guardians may choose to opt their child out of all or part of the Family Life Education program. Students who are opted out are provided with age-appropriate, nonpunitive alternative health instruction, and every effort is made to foster respect for family choices. If you wish to opt your child out of all or part of FLE for this school year, opt out forms will be included in your child’s back-to-school/orientation packets and are available online for Elementary (K-6), Middle School (7-8), and High School (9-12). Please fill in the opt-out form for each child and return it to your child’s school prior to Family Life Education instruction.
Detailed grade-level program descriptions are available online at Elementary (K-6) , Middle School (7-8) , and High School (9-12). FLE grade level-specific lessons and media that FCPS has streaming rights for are available for parents online in Schoology. Parents/guardians login to Schoology using the same username and password as their Student Information System (SIS) Parent account. Grade level-specific lessons are also available at the City of Fairfax Regional Library (this location does not have media). Grade level-specific lessons and media that are not streamed online are available for review at your child’s school library. Due to copyright permissions, we are unable to stream all media online.
Program questions may be addressed at your child’s school or by contacting Instructional Services at 571-423-4550 or fle@fcps.edu.
14. Laps for Learning
For more information visit: http://www.oldecreekpta.org/laps-for-learning/
15. 2022 Student Rights & Responsibilities Includes Cell Phone Usage Update
The Student Rights and Responsibilities document (SR&R) explains expectations for student behavior and adult responses to enhance school safety and to create a fair, equitable, and supportive school environment. Read the Letter from the Superintendent on the 2022-23 Student Rights and Responsibilities: A Guide for Families. Key changes to the document for the 2022-23 school year include:
- Adding rights to protect citizenship and immigration status from unauthorized sharing
- Changes to FCPS’ Acceptable Use Policy Regulation for Technology
- A new section on cell phones
Cell Phone Usage
The new section on cell phones prohibits cell phone use in classrooms. We recognize that this new policy will be a shift for many students and families this year, but research shows that managing phone use during class time will support students’ attention and ability to fully engage in their learning. Schools are partnering with parents to have students understand the importance of putting their phones away to minimize distractions during class.
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Students in K-8 must keep phones silenced and in backpacks for the duration of the school day unless there is a medical need or emergency, or teachers have allowed the usage of cell phones for instructional activities where they are the most appropriate tool. Cell phones may only be used on campus before and after school. (Except in secondary schools where students in grades 7 and 8 may use phones during passing periods)
If a parent or guardian believes their child requires access to a personally owned device(s) as an accommodation, they should contact their child’s school team—i.e., 504 Committee, Individualized Education Program (IEP) Team, English Language Committee, Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) Team—to schedule a meeting to have their request considered.
Parents should talk to their child(ren) before the start of the school year about these expectations for this upcoming school year. Families may also review the parental controls available for all iPhone and Android users. More information about the SR&R is available online.
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16. Paperless Opt-Outs Available
As a part of our ongoing efforts to streamline paper processes, parents can now select a number of opt-outs electronically via ParentVUE. Once you have signed into your ParentVUE account, simply select the “Student Info” tab and click on “Edit Information.” You will find opt-outs listed there. Parents that do not yet have a ParentVUE account will still be able to use paper forms for notification. If you need to set up your ParentVUE account, you can create one online via the FCPS ParentVUE Registration Page.
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17. 2022-23 Annual Notice of Survey, Records, Curriculum, Privacy, and Related Rights
Fairfax County Public Schools wants all parents to understand its policies regarding surveys, records, curriculum, privacy, and related rights.
In its Annual Notice of Survey, Records, Curriculum, Privacy, and Related Rights and Opt-Out Forms (Annual Notice), FCPS provides explanations of the rights listed above as well as forms that may be used to exercise opt-out choices. Two versions of the Annual Notice are available—a grades K-8 version and a grades 9-12 version. Parents with children at different grade levels should read each applicable version of the Annual Notice because the notices and opt-out rights vary depending on the student’s grade level.
Get more information and view the 2022-23 Opt-Out Booklets.
18. 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
Megan Jeter, Acting Assistant Principal, jmjeter@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
19. Be Informed, Stay Involved!
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