🌼 Dear Great Falls ES Families,🌼

As the summer season arrives, we hope this newsletter finds you in high spirits and ready to embrace June's warmth and energy. With longer days and brighter skies, we're excited to share our end-of-the-year events that will make this month memorable.

As is true with the closing of any school year, we have staff movements and changes.  We are excited to celebrate these opportunities for growth and change with you as some of our staff members embark on their next great adventure:

• Mrs. Amanda Baumgarten will be moving to Florida with her family and spending time at home with her children!
• Mrs. Candice Hillman will take a leave of absence next year to spend time with her children at home. However, she looks forward to returning to GFES in 2024!
• Mr. Dave Rematt will be retiring from Great Falls after 31 years.  He will be beginning a new chapter in his life.  He would like to thank the Great Falls community, administration, and colleagues. He says he can't thank everyone for the love and encouragement.
• Mrs. Devon Lord will take a leave of absence next year to be home with her new baby boy, Charlie.
• Mrs. Erin Zurbuchen will be moving to Switzerland with her husband and hopes to continue teaching strings there.
• Mrs. Kayoko Noonan will be working for FCPS World Languages Office.
• Mrs. Laura Spierto has chosen to spend an extra day at home with her 2-year-old and 4-year-old. She has truly loved her time at Great Falls and is sad to say goodbye. She wishes the staff, students, and their families the very best!
• Ms. Mary Ann Rogers will retire from Great Falls, ES after 38 years. She would like to thank to the many teachers and administrators she has taught with and learned from during this time.  Thank you to the families for sharing their children. But mostly, thank you to the students as they have filled her days with learning, laughing, and seeing the world through young eyes. Her heart is full of gratitude!
• Mrs. Sue Martin will be retiring after teaching with FCPS for 27 years.  In retirement, she looks forward to spending time with family and friends, hiking, and traveling.

Please join me in wishing these outstanding staff members happiness and success in their future endeavors!

Please mark your calendars with the awesome events we have listed below. Only a few more weeks left!

Sara Harper

Calendar Updates:

Field Day Reminders:

We are looking forward to a great field day. We still need a few volunteers to help us with the afternoon. Please sign up for a spot if you’re available! As a reminder, students should plan to dress appropriately by:

• Coming to school dressed for outdoor physical activities and water activities (athletic clothing, footwear)
• Wearing their colored grade level OR field day t-shirt
• Wearing sunscreen, sunglasses, and perhaps a hat
• Bring a water bottle marked with their name

As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to your child's teacher or Mr. or Miss Boucher.

Laptop Collection: The collection of FCPSOn laptops and chargers will take place during the last week of school. Before your student returns their items, please make sure the following has been completed: The laptop must be cleaned. Carefully wipe it down with a disinfecting wipe. Clean the bottom, keyboard, screen, lid, power button. Allow the laptop to dry. Please make sure the laptop is powered off when cleaning. All personal stickers must be removed. Carefully remove residue from stickers. Leave your name tag, name tag holder, barcodes, and FCPSOn sticker bottom intact, If there are any technical issues with the laptop or charger, please ask your child’s teacher to fill out a RequestIT before returning it. Keep your carrying case – they are for you to keep and reuse every year. They will not be replaced next school year. The FCPSOn charger must be returned with the FCPSOn laptop. If you do not have the charger any longer, a new one will need to be purchased.  This can be done through My School Bucks. Please present the receipt for the purchased charger as proof of replacement Important Dates: Most students will be turning in their laptop on Monday, June 12. Your child’s teacher will communicate if laptops will be turned in sooner. If you know your student will be absent the last week of school or on the date of their grade level’s turn-in, please have them return their laptop and charger beforehand. It can be given to the Tech Office or the front office. If your student is attending any FCPS program over the summer that requires a laptop (ESY/SOAR/etc), they will keep their laptop until the end of the summer program. Thank you!  -The Great Falls ES Tech Team

Counselors’ Corner: Summer is coming! While summer can be a fun, restful time for families without the added pressure of school, we recognize that it can also be a difficult transition for some students. School counselors, school social workers, and school psychologists are not available during most of the summer months. Should a mental health crisis arise during this time, FCPS has a plethora of resources available to assist you and your family. Find emergency mental health resources here.  Here are some other ideas to keep your family engaged with wellness over the summer! Take advantage of the abundant webinars and other services that the Family Resource Center provides Read this article from the Child Mind Institute: Strategies for a Successful Summer Break Check out these summer mindfulness activities from Mindful Schools Get moving with Cosmic Kids Yoga Strive for a healthy body and mind with these suggestions from the CDC Looking for a mental health practitioner? Check out Healthy Minds Fairfax We wish you all a lovely summer and look forward to partnering with you again in the 23-24 school year! -Sara White & Courtney Bradshaw

Congratulation to 6th grade Halia O., who was awarded the Helping Hands Award by The Great Falls Optimist Club for her service to Great Falls ES and in the community. She was recognized on Thursday, May 11 at the Old Forestville Schoolhouse. Halia plans to use the money she won from this award, combined with a grant she won from the Optimist Club, to create an outdoor learning habitat at Great Falls ES.  

Last Spirit Day of the Year!

Summer Opportunities Available:

🎨Elementary Institute for The Arts
Students in all FCPS schools can enroll in the Elementary Institute for the Arts (EIFTA). EIFTA is a weekly arts enrichment program for students in rising 3rd through 6th grades and will be held during the month of July.  Students take classes in art, music, theatre, and dance every day.   

Transportation is provided from around the county. Tuition assistance is available for students who qualify. Check out the website for more information or email eifta@fcps.edu.

💻 CyberPatriot Summer Cyber Camp
Chantilly Academy will host an AFA CyberCamp Monday, June 26, to Friday, June 30, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day. This camp is recommended for rising fifth through eighth graders of all skill levels interested in learning more about the importance of cybersecurity and gaining skill to protect themselves and others from cyber threats. Discounts are available for students eligible for free and reduced-price meals. Visit the camp website to learn more about registration, curriculum, and schedule.  

🌞 Other Summer Camp Opportunities
Registration is still available for Elementary-IFTA arts camps, Credit Recovery Academy, and Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology’s Middle School Technology Institute (MSTI).

🏫Online Campus Summer Registration Closing Soon! 
Registration for taking a summer class with the Online Campus will close Friday, June 9. Email OnlineCampus@fcps.edu or call 703-503-7781 with any questions. Registration for Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology’s Middle School Technology Institute (MSTI) also closes on Friday, June 9.

Student Health Room Medication: The school health room is reminding parents and guardians that all medication stored in the health room must be picked up no later than the student dismissal time on the last day of school (June 16, 2023).  Medication left in the health room after that time will be discarded.  It is school policy that medications must be picked up by the parent or guardian.  Medication cannot be sent home with your student.  However, with parent or guardian permission, a high school student may transport over-the-counter medications to and from the school health room. Medication authorization forms for next school year may be obtained from the school or online at https://www.fcps.edu/resources/student-safety-and-wellness/school-health-services.   A medication authorization form is required for any medication, prescription or over-the-counter, to be kept at school.  Please be sure medication orders are clear.  All information on the form must be completed.  Part I must be signed and dated by the parent or guardian.  Part II must be signed and dated by your physician.  Over-the-counter medication given for headache, muscle pain, orthodontic pain, or menstrual cramps and antibiotic or anti-viral medication do not need a physician signature.  More detailed information is available on the back of the medication authorization form. Over-the-counter medication must be in the original container and clearly labeled by the parent or guardian.  All prescription medication, including physician’s samples, must be labeled by the pharmacist or physician.  Please make sure that the label clearly states your student’s name, the name of the medication, the dosage of the medication, and the time interval for administration. If your child will be enrolled in a summer program sponsored by Fairfax County Public Schools, your existing long-term medication authorization form(s) may be used for the summer program.  Please let the health room know if you would like a copy of the form(s). Your cooperation will ensure that we can safely give your student his or her medication.  If you have any questions, please contact your school health room aide, at 703-757-2110, or your school public health nurse, Rebecca Postol, RN at 571-595-6411. Thank you for your cooperation and have a good summer.

Parent Information Phone Line Available in Eight Languages:

Parents/caregivers who speak Amharic, Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, Korean, Spanish, Urdu, or Vietnamese may call a telephone information line for general information about FCPS. View the list of phone numbers.

Time to Order School Supplies for Next Year!

The PTA is once again partnering with First Day School Supplies to provide you with a kit of the exact, brand name school supplies your child's teacher requests, delivered straight to the classroom over the summer. This means ZERO HASSLE FOR YOU! Buy now and save up to 30% over shopping at big box stores like Target, Walmart and even Amazon!

Visit 1stDaySchoolSupplies.com today!

701 Walker Road, Great Falls, VA 22066  |  Phone: 703.757.2100

Attendance: 703.757.2111 or gfesattendance@fcps.edu

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