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.يرجى زيارة موقعنا الألكتروني لقراءة هذه النشرة الإخبارية بلغات أخرى
Dear Great Falls ES Families,
Our dedicated faculty and staff continue to be committed to providing a safe, inclusive, and stimulating learning experience for every child. FCPS and our teachers design the curriculum to inspire curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking, and are eager to foster a love of learning in every student. We are excited to use these bi-weekly newsletters to share all of the updates with you!
📅 No School this Monday. As a reminder, there will be no school next Monday, September 25th. All FCPS schools and offices will be closed on Monday, September 25, for Yom Kippur, the holiest day in Judaism.
🚗Kiss n Ride Updates: As we start to settle into our normal school routines, here are some helpful tips and reminders to help make things safe and smooth as possible:
- Parents should always remain in the car while our staff assist students. This is for safety reasons as well as timing purposes.
- Students may only enter and exit their vehicles on the right passenger side. The left side door should always be closed for safety purposes.
- All cars should move up as far as possible along the pick-up and drop-off area, so that we can get as many cars unloaded and loaded as possible
- Please have your child practice buckling and un-buckling their own seatbelt, as this will help keep the line moving as efficiently as possible
- Do not leave your child if there are no staff members present at Kiss n Ride. As stated in our Great Falls Elementary Handbook - staff members must head into the building promptly when the bell rings at 8:50am so that they are ready to start the school day.
- Parents arriving late for am or pm pick-up, should bring and gather their child from the main office.
❗School Grounds Reminder: Please remember, we love your pets, but they are not allowed on school property due to allergies and cleanliness. This includes weekend outdoor activities, walking along school pathways, and the school track. Thank you for your understanding!
💡Advanced Academic Information Meeting: A parent information meeting will be held on Tuesday, September 26th from 9:30-10:15am on Zoom, This meeting will provide an Introduction to AAP, an overview of the continuum of available services through FCPS, and how this translates to Great Falls ES. This information session will be open to all K-6 families and will take place in via Zoom. Please use the QR code below to request the Zoom link be sent. Register here to get the Zoom link.
Thank you!
Sara Harper
Calendar Updates
September 15 - October 15 National Hispanic Heritage Month
September 22 - PTA Movie Night (tickets are sold out!)
September 23 - Blue Star Welcome Week
September 26 - AAP Parent Overview
September 27 - Art Enrichment Session 1 Orientation
October 9 - Student Holiday
October 11 - First General PTA Meeting
October 21st - Save the Date - PTA's Fall Festival
Click here to view the 2023-2024 school year calendar.
Click here to view last week's PTA Updates for more info on PTA events.
🤒When a Student Should Stay Home From School?
September is Attendance Awareness month! Whether students miss school because of illness or any other reason, missing school leads to learning loss.
As we ease Covid requirements, many families have questions about when students should/should not come to school. Often times, the symptoms are confusing and requirements for sending your child have changed!
Help your student succeed by encouraging them to attend as many days as possible, but do make sure your student stays home if they are sick. Visit FCPS’ website for information on when you should keep your child at home.
If your child has a chronic illness, make sure to notify their teacher, so that assistance can be provided if needed. Please contact us as soon as you know your child will be absent.
Read more about how families can help form good attendance habits.
 STEAM Updates:
We continue to be extremely thankful for our PTA as they support the funding for us to have a fully functioning STEAM lab. Without your financial support and membership to the PTA, we couldn't accomplish all of the wonderful projects we have planned for this year! Our students have been very busy learning and exploring all the following:
- Kindergarten and First Grade have been exploring STEAM subjects with activities related to each letter of the alphabet. Activities have varied from using air cannons to move pom poms, building bridges, an introduction to coding, and creating a clothespin car.
- Second Grade has learned about the Upstairs and Downstairs brain and built color spinners to “mix” colors. Next week, they will build a lunar landscape and use it to solve various challenges.
- Third Grade completed their Roller Coaster Challenge this week. They had to design a curvy track, that was at least 2 feet long, for a ball to travel on and then land in a cup. Next week, they will begin to design a hoop glider that can travel the farthest distance.
- Fourth Grade learned different ways to brainstorm creatively and began to design a balloon-powered car. Next week they will build and race them.
- Fifth Grade is currently designing a personalized name tag that includes a switch to turn on an LED light.
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Sixth Grade also learned about the Upstairs and Downstairs brain. However, they took it a step further and designed and built a “brain house” with an upstairs and downstairs that had to be lit up separately. Next week, they will begin to design a zipline to transport groceries without touching them.
National Hispanic Heritage Month
From September 15 to October 15, we recognize and celebrate the histories and cultures of the members of our community who trace their heritage to Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. Learn more about the heritage months, celebrations, and traditions celebrated in FCPS. Learn more about National Hispanic Heritage Month.
Fairfax Fiesta Fairfax County's inaugural Hispanic Heritage Celebration, the Fairfax Fiesta, is taking place on Saturday, Sept. 23, from noon to 5 p.m., at the PARC at Tysons (8508 Leesburg Pike). The free event, presented by the Fairfax County Government and Celebrate Fairfax!, aims to provide an extraordinary experience for all ages and backgrounds. Learn more about Fairfax Fiesta.
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 Blue Star Welcome Week
Every year, approximately 600,000 military-connected families relocate. Most of these families move to new duty stations, while some transition out of the military and others transition in. Most of these moves take place over the summer, and Fairfax County Public Schools is committed to ensuring our military families feel welcomed and a sense of belonging to their local community.
Blue Star Welcome Week is a nationwide initiative to ensure military families feel a sense of belonging to their school communities. Fairfax County Public Schools is celebrating and acknowledging Blue Star Welcome Week. Learn more about Blue Star Welcome Week in FCPS.
When: Saturday, September 23 - Sunday, October 1, 2023
Why: Blue Star Welcome Week is an opportunity to empower military families to thrive as they serve. There are approximately 14,500 military-connected students enrolled in FCPS. Each year, one-third of our military families transition into or out of our district. Blue Star Welcome Week gives schools an opportunity to welcome and connect with their military families. The goal is to create a sense of belonging and ensure that our military families feel celebrated and welcomed into their school communities.
Advanced Academic Referral Meeting (AAP)
Ms. Keefer, our advanced academic resource teacher, will be having two parent information sessions in the Fall for families interested in learning more about the referral process for level IV, advanced academic programs (AAP) at Great Falls Elementary. Please save these times for the Oct. 24th information session:
9:30-10:15am on Zoom
-OR-
6:15-7:00pm in the Great Falls ES Library
This meeting will focus on understanding the Full Time AAP Screening Process and is intended for parents of students in grades 2-6 only. Please choose to attend only ONE session RSVP here.
Any questions can be directed to Amy Keefer – amkeefer@fcps.edu
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Updates from our Substance Abuse Specialist
Are you not sure how to talk to your child about drugs and alcohol? SAMHSA launched a campaign called “Talk. They Hear You.”
Here is the link for this valuable resource. Langley Pyramid has a Substance Abuse Prevention Specialist. Have questions? Contact Kelly Rankin
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