Thoreau Matters

November 17, 2023

Dear Thoreau Families,

Thanksgiving is right around the corner and I would like to wish all of you a wonderful break. To that end, I have communicated to the Thoreau staff the need to give our students (and themselves) a respite from the daily grind of schoolwork during the Thanksgiving holiday.  While teachers may have long-term assignments that span over the course of a break, I have shared with the faculty to not assign homework, projects, essays, etc. to be specifically done over the break. 

This Thanksgiving all of us need the opportunity to spend time with our families and friends. We want our students to have the opportunity to catch a breath from schoolwork and to enjoy time with friends and family. We also want our teachers to decompress and put their lesson plan books and laptops away for a few days to enjoy time with their friends and family. Our goal is to have students and teachers return to school anxiety-free without the pressure of looming deadlines. This is a unified message that Madison Pyramid principals send out three times during the year: Thanksgiving, Winter Break and Spring Break. 

Again, I wish you a happy and restful Thanksgiving holiday. 

Sincerely,

Teresa Khuluki

Principal

Thoreau Substitutes Needed

We are always looking for kind and caring substitute teachers and substitute instructional assistants to ensure our students continue to thrive when teachers and instructional assistants need to be out of the classroom. Substitute teaching is a great opportunity for future teachers, stay-at-home parents, retirees, college students, part-time employees, and anyone who wants to make a difference! If you are interested in this opportunity, please email Chris Pinkerton, Administrative Assistant, at cpinkerton@fcps.edu and apply online.

Substitutes will receive their hourly pay plus an additional $80 for each of the 18 designated high-volume day they work. All substitute instructional assistants will receive their hourly pay plus an additional $55 for each high-volume day they work. See the list of high-volume days.

A bonus program for substitutes:

• Substitutes working 50 days within a school year will earn a $200 bonus.
• Substitutes working 100 days within a school year will earn a $300 bonus.
• Substitutes working 150 days within a school year will earn a $400 bonus.

Bonuses will be paid quarterly in December, March, June, and July. Get more information about the pay schedule. 

TMS Math HW Help Club

Thoreau has Math teachers available to support students after school 3 days a week.  Each day that the After School Program is operating, there is a math teacher available to work with students regardless of what math course or math teacher for which they are receiving instruction.  Please encourage students to take advantage of this opportunity to receive support on classroom topics or assignments, homework completion as well as for retake opportunities on available assessments. Please refer to the following schedule for teacher locations on specific days. This information is available online in the All School Course in Schoology- After School Program.

Ms. Griffin and Ms. Hooymans are also available but their day varies each week- please see the sign outside their classroom A126.

Performing Arts Department Update

November has been a busy month for the performing arts department with many successes to celebrate.  Congratulations to the performing arts department on a successful pie fundraiser.  All 3000 pies were delivered and distributed throughout our community.  Thank you for supporting our music students and helping us to reach our fundraising goals!  Choir and orchestra students had the opportunity to participate in District Honor Ensemble Auditions.  Thoreau Choir will be represented by the following 27 students: Joseph Baird, Luci Battista, Grace Borrowman, Gaby Bremer, Prisha Chauhan, Emma Harrell, Charlie Hartline, Cora Hight, Kieran Kalbag, Issy Keeter, Allison Krogh, Gabriella Modine, Lena Mudrick, Hunter Neville, Elizabeth Nicholas, Nicole Nord, Amelia Nunez, Becca Reynolds, Callie Reynolds, Jai Sagameswar, Piper Sheets, Addie Stout, Sato Strawn, Chloe Surber, Ruby Thomas, Katherine Williams, and Ella Yazdani.  Thoreau Orchestras will be represented by the following 15 students:  Subeen Byeon, Geo Chung, Kaila Crosby, Jonathan D’Cruz, Sophie Deacu, Ehan Gosar, Vivian Kim, Erin Kwak, Joshua Kwon, Evan Miranda, Peter Murphy, Gautam Murthi, Jenny Wang, Vivian Yu, and Loren Zhouyin.  Thoreau Orchestra Parents and Students had the additional honor of hosting this year’s auditions.  The students did a fantastic job acting as guides and making everything run on time.  Thanks parents for all your support both of your time and food donations.  We couldn’t have done it without you!

QUESTIONS/CONCERNS? 

Email Ms. Colleen Myers at cmmyers@fcps.edu or call 703.846.8089.

Spring Screening Referrals

Spring screening referrals for full time level-IV advanced academic placement are due no later than December 15, 2023 to Hannah Converse. If you would like to complete a referral or learn more about the advanced academic program at our school, please feel free to reach out to Hannah Converse at hpconverse@fcps.edu.  For more information on Level IV AAP services and the timeline for spring screening, please consult this page.

Yearbooks

Yearbook sales have started! Order the Thoreau Yearbook at myschoolbucks.com for $40. Hurry-the price goes up to $45 in February!

We need Yearbook Photos!   We are working on Thoreau’s 2023-24 Yearbook and we are excited to announce we will be using YOUR photos to do that! Follow the directions below to send in your photos. This week we need:

Last Call: Sports Photos.

Please send Sports Photos of your child and their Thoreau classmates!

Yearbook Snap code: eagles 

How do I do this? 

To send in photos through Mobile phone:

Step 1: Download Yearbook Snap from the app store (orange icon)

Step 2: Type in the school name (enter school name here)

Step 3: Enter school code (school code is anything you want it to be)

Step 4: Hit enter

Step 5: Click the orange arrow after the school name to select photos from your camera roll

Step 6: Choose yearbook special requests

Step 7: Pick up to 5 photos to send and then on the bottom right hit the box with the arrow pointing up

Step 8: Click on the photo to enter a note (students names in picture, Grade, etc.)

Step 9: Click upload

Step 10 : Enter in your first and last name and email and submit photos!

To send in photos that are on your computer:

Step 1: Go to yearbookforever.com

Step 2: Enter in the school name (put school name here)

Step 3: Click shop the store

Step 4: Click on Community upload Submit photos for your school yearbook-center near top

Step 5: Enter school code eagles and click enter

Step 6: Upload your photos and make notes on each one (students in picture etc.)

Step 7: Enter your first and last name and email

Step 8: Click that you certify

Step 9: Submit Photos!

Thank you for your support. If you have any questions contact Ms. Rumberger at rmrumberger@fcps.edu

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