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To read this newsletter in other languages, please visit our website.
Para leer este boletín en otros idiomas, visite nuestro sitio web.
Để đọc bản tin này bằng ngôn ngữ khác, xin quý vị truy cập vào trang mạng của chúng tôi.
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A Message From Your Principals
Westlawn Families:
The Westlawn Community kicked off the new year in style this week with Bingo Night, presented by the Westlawn PTA. We thank our families, staff, and students who attended for an evening full of good fun, good food, and good people!
Tomorrow is a student holiday as we remember and celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. With the possibility of winter weather in the forecast, please note that any school closures or late openings will be communicated via email and text. The FCPS website offers guidance as well, and information is included in the body of this Family Message.
Community Conversations with Principals will continue in the new year, held virtually each Wednesday morning at 11:00 AM. Check out the recording from this week's CCwP located here.
The Westlawn team is committed to providing a learning experience that nurtures your child’s natural abilities, advocates for growth and excellence, and empowers your child to reach their full potential.
Stay up-to-date with school events by accessing our Westlawn All Families Schoology Calendar. Access an overview of the entire school year, including holidays and cultural observance days, by clicking here.
And be sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram!
At Westlawn, we soar together.
At Westlawn, we soar together.
Individually Unique … Together Extraordinary
Somos Westlawn.
Your Proud Principals,
Christoph Hill, Anaya Bryson, and Stephanie Carpenter
Important Dates:
January 15: Martin Luther King Birthday (no school for students)
January 18: FCHS Basketball Double Header vs Annandale HS (Girls @ 5:45 PM, Boys at 7:30 PM)
January 22: Coffee Connections (9:00 AM in Westlawn Cafe)
January 25: Two Hour Early Release (students dismiss at 1:30 PM)
January 25: End of 2nd Quarter
January 26: Teacher Workday (no school for students)
January 30: 2024 Gap Year Fair (Marshall High School from 6:00 - 8:30 PM)
January 30: Rising 7th Grade Curriculum Night (Luther Jackson MS @ 6:00 PM;
*for 6th grade families
February 1: 6th Grade Visits Luther Jackson MS (9:30 - 11:00 AM)
February 19: President’s Day (no school for students)
February 29: Wolf Trap STEAM Parent Workshop (PreK/Kinder only) (Westlawn Cafe 5:00 - 6:00 PM)
March 4 - 8: Read Across America Week (different themes each day!)
March 5: Primary Elections (Student Holiday)
March 16: Westlawn Day (Westlawn Cafe and Gym from 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM)
March 20: Laps for Learning Event (Westlawn Field during school hours)
April 9: Kindergarten Orientation (Westlawn Cafe @ 9AM)
April 17: Falls Church Pyramid Art Show (FCHS Main Gym and Lobby from 5:00 - 7:00 PM)
April 19: Westlawn Art Night (Westlawn Blacktop from 5:30 - 7:00 PM)
Westlawn is Looking for Tutors!
We are currently interviewing for tutors to work with Westlawn students. If you or someone you know is interested in this potential opportunity please email Principal Hill at chhill@fcps.edu.
Winter Enrichment and STEAM Clubs
We will begin our Winter Enrichment Club sessions on February 1st. Sessions will be held on Thursday afternoons from Feb. 1 through March 21. Look for club information and registration forms in the January 24th Wednesday folder.
STEAM Clubs will be held on Wednesday afternoons during the Winter session, beginning on March 6. More information will be communicated via Community Conversation and Wednesday folders.
Collecting a Student for Early Dismissal
Families are reminded that they should call the main office at 703-241-5100 to arrange to get a student for early dismissal. We do not monitor our TalkingPoints account all day, and we may not receive messages about early dismissals in a timely manner. We ask that families picking up children early do so before 3:00 PM to avoid conflicts with the schoolwide dismissal process.
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Westlawn Spirit Days
We will continue to celebrate Not-So-Secret Staff and Student Spirit Days each Wednesday in the new year. This Wednesday is Freaky Friday, where students dress like teachers and teachers dress like students!
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Upcoming Assessments
iReady Winter Window: January 3 - February 2
WIDA Testing Window: January 16 - March 14
Kindergarten PALS Window: January 3 - February 2
Specific information regarding testing for each grade level will be communicated to families. Please contact your child(ren)’s teacher for more information.
Middle School Prep for 6th Graders
January 30: Rising 7th Grade Curriculum Night
- This will be an in-person event with information posted online. We will present curriculum information, as well as general information on school logistics, special education information, and electives will be showcased.
February 1: Westlawn 6th Graders visit Luther Jackson
- Students will visit the middle school, tour the building, and receive information regarding schedules and daily activities
March 1st : Class Registration Forms Due
- Deadline for Rising 7th grade google course selection forms completed
FCHS Girls and Boys Basketball Doubleheader - Pyramid Night on January 18
FCHS is providing free tickets for all Westlawn students for the double-header on January 18! Mention that you are a Westlawn Family at the ticket booth for admission.
Coffee Connections - January 22, 2024
The Westlawn Wellness Team is happy to announce the initiation of Coffee Connections! These will be monthly, in-person opportunities for families to connect and engage with the school community. Our first session will be January 22, 2024, at 9:00 AM in the Westlawn Cafe. Refreshments and light snacks will be available. More information to come in the new year!
Snow Days This Winter
For the current school year, FCPS will be returning to its previous procedure for snow days — there will be no virtual learning days when school is closed due to bad weather.
During snow days, students may still access Tutor.com, complete any supplemental learning opportunities recommended by their teachers, and view educational programming (available virtually and on public access television channels):
Eleven snow days are built into the existing FCPS calendar. Eliminating virtual learning days will allow us to maximize students’ in-person learning and provide equitable access to instruction and student services.
Community Conversation Recordings and Slide Decks
To provide families with more organized communications from Westlawn, recordings and slide decks from Wednesday Community Conversations will now be posted on our website instead of being sent via text message. Families can visit our website at any time to view the last five Community Conversations slide decks and recordings. Slide decks and recordings will be posted to the website as quickly as possible after the close of the week’s conversation. Families can access all materials here: https://westlawnes.fcps.edu/get-involved
Free Resources for Families
Did you know that caregivers can access free webinars, confidential consultations, a lending library, and resources to help adults support the success of all students, including those with learning challenges, special needs, and disabilities?
Learn more about FCPS’ Family Resource Center (FRC).
Be the first to learn about new workshops by signing up for the FRC newsletter.
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Do you want to celebrate a Westlawn staff member who does ordinary things in an extraordinary way, or goes beyond what is expected? If so, then click here to share with everyone. |
Low Cost Internet for Free and Reduced Price Eligible Students
The Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) is a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) program to lower internet costs for families with children who have been eligible for free or reduced-price meals within the last 12 months. A qualifying household will receive $30 per month toward internet services and a one-time discount of up to $100 for a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet. Check your eligibility and register at AffordableConnectivity.gov or by calling 877-384-2575.
Portrait of a Graduate at Westlawn
Children at Westlawn engage daily in Portrait of a Graduate skills: Communication, Collaboration, Goal-Setting, Resilience, Critical and Creative Thinking, and Global Citizenship. Check out our First Friday Photos to see these skills in action!
How to Register for Pre-K or Early Head Start
Fairfax County offers pre-K for students 3-4 years old whose parents meet income requirements and Early Head Start is for infants, toddlers, and expectant mothers who meet income requirements. To register, parents or caregivers should:
- Complete the application form.
- Make a copy of the child’s birth certificate and a residency document (lease, dead, or mortgage).
If your child is selected for one of the programs, the following will need to be completed:
- A school physical.
- Dental exam.
- FCPS school registration forms.
Bus Delay Information
If a bus is delayed or more information is needed, parents and guardians can access the FCPS Bus Delay Website or contact the Area Transportation Office.
Parents and guardians are encouraged to sign up to receive Here Comes the Bus notifications.
Parents and guardians can be notified by text, phone call and/or email when a bus is delayed 30 minutes or more by indicting these options through their SIS ParentVUE account.
Child Find Screenings
Child Find is the process of identifying children with potential special education needs as well as educating the community about child development and the importance of early intervention. Child Find screenings and services are provided by the FCPS Early Childhood Identification and Services program for children ages 20 months through 5 years who live in Fairfax County or Fairfax city. Learn more on the Child Find website.
FCPS Early Childhood and PreK Programs
Fairfax County Public Schools offers programs for the youngest learners:
Community liaisons are available to assist families with the registration process and answer any questions. For more information, visit the Early Childhood Registration webpage.
What Is ParentVUE and How Can You Sign Up?
If you do not already have a ParentVUE SIS account, sign up now to monitor and support your child’s academic success! Through ParentVUE, you are able to monitor your student’s attendance, grades, and assignments at any time. You can also access special reports for your student like progress reports and assessments score reports.
Once you have activated a ParentVUE account for an FCPS student, you will keep the same account until the student graduates. Information about students in the same family can be accessed through the same ParentVUE account. SIS ParentVUE can be accessed using an app on your iPhone, iPad, or Android devices.
Need help creating a SIS ParentVUE account? This video walks you through the steps on how to do so. You can also find out more about SIS ParentVUE on our website.
Update Your Emergency Care Information Through weCare@school
Fairfax County Public Schools provides weCare@school (weCare), an emergency care information system, to parents/caregivers who have registered for their own parent account. weCare helps manage emergency medical information by allowing parents to enter and update their children’s medical data online at their convenience. That contact information automatically enrolls parents/caregivers to receive eNotify communications from the district and their child’s school. eNotify is the communications tool for FCPS emergency, transportation, attendance, weather closing and delay, and essential outreach messages. Messages are sent via email, text, and occasionally phone. Click to edit this placeholder text.
🔍 Lightspeed Parent Report on Child’s Device Activity
FCPS has tools to help parents know more about their child’s activity on any FCPS device. These tools are provided at no cost to families by Lightspeed, the school division’s internet content filtering service.
Parents may sign up for a weekly Parent Report, which will provide a list of the top sites your child visited. The report also offers parents the ability to sign up for free access to the Internet Use Parent Portal. Through the portal, parents may pause their child’s access to the internet on their FCPS device during non-school hours.
Learn more about Lightspeed Parent Reports.
Family Resources
FCPS’ Office of Family and School Partnerships would like to remind families of some of the many resources available to them:
- Bilingual community liaisons support student registrars by providing families with information about school and community services offered in Fairfax County. Liaisons are available to help families speaking Spanish, Korean, and Arabic. Once registered at a school, families can contact their family liaison for assistance.
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Early literacy programs are available to Fairfax County residents for parents of children up to 5 years old. These programs help prepare children for school and build confidence in parents as their child’s first teacher. They also help parents become active partners in their child’s education. Programs are available in African-Heritage, Arabic, Spanish, and Korean.
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Parent Information Phone Lines are available in eight languages for parents who speak languages other than English.
- A Multilingual Family Podcast is produced by the offices of English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), Family and School Partnerships, and Professional Learning and Equity. It covers important information for parents in English, Spanish, Arabic, and Korean.
- ESOL services are available in Fairfax County not only for students, but also for adults and families. Information on Spring classes will be posted in March 2023.
Visit the Family Engagement webpage for more resources.
Parent Advocacy Handbook
The Minority Student Achievement Oversight Committee (MSAOC) has created a Parent Advocacy Handbook to provide information and support to families as they navigate the FCPS system for their children. It is designed to be particularly useful for families who may be less familiar with such a large school division and/or with schooling in the U.S.
Contact Hilda Reyes, Westlawn Family Liaison, with additional questions.
Westlawn on Social Media
Westlawn is active on social media, we encourage families to access our Facebook and Instagram accounts for a glimpse into daily school life.
Falls Church High School Athletics
FCHS offers a variety of athletic opportunities for students - and it’s never too early to get your children interested in different sports! Visit the FCPS Athletics webpage for team information, calendars, and more.
Westlawn 2023-2024 PTA Board
We are excited to announce our PTA Cabinet!
Simone Rose, President
Deirdre Ladd, Vice President
Christine Lusk and Dave Jones, Treasurers
Jordan Kislear, Secretary
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