Weekly News Your Choose

Fairfax County Public Schools sent this bulletin at 10/11/2024 06:00 PM EDT

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Upcoming Important Dates

Picture Day is Coming!

School Picture Day is Coming:

📅 Date: Thursday October 24th & Friday October 25th 2024

🛒 Pre-order Online: https://vando.imagequix.com/g1001164738#login

📸 Images Available: Approximately two-three weeks after picture day

📧 Questions about Ordering? Email us at underclass@vosphoto.com

To help make sure our picture days run smoothly, we need 2-3 volunteers each day. If you are interest either day, please email our outstanding administrative assistant, Ms. Hollie McLaughlin at hrmclaughlin@fcps.edu

Yearbook Sales:

A Message from the Principal

Greetings, Irving Families!

It has been a week full of experiential learning! Our 7th grade students participated in the Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience (MWEE) at South Run Park. The students explored 6 stations throughout their trip. Some of the things they participated in included looking at the human impact on the watershed, invasive species, and testing the water. It is a great experience for our students and I want to thank the Science 7 department and all of the teacher and parent/guardian chaperones who made this field trip possible. Pictured above are 10 Backyard Invasive Species that are in the Fairfax area. Talk to your child about what to do if you have these plants growing in your backyard. Eighth grade students who attended Irving last year also participated in the MWEE trip and can also help identify those invasive species.

We are just about finished with our first rotation of Enrichment Fridays. Students have been able to learn how to knit, work on STEM projects, learn about and play a variety of games and sports, work on service learning projects, and so much more. Our second rotation will begin in November and run through the entire 2nd quarter. These opportunities are important because they expose students to hobbies, ways to give back to the community, and activities that they can enjoy beyond middle school. Be sure to ask what enrichment activity your child signs up for next week.

Lastly, next week kicks off our first of two spirit weeks this month. First up is our Digital Citizenship Week. Each day next week, we encourage students to dress up to represent good digital citizenship skills. See the image above with the description of what to wear each day. We look forward to our students and staff participating in dressing up and learning about digital citizenship.

Take Care!

Cindy Conley

Irving’s Math Support Center is OPEN!

What: If your student needs extra support in math, they should come to the Math Support Center after school. Students can get support from math teachers on homework, classwork, studying and more!

Where: Library

When: After School during first block (2:25 – 3:25 PM)

Varsity Tutors Provides On-Demand Support at No Cost:

FCPS is partnering with Varsity Tutors to provide students and families with extra resources for learning. Every student can take advantage of Varsity Tutors’ services at no cost, including weekly live online classes, on-demand 24/7 chat tutoring, essay editing, and study resources such as recorded content, practice problems, and diagnostic tests. Learn more about online tutoring with Varsity Tutors.

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Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology

Interested Irving students and families, we hope that you were able to join us last week for our TJHSST information session brought to you by a Thomas Jefferson Representative. Please see here the link to the presentation that was reviewed: https://irvingms.fcps.edu/tjhsst-freshman-presentation.

If you missed our meeting you can find the TJ Admissions Video for 2024 as well as the remaining county wide presentation schedule available to the public on their website, www.fcps.edu/tjadmissions. We strongly encourage you to view their YouTube admissions video prior to attending any meeting or applying.

***Reminder: the TJ application will become available on Monday, October 21 at 4:00 pm via the TJ website.

What is TJHSST?

A FCPS regional Governor’s high school (9-12th grades) for students interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math).

Eligibility to Apply (8th grade):

(1) Residency requirement-FCPS is included

(2) Completed a full-year course of Algebra 1, OR be currently enrolled in a full-year course of HONORS-level Algebra 1 or higher math

(3) Be enrolled in HONORS science

(4) Be enrolled in HONORS social studies OR English OR be identified as a “Young Scholar”

(5) Have a 3.5 or higher GPA in all core academic courses (Math, Science, Social studies, English, and if taken for high school credit, World Language) at the time of application.

TJHSST Admissions: Contact Information

Admissions Office (general inquiries): Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Phone:571-423-3770 Email: tjadmissions@fcps.edu Website:www.fcps.edu/tjadmissions

Food for Neighbors

We had a great turn out for volunteers and donations for our Red Bag Collection on September 14!

Food for Neighbors is an organization committed to helping local teens struggling with hunger. The food donated goes straight to students and families in Springfield and neighboring communities. With your support, we can reach even more students in need. Participation is as simple as filling a Food For Neighbors Red Bag once every other month and putting it on your porch on our pick up days. We provide the bags, a desired food list, and pick-up date reminder texts. Our next collection day is November 9th. If you would like to donate food, please register as a Red Bag Donor here. If you would like to volunteer as a driver to pick up food or to help sort the food once it is delivered to Irving on our collection days, please sign up here.

If your student needs extra food for the weekend (soup/pasta, crackers, granola bars, oatmeal, fruit snack or milk/juice), please email Meg Gollinger at magollinger@fcps.edu.

Veterans Day Observance

Irving Middle School would like to celebrate Veterans Day by decorating our halls with posters of veterans who are close relatives to our students. We ask that families in our Irving community create posters of a veteran they want to honor and recognize the sacrifices they have made for our country. We ask that you turn in these posters to our student services office by November 1st so that we have time to hang them up before Veterans Day. Please use this template to share information. If you need a printed copy, please stop by Student Services.

Library News:

We are happy to report that library books are circulating well at Irving Middle School. Ask your student what they are reading right now. It’s a wonderful pastime to read a chapter aloud with your student, while alternating pages.

Each week our students are weighing in on important issues in our library “Irving Says” polls. This week’s question asked students:

“Would you rather travel only by a ZEPPELIN that can land anywhere, or travel everywhere in a self-driven Tesla with IMPRECISE GPS readings?”

We experienced our most lop-sided results ever with the voting this week. 85% of students opted to travel by zeppelin. Either the kids didn’t know what a “zeppelin” is, and familiarity with the old band “Led Zeppelin” influenced their choice, or they are smart enough to be wary of any vehicle that has faulty GPS! A few actually used the nearby dictionary to look up the meaning of “zeppelin” and decided that traveling in that manner would be pretty cool. It is fun to see the students’ responses when they encounter unfamiliar words in the weekly questions. As you might expect, we keep a dictionary close by so that students can define any new words that help them make their decision.

Please encourage your student to return books on time. We are trying to stamp the due date in the back of all books now. It is especially important for books in long series, such as some anime titles, to be returned in a timely manner. When some volumes are missing, other students cannot enjoy reading through the series.

We enjoy working with your students in the library!

Ms. Monk & Mr. Brizek

Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis Information

2024-2025 PTA Reflections:

“Accepting Imperfection”

Students are invited to participate in this year’s Reflections theme: “Accepting Imperfection.” Submit original artwork in visual arts, photography, literature, music composition, dance choreography, or film production by November 15, 2024.

Grade divisions:

Primary (Pre-K–Grade 2)

Intermediate (Grades 3–5)

Middle (Grades 6–8)

Accessible Arts (all grades)

More details, including a Dropbox link for submissions, are coming soon. Check out the PTA website for more information https://irvingms.givebacks.com/w/reflections. Don’t forget to share your creativity using #PTAReflections!

After School Information

The After School Program runs 4 days a week unless noted. Monday through Thursday, our clubs and activities will run in two activity blocks (2:25 pm to 3:25 pm and 3:30 pm to 4:30 pm). The club schedule will vary by day and week, the most up-to-date schedule will be posted in the “After School” section in the student portal.

In order to sign up for a club, students must sign up using the Weekly Signup located in the After School Program folder located in the Schoology All Students Course and the After School section of the student portal.

Students may participate in as many clubs as they want. We encourage them to try something new as part of the After School Program! Use the following link to register your student. After School Registration Form

ALL athletic activities and clubs require athletic footwear to participate, locker rooms are not accessible during the After School Program.

Coming Soon:

Future Makers (formerly known as Makerspace) interest meeting Wednesday, October 16, during the 1st block

Fab Fridays, will start Friday, October 18

Lego Masters, will start Monday, October 21

Canceled for next week:

N/A

No After School or late buses, Monday, October 14

FAB Fridays will start Friday, October 18, the program will end at 3:30pm. There are no late buses on Fridays and the Weekly Sign-up is required.

View the schedule on our website, the current schedule is available on your student’s Schoology and their Student Portal.

** When picking up students from After School programs, please use the front loop - students will come out the main entrance.**

PTA News

Parent Education Sessions Thank you to our amazing school counselors, Ms. Kiefaber and Ms. Nelson, The FCPS Family Resource Center, and everyone who joined us for last night's Parent Education Session! We hope you found it informative and helpful. If you have suggestions for future sessions, please email us at: irvingmspta@gmail.com.

Reflections Nationwide Arts Contest Reflections is a nationwide PTA arts contest that encourages students to explore and express themselves creatively. This year’s theme is “Accepting Imperfection.” Students can submit original work in visual arts, photography, literature, music composition, dance choreography, or film production by November 15, 2024. For more information, contact our Reflections Chair, Megan Dross, at meganmalia@yahoo.com or visit: https://irvingms.givebacks.com/w/reflections.

Direct Donation Campaign - Help Fund the Fun at Irving! Our direct donor fundraising campaign is in full swing! Please consider donating to help fund our student and family events, staff appreciation activities, a new water bottle refill station and much more. Donations are tax-deductible, and 100% of your contribution directly benefits Washington Irving Middle School. To learn more and donate, visit: https://irvingms.givebacks.com/w/donate. Thank you to everyone who has already contributed!

Spirit Wear Update Spirit Wear orders will be delivered to students at school the week of October 21. Thank you for supporting the PTA and our school with your Spirit Wear orders! We'll have another opportunity to order Spirit Wear in the spring.

Taco Bamba Springfield Spirit Day – All Day on Tuesday, October 22 Mention the unique code "IRVING" or “Washington Irving Middle School” when ordering in-store to ensure credit for our school. When ordering online, enter the code "IRVING" in the coupon code area at checkout. 20% of sales will be donated to the PTA.

Papa John’s Spirit Days – Every Thursday Enjoy 40% off all menu prices at Springfield Papa John’s (Rolling Road) every Thursday from 11 AM to 10 PM! Use promo code IMS4010 when you order online, and 10% of sales will be donated to the PTA.

Save the Date! November 12 - PTA General Membership Meeting at 6:30 p.m. (In-person & on Zoom) November 15 - Family Fun Night from 6-8 p.m.

PTA Membership It’s not too late to become a PTA member! Dues are $10 per parent/guardian, $9 for additional family members, and $5 for staff/faculty. Signing up is easy—simply copy and paste this link into your browser: https://irvingms.memberhub.com/store/

Social Studies Basal Resources Review

FCPS is adopting Social Studies Basal Resources for the 2025-26 school year. Basal resources are the primary resources used to support instruction in a given subject. Public review of the instructional materials under consideration — which is part of the process for selecting new resources — is underway. Visit the Community Review webpage for more information on how to view the materials online or in person.

All community feedback will be shared with School Board members before they vote to select materials in spring 2025. FCPS adopts basal resources by the process outlined in Regulation 3004.

Important FCPS Information

Our Schools, Our Future: Register Today for a Community Conversation!

Superintendent Dr. Michelle Reid will host a series of Community Conversations this fall. She invites you to share your thoughts and ask questions. Click the dates below to register for any of the following conversations:

Events take place from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Childcare and language interpretation services will be provided.

FCPS NEWS

In case you missed it in FCPS This Week, the school division shared updates on the following topics and others:

FCPS Strives to Become Purple Star School Division
Sign and Return SR&R
Upcoming Immunization Clinics

Read FCPS This Week to learn more about these topics. If you are not already receiving this weekly newsletter, please sign up today.

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