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Dear Westgate Families,
I hope had a wonderful long weekend with family and friends. November is Family Engagement month and we have many exciting school events, and opportunities, to connect with one another. Please take note of the important dates below and we hope to see many of you over the next few weeks.
Also, thank you to everyone that made parent/teacher conferences a priority this fall. We hope this time gave you valuable insight into your child's progress this school year, as well as, building on our strong school/home partnership.
Lastly, we have another student holiday this Monday, November 11, in honor of Veteran's Day so please make sure you make alternate arrangements for your child. As always, thank you for your continued support of all things Westgate and have a fantastic rest of your week ahead!
Best,
Hallie Demetriades
Principal
Federal Impact Aid Survey
FCPS is asking that all families complete a survey for Federal Impact Aid. This federal grant program is designed to directly compensate local school districts that have been financially impacted by federal activities. The form can be competed by the enrolling parent online in SIS ParentVue. We are asking that families to take a moment to access and complete the form. If you have not activated your ParentVue account, please contact our registrar, Mrs. Tracy Green, at tmgreen@fcps.edu. We appreciate you taking the time to complete and submit the form for your student(s).
Charleston Wrap Fundraiser - A Big Thank You!
Thank you to everyone who participated in our Charleston Wrap fundraiser! We are very appreciative of the support of our caring supporters. We were able to raise over $1,600 for Westgate! Thank you, thank you, thank you! You may continue to support our fundraiser online until the end of the season by using your participant link. #charlestonwrap #fundraiser #thankyou #pickleornament #pickleball #pickleballornament #christmasornament #giftwrap #wrappingpaper #candles #homegoods #kitchen #chocolate #cookiemix #personalizedgifts #gift #giftgiving #charlestonbags #holidaygift #charlestonwrapfundraiser
General PTA Meeting - November 6 @ 6:00 p.m.
Join us tonight, November 6th, for our next PTA General Meeting! Our wonderful Assistant Principal, Ms. Sutton, will be discussing Advanced Academics Screening. We'll start with a brief review of the PTA calendar and budget before handing the floor over to Ms. Sutton. The meeting will be in the school cafeteria at 6 p.m. For those who cannot join in person, please use this Zoom Link.
Meeting ID: 941 2962 9411 Passcode: wolves
Calling all Westgate Families
November is Family Engagement Month and we have recently, and will continue to, celebrate many student holidays and traditions this fall and winter. We are inviting you to your student’s classroom to share a tradition, craft, or presentation that highlights your culture or something you hold important as a family. This can be delivered in a variety of ways. You can come in person or share a presentation with the classroom teacher for your student to share with the class. The goal is for our students to learn more about one another through the amazing stories, and the rich history of the families in our school community. Teachers will be reaching out this week with more sign-up information. We look forward to seeing many of you in our classrooms over the next month!
Help Needed for the Book Fair - Nov. 15 - 22
The book fair is just around the corner on Nov. 15 - 22. In order to make the book fair a success, we need parent volunteers. If you are interested in helping our Ms. Ciarcia during the book fair, please sign up below. Thanks in advance for your support!
Book Fair Sign-Up
Visit the Westgate Book Fair Website Here
🎩✨ Join Us for an Evening of Magic and Fun with Joe Romano! 📚🪄
The Westgate PTA invites all families to a spectacular evening assembly featuring Joe Romano, magician extraordinaire, on November 21st at 6PM in the school gym! Joe Romano is known for bringing popular children’s books to life through the art of magic and illusion, captivating kids while igniting their passion for reading.
His program, "Books! The Magic is Real!", is a fun and inspiring way to promote our book fair and reading incentive programs, encouraging students to stay motivated throughout the school year. After performing for all students during the school day, Joe will return with a brand new, exciting show for the whole family to enjoy.
This is a FREE event, so bring the entire family and get ready for a magical night that celebrates the joy of reading! ✨📖 We can't wait to see you there!
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Westgate’s Thanksgiving Food Drive
It’s that time of year again! From Oct 28 to November 21, we are organizing our Annual Westgate Thanksgiving Food Drive! Let’s support our Westgate community by donating Grocery Store gift cards to ensure families in need have resources to supplement Thanksgiving food items.
How you can help:
- Donate a grocery gift card (e.g. Walmart, Aldi or Safeway) to ensure all Westgate families can enjoy a festive meal. $20, $25, $50 increments are recommended.
- Donate small bags of pretzels, goldfish, cheese crackers, graham crackers, nut-free granola bars, Hippeas Chickpea Puffs, and Made Good Granola Bars for teachers to ensure all Westgate students have access to a snack every day.
* Short on time? You can visit our Amazon Wishlist and all donations will be sent to Westgate Elementary School
Where to drop off:
- You or your child can drop off your gift card or snacks at the main office donation box.
- Your child can bring it to school and give it to their home room teacher. Their teacher can drop it off at the main office on their behalf
Every donation counts! Let's come together as a community to spread warmth, kindness and generosity this Thanksgiving.
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PTA Membership
All are welcome at our PTA meetings. Joining the Westgate PTA and donating $15 per family amplifies your voice in our school community, gives you the opportunity to vote on PTA-led events and initiatives, and comes with a free, stylish Westgate magnet to drive around OUR neighborhood with. Your membership also helps the PTA create a more dynamic year of programming and advocacy.
To be a part of this thriving community, we invite you to join the PTA. Dues are $15 per family and you can sign up HERE!
Arrival/Dismissal Safety Reminders for Westgate
Please remember to be mindful of our important safety procedures during arrival and dismissal.
- There are NO left hand turns allowed in, or out of, Kiss & Ride during arrival or dismissal.
- There are NO illegal u-turns allowed in front of the school on Magarity Road. Please enter kiss and ride from the correct side (towards rt. 7) and follow the traffic pattern, as we've witnessed both student and staff safety being compromised too often.
- Please ONLY cross your child at the dedicated cross walk (with police officer). Crossing you children at any other location is not safe.
- There is NO parking on either side of Magarity Rd. right in front of the school. Please do not park in these areas.
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Cars are not permitted in the bus loop between 8:20 - 9:00 a.m. and between 3:00 - 3:40 p.m.
Our number one priority at Westgate remains student safety. Thank you for adhering to these very important safety reminders. Please note that the Fairfax County Police Department will be closely monitoring this situation.
⏰ Limited Early Release Mondays for Elementary Schools
You should have received an email from Westgate via eNotify with a required survey about the Early Release Mondays. Dr. Reid initially communicated the plan for these days in mid-June.
The remaining scheduled dates for Westgate are:
- December 9
- February 24
- March 17
- April 28
- May 19
Activating Your SIS ParentVUE Account
The SIS (Student Information System) ParentVUE Account is an online tool parents can use to access information about their child’s attendance, report cards, discipline incidents, health information, and more. In ParentVUE, you can also view student progress reports/report cards and SOL scores.
Your secure SIS ParentVUE Account offers you the ability to use one username/password to login to both the SIS ParentVUE Account and Schoology.
Using the SIS ParentVUE account, parents will also be able to view school information, including teacher e-mail addresses, the FCPS calendar, and emergency contact information. Visit the FCPS website and use the search function and keywords “SIS Parent Overview” for more information.
Many of you have already activated your SIS ParentVUE account with the activation key. If you are unable to login to your account, you may need to reset your password on the SIS Parent Account login page (https://sisparent.fcps.edu):
- Select the “Forgot Password” button.
- Your username is the primary email address you have on file with us in our Student Information System.
- More information is available here.
Newly enrolled families should have received an activation key for your account. If you have not yet activated your account, please reach out to Tracy Green at tmgreen@fcps.edu.
Please take action now to ensure your account is active!
School Meals & Free and Reduced Price Meal Applications
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Breakfast and Lunch
Breakfast will cost $1.75. Lunch will cost $3.25, and milk $0.60. Money can be added to your child’s accounts using www.myschoolbucks.com. You can also write a check to Westgate Food Services and deliver it to our Food Services Manager at Open House. During the school year, you can find the menu for breakfast and lunch here .
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Free and Reduced-Price Status
Students eligible for free or reduced-price meals will continue to receive these benefits through the end of September. A new application must be filled out each new school year and forms are available online now: https://www.fcps.edu/resources/student-safety-and-wellness/food-and-nutrition-programs/free-and-reduced-price-meals.
Applications are accepted at any time, but we encourage you to apply or renew your application before the end of September. Call (703) 610-5700 if you need help. This must be completed for eligible students to receive free meals.
Parent Digital Consent System
New this year, families will use the Parent Digital Consent System to complete some forms that have used paper in the past. You will log in using your ParentVUE Account credentials, There, you will be able complete the Digital Resources Consent form for the school year, which is required for all students. You will also be able to find more information about opt-out forms and complete those forms for your student.
Multilingual Parent Information Line
☎️ 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.
Spanish: ☎️ Línea Telefónica de Información para Padres Disponible en Ocho IdiomasPadres/cuidadores que hablan Amárico, Árabe, Chino, Farsi, Coreano, Español, Urdu o Vietnamita pueden llamar a una línea telefónica de información para obtener información general sobre FCPS. También pueden obtener apoyo para comunicarse con la escuela de su hijo. Vea la lista de números de teléfono.
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