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Dear Lancers:
I hope that everyone enjoyed the three day weekend in observance of Veterans Day. I would like to thank all of our Longfellow Staff, as well as our Lancer community that have served or are currently serving in the armed forces. Longfellow is in its 6th year as a Purple Star designated school, a program that supports military-connected children as they relocate to new schools due to a parent’s change in duty station.
As we start the 2nd quarter, I ask for your partnership with our students’ use of technology. While we have seen much less cell phone use this year, there has been an increase in students playing video games on their FCPS issued laptops. This is a reminder that student laptops are for instructional purposes, and not for other uses such as gaming. This applies to the instructional day, and also includes our after-school program. FCPS technology use states: The borrowed FCPS student device should be used only by the student to whom it is assigned, and only for assignments and tasks related to FCPS learning programs. It may not be used for personal activities like streaming video services, gaming, or social media.
https://www.fcps.edu/family-resources/technology/fcpson/student-device-guidelines
Parents who are interested in knowing more about their child’s internet activity on an FCPS device can sign up to our online service. It is a free service to FCPS parents. Parents can sign up to receive a weekly Parent Report from Lightspeed, our internet content filtering service. The report will provide a list of the top sites the child visited that week.
For more information, please visit: https://www.fcps.edu/resources/technology/lightspeed-parent-reports
As always, please reach out if you need any support.
Thanks,
Jim
Jim Patrick
Principal
Longfellow Middle School
UPCOMING EVENTS
 Schedule for the next two weeks:
DETAILS ON UPCOMING EVENTS
Youth Survey
The Fairfax County Youth Survey, a collaboration between the Fairfax County School Board and the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, is a comprehensive, anonymous, and voluntary survey given each year to students in grades 6, 8, 10 and 12. The survey examines behaviors, experiences, and other factors that influence the health and well-being of Fairfax County's youth. The results, published each year at https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/youthsurvey, identify trends and areas of need, providing a snapshot of the county's youth and serving as a barometer of the community's effectiveness in fostering healthy choices in young people.
Longfellow Middle School will be administering the Fairfax County Youth Survey on November 15, 2024 during Learning Seminar 4.
While it is our hope that as many students as possible will participate, if you do not wish for your child to take part in the Youth Survey, please complete the form linked here and return it to your child's school counselor no later than November 13, 2024. If you have already opted your child out of this survey using the Parental Digital Consent Portal you do not need to provide additional information to the school counselor.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Applications Open for Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology
Middle school students who have an aptitude and passion for STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) are encouraged to apply for admission to the Class of 2029 at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST).
The application is available on the TJHSST Admissions Office webpage. Applications must be started by 4 p.m. Wednesday, November 13, with a deadline to submit the application by Friday, November 15, at 4 p.m. Visit the TJHSST registration page for more information.
Return Your Federal Impact Aid Survey
FCPS is asking all families to fill out a Federal Impact Aid Survey. The form is available in SIS ParentVUE under Online Packets (in the upper right corner after logging in). Please complete it as soon as possible.
For any families who have not completed the survey in ParentVUE, we will provide paper forms starting Wednesday, November 13. Paper forms should be returned by Wednesday, December 4.
Completing this form for each school-aged child in every household is important. Information from this survey resulted in more than $4 million in funding last year from the U.S. Department of Education. These funds are used to support all Fairfax County public schools and centers.
For more information, please watch this video on Impact Aid and visit the Federal Impact Aid Survey page.
Need to Register for ParentVUE?
Learn how to activate your SIS ParentVUE account, so you can easily submit your survey.
Technical support for using ParentVUE or completing the survey online is available by submitting a Parent Support Request ticket. Select SISParent in the Application dropdown menu and type Federal Impact Aid Survey under Issue Description. Or, call the Parent Technology Help Desk at 833-921-3277 (833-921-FCPS).
Longfellow Love
At Longfellow Middle School we have many students who live at, or below, the poverty level. Their families welcome our help with expenses such as school supplies and holiday meals. Longfellow Love is a student assistance program that supports Longfellow students in need through donations from families like you, as well as contributions from local businesses. The contributions and gift cards are then anonymously distributed directly to the families in need through the counseling system. In years past, we have only supported families during the holiday season, however, with the rising cost of food, we would like to provide gift cards to families for Thanksgiving as well as the holidays. This year, our fellow student families need our help more than ever! Click HERE to sign up to donate gift cards from Lidl and Walmart to Longfellow families who need our help during the upcoming season!
There are two ways you can purchase gift cards:
1. Go to Lidl and/or Walmart and purchase gift cards in person. Drop them off at the front office in an envelope addressed to Juanita Baptiste.
2. Go online to Walmart eGift Card, choose your amount, purchase an ecard, and email it to Juanita at jbaptiste@fcps.edu
Donated Gift Cards can be mailed, dropped off, or emailed to:
Juanita Baptiste
Longfellow Middle School
2000 Westmoreland Street
Falls Church, VA 22043
jbaptiste@fcps.edu
Gift cards for Thanksgiving are needed by Wednesday, November 20th, and holiday cards are needed by Monday, December 16th!!
Let's show our Lancer family some LOVE this holiday season! Thank you for your support!
Questions? Contact Longfellow Love chair, Michele Core at michelecore@yahoo.com
AFTER SCHOOL CORNER
Longfellow had 2 teams compete in the Quiz Bowl tournament at Georgetown Day School on Saturday, November 2nd. Our A team placed 6th. Our B team placed 2nd in the consolation round. Congratulations to our Quiz Bowl winners.
Schedule
Our 2nd Quarter after-school schedule can be found here.
After-School Office Staff
Staff are available in the main office until the last late bus departs. If you have any questions after 5pm., you may contact Transportation at 703.249.7100 or Safety and Security at 571.423.2000.
Chess will begin Monday, November 18th.
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