Luther Jackson November 26, 2024

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Our Table of Contents:


Upcoming Events :

December 23, 2024 - January 5, 2025- (Winter Break)

January 20, 2025- Holiday (Martin Luther King, Jr's Birthday/Inauguration Day)


Admin Team Information:

Revised

Checking Students out from school:

Families, remember that when coming to the school to pick up your student, an official photo ID must be presented to the Main Office staff. Please understand that this is for security purposes. Driver’s licenses, passports, and military IDs are appropriate examples of official IDs.


Attendance Matters:

Regular school attendance is crucial for student success, and we are committed to ensuring all students have the opportunity to learn and thrive. Missing just 10% of school — just two days a month — negatively affects a student’s academic performance.  When students reach six (6) or more days absent from school they will be invited to attend our Attendance Recovery Program.  These are after-school sessions to make up for missed instructional time. This will help them stay on track with their coursework and avoid falling behind.  Student may also choose for other After-School Academic offerings, such as staying with a teacher, to make up for missed instructional time. 

Benefits of Attending After-School Sessions:

  • Catch up on missed classwork and assignments
  • Receive personalized assistance from teachers
  • Improve academic performance and understanding

Advanced Academics Spring Referral:

Parents interested in referring your student for the Spring Level IV Screening must submit a Level IV Referral form to Shawn English, Advanced Academic Resource Teacher (AART), by December 15, 2024. It may be helpful for you to complete and submit the Parent/Guardian Questionnaire in addition to your referral form.This can also be found on the page that is linked above. Once I receive the referral form, a request for work samples and ratings will be requested from your student’s current teachers. Then the information will be passed along to the screening committee. The screening committee will meet in the spring and make the appropriate recommendations for your student. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me at srenglish@fcps.edu.


All Students Need to Register for After-School

Did you know that our 5 day a week after-school program (LJ After Hours) is totally free, and includes a free snack supper, and late buses on Monday-Thursday??  There are over 40 clubs, activities and intramural sports to choose from each week.  All you need to do in order to access this fantastic program is complete the online registration/parental permission form.  We need a form for any student who stays after school for any reason... even if it's just to re-take a test with a teacher.  Parents who have NOT completed the form will get a reminder email from Mr. Hoffert, with the link to the form included.  It takes just a few minutes to fill it out... you just need your student's ID number in order to complete it.

Currently, only 33.5% of students who have attended after-school so far this year have a completed registration form on file.  Please help!

CLICK HERE TO COMPLETE THE AFTER SCHOOL REGISTRATION FORM


After-School on Fridays?

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Yes! That's a thing!

We are excited to offer two new activities on FRIDAYS this fall, starting on September 20th through December 13th (skipping Oct 4, Nov 1, and Nov 29 because of school holidays).

Both activities will meet from 2:35-3:35pm, and we will offer study hall and/or open gym for students until the parent pickup deadline (4:00pm).

No late buses are available on Fridays.

 

Magnus Chess Academy

Magnus Chess Academy has been teaching chess in Fairfax County since 2008. Over that time period we've taught more than 30,000 students in after school clubs, before school clubs, and camps. They include kids who've won seventeen state championships and four national championships, but most of our students are beginners looking to learn a fun new game. That's how all the champions start out too!

Super Sleuths (Crime Scene Investigators)

Get out your magnifying glasses and detective hats; we have clues to decipher and crimes to solve! We’ll put our critical thinking skills and STEM knowledge to the test and get to the bottom of mysteries by learning the tricks real investigators use to solve cases. While experimenting with simple detection techniques, your reasoning skills will grow, and your problem-solving skills will be on par with real CSI Agents!

 

-->COMING IN JANUARY<--

Group Guitar Class

Whether you're a regular John Mayer, or you can't remember if a guitar has 4 or 6 strings, this is your chance to start learning or sharpen the face-melting skills you already have.  Fridays, after school, starting in January.  We'll provide the guitar (there's a $20 rental fee... talk to Mr. Hoffert if that's an issue).

January 17-March 21 (10 weeks)

 

Each activity has room for a max of 20 students, so sign up today!

Students must register separately for these two Friday activities, using the form below.

FRIDAY ACTIVITY REGISTRATION


Good things to know:

When students need to miss school, it is important for parents/guardians to communicate those absences with the school.  This can be done by calling the attendance phone line at 703-204-8282. 

Whether students miss school because of illness or any other reason, missing school leads to learning loss.

Help your child succeed by encouraging them to attend as many days as possible, but do make sure your child stays home if they are sick. Visit FCPS’ website for information on when to keep your child at home.

If your child has a chronic illness, make sure to notify their teacher so that support can be provided if needed. Also, keep an open line of communication with your school's public health staff.

Read about how families can help form good attendance habits. Attend today, achieve tomorrow! 

📋 Permission Forms

Families can easily grant permission for their children to access a variety of school resources through the Parent Digital Consent system. Parents can opt their child in or out of resources including online educational tools, school counseling services, and tutoring services. They can also change how student information is managed. Visit the Parent Digital Consent webpage to access the system. See how to use the tool


How to Report Incidents of Discrimination & Harassment:

The "Discrimination and Harassment: Let's Talk" platform is an essential tool that allows anyone within our school community to report incidents of discrimination, harassment, or other concerning behaviors confidentially. More information about the platform, including how to access and use it, can be found at https://www.fcps.edu/submit-discrimination-and-harassment-report.


From Student Services:

Return Your Federal Impact Aid Survey

FCPS is asking all families to fill out a Federal Impact Aid Survey. The form is available online in SIS ParentVUE. If you have not already filled out the form online, we have provided paper forms to your student through their Advisory class. Please be sure to return them to your students' Advisory Teacher ASAP

Completing this form for each school-aged child in every household is important, because 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.

Please watch this video and visit the Federal Impact Aid Survey page for more information.

Full-Time AAP Referral Window Reminder

Families who wish for their student to be considered for full-time Advanced Academic Program (AAP) services must submit the Full-Time Referral Form to the school’s Advanced Academic Resource Teacher (Ms. English) or principal by December 15, 2024

No late forms will be accepted.


Counselors:

Counselors are assigned by alphabet and your first point of contact for any question or concerns you might have.

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From Theatre Arts:

All those interested in auditioning for Mean Girls, our spring musical, please come to the MPR either A or B session on Wednesday, December 4th. ALL are welcome- you do NOT have to be in theatre class to participate. If you cannot make the meeting, no worries. Please email Ms. Stacey (smjones3@fcps.edu) to get all information. Auditions begin Monday, December 17th.


PTA Corner:

Volunteer opportunities: Volunteer for PTA LJMS fundraising and sign up to work at PTA tables before "Aesop Live!" and at "Silver Diner Merrifield Night" using the link below:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0844A8AB22A6FFC34-53401567-silver

 

PTA Membership: The LJMS PTA serves as a bridge between our school's administration, teachers, and parents, fostering a supportive student environment. You are invited to become a PTA member and donate online at https://jacksonmspta.org/

Contact president@jacksonmspta.org


From our Clinic:

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From Tech Support:

Parents can complete the Lightspeed Parent Report Request. This request provides parents with Weekly Parent Reports delivered by Lightspeed directly to an authorized parent email over the weekend. These reports summarize the websites visited by the student while using an FCPS device.

At the bottom of the weekly report, parents can register for the Parent Relay Portal, which provides detailed browsing information. The sign-up is embedded within the Lightspeed report and does not require any further submission to IT or IT intervention. The extended access also gives parents the ability to pause internet access on their child’s FCPS laptop during non-school hours, such as dinner or bedtime. However, parents cannot pause the internet during the school day.


Digital Resource Consent Needed

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Families,

We Need Your Consent for Select Digital Resources

At Jackson Middle School, our teachers will use a variety of digital resources to support student learning and promote communication and collaboration with students and families. Some of the digital resources your child may use this year will require your consent before they can be used. Please find the link to the digital form, where you can give your consent, here: https://digitalconsent.fcps.edu/ispb/r/is01/pdcp/login?session=17253181329964.  You can find further direction here:  a list of the resources that require parental consent here: https://www.fcps.edu/family-resources/technology/digital-resources/consent.  

Need technical support?    Call the Parent Technology Help Desk at 833-921-3277 (833-921-FCPS). This will be answered by staff members from 7 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday-Friday.


ChromeBook Update:

If a student returns a Chromebook damaged, they will receive a warning, and if there is a second instance of the same damage, they will have to pay for the repair cost.  If a student returns a Chromebook damaged and the case is removed, they will have to pay for the repair cost in the first instance.  Repair costs are listed below.

HP Fortis Parts

Cost

Chromebook replacement

$444

Charger

$10

System Board

$315

Screen

$90

Keyboard and palm rest

$48

Touchpad

$21

Heatsink

$30

Daughterboard

$22

Base enclosure

$20

Bezel

$18

Speaker

$16