Calendar Reminder March 10: PTA Meeting 7:00 p.m. Cafeteria March 17th: 3-Hour Early Release March 25th: K-3 PTA Talent Show 🌟 *see PTA updates below for more information March 27th: 4-6 PTA Talent Show 🌟 *see PTA updates below for more information March 31st: No School / Eid al-Fitr  April 1st: No School / Teacher Workday April 3rd: 5th Grade Integrated Reading and Writing SOL Test 📅 2024-2025 FCPS School Calendar

3-Hour Early Release 3/17

Forestville Elementary School has a 3-hour early dismissal on Monday, March 17 at 1:00 pm for teacher training and professional development. In an email you received from ENotify, you were given the dismissal plan you selected for your student for our previous Early Release Monday. This previous selection is the default for Early Release Mondays moving forward. If this selection is no longer accurate, please complete this form to make changes.

Last-minute changes create confusion and disrupt the early release process. To ensure we can safely account for every student, we ask that no changes be made after Friday, March 14. 

Please discuss this plan with your child(ren) so our dismissal runs as smoothly as possible.

🪙Kindness Week at Forestville

Forestville is excited to kick off Kindness Week beginning today! Students are getting caught sharing acts of kindness with others and being rewarded with gold coins! The gold coins are being collected in the classrooms and main office, working toward a school-wide kindness celebration. Be sure to check with your students about how they plan to show kindness throughout the week. We know our cardinals are capable of more acts of kindness than we could ever capture and thank students for being kind each and every day!

📚Read-Across-America at Forestville 

Forestville students and staff celebrated Read Across America last week in true cardinal style! We had students showcase how reading helps them reach goals as they dressed for something they hope to be in the future! Reading also inspires us to be creative and our cardinal creativity was on full display from our toes to the tips of our hair! Thank you cardinals and families for helping your students celebrate these special days with us!

💻Standards of Learning Assessments 

Students in grades 3-8 participate in state assessments each year.  These assessments measure how students are learning the state standards.  Below is the current schedule for the spring Standards of Learning tests at Forestville Elementary. Visit the FCPS webpage here for more information about these assessments.

• Grade 5 Integrated Reading and Writing

  • Thursday, April 3

• Grades 5 and 6 Reading

  • Tuesday, May 6

• Grades 3 and 4 Reading

  • Wednesday, May 7

• Grades 5 and 6 Math

  • Tuesday, May 13

• Grades 3 and 4 Math

  • Wednesday, May 14

• Grade 5 Science

  • Tuesday, May 20

🐝 A Huge Congrats to Our BUZZING Spelling Bee Participants!

First, a massive shoutout to all 92 brave students who signed up for this year’s Spelling Bee! It takes a lot of courage to put yourself out there, and we are so proud of every single one of you. Hive Five to the 87 spellers who stepped up to the mic during our Junior and Senior Spelling Bees—your hard work and dedication made this competition an unforgettable one!

A special round of applause goes to Tommy Kurian, our Senior Spelling Bee Champion! Tommy spelled his way to victory in an intense competition on Thursday night and will go on to represent Forestville Elementary at the Fairfax County Spelling Bee in just a few weeks. We’ll be cheering him on!

Of course, events like these don’t happen without an incredible team behind the scenes. A huge THANK YOU to our amazing parent volunteers— Jeanette Rachman, Alic Jang, Rebecca Nye, Susan Kurian, Jill Han, Maggie Yetik, Lavanya Carrithers, and Nav St. Louis—your support made this event possible!

To our dedicated staff members—Tara Dutton, Sarah Brooker, Jonelle Shipley, Alysha Akbar, and Johanna Conselatore—thank you for giving up your evening to be part of this thrilling 2.5-hour spelling showdown. Your enthusiasm and support made all the difference!

🔬 Science Olympiad Team Advances to State! 🎉

Our Division B Science Olympiad team competed in the Fairfax Regional Tournament on February 22nd and gave it their all! Their hard work paid off—they are now one of only seven teams moving on to the State tournament for the sixth year in a row! 🏆

A huge shoutout to our medal winners: ✨ 3rd Place: Metric Mastery – Alicia Neo, Stephen Kurian ✨ 3rd Place: Scrambler – Amelia Volodin, Jennifer Xia ✨ 4th Place: Codebusters – Akshay Nemani, Alicia Neo, Bahram Ostad ✨ 4th Place: Dynamic Planet – Akshay Nemani, Terry Yu

Their teamwork and dedication in just three months of preparation were truly impressive. Now, they’re gearing up to represent us at the State Tournament at UVA, Charlottesville on March 29th! Let’s cheer them on! 🎉👏

Developing a Strong Academic Foundation, Curiosity, and Joy for Learning

The FCPS Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Advertised Budget invests in academic growth and excellence for each and every student, which is one of the priorities of the FCPS Strategic Plan. 

A strong start for every student is Goal 1 of the Strategic Plan. Pre-K classrooms are making a difference in our community. In this video, we explore the importance of bringing children under the age of five together, regardless of abilities.

Learn more about the FCPS FY 2026 Advertised Budget. View the Budget Development Calendar to stay up to date and learn about opportunities to provide feedback to Fairfax County and FCPS.

💬 Share Your Input on the County Budget

The Fairfax County government presented its Fiscal Year 2026 Advertised Budget Plan to the Board of Supervisors on February 18. The community is invited to share feedback through an online survey, email, phone calls, or by attending Budget Town Hall meetings. 

🚀 Prepare for a Summer of Learning and Fun

Registration will be available soon for summer camps offered by Fairfax County Public Schools for all students. Career and Technical Education (CTE) camps and Institute for the Arts (IFTA) camps will be held in July at Lake Braddock Secondary School from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Bus transportation will be available from select FCPS middle and high schools. Registration begins for these programs on Monday, March 10, and ends Friday, June 6.

Tech Adventure Camp (TAC) is a week-long exploratory camp designed to allow current K-5 students to explore activities in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math), culinary arts, health, trades, and business and marketing areas. Watch this video about CTE camps.

E-IFTA is a weekly arts camp for students in grades 2-5 who love to sing, dance, act, perform, make, and create. Students take part in four daily classes related to dance, music, theater, and visual art. They work with FCPS fine arts teachers who create fun and engaging classes. 

For more information, see the Summer Learning page.

National Women’s History Month Every year, March is designated Women’s History Month by presidential proclamation. The month is set aside to honor women’s contributions in American history.Learn more about the heritage months, celebrations, and traditions celebrated in FCPS. Read more about Women’s History Month in National Geographic Kids.

📸Be a part of the Forestville Family! Like and follow us on Facebook and Instgram to stay up-to-date on all the exciting things happening at our school.

📰FCPS News

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

• • A Strong Academic Foundation
  • 70th Annual Regional Science Fair
  • New Breakfast Options

🎉 Bingo Night – What a Winner! There’s nothing better than when our awesome Cardinal Community comes together for a night of fun (and fierce competition over those raffle prizes)! 🥇 First, a HUGE shoutout to Lauren Hertling & Arati Mahna for orchestrating such an incredible event! And a special nod to their husbands for being their behind-the-scenes support crew—we love when these nights become family affairs! 🎤 Second, our BINGO Callers—Stephanie Patterson, Sarah Brooker, Katy Carlson, and Afton Carson—you were the true MVPs! Your number-calling skills were B-1 for the books! 🍦 Third, our amazing Forestville Staff—from scooping ice cream to checking in families to keeping our games running smoothly—YOU made this night a success! High fives to Alysha Akbar, Margaret Zuerner, Kayla Noel, Lauren Paull, Jonelle Shipley, Johanna Conselatore, Letitia Locke, Jane Conner, Kate Ciullo, and Julie Ryan! 🙌 Lastly, a massive THANK YOU to our parent and teen volunteers who kept everything flowing like a perfectly daubed bingo card. Your help means the world, and if you haven’t volunteered yet, what are you waiting for? We keep it fun, easy, and full of good vibes!

🎭 Talent Show – Time to Shine!

We know Forestville is bursting with talent—so let’s see it on stage! 

📅 Performance Dates:
⭐ K-3 Performances: March 25 (Dress Rehearsal: March 24)
⭐ 4-6 Performances: March 27 (Dress Rehearsal: March 26)

Not performing? Come be part of the audience! Cheer on your fellow Cardinals and enjoy an evening of show-stopping entertainment—no ticket required!

Questions?  Email social@forestvillepta.org

📖 Yearbook Sales Are OPEN – And We Need Your Photos!

Let’s make this year’s yearbook one for the books! We’re looking for your best snapshots to help tell the story of this school year. From class activities to spirit days, field trips, and after-school fun, we want it all! While we can’t promise every photo will make it into the final pages, the more you send, the better!

✅ You can upload up to 40 photos at a time ✅ Bonus points for categorizing them and identifying students—this helps our committee tremendously!

And don’t forget—yearbooks are now on sale! Grab your copy and relive all the memories while supporting our school.

📸 Click HERE to submit your photos or purchase your yearbook!

https://www.buytheyearbook.com/en/

📌 Forestville School ID: 7481129-2501

Have questions? Email us at community@forestvillepta.org.

🎉 Cardinal Parents NIGHT OUT – Save the Date! 🗓️

Parents, this one's for YOU! Keep an eye out for a brand-new social event designed just for our amazing Cardinal parents. Book your babysitter and mark your calendars for Thursday, April 3rd—we’re planning an evening for you to unwind, connect, and enjoy a much-needed break! Stay tuned for more details! ✨

Questions?  Email social@forestvillepta.org

1085 Utterback Store Road | Great Falls, VA 22066 | 703.404.6000 
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