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Dear Freedom Hill Families,
We hope you are having a wonderful weekend, and have had some time to reflect on the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. today. We are still beaming after last week's Family Reading Night. Thank you to the nearly 250 staff, students, and family members who attended for a night of reading, learning, and dinner together. We are grateful for all of those who took the time, and to our staff who contributed to making it a great evening.
The remainder of January and the beginning of February are filled with exciting events and school calendar changes. Be sure to view our important dates section below to mark your calendar for a PTA Family Dinner Out, the SCA Valentine's Dance, the PTA Science Fair, and to come see some terrific spellers in the Spelling Bee Finals! We are also eager to kick off before and after school activities this week. Thank you to all of those who continue to support our vibrant programming for all of our Eagles.
Have great week!
In partnership,
Nicholas Zapadka, Principal
Tim Scesney, Assistant Principal
Holly Sims, Assistant Principal
2025-26 FCPS School Calendar
Freedom Hill Family Resources
Breakfast/Lunch Menus
 
Please join us in giving a big Freedom Hill welcome to our two new staff members, who will be with us for the remainder of the school year:
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Christopher Bateman – Mr. Bateman is our long-term School Based Technology Specialist (SBTS) supporting Mrs. Kelly’s position while she is away with her name baby. He has a background in IT and an amazing ability in working with staff and students. You’ll see him throughout the building in a variety of capacities as well as supporting our technology needs with Mr. Fenton in the Tech Office, room 109. Ask him about his three boys at home, who are FCPS students! |
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Eliana (Ellie) Stover - Ms. Stover is the long-term band substitute for the remainder of the year at Armstrong, Freedom Hill, and Forestville. She is a recent graduate of Bowling Green State University with a degree in music education and a background as a French horn player and brass specialist. She is originally from Cincinnati, and has spent time teaching band in Alabama before recently relocating to Maryland. Ms. Stover strongly believes that every student can learn and thrive through music. She is excited to work closely with students and staff, establish clear routines and expectations in the band room, and communicate consistently with families and our teaching staff.
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 On Monday, we honor and celebrate the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his dedication to equality and serving others.
 A joyous Orthodox Epiphany to those in our community who celebrate! In the Orthodox church, Epiphany celebrates the baptism of Jesus rather than the arrival of the Three Kings
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This week, we are focusing on Perseverance. You complete what you start despite obstacles. You never give up.
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"It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up.”
~Babe Ruth
Questions you might enjoy talking about:
- What is involved in perseverance?
- How is perseverance related to teamwork? Creativity? Optimism?
- How can a growth-mindset help as you think about perseverance?
Each month, parents representatives from each FCPS school meet with Dr. Reid and FCPS officials as part of the FCPS Family Vision Group. The next meeting is this Wednesday, January 21st and we want to ensure your voice is heard! To help guide that evening’s conversation around the planned agenda topics, please send any specific questions on the below agenda topics by 3pm on Wednesday using this linked Google form.
Agenda topics:
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Volunteer Management System: An overview of volunteer levels, requirements, and ways families can get involved.
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Understanding Report Cards: Ensuring families receive clear and meaningful information about their child’s academic progress.
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Budget Selection Process: An overview of how budget decisions are made, along with additional related information.
Thank you!
Kerrey Olden & David Hay
Freedom Hill Parent Representatives
Will include:
- February 18
- March 18
- April 22
- May 13
Read more about early release Wednesdays on the FCPS website.
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FCPS will soon be rolling out Raptor Safe, our new visitor management system. This will be the standard way to sign in at all FCPS schools.
The new system allows you to preregister via the Raptor Safe app, saving you valuable time when checking in for school visits or events!
Registration Options:
Via the App: Search "Raptor Safe" in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. You can also visit raptortech.com/raptorsafe-app/ for direct links.
In Person: If you are unable to register ahead of time, you can still complete the process at the school kiosk. Please ensure you have a valid photo ID with you to check in.
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Benchmark Unit 4 in Language Arts is about points of view. Students in K-5 will be learning about why and how people create stories, and how to understand different perspectives. Grade six students will learn how a person’s life shapes their point of view. |
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Connect with your child’s learning at school with these fun questions and hands-on activities at home:
- Question: Have you ever disagreed with a friend? How did you see things differently?
- Activity: Make up a silly scenario with your child, like a dinosaur walking down the street or an ice cream thunderstorm. Put on a short play where you and your child each play the role of each other. How does your child think you would react to the silly scenario and why? How would you react if you were your child?
At the end of the unit, your child will take their unit magazine home. The magazine includes an activity calendar with fun ways to help students build on what they’re learning at each grade level. You can also find information on how to support your child’s reading at home on the Benchmark Families website.
Fairfax County is seeing very high levels of influenza (flu) illness. Visits to emergency departments and urgent care centers for flu-like illness have increased, especially among children, and multiple flu outbreaks have occurred in our community and school settings.
Consider these tips from the Fairfax County Health Department to help reduce the spread of flu and other germs.
Due to the overwhelming response from our community, FCPS is temporarily pausing fingerprint requirements for most Level 3 volunteers.
If you are scheduled for an upcoming fingerprinting appointment, please cancel your appointment unless you are a mentor, host parent, or non-parent volunteer having frequent, direct, and unsupervised contact with students, which will still require fingerprinting. FCPS will be charged if individuals miss a fingerprinting appointment without canceling in advance.
Those who have already been fingerprinted will be processed to be eligible for all Level 3 opportunities.
Field trip chaperone opportunities will now be classified as Level 2 (not requiring a background check).
To ensure continuous safety, all new volunteers are required to sign a Volunteer Certification Statement. This statement is a legal attestation confirming you have no history of violent felonies, physical/sexual crimes against children, or crimes of moral turpitude.
Want to volunteer? Visit Volunteer FCPS to find and sign up for volunteer opportunities. Contact Volunteers@fcps.edu with any questions.
FCPS’ 2026-27 Dual Language Immersion (DLI) Program lottery opens on Monday, January 12th. The program offers students in kindergarten and first grade the opportunity to learn in English and another language — French, German, Japanese, Korean, or Spanish — for half of each instructional day.
The online, countywide lottery is open to Fairfax County residents. Families must have a SIS ParentVUE account. Students not currently enrolled in FCPS should register at their base school before applying for the immersion program.
Families applying for first grade must do so by Thursday, February 12th, at 4 p.m. Those applying for kindergarten must do so by Monday, March 2nd, at 4 p.m.
Informational meetings will begin in January. View dates and details on the FCPS calendar. If you have questions, please contact Brigid Williams at 571-423-4600.
Supervisor Palchik is hosting a Lunar New Year Open House and would love to have students, families, and community members come by! It's Thursday, January 22 from 5:30-7:00pm. There will be a performance, activities, and treats. You can register here.
   
    
Upcoming Events:
UPCOMING ADVOCACY OPPORTUNITIES
Look for opportunities to share your ideas about funding public education and encourage your neighbors, friends, and community members to follow the FCPS budget process. Several key decision dates and engagement opportunities are listed below:
Visit the FCPS budget webpage for more information.
Visit Virginia PTA 2026 Legislative Priorities for more information.
FAMILY DINNER OUT (FDO) - JAN 22 @ NOODLES & CO., FALLS CHURCH, 4-8PM (Flyer)
Join your fellow Freedom Hill Eagles at our next FDO on Thursday, Jan. 22, at Noodles & Co., Falls Church (7511 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22043) anytime from 4-8PM. 25% of sales will go to our school when you dine in or order to go (Use Code: GIVING25). Order to go here or call (703) 442-7525. A big thanks to Camille Paredes for her ongoing organization of these events.
THE SCIENCE FAIR IS COMING!
Freedom Hill's Science Fair is returning on Friday, Feb. 20th. The Science Fair is a great way to showcase something your child learned with a posterboard/tabletop presentation, demonstrate a cool hands-on experiment, or more! See the flyer for the form to fill out and an example tri-fold poster board. Need ideas? Great resources for ideas are at education.com and ScienceBuddies.
The form is due on Feb. 5th to Hubert at hubertchao@gmail.com or to the PTA Mailbox in the office.
If you need help getting the tri-fold poster board, we have a limited supply; contact Hubert at hubertchao@gmail.com.
We also need people to help with the Science Fair! Sign up here.
PTA Quick Links:
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