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Stronger Together
Dear Clearview Families,
The month of March is a time of transitions from the many winter activities to the anticipation of spring. This is the time of year when students often begin to display mastery of new skills and concepts. As we look for warmer weather and brighter days, we want to keep our Yellow Jackets focused on continuing to strive to do their best. We appreciate your engagement with us, sending the message to students that learning is important.
Have a great weekend!
Stephanie Almquist Joshua Redford Rachel Charlton
Principal Assistant Principal Assistant Principal
 Students are learning and working together in fun and active ways. The classroom is full of teamwork, reading, and smiles.
FCPS PreK and Early Head Start are now accepting applications for SY 2026–2027!
Stop By and Apply In Person! Monday, March 2, 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM at Clearview Elementary School.
The FCPS PreK and Early Head Start programs provide a high-quality early learning experience for qualifying children ages 6 weeks to 4 years old.
PreK: For children who will be age 3 or 4 by September 30, with priority given to 4-year-olds.
Early Head Start: For children ages 0–2 and pregnant women who live in the Reston, Herndon, and Springfield areas.
More information and the online application are available here.
👨👩👧 Family Academy Offers Support to Parents and Guardians
The Family Academy offers resources and in-person and virtual classes, workshops, webinars, and programs for families. The following webinars and workshops will take place in March:
- Co-Parenting: Two Parents, Two Homes (in Spanish)
- The Connected Family: Navigating the Digital World Together
- Introduction to Career Pathways for Students
- Getting to Know Fairfax County Public Schools: A Family Orientation (for military families)
- Mind in the Making: Making Connection and Critical Thinking
There will also be Family Resource Center webinars on topics including reducing parent stress and anxiety, parenting neurodivergent kids, why smart kids struggle, and a countdown to kindergarten.
Visit the Family Academy Catalog to explore these and other resources.
New Visitor Management System
We are excited to announce that Clearview ES is now using the new Raptor Visitor Management System (VMS). This upgrade is part of our Clearview’s and FCPS’ ongoing commitment to enhancing school safety and streamlining the process for visitors at our school. The VMS ensures that no visitor is on the sex offender registry.
For most visitors, the user experience will be the same when you check-in at the front office.
But now there is also an app, which can make check-in’s even faster at school. Visitors who choose to download the RaptorSafe App and create a Raptor Passport can pre-verify their information before they get to school. The app will give you a QR code you can use when you check-in at school.
If you have questions or need assistance with the new system, please contact Gaby in our front office at 703-708-6000. Thank you for your partnership in keeping Clearview ES safe!
Fasting Meal Kits
Through March 19, 2026, a Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) waiver allows students fasting during the school day to request take-home meal kits. These kits include a complete school breakfast and lunch to be eaten after the school day ends.
Important Meal Kit Information:
- Kits are charged based on a student’s meal status (Free, Reduced, or Paid).
- Students may claim one breakfast and one lunch kit per day.
- Students who eat a meal at school during the day are not eligible for a take-home kit on the same day.
- Kits are distributed at the end of the school day. Students must pick up their own kits; adults are not permitted to collect them.
Parents or guardians must submit a weekly request form via the FCPS FNS website by the deadlines:
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March 2, 2026 for the week of March 9, 2026
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March 9, 2026 for the week of March 16, 2026
Forms must be submitted on time to receive meal kits for the following week.
🙋♂️ Attendance Is Important!
Regular, on-time attendance is a key ingredient to your child’s success. Keeping in mind that students are to stay home if they have a fever (of 100.4 or above), vomiting, or diarrhea, attending school must be a top priority.
Children who show up for school regularly develop fundamental reading and math skills while building a habit of good attendance that will carry them into college and careers.
Visit the FCPS website for more attendance resources.
 Table titled “Weekly Student Attendance by Grade (%)” listing Kindergarten through Sixth Grade and Whole School totals. Weekly attendance is Kindergarten 95%, First 98%, Second 94%, Third 98%, Fourth 98%, Fifth 99%, Sixth 96%, and Whole School 97%; year to date attendance is Kindergarten 84%, First 87%, Second 88%, Third 91%, Fourth 90%, Fifth 89%, Sixth 93%, and Whole School 88.9%.
📝 Resource to Explore: SOLpass
We encourage families to explore SolPass, a helpful tool to use at home as a supplement to the learning that happens at Clearview. SOLPass helps students review exactly what they need for the Standards of Learning (SOL) exams that almost every child in grades 3-6 will take this spring. Encourage use of SOLPass to help make sure your child feels prepared and confident for exam day. Stinger is the password, of course!
🥣Celebrating the Power of School Breakfast
Multiple studies show that school breakfast is important in supporting overall student health by improving students’ diets and combating food insecurity. Also, students who eat school breakfast consume more fruit and fiber than their peers.
This National School Breakfast Week, FCPS Food and Nutrition Services reminds families that they are dedicated to providing flavorful, healthy, sustainable, and student-focused meals. New menu items have been launched this year based on student feedback.
Would you like to know what’s for breakfast? View Nutrition Services’ printable menus.
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.
National School Social Work Week
March 2-8 is National School Social Work Week. Social workers in FCPS help to prevent social, emotional, and behavioral factors from affecting a student's ability to perform at their best. Their primary goal is to remove barriers that prevent a student from fulfilling their academic potential. Social workers are assigned to every school and center in the school system and Clearview is fortunate to have a talented, full-time Social Worker, Ms. Abigail Thomas. Learn more about the role of social workers in FCPS.
🎨 March is Time to Celebrate the Arts!
The Council for Art Education (CFAE) administers Youth Art Month. Youth Art Month encourages support for quality school art programs, and promotes art material safety. The program provides a medium for recognizing skills developed through visual arts experiences unlike any other curriculum subjects, including:
Art shows, special exhibits, fundraisers, and school and community activities take place annually, traditionally during March, to celebrate visual art education for grades K-12. At Clearview, we have a talented, full-time art teacher, Ms. Kelly Fergus, who teaches art class during the day to students in grades K-6 and after-school art to students in grades 3-6. Clearview has a partnership with McLean Project for the Arts who will be facilitating Art About Our Earth after-school club beginning March 25.
March has also been designated by the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) for the observance of Music In Our Schools Month® (MIOSM®), the time of year when music education becomes the focus of schools across the nation. The purpose of MIOSM is to raise awareness of the importance of music education for all children – and to remind citizens that school is where all children should have access to music and due to the many benefits that school music brings to students of all ages. At Clearview, we have two talented general music teachers, Ms. Susanna Jacobson and Mr. Justin Kantor in addition to two talented instrumental music teachers, Mr. Darwin de la Cruz (orchestra) and Mr. Jonathan Blank (band).
Theatre In Our Schools (TIOS) is a celebration of theatre in our schools and schools in our theatres. Sponsored by the American Alliance for Theatre & Education (AATE) and the Educational Theatre Association (EdTA), the goals of TIOS are to raise public awareness of the impact of theatre education and draw attention to the need for more access to quality programs in and out of school for all students. Clearview has a partnership with NextStop Theatre who will be facilitating Stars on Stage after-school club beginning March 23.
☀️ Daylight Saving Begins 🕰️
(Spring Forward)
Sunday, March 8, at 2 a.m., daylight saving time begins. Don’t forget to move your clocks ahead one hour! As a result of the time change, many students will be walking to school or to bus stops in the dark. Help your child stay safe by having them wear reflective clothing and bright or light colors, or add reflective items to their backpacks or clothes. Also, encourage your child to be especially alert for cars that are turning or backing up and not to run into the street or cross between parked cars.
Eid al-Fitr and Nowruz
(evening only observance day, holiday)
Thursday, March 19, is an evening only observance day for Eid al-Fitr, which begins at sundown.
Friday, March 20, is a holiday and all schools and offices are closed for Eid and Nowruz.
🐣Spring Break🐣
🌷 Schools and school offices will be closed March 30 to April 3 for spring break. Monday, April 6, is a teacher work day and there will be no school for students. We wish our students and teachers a happy and restful Spring Break! See the complete school year calendar.
- Mar 6 First Friday
- Mar 8 Daylight Savings Time
- (Remember to set your clocks one hour forward)
- Mar 9 First day of Stars on Stage and BUZZ Club
- Mar 18
- 3-hour early dismissal (no clubs)
- PTA meeting, 7PM
- March 20 No school (Eid and Nowruz)
- March 23 First day Science Olympiad after-school Club
- March 25 First day of remaining after school clubs
- Mar 27 2-hour early dismissal
- Mar 30-Apr 3 No school (Spring Break)
- Apr 6 No school (Teacher work day)
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