In this Paw Print:
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School News
- Principal's Message 🗣️
- Panther Prowl! 🏃🏽♀️➡️
- Blue Star Welcome Week ⭐
- Meet our new Family Liason 🤝
- Lexia Usage 💻
- Literacy Webinar Series 📖
- SEL Screener: Grades 3-6 ❤️
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PTA News
- Picture Day Volunteers Needed! 📸
- Spirit Wear Sale! 👚
- Spelling Bee 🐝
- Bartaco Spirit Night 🌮
- Upcoming Dates
Dear Families,
Now that we're into the 5th week of school, it's been awesome to see those routines really falling into place! Whether it's literacy stations, science experiments, student leadership, or cafeteria expectations, our Panthers are really showing what it means to have Panther PRIDE!
Each week on the news we share how a few of our students have earned Panther PRIDE tickets! Ask your child what it means to show Panther PRIDE and how they can earn one!
We're very excited to kickoff our Panther Prowl Fun Run today! We look forward to this fun event and raising money that will support our school. Thank you for always being supportive of our awesome Poplar Tree school community!
Sue Andujar, Principal
Amy Alley, Assistant Principal
Panther Prowl Fun Run 🏃🏽♀️➡️
Our annual Panther Prowl Fun Run will be on Friday, October 16 starting at 5:30 pm! This event is our biggest fundraiser as a school!
This year's goal is $20,000!!
What does money from the Panther Prowl support?
- An adaptive swing for the playground
- House T-Shirts for ALL students and staff
- Author Visits for all grade levels
- Staff Appreciation Events
- Student Technology
- ...and more!
The Panther Prowl website is now LIVE!!
Register your child HERE!
(Even if your child is not able to run on October 16th, you can still register and help us raise money for the school!)
Prizes for money raised will all be blind bags of glow in the dark animals, squishy toys, keychains, 3D printed items, and more!
Which House will raise the most money this year?!
Blue Star Welcome Week ⭐
Every year, approximately 600,000 military-connected families relocate, and schools are a primary way they get integrated into their new location. Fairfax County Public Schools is committed to ensuring our military families feel welcomed and a sense of belonging to their local community.
Blue Star Welcome Week is an opportunity for our community to welcome our military-connected families and show them our appreciation for their service and sacrifices. Throughout the week, FCPS will help ease their transition through events, messages, actions of welcome, and opportunities to make meaningful connections. You can learn more here: https://welcomeweek.bluestarfam.org/resources/.
One of the ways Poplar Tree will welcome our Military Families is through a Spirit Week next week! Each day, students will get a chance to wear and share about themselves to help new friends better connect with their peers!
Bring your best spirit next week!
- 🗺️ Monday: Rep Where You Are From
- 🎻⚽🩰♟️Tuesday: Share Your Interests
- 🍂☀️🌸❄️ Wednesday: Favorite Season
- 🐕🐢Thursday: Awesome Animals
- ❤️🐾Friday: Panther PRIDE
Meet Our New Family Liaison 🤝
Hello, Poplar Tree ES families! My name is Ms. Kim, and I am excited to serve as your new Family Liaison. My role is to help connect families with the school and provide community resources to support your student's success. Whether you have questions about school services, community assistance, attendance, communication, or other challenges affecting your student’s school experience, I am here to help guide you to the right resources. Please feel free to reach out or stop by to say "Hello" at the front office —I look forward to getting to know and supporting our Poplar Tree community!
Email: hkim22@fcps.edu
Lexia Usage 💻
Lexia Core5 & Power Up is an adaptive, science-of-reading-based program designed to develop fundamental literacy skills for students. Its intended purpose is to personalize instruction—automatically adjusting difficulty, providing targeted practice in areas like phonics, vocabulary, and comprehension, and flagging specific concepts where a student needs direct, face-to-face help from their teacher. The program meets students right where they are in their development of reading skills.
As a reminder, students should not be using Lexia at home after school. Students have a weekly goal which is to be completed at school. Many students have been "over using" Lexia and losing sight of the purpose of the program. While we are encouraging our students to do their best, it is not a game to "beat" and/or are students expected to be at a certain level. Teachers monitor students' weekly progress. Please help to monitor your child's usage at home. We have lots of other available programs located on our student quick links page on Schoology for students to practice skills at home other than Lexia. Thank you!
Literacy Webinar Series 📖
Fairfax County Public Schools is presenting a literacy webinar series to help families understand reading assessments, reading plans, and how to support their child at home. The series and topics are:
- October 20: Understanding Reading Assessments and Your Child
- December 15: What is a Reading Plan?
- February 19: How Do I Support My Child With a Reading Plan at Home?
- May 14: Continuing Reading Success Through the Summer
All webinars begin at 10am. Register here!
SEL Screener: Grades 3-6 ❤️
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) believes in supporting social and emotional learning (SEL) for all students. In FCPS, students use a tool called the SEL Screener to think about their own SEL skills and experiences at school. The screener is offered to all students in grades 3 through 12 in the fall and spring. It addresses skills like achieving goals, understanding and managing emotions, establishing and maintaining relationships with adults and peers, and making responsible decisions. Students also share how successful their school and community is at making them feel valued, included, and supported. Screener data is used to plan programming for the division, schools, and individual students.
Poplar Tree Students in grades 3–6 will take the brief SEL screener with their class between October 5 and October 30. After each screening, results are available in the Documents tab of SIS ParentVUE and mailed to families without a ParentVUE account. Families who wish to opt their students out of the SEL Screener can do so via the Parent Digital Consent System OR by completing a Fairfax County Social Emotional Learning Screener Opt-Out Request Form.
For more information, please visit the Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Screener webpage or contact the School Counselor: Beth Mertens (eemertens@fcps.edu).
Picture Day Volunteers Needed 📸
School Picture Day is October 8th, and we’d love your help making it a fun and smooth day for everyone! We’re looking for volunteers to lend a hand throughout the day.
Please sign up to volunteer for picture day here!
Spirit Wear Sale 👚
Miss out on the recent Spirit Wear Sale? We’ve got you covered!
Several sizes are still available for purchase- only the items listed are currently in stock. Order online here and we’ll deliver the shirt(s) to your student!
Looking for something more custom? Check out additional designs currently on sale. These are mailed directly to your home! https://1stplace.sale/98006
The Spelling Bee is Back! 🐝
We are excited to announce that the Poplar Tree Spelling Bee is getting ready for another exciting year! Thanks to the Poplar Tree PTA, we were able to take advantage of early registration, and we are officially ready to S-P-E-L-L!
Study Resources
Parents can create an account and log in directly to the Spelling Bee website to access and download the official study lists. The platform also provides exclusive study materials and resources to help students
prepare and build their spelling skills for the competition.
Student Registration – Coming in January
Student registration will open in January. Registration details, including the registration fee, will be shared with families at that time. The Spelling Bee is self-funded through student registration fees. These fees will be
used to cover competition-related expenses, including trophies, certificates, gift cards, and other event costs.
School Spelling Bee
Once student registration is complete, we will finalize the School Spelling Bee date and time and share the details with all participating families. We look forward to seeing our Poplar Tree students learn, practice, and challenge
themselves this year.
Get those word lists ready, and let’s S-P-E-L-L!
Bartaco Spirit Night 🌮
Every Tuesday in September!
We're partnering with Bartaco for fundraiser nights that give 10% back while also giving families a little escape.
Dates + Times:
Every Tuesday in September from 5 - 7pm!!
Remaining Tuesdays in September: 9/22 and 9/29
How it works:
1. Spirit nights are only on the dates and times above
2. Dine-in at your local Bartaco
3. Mention our organization (Poplar Tree PTA) at checkout to have 10% of sales donated back to us
Nearest Bartaco:
Reston Town Center
12021 Town Square St.
- Friday, September 25: Paw Tech Squad Resumes due in Schoology
- Friday, October 2: Yearbook Cover Contest Art due to Mrs. Riddile
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Thursday, October 8: Fall Picture Day
- Monday, October 12: School Planning Day - no school for students!
- Friday, October 16: Panther Prowl
- October 19 - 23: Book Fair
- Wednesday, October 21: 3 Hour Early Release
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Thursday, October 22: Hybrid Full-Time AAP Identification Meeting
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October 27, 28, 29: 2nd Grade NGAT Testing
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