|
English | Español | አማርኛ | 中文 | 한국어 | Tiếng Việt | العربية | فارسی | اردو
Dear Columbia Friends & Families:
It has been a short but successful three-day week for students at CES! Thank you to all of our families who participated in parent-teacher conferences as we wrapped up the first quarter. These conversations are such an important opportunity to celebrate students’ progress, discuss areas for continued growth, and work together to identify ways families can support learning and success at home.
Our students also enjoyed some wonderful opportunities for hands-on, experiential learning this week. On Thursday, our kindergarten students visited Hidden Oaks Nature Center, where they had the opportunity to explore and learn about the natural world firsthand. Earlier today, our second graders traveled to the National Zoo in Washington, D.C., connecting their classroom learning about life cycles and science to real-world experiences with animals and living things. These experiences help bring learning to life and create meaningful connections that students can carry back into the classroom.
A special thank you to our PTA for their continued fundraising and generous financial support, which helps make enriching experiences like these possible for our students. We are grateful for your partnership and commitment to providing our students with opportunities to learn, explore, and grow.
We are excited to welcome everyone back for a full five-day week next week!
Take care,
Mike Astudillo
Proud Principal
Columbia Elementary School
PTA News & Notes
Upcoming November events
-
CANCELED: Spirit Day at Chik-fil-a:Use “cougars” at checkout or online. (11/10, Available all day)
-
Virtual PTA meeting:Click here to JOIN via Zoom. (11/18, 7 pm)
 Thanksgiving Luncheon - November 19th
We are pleased to invite you to Columbia’s Thanksgiving Luncheon!
The Thanksgiving meal includes roast turkey with dressing, green beans, fresh fruit, milk, whipped potatoes with gravy, and frozen fruit cups.
Vegetarian offerings include chickenless bites or peanut butter & jelly.
Cost & Payment
-
Adults: $5.50
-
Children: $5.00
To pay for an adult or child’s meal, please add additional funds to your child’s MySchoolBucks lunch account.
We do not accept credit cards. If paying in cash, please have the exact amount.
Parents will also have the option to shop at the book fair during their child’s lunch block!
Thanksgiving Luncheon Schedule
| Time |
Grade |
| 10:45–11:15 a.m. |
2nd Grade & EAC |
| 11:15–11:45 a.m. |
Kindergarten |
| 12:00–12:30 p.m. |
1st Grade |
| 12:40–1:10 p.m. |
5th Grade |
| 12:50–1:20 p.m. |
3rd Grade |
| 1:10–1:40 p.m. |
4th Grade |
 New Cafetria Blinds!
Great news! We now have brand-new, electronically operated, full-length window blinds installed in the cafeteria!
We are especially grateful to our PTA for their continued support through fundraisers that make school beautification projects like this possible. We look forward to officially thanking the PTA for their generous and continued support!
Family Life Education - Parent Preview Night
Students in grades K-5 participate in Family Life Education (FLE) instruction through their classroom teacher. Students in Kindergarten through grade three receive instruction in an emotional and social health unit. Students in grades 4 and 5 receive instruction in a human growth and development unit and an emotional and social health unit. For more information about the FCPS Family Life Education program, please see the detailed grade-level program descriptions at https://www.fcps.edu/academics/elementary-family-life-education-fle.
In addition, grade level-specific curriculum lessons are available for review in multiple locations.
- Online in Schoology - includes lessons and media titles that FCPS has streaming rights for. Any additional media or book titles that are not streamed are available at your child’s school library.
- Parents/guardians login to Schoology using the same username and password as their Student Information System (SIS) Parent account.
- Your child’s school. Please contact the school to schedule a time to review lessons and/or media.
- City of Fairfax Regional Library – lessons only. Media is not available.
You are invited to attend an evening opportunity to preview the Family Life Education media and lessons and to talk with school staff about the program. The meeting will be held on November 18 at 6:30 on Zoom. All program materials and media for all grade levels will be available for your review at this time.
Here is the link for the zoom meeting:
https://myfcpsk12.zoom.us/j/91903873132?utm_campaign+=&utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery#success
Parents/guardians who do not wish to have their child participate in FLE instruction may choose to opt their child out of any or all of the lessons. If you would like to opt your child out of one or more lessons, please , please complete the opt-out form available in Parent Digital Consent (PDC) at https://www.fcps.edu/family-resources/technology/digital-resources/consent/directions . If you are unable to access PDC, a paper opt-out form may be requested from the main office. Opt-out for students accessing the modified FLE curriculum is only available by using a paper form that will be provided to you or may be accessed online at https://www.fcps.edu/academics/curriculum/subject-area/family-life-education-fle/fle-opt-out-request-forms. Should you opt your child out and then later decide you want your child included in FLE instruction, you must notify your child’s school principal in writing before instruction begins.
An alternative non-FLE health instructional program is provided for students who do not take part in FLE instruction, and every effort is made to foster understanding and respect for family choices and to avoid peer pressure for or against participation in the program.
Instruction occurs at various during the school year. Please contact your child’s teacher for specific dates of FLE instruction. We look forward to working as your partner in providing information that will help your child make healthy choices related to the exciting changes and new challenges he/she will be facing in the next few years.
Save the date!
November 11: SACC is closed, regular school day for all students
November 16 - 20: Annual Book Fair!
November 18: 3-Hour Early Release Day, Dismissal at 1:05pm
November 18: PTA Meeting at 7pm
November 25 - 27: Thanksgiving Break, No School
|
