WELCOME BACK! Dear Oakton Families, The first month of school is in the books and our classrooms are busy with productive activities and students are immersed in exciting learning opportunities. Important routines and procedures have been established and our children are learning and growing every day. As we visit classrooms, it's impressive to see the many creative and purposeful lessons taking place. Educating a child for the 21st Century might seem daunting, but our school is definitely ready to meet this challenge. Our teachers, along with our PTA’s programs, provide our students with great opportunities. We feel confident that they will have the knowledge and skills to be our world’s future leaders. A key ingredient to a successful school year is good communication and partnership between the school and our families. The teachers will do a good job of keeping you posted about school events and your child’s instructional program. Be sure to check Blackboard.com on a regular basis. Our PTA Panther Express on Thursdays, the KIT Friday Message, our school website, and this monthly newsletter will keep you up-to-date! We are extremely grateful for all of your parental support as we continue to work together to make this a great learning year for our students. Sincerely, Chris Gray & Keith Eck October 2014 OAKTON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 3000 Chain Bridge Road Oakton, Virginia 22124 http://www.fcps.edu/Oakton ES/ Thank you David’s Landscaping! Over the summer, many “behind the scenes” activities took place prior to the opening of school. Among these activities were the weeding, mulching, and pruning of our school grounds. Special thanks are extended to David's Landscaping. Their crew pruned, weeded and mulched our campus, ensuring we all returned to a well maintained school. THANK YOU! PAGE 2 THE PANTHER PRESS Advanced Academics Learn more about the Advanced Academics Program at Oakton. Advanced Academic Testing and Screening All second grade students and students in grades 3-6 who are new to Fairfax County Public Schools will take a form of the Cognitive Abilities Test in October. Our school will administer this test October 15-17 for 2nd grade and October 2123 for new students in grades 3-6. Scores from this test provide information that is used as part of the selection process for advanced academic school and center-based programs. Parents of children in grades 3-6 may request that their child retake the CogAT once between grades 3-6. To exercise this one-time option, notify Mr. Eck, in writing, by Friday, October 10. Fall Screening Information October 24, 2014 AAP Level IV Referral forms for students new to FCPS are due to local school. Parents/guardians send or deliver documents to Advanced Academic Resource Teacher at local school by this deadline. Spring Screening Information February 3, 2015 AAP Level IV Referral form and optional materials for FCPS students due to local school. Parents/guardians send or deliver documents to Advanced Academic Resource Teacher at local school by this deadline. For further information visit the Advanced Academic Programs website: http://www.fcps.edu/is/aap/index.shtml or contact Mr. Gray with your questions. (703) 937-6133; [email protected] Student Absences Planning and preparing for a day’s lesson is extensive and is done in a timely manner to ensure that lessons are appropriate for students based on preassessments and formative assessments. We recognize that there may be times where students will be out of school for several prearranged days. In most cases, student work cannot be provided prior to a student being out for a prearranged absence. During the absence, we recommend that a student read for a minimum of 30 minutes daily and keep a journal nightly. Students may choose to journal about what they are doing or about a book they are reading. Students will receive the missed work when they return and have 2 days for each day absent to make up the work, unless other arrangements are made with the teacher. Full Day Requirement OES has one of the latest release times of all elementary schools in FCPS. We understand that many of our students have after-school activities and traffic in our area can make it tough to arrive to practices, games, etc. on time. However, we want to make you aware of a new county regulation that mandates that all students maintain a full-day schedule. FCPS Regulation 2412.10 states that “each student in grades K through 12 is required to maintain a full-day schedule unless a waiver has been approved in accordance with the procedures established in this regulation. Principals are responsible for ensuring that the schedule of classes of each student meets this requirement. Principals may permit a student to follow a shorter schedule on a temporary basis when necessary for the student’s welfare. A temporary basis shall be considered a time period that is no longer than nine weeks.” A “full-day schedule” at the elementary level is attendance at school from the opening bell to the closing bell each school day. If you feel it is necessary to request a waiver, you must complete form SS-SE 215, Request for Waiver of Full-Day Schedule Requirement, available at http://www.fcps.edu/it/forms/se215.pdf. The signature of the parent or guardian, along with a letter from the parent or guardian explaining in detail why the waiver is requested and how the student’s waived time will be spent. The signed application form and accompanying letter must then be returned to the principal. The school will notify you if your request is approved or denied. PAGE 3 NE WS LE T T E R T I T LE V O LU M E 1 , I S S U E 1 Interested in Running for SCA? All 5th and 6th grade students interested in running for a Student Council Association (SCA) officer position this year, will be able to complete the interest form beginning Wednesday, October 1, 2014. Detailed descriptions of the 5th and 6th grade SCA officer positions, as well as the candidate interest form, will be distributed at the interest meeting held on Wednesday, October 1 at 3:15 p.m. Interest forms must be completed and submitted to Mrs. Forbes by 9:30 a.m. Monday, October 6. EZ Menu App Interactive monthly school menus are accessible on the FCPS website and through a new mobile application called the “EZ Menu App.” The website and mobile option provide quick access to menu options and nutrition information, making it easy for parents and students to learn more about the variety of healthy food choices available. It also features quick links to ingredient and allergen information, as well as resources and services provided by FNS. The official FCPS mobile app is available in the iTunes Store and on Google Play at no cost. Features also include a link to MyLunchMoney.com to add money to student lunch accounts. SMILE, IT’S……..FALL PICTURE DAY Thursday, October 16 Look for your order form in your Tuesday folder. Please note: These are individual photos and will be used in the OES yearbook. PAGE 4 NE WS LE T T E R T I T LE V O LU M E 1 , I S S U E 1 ADVANCED ACADEMIC PROGRAMS (AAP) CONTINUUM OF SERVICES Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) offers a continuum of advanced academic services for all students in grades K -8. Learning experiences are designed to develop higher-level thinking through enrichment, acceleration, and extension of the Program of Studies (POS). Teachers, administrators, and advanced academic resource teachers (AARTs) work together to provide the following levels of services: Critical and Creative Thinking Lessons, Grades K-6 (Level I) The first level is provided to all students in grades kindergarten through grade six and consists of model lessons that are designed to teach critical and creative thinking skills. The lessons are modeled in all classrooms by AARTs and the thinking strategies are then used throughout the year by classroom teachers and other teachers who work with students. Student responses to these lessons are used as part of the identification process for levels II-IV. Parents may also practice these strategies during family conversations and activities. A description of the nine critical and creative thinking strategies can be found at http://www.fcps.edu/is/aap/level1.shtml. Differentiated Lessons in Areas of Academic Strength, Grades K-6 (Level II) The AART collaborates with classroom teachers to provide additional challenge through lessons and resources that extend and enrich the POS. Screening for this level of service is ongoing throughout the school year. The Young Scholars Model begins at this level and is designed to find and nurture advanced academic potential in students from historically underrepresented populations. Part-Time Advanced Academic Programs, Grades 3-6 (Level III) Students identified by a local school screening committee for part-time advanced academic services Level III are challenged through models and strategies designed to extend and enrich the POS in the four core subject areas. Screening for this level of service is ongoing throughout the school year. Full-Time Advanced Academic Placement, Grades 3-8 (Level IV) Students found eligible for placement in full-time Advanced Academic Programs Level IV through a central selection process receive a highly challenging instructional program in the four core subject areas. Screening for this level of service occurs in the fall for students who are new to FCPS and in the spring for all other students. The referral deadline is October 24, 2014 for students who are new to FCPS and February 3, 2015 for spring screening. Additional information is available in the Parent Information Packet, published on the AAP website, http://www.fcps.edu/is/aap. International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program (IBMYP): Selected Schools, Grades 6-10 The IBMYP is designed for students ages 11-16. The program helps students develop the knowledge, understanding, attitudes, and skills necessary to participate actively and responsibly in a changing world. The curriculum is supported by the fundamental concepts of intercultural awareness, holistic learning, and communication. Honors, Grades 7-8 Advanced and/or accelerated classes are available for students in grades 7-8 through an open enrollment process. Students receive instruction that is differentiated for advanced learners in the four core subjects in one or more areas of academic strength or interest. V O LU M E 1 , I S S U E 1 NE WS LE T T E R T I T LE PAGE 5 ADVANCED ACADEMIC PROGRAMS (AAP) CONTINUUM OF SERVICES SCREENING Multiple criteria are reviewed to determine eligibility for all FCPS advanced academic services. The local school committee determines student eligibility for part-time school-based services. The countywide central selection committee determines eligibility for full-time AAP Level IV placement. TESTING In the spring, the Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test (NNAT) is administered to all FCPS first grade students. In the fall, the CogAT- Custom Form is administered to all FCPS second grade students. During the fall testing cycle, the NNAT and/or Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) may be administered to students in grades 3 - 6 who do not have an ability test score. A second grade screening pool is established using the test results from first and second grade testing. Students in the second grade pool are automatically screened for full-time AAP Level IV placement. Parents or guardians may exercise a one-time retest option during the fall testing cycle. REFERRALS for FULL-TIME ADVANCED ACADEMIC PLACEMENT LEVEL IV (Grades 2–7) Parents or guardians of students not in the second grade screening pool may initiate the full-time AAP Level IV screening process by completing and submitting an Advanced Academic Program Level IV Referral Form to the local school principal no later than February 3, 2015. No late referrals will be accepted. Second grade students not in the pool and all students in grades 3 - 7 are screened only by referral. Forms are available on the AAP website (http://www.fcps.edu/is/aap/forms.shtml) and in the Parent Information Packet available at the local school. Parents or guardians of students who are in the second grade pool will be notified by the school. Students who are not in the second grade pool will not receive notification. The benchmark score used to create the second grade pool will be published on the AAP website mid-January. Please do not wait for test scores before submitting a referral for your student in grades 2-7 as there will be no referrals for level IV screening accepted past the February 3, 2015 deadline. If you are waiting for test scores and would like your student screened for level IV please submit the referral by the published deadline (even if you have not received the test scores for your student). PAGE 6 THE PANTHER PRESS October 2014 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 28 29 30 1 2 3 4 6:45PM-GRACE Art Docent Training (Library) 9:30AM-GRACE Art Docent Training (Cafeteria) 9 10 11 5 12 6 PTA before & after school classes begin this week 7 Interims Go Home 9:30AM-SCA Applications Due 7:00PM Odyssey of the Mind Info Session 9:30AM & 7:00PM Room Parent 7:00PM—PTA Training Reflections Arts Night SCA Campaigns Begin 13 14 15 17 Kindergarten Columbus Day Holiday 4th Grade Field Trip 2nd Grade CogAT No School 19 8 20SCA Elections 21SCA Elections 16 Fall Picture Day 2nd Grade CogAT 22SCA Elections 23SCA Elections 6:30PM Science Olympiad Mtg. 27 28 5th Gr. Field Trip 3rd Gr. Field Trip (Lyons) 3rd Gr. Field Trip (Brill/Goerkhe) 2nd Grade CogAT 7:30PM Skate Night 24SCA Elections 25 School Assembly— ”Einstein Alive” 3:00PM-PTA Mtg. 26 18 Field Trip 29 30 31 1st Quarter Ends Kindergarten Book Character Parade 2 Hr. Early Release Every Friday is SPIRIT DAY! Wear school colors.