Timberwolf Time - January 1, 2024

Welcome Back to School - 2023-2024

"It's A Great Day to be a Timberwolf""

Dear Timberwolf Families,

I want to wish everyone a wonderful winter break, a happy holiday season, and a joyful New Year.

When you return to school on January 2, 2024 -to help us ease back into school this will be a PJ Day.

With the weather getting colder, now is a good time to be prepared for potential inclement weather that may change school operations. Emergencies vary in scope, duration, and impact, and it may be necessary for Prince William County Public Schools (PWCS) to cancel, delay, close schools early, or move to remote learning. Emergency closures/delays place a burden on families and disrupt instruction, and as such, are avoided to the greatest extent practical. Below are some key things to remember to prepare for the possibility of weather impacts:

• Code Red closings may occur this year. While we have not had two-hour delays for the past couple of years, they are now being reinstated and may also occur.
• Please get to know the PWCS weather codes when closing school or delaying the opening of school.
• The safety of our students and staff is our number one priority when making decisions. PWCS reviews information from emergency management, meteorologists, and state highway administrators about road conditions, and school personnel also inspect the conditions of roads throughout the county, sidewalks, and parking lots and bus lanes.
• Decisions are made based on countywide conditions and weather forecasts to ensure the safety of all students, staff, and residents across more than 350 square miles, with significant elevation changes. This means closings or delays may occur when conditions might not seem particularly bad in your immediate area.
• Decisions are communicated as rapidly as possible. In consideration of families who need time to make proper arrangements, PWCS works to make decisions on delays and closings with as much notice as possible. Except in unusual circumstances demanding emergency measures, the decision will be made the night before, or not later than 4:30 a.m. on the morning of a closing or delay.
• It is important to keep your contact and emergency contact information up to date in ParentVUE. If you need to make changes to your contact information, please contact your child’s school.
• PWCS provides information about closings and delays in many ways including:
• Email and text messages sent to parents/guardians (using the contact information on file.)
• PWCS official social media channels: PWCS Facebook, Instagram and Twitter/X
• Alerts on the PWCS homepage and each school webpage
• Posted on PWCS-TV (channel 18 on Comcast and channel 36 on Fios)
• Area radio and television stations
• For more information, visit the PWCS Weather FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) page

When you return to school on January 2, 2024 -to help us ease back into school this will be a PJ Day.

We truly do Everything Better Together as a Community of Leaders and Learners Achieving Excellence.

I hope you all have a wonderful week.

Dr. Andrew Buchheit

Principal

#TimberwolvesROCK

“At T. Clay Wood, Everyone Belongs”

We cannot send students out without their coats during the really cold days especially when it is below 32 degrees. Please make sure they come to school each day wearing their coat.

Let's ring in the new year with some new habits!

Please join us for our next parent tea on Friday, January 12th at 10 AM.

Our School Counselors and Mental Health Team will be focusing on Proactive Parenting: Developing Habits and Fostering Leadership at Home.

Our students have a head start on being Proactive since it's Habit 1 of our 8 Habits of Happy Kids, but let the count down begin for a Proactive happy home too!

😀😃😀😃😀😃😀😃😀😃

Please RSVP to Dr. Buchheit at buchhear@pwcs.edu

On January 3, 2024 - We will have a brief behavior expectation reminder assembly. If you have any questions, please reach out to Dr. Buchheit and/or your classroom teacher.

on January 9, 2024 - Our School Counselors have arranged for the Blue Sky Puppet Theater to present the puppet show: Super Pig. Students will learn anti-bullying techniques, recognize the importance of helping others, see everyday people doing helpful things, and understand the importance of reading and writing. For more information - click here: http://www.blueskypuppets.com/superpig_storyboard.html

on April 23, 2024 - We will hold our annual I Can Assembly. The focus will be on reminding students that they can if they work hard, try their best, and persevere.

on May 9, 2024 - The PTO has arranged for a Reptile Assembly. Students will have an opportunity to see a wide variety of reptiles -including snakes.

If you do not want your student to participate in any of these activities or assemblies please let your child's teacher know.

Social Media Reminders: T. Clay Wood ES only puts up photos or videos on the Official T. Clay Wood Social Media Sites - on the T. Clay Wood Facebook, X(Twitter), Instagram, and You Tube.

You will see the following Notice on our Official Site -

“This PWCS social media account has been approved by the PWCS Communications Department.”

Social Media sites have to be approved annually by the PWCS Communication Department. Regulation 790-3 , Section B of the Attachment provides further information as well as information about Opt-Out. When filling out the Back to School Packet, information is included that discusses and references this regulation.

Dear Timberwolf families,

As we enter the second quarter, we have been asked to share the following key information to help your student(s) stay strong through the colder months and on track to have a successful school year.

Cold/Flu season is nearing

View illness or injury exclusion criteria for more information on when your student could be sent home from school/School Age Child Care (SACC) or when you should keep the child home from school/SACC.

The second quarter contains many scheduled days off for students

• December 21 – January 1 – Winter Break
  
• January 15 – Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday

We appreciate everyone’s efforts to avoid taking extra days off before and after scheduled days off for holidays. Just a few missed days here and there, even if they’re excused absences, can add up to too much lost learning time and leave your child behind in school. This is as true in kindergarten as it is in high school.

Missing 2 days a month, or 4 ½ days in a marking period, adds up to 18 days a year (10% of the school year) which is considered chronically absent. Students who attend regularly are more likely to stay on track, and we are here to support you!

Remember to report your student’s absences

As a reminder, if your student is absent, please remember to contact us at 703.594.3992 or email CWES-Timberwolf-Attendance@pwcs.edu

We want to express our gratitude to everyone who makes it possible for our students to come to school every day, on time, ready to learn. We also understand there are times when a student is sick or ill and needs to stay home. Thank you for all you do to help support your students and T. Clay Wood Elementary School.

No School! It is New Year's Day!!

Tuesday, January 2,, 2024 - Day 6

School Resumes

PJ Day

Wednesday, January 3, 2024- Day 1

Behavior Expectation Reminder Assemblies

Thursday, January 4, 2024 - Day 2

Friday, January 5, 2024 -Day 3

Habit Five - The Habit of Mutual Understanding

• People who seek first to understand, then to be understood try to completely understand another person before presenting their own point of view. Habit 5 means balancing courage and consideration and expressing our views with clarity and respect.

  Kid Language

  Listen Before You Talk: I listen to other people’s ideas and feelings. I try to see things from their viewpoints. I listen to others without interrupting. I am confident in voicing my ideas. I look people in the eyes when talking.

  Ways to practice Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood:

  • Try to go one whole hour without talking even once. Instead, just watch the people around you and listen to what they are saying. Good luck!
  • Think of someone in your life who you think is a good listener. What do they do that makes them a good listener?
  • The next time one of your friends is sad, notice his/her eyes or the way he/she holds his/her body. Tell him/her you know he/she is sad and that you want to help.

PWCS has a late bus link for buses that will be late 15 minutes or more - https://www.pwcs.edu/departments/transportation/bus_delays

You can also sign up for the Here Comes the Bus App at - https://www.pwcs.edu/departments/transportation/here_comes_the_bus

For more information about buses - please the Transportation Website -

https://www.pwcs.edu/departments/transportation/index

Our 2023-2024 PTO BOARD

President - Kate Case

VP - Kelsey Fisher

Treasurer - Beth Feliciano-Rivera

Asst Treasurer - Cooper Waterman

Secretary - Sandra Oviedo

Director - Amelia Hunter

Teacher Director - Tiana Marshall

Upcoming Dates:

Moving forward we have decided to merge the Advisory Council meetings with the PTO meetings to offer families one combined meeting to get all the information they need for happenings at the school and in the community. Due to this change, some of our meeting dates have changed. Please see the schedule posted for new meeting dates. We hope you'll be able to join us!

December 4-8 - Penguin Patch Holiday Shop

January 10 - Chipotle Spirit Night

January 18 - Advisory Council/PTO Meeting

Join Zoom Meeting

https://pwcs-zm-edu.zoom.us/j/84553248885?pwd=Z3hQMUhCSFc2ZG91Z3pOdjF1SEx1UT09

Meeting ID: 845 5324 8885

Passcode: Advisory

Please visit the PTO Facebook page and PTO website for updates and more info: https://www.tclaywoodpto.com/

Email tclaywoodpto@gmail.com for more information!

PTO Membership is still open!

Membership (tclaywoodpto.com)

As always, keep an eye on our T Clay Wood PTO facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/timberwolvesrock) and our website (https://www.tclaywoodpto.com/) for up to date information

*Every Tuesday - Every Tuesday during the school year Gainesville Papa Johns will give you 40% off your order and donate 10% back to the PTO!

We are reminding all our School Community to treat our school staff, our students, and one another with civility. Our students are always watching!

In case of inclement weather when school is closed, PWCS will provide live virtual (Synchronized) instruction to all students through ZOOM. PWCS Expectation is that all students participate. Attendance will be taken. Students must keep their cameras on to be counted as present. Instruction will take place between 9am - 2pm with 1 hour for lunch and recess time.

Prior to late fall/early winter, please make sure you are able to access the internet. Any family needing assistance with home internet should contact their school during the first month of school to receive a school-issued take-home “hotspot.” If you are not able to access the internet, please reach out to Mr. Taylor at taylorbi@pwcs.edu or 703.594.3990.

At T. Clay Wood Elementary School, we love to have visitors and volunteers every day. To help ensure the safety of our students, visitors to Prince William County Schools are expected to report promptly to the school’s main office when entering school buildings. Visitors and volunteers will be asked to provide a valid government issued photo identification. There are no exceptions. Every visitor to our school must bring with them a photo id. Visitors will then be issued a temporary identification badge. We will not permit any visitor or volunteer into the building without this identification. Our main goal is to ensure the safety and security of our students and staff at school.

If a situation occurs which makes it necessary for your child’s transportation home to change, please send in a note with your child in the morning giving clear directions as to how your child should go home at the end of the day. Only a parent/guardian can change their child’s transportation plan for any given day. A note from the parent must be received by the office AND the teacher before noon that day indicating the change. This is for the safety of the children and will alleviate any confusion at the end of the day.

Changing Dismissal Routine – Parents, if you are changing your child’s dismissal, you must send an email/note to the office or notify the office by 3:30 pm. The teacher and bus driver cannot accept a change if a student just tells him or her about the change without a note. In these cases, students are sent home the original way. In addition, please try to avoid changing dismissal procedures in the middle of the day and please send all dismissal changes to our office by calling our office at 703.594.3990 or sending a note in the morning. Emails sent to the teacher in the middle of the day may be missed if there is a substitute that day or if the teacher is not able to check his or her email.

3:30 pm - If you must pick your student up early, please arrive before 3:30 pm. We will not be able to call students to the office after 3:30 pm until all car riders are picked up. Students called for dismissal after 3:30 pm will be sent to the car rider area and will be brought up after all car riders are dismissed with the supervising teachers. This way we can reduce interruptions to the classrooms, provide continual supervision for all our students and give our focus in the office to dismissing students. Parents coming in after 3:30 pm will be asked to wait in the vestibule outside of the office and once their students are brought up to come in and sign their students out.

2023-2024 – Calendar link: https://www.pwcs.edu/calendars/school_calendar/index

You can also subscribe to the PWCS Calendar. To learn how, you can go to this PWCS Site and then follow the directions - How to Subscribe to the PWCS School Calendar

Code of Behavior link: https://www.pwcs.edu/about_us/code_of_behavior/index

Link to Family Life Education objectives and Opt out - https://www.pwcs.edu/academics___programs/science___family_life_education/family_life_education

Please take a moment to view our 2023-2024 T. Clay Wood Continuous Improvement Plan by clicking this link: T. Clay Wood 2023-2024 Continuous Improvement Plan

We have three Academic Goals this year - Increase Reading, Math, and Science Achievement Rates for all students at T. Clay Wood to at least 85% or higher.

We also are focused at increasing student satisfaction rates to 90% or higher and increasing number of active business partnerships at T. Clay Wood.

A Prince William County School of Excellence

“A Community of Leaders and Learners Achieving Excellence”

10600 Kettle Run Road; Nokesville, VA 20181

Andrew Buchheit, Principal - buchhear@pwcs.edu

Melissa Yuditsky, Assistant Principal yuditsml@pwcs..edu

“A Community of Leaders and Learners Achieving Excellence”

School hours: 9:20 am – 4:00 pm

(Office hours: 8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.)

SCHOOL SCHEDULE

Doors Open: 9:10 a.m.

Students tardy after: 9:20 a.m.

Dismissal: 4:00 p.m.

School Phone Number: 703.594.3990

School Fax Number: 703.594.2653

Attendance Email: cwes-timberwolf-attendance@pwcs.edu

Attendance Phone Line:– 703.594.3992

Motto: “I seek to make a POSITIVE DIFFERENCE AT SCHOOL”

Website: http://tclaywoodes.schools.pwcs.edu

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TClayWoodES

Twitter @TClayWoodElem

Instagram: tclaywoodelementary

Email: buchhear@pwcs.edu
Website: http://tclaywoodes.schools.pwcs.edu
Location: 10600 Kettle Run Road, Nokesville, VA, USA
Phone: 703.594.3990
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TClayWoodES
Twitter: @TClayWoodElem