Knight's News

Dear Westridge Families,

As we wrap up the first week of the second quarter, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude for the incredible support and collaboration that made this transition so smooth. Your commitment to our school shines in countless ways, and today was no exception. Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Veterans Day assemblies - your presence added so much meaning! To our veterans and their families, we extend our deepest appreciation for your service and sacrifice.

Our dedicated teachers are working tirelessly to foster a learning environment where every child is engaged, challenged, and supported. This week, as I visited classrooms, I was continually inspired by the creativity, critical thinking, and enthusiasm your children bring to their work. These moments affirm the power of our partnership with you - when we work together, our students thrive in ways that are truly inspiring.

Wishing you all a wonderful three-day weekend and a very happy Veterans Day! I look forward to returning on Tuesday, ready to continue our journey toward excellence! With high expectations and a strong partnership, I am confident that we will see tremendous growth for every student this year. Thank you for being such an essential part of this journey.

Warm Regards,

Steven Wilson - Proud Principal

• November 11 - Veterans Day Holiday (No School)
• November 25 - Multicultural Night from 6 to 7:30PM
• November 27 through 29 - Thanksgiving Break (No School)
• December 23 through January 3 - Winter Break (No School)

As we enter the second quarter, we would like to share some 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 the when to keep students home webpage 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. 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.

Remember to report your student’s absences

As a reminder, if your student is absent, please remember to contact us at (703) 590-3711 or by emailing the classroom teacher or Front Office Secretary Diana Cannon at cannondl@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.

The Impact Aid survey is now open and available for completion in ParentVUE. All parents should complete this survey as soon as possible. Please visit the PWCS Federal Impact Aid website for instructions on how to complete the survey. For assistance with your ParentVUE account, please contact the school. If you have not completed the Impact Aid survey, please do so by November 30, 2024. The following are a few key facts to provide you further information about Impact Aid:

• School districts with military installations or other federal lands within their boundaries lose local revenue because of nontaxable federal activities. Impact Aid funding partially reimburses school districts for this loss of locally derived revenue.
• Examples of eligible federal properties include national parks, military installations, and federal office buildings but there are many more.
• Federally connected and military connected are not the same. Parents can be federally connected but are not military connected. This is why it is important for ALL parents to complete the Impact Aid survey.
• Parent information captured on the Impact Aid survey is used solely to submit the Impact Aid application.
• Since enrollment changes and students move from year to year, the U.S. Department of Education requires school districts to count students annually. With that said, parents should complete a new Impact Aid survey every school year.

During the month of December, the school counseling department will be presenting a Family Life Education (FLE) Body Safety lesson in your child’s classroom. In accordance with the Code of Virginia, the FLE program is designed to provide students with the knowledge and skills to make informed, responsible decisions related to growth and development; communication and relationships; and emotional and social health. Although the FLE program is highly compatible with existing curricula and serves to enrich the educational experiences of students, FLE content may be considered sensitive. Therefore, parents/guardians may choose to opt their child out of this FLE instruction. Students opted out will be provided with non-punitive activities during FLE instruction. Parents/guardians should review the FLE objectives (listed below) pertaining to their child’s grade before making opt out decisions.

If you would like to review the lesson materials, they can be accessed at https://pwcs.instructure.com/courses/342716 . If you determine your child should not be included in this specific FLE lesson, please either email your child’s counselor with the subject line “FLE opt out” or return the attached form below to your child’s teacher no later than 11/26/2024. Unless you indicate otherwise, your child will be included in this FLE lesson. You do not need to return the form if you wish for your child to participate in this specific instruction. If you have questions about this lesson, please contact Mrs. Oppenheim for grades 1st, 2nd, or 5th at oppenhlb@pwcs.edu or Mrs. Loar for grades K, 3rd, or 4th at loarge@pwcs.edu.

Please note that this OPT OUT Form is only for the Body Safety lesson and for the specific grade level objective listed below.

We encourage you to discuss this topic with your child before the presentation, so that they can be prepared to receive the information and process their thoughts and feelings about it.

Virginia Family Life Education Body Safety Standards of Learning by Grade Level

Descriptive statements for these objectives can be found on the Virginia Department of Education FLE website:

https://www.doe.virginia.gov/teaching-learning-assessment/instruction/family-life-education

Additional information on FLE standards of learning can be found on the PWCS FLE Department webpage:

https://www.pwcs.edu/academics___programs/science___family_life_education/family_life_education/index

Kindergarten

K.6 The student will develop an awareness of positive ways in which family members show love, affection, respect, and appreciation for each other.

K.7 The student will realize that physical affection can be an expression of friendship, of celebration, or of a loving family.

K.8 The student will recognize the elements of good (positive or healthy) and bad (negative or unhealthy) touches by others.

K.9 The student will demonstrate how to say "no" to inappropriate approaches from family members, neighbors, strangers, and others.

First Grade

1.11 The student will realize that physical affection can be an expression of friendship, of celebration, or of a loving family.

1.12 The student will demonstrate strategies for responses to inappropriate approaches from family members, neighbors, strangers, and others.

Second Grade

2.6 The student will realize that physical affection can be an expression of friendship, of celebration, or of a loving family.

2.7 The student will advance in readiness to say "no" and to tell a trusted adult, such as a parent, teacher, minister, grandparent, or guardian, in private about inappropriate approaches from family members, neighbors, strangers, and others.

Third Grade

3.11 The student will demonstrate to others how to respond appropriately to good touches and how to handle inappropriate approaches from relatives, neighbors, strangers, and others.

Fourth Grade

4.7 The student will describe the factors surrounding child abuse and child neglect.

Fifth Grade

5.12 The student will recognize threatening or uncomfortable situations and how to react to them.

The Principal’s Advisory Council (PAC) offers a meaningful platform for parents and teachers to come together, share insights, and collaborate on valuable feedback to guide our school’s Continuous Improvement Plan (CIP). We warmly invite all Westridge families to join us for our next PAC meeting on December 17, 2024, from 6:00 to 7:00 PM in the WRES Library. Whether or not you serve as an officer, your voice and perspective are vital in strengthening our school environment and advancing our commitment to student success, school culture, and a positive climate.

If you have any questions or suggestions in advance of the meeting, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Principal Steven Wilson directly. Your engagement and support are truly appreciated, and together, we’re making Westridge a place where every student can thrive!

Thank you for being such an important part of our community. We look forward to working with you!

The PWCS Food and Nutrition Department is Hiring!

Are you tired of working evenings and weekends? Would you like to be off during your child’s school breaks? Are you looking for a job that truly has an impact on your community? Consider working for PWCS Nutrition!

The PWCS Food and Nutrition Department is seeking passionate, dedicated, fun-loving applicants for all areas of the county. We strive to provide wholesome, enjoyable, high quality, nutritious meals to our students, so they can be ready to learn and take full advantage of the educational opportunities provided to them. The work we do is important, and the people who do it are inspiring. If these values are important to you too, become part of our team!

The number of hours needed varies by school. Most shifts fall between 9am and 3pm. Employees have weekends, evenings, school holidays/breaks, and snow days off. In addition, PWCS Nutrition employees received free school lunch every day they work! The starting pay is $15.83 an hour, and there are opportunities for growth and advancement!

Ready to join us? Go to https://jobs.pwcs.edu/Jobs/ and choose “Classified – FOOD SERVICE” from the job type drop down menu. Click the job link you are interested in applying for, and then click “log in to apply.” For help with the online application, contact Human Resources at 703-791-8050.

If you have questions or need additional information, please contact the PWCS Food and Nutrition Department at 703-791-7314. We look forward to hearing from you!

You are Invited to the PWCS Food and Nutrition Department’s Food Show!

Join us at the table! Are you interested in shaping the future of school lunch at PWCS?! The Food and Nutrition Department is hosting their Annual Food Show on Thursday, November 14th, from 6-8pm at Patriot High School! PWCS students, families and staff are encouraged to attend this free event to taste test new recipes and provide their feedback! Winning recipes from PWCS Nutrition’s Recipe contest will also be featured at the Food Show! If you are interested in attending, RSVP using the following link: https://forms.office.com/r/af7TKSBFJk or call 703-791-7314.