Dragon Tales

Arcola Families,

I'd like to give a HUGE SHOUTOUT to all our students who arrived to school on time this week! Whether it was choosing to ride the bus or leaving the house a little earlier, the added effort was definitely noticed and very much appreciated! Seeing car riders step off the bus in the mornings was a wonderful sight, only made better by some of the comments I heard, "I'm gonna be a bus rider now!" and "It's so much better not being the last one to my class!"

Roary was also VERY HAPPY to see a significant reduction in tally marks this week! Drumroll please...the daily average dropped from 30 to 17 - that's a HUGE!!! Let's keep the momentum going!

The annual Soccer Scuffle is quickly approaching, and we are so excited!! This popular event features a friendly game of line soccer between our staff members and fifth graders. There's nothing better than seeing the bleachers filled with families supporting our school community, so please join us and make some NOISE!!! This is a FREEEEEE Event, so bring the whole family! Concessions will be available for purchase, so bring your appetites!

All 5th graders who would like to play are welcome to play! Plan to be there between 5:30-5:45 if you are planning to play!

I hope you have enjoyed watching the weekly videos of "Story Share with Mr. Stevens!" The students have responded really well to this new segment, and have submitted some fantastic questions. It's been a great way for me to connect with them on a more personal level.

If you still need to order a yearbook, scan the QR code on the flyer right below this message.

Dates to Remember:

• 2/26 - Spring after school enrichment enrollment ends
• 2/29 - Foster's Grille Spirit Day from 11:00 - 9:00 PM

We hope to see you soon!

Andrew Y. Stevens

Principal

andrew.stevens@lcps.org

We need YOU to support one of Arcola's favorite events of the year: THE SOCCER SCUFFLE!!! See below for detail on how, when, and where to help out.

SEE YOU AT THE GAME!

• Event Date: Friday, March 8th, 6:30-8:30pm @ John Champe HS
  
• Set Up: 5-6:30pm / Clean Up: 8:30-9pm
  
• Sign Up & SHARE link: Soccer Scuffle Volunteer & Donation Link
• All donations to be dropped off at Arcola Office by wed Mar.6th

We want to ensure that every LCPS family is made aware of the STEM opportunities that will be available to them in the coming years at the Academies of Loudoun.

The Office of Admissions and Outreach has created a video that contains important information about our curricular programs, the admissions process and the criteria associated with applying to the Academies of Loudoun.

If you have any questions or need assistance, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the Office of Admissions and Outreach at (571) 252-1992 or at AcademiesAdmissions@lcps.org

Link to 5th Grade parent video: https://vimeo.com/671215445

We need to hear from you!

The LCPS Annual Family Survey was emailed on February 20. The LCPS Annual Staff, Student and Family Survey is the most extensive and influential feedback survey conducted by Loudoun County Public Schools each year. We use the results to assess the learning climate in our building and make plans for the following year. We want to hear from everyone so that we can make the best decisions for ALL our students!

The parent/family survey will only take a few minutes of your time. You will receive an email from Dr. Aaron Spence that will include a link to take the survey. You will be asked to fill out a survey for each school in which you have a child enrolled (elementary, middle, high or program). For more information go to the Stakeholder Surveys 2024 Information webpage

If you do not receive a survey email by February 22, contact research@lcps.org.

Thank you for sharing your opinion with us!

The Virginia Department of Education’s (VDOE) Office of Student Assessment, has created new Virginia Growth Assessment (VGA) Reports to increase ease of understanding the assessment information for parents/guardians.

Notice the new report includes fall and winter 2023 vertical scaled scores, as well as VDOE’s parent and caregiver resources. This report, combined with teacher input, classroom work, report cards, and the VGA Student Detail by Question Reports (SDBQ), which are already uploaded into the Documents Tab of ParentVUE, are intended to give families an expanded picture of student progress. At this time, vertical scaled scores on these reports are not necessarily indicative of where your student will score on the spring SOL assessments.

Please reach out to your student’s teacher for more information.

Score reports and assessment results for the Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) Reading and/or Math tests are now available in ParentVUE.

The Test History tab will show your student’s national percentile rank, which is the percentage of students across the United States, in the same grade, that had a MAP score less than or equal to your student's score. For example, a third-grade student with a national percentile rank of 49 has a MAP Growth score that is equal to or higher than 49% of all third graders nationally who took MAP within the same time period.

The Documents tab will show your student’s Student Progress Report, which breaks down their instructional readiness score into skill subgroup scores and shows their growth across the current school year.

Do you have a child who will enter kindergarten next year? Or do you know someone who is new to LCPS? The online pre-registration portal for kindergartners and all new students is open! Once pre-registration has been submitted, the school will contact parents/guardians to schedule a registration appointment. Parents/guardians may also contact their zoned school directly. Registration appointments will occur starting March 1. Pre-registration is only for:

• Students, grades kindergarten to 12, who are new to LCPS

• Current LCPS pre-kindergarten students entering kindergarten

• Students who were formerly enrolled and may be returning to LCPS

• Test Drive Dates:
• March 20th, 2024 (you must attend this test drive if you did not attend the first one)
• Sign up for a test drive here: click here
• Please plan to stay the whole allotted specific time that you sign up for, meet us at the front of the school and we will start in the auditorium
• 6th grade is the only grade you can join band! come check out the test drive if you want to see what MMS band is like!
• Test Drives are for Band instruments only: flute, oboe, clarinet, alto saxophone, trumpet, french horn, baritone/euphonium, tuba, percussion

HRTD is proud to announce the LCPS Instructional Awards program. Included in these recognitions are the following, including four new award categories:

• Professional Employee of the Year

• Administrative Support Employee of the Year

• Instructional Support Employee of the Year

• Student Services Support Employee of the Year

• Substitute of the Year

A complete list of job titles included in each award division can be found here: LCPS Instructional Awards- eligible positions

With the addition of these four categories, all school-based employees are now eligible for an award! We encourage all schools to submit at least one nomination.

Nominations can be submitted by staff, parents, students and/or community members for an outstanding employee based on their exemplary performance. Self-nominations will not be accepted. A selection committee composed of current LCPS staff members and community members will review nomination materials and use a standardized rubric to determine winners. Performance and past evaluations will be considered.

2023-2024 LCPS Instructional Awards Nomination Form

Completed nomination forms must be received by 5:00pm on Friday, March 22, 2024. If you have questions, please contact Carrie.Simms@lcps.org

Loudoun County Public Schools is offering new resources for all staff and parents/guardians to use to support students through www.parentguidance.org. You can learn more about this initiative by clicking here.

These resources include easily accessible video-based courses on difficult parenting topics, individualized parent coaching for any LCPS parent/guardian, on their schedule in their home, and weekly interactive webinars to let parents know the mental health needs of our students are a critical concern of Loudoun County Public Schools. Your unified mental health team members are ready to assist parents in accessing the support. You can watch this video about the services available.

Beginning January 29th, LCPS will launch Care Solace, a care coordination service to help students, staff, and families find mental health and substance use treatment matched to their needs. Care Solace’s multilingual and culturally sensitive Care Companion™ team is available 24/7/365 to quickly connect individuals to community providers regardless of need.

How Students, Staff & Families Can Access Care Solace Services:

Care Solace is available to all members of the LCPS community – staff, students and their families – and can be accessed by calling (888) 515-0595 at any time. A dedicated Care Companion™ will help research treatment options matched to their needs, secure appointments, and follow up to ensure satisfaction with the provider and treatment.

Staff and family members can also search for help on their own at: https://www.caresolace.com/loudoun

Resources:

Care Solace Admin Best Practices Information

Marketing Materials - English and Spanish

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1h1G4bxRUMDAkf35Qv-k5AFd0QsVIqJrY/view

When you sign up for the Shop to Give program through Givebacks, Arcola PTA will receive a donation every time you shop or dine at over 25,000 participating merchants - at no cost to you! Plus, we’ll receive a $5 bonus donation after your first qualifying purchase!

Simply sign up, link your card for in-store offers, and add the desktop and mobile browser extensions for online offers.

SIGN-UP TO SUPPORT ARCOLA PTA WITH SHOP TO GIVE: https://www.givebacks.com/join/arcola

Take a look below for info on LCPS Family Workshop

As you plan ahead and/or if you had to take a trip during the school year, please use next year's calendars (LCPS has the next few years planned) to plan the leave around already scheduled days off from school to minimize the days missed of school. We know you agree that it is imperative for your students to be here every single day. Yet, we also know that other aspects of real life occur and it might be nice to know the days for next year (or the year after) to perhaps plan around with the LCPS scheduled days off of school. Please see below for next year's calendar and/or go HERE for more information and subsequent year calendars.

LCPS 2024-2025 Calendar