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Thank you to the guest readers, including Dranesville District Supervisor Bierman, who shared their time and love of reading with our students on Dranesville Loves to Read Day.
Save the Date
February 24th
3 Hour Early Release 1:05 pm
March 3rd - 7th
Read Across America Week | Scholastic Book Fair
March 4th
Late Night at the Book Fair 4:30 7:30 pm | Literacy Night 5:30 - 7:30 pm
March 7th
Book Character Day
March 17th
3 Hour Early Release 1:05 pm
Kindergarten Orientation 3:00 pm
March 28th
End of Quarter 3 | Full day
24-25 School Year Calendar
Spring 2025 SOL Assessment Dates
Attend Today, Achieve Tomorrow.
Regular, on-time attendance is a key ingredient to your child’s success. Keeping in mind that students are to stay home if they have a fever (of 100.4 or above), vomiting, or diarrhea, attending school must be a top priority.
- Regular school attendance in elementary school improves the chances that your child will read and achieve on grade level.
- Chronic absenteeism (missing 18 or more school days per year) is a primary cause of lower academic achievement even when the absences are "excused" or understandable.
- Students who attend 90% or more of the school year are more likely to graduate from high school on time.
- Absences can be a sign that a student is losing interest in school, struggling with school work, dealing with peer conflicts or facing some other potentially serious difficulty, and help is available.
If there is something impacting your child's attendance that we can support with, please call our Attendance Team at 703-326-5252. We are here to support you.
Advisory Committee for Students With Disabilities Seeks Nominations for First-Class Awards
First-Class Awards are presented each year to individuals who support, design, and/or implement inclusion activities that result in positive outcomes for students. The Advisory Committee for Students with Disabilities (ACSD) is seeking nominations for the 2025 First-Class Awards. This is a great opportunity for the community to recognize and celebrate the inclusion efforts of educators, administrators, and students who demonstrate the inclusion of students with disabilities in all facets of education.
Nominees should model excellence in their role relative to special education, have a positive impact that benefits disabled and non-disabled students alike, and be committed to creating an inclusive environment and mindset.
Nominate an administrator, staff member, student, or community partner who has made an exceptional contribution to inclusive practices in Fairfax County Public Schools.
Nominations close Wednesday, February 19.
K-12 Mathematics Basal Public Review
Fairfax County Public Schools will adopt new Mathematics Instructional Resources for the 2025-2026 (secondary) and 2026-2027 (elementary) school years. A review committee composed of community members, administrators, and teachers will be meeting to review materials submitted by vendors. The public is also invited to review materials and provide comments.
Mathematics basal instructional resources may be accessed in-person and online from February 14, 2025 – March 21, 2025, for public feedback. Those reviewing instructional materials in-person or on-line will give feedback via a digital input form.
Hard copies of instructional materials will be available for review at Willow Oaks Welcome Center Monday - Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Note: If review hours are needed outside of these hours please email [email protected]
FCPS Administrative Building 8270 Willow Oaks Corporate Dr., Suite 100 Falls Church, VA 22031
Student Fasting Meal Kits for
February 28-March 28
Thanks to a new program from the Virginia Department of Education, students who are fasting during the school day between February 28 and March 28 can now take school meal kits home at the end of the day. Families will need to fill out a weekly Fasting Meals Request Form for their child or children to receive school meal kits. A separate form must be filled out for each week and each student. To receive meal kits for Friday, February 28, and the week of March 3, please submit the request form by Monday, February 24. Visit the FNS webpage for more information, including weekly request forms and deadlines.
Meal Kit request form for meal kits February 28th - March 3 due February 24th
Reading Under the Stars
Get ready to celebrate reading with the Dranesville community during Read Across America Week, March 3rd-7th! Join us in supporting our students as they continue to reach for the stars and soar as readers.
- Scholastic Book Fair - March 3rd -7th Preview Online
- Family Literacy Night - March 4th | 5:30 - 7:30 PM
- Book Character Day - March 7th
Celebrate Purple Up! Day on April 9th
April is the Month of the Military Child, a time to honor and celebrate the resilience, courage, and contributions of FCPS military-connected children.
To show our support, FCPS will celebrate Purple Up! Day on Wednesday, April 9, 2025. On this day, school staff and students are encouraged to wear purple, symbolizing unity and support for military families across all service branches.
Purchase the FCPS Purple Up! T-shirt and/or hoodie between now and March 7 to wear on Purple Up! Day!
Kindergarten Orientation
Dranesville Elementary's Kindergarten Orientation March 17th 3:00 pm
It’s Kindergarten Registration Time!
Attending kindergarten provides children with an opportunity to learn and practice the essential social, emotional, problem-solving, and self-regulation skills they will use throughout their lives. Fairfax County public schools typically conduct kindergarten registration events, including orientation, between January and April. Eligible children can also be registered throughout the summer, but registering your child early helps us prepare and ensure we have the teachers and resources needed on the first day of school.
Families should prepare for registration by gathering documents and completing forms on the FCPS kindergarten registration webpage. FCPS offers support and resources for all families to help with registration and the transition to kindergarten. For support in other languages, visit the kindergarten registration webpage.
After the appointment at the school (the student and one guardian must be present), the student will be ready for Kindergarten Orientation at Dranesville Elementary School. Read more about the registration process. For additional information please contact our school registrar, Angela Agana, at 703-326-5200.
A strong start is Goal 1 of the 2023-30 Strategic Plan.
FCPS Issued Digital Device Expectations
Students are expected to be responsible by:
Families are critical partners in ensuring that students are honoring the expectations of using an FCPS issued device.
FCPS has tools to help parents know more about their child’s activity on any FCPS device. These tools are provided at no cost to families by Lightspeed, the school division’s internet content filtering service.
Parents may sign up for a weekly Parent Report, which will provide a list of the top sites their child visited. The report also offers parents the ability to sign up for free access to the Internet Use Parent Portal. Through the portal, parents may pause their child’s access to the internet on their FCPS device during non-school hours.
Learn more about Lightspeed Parent Reports.
Additional Technology Resources for Families.
Safe, Supported, and Ready to Learn
with Second Step
On Tuesday mornings, each of our K-6 class engages a in Second Step lesson during morning meeting time. For the past five Tuesday mornings, we have learned about the concept of Growth Mindset.
In Unit 2: Emotion Management, students are learning to recognize and identify emotions so they can mange their emotions. Learning emotional management skills supports social-emotional competencies such as goal-setting and empathy. Throughout the next four weeks, students will learn and practice strategies to identify and calm strong feelings. The Family Links below provide talking points that you may use to help your child develop emotion management skills.
Unit 2: Emotional Management English Family Links K | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5
Unit 2: Emotional Management Spanish Family Links K | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5
Learn More About How Your Child Feels at School : SEL Screener
The Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Screener will be administered to students in grades 3-12 in March. Students use the SEL Screener twice a year to share their perspectives on how well their school and community help them develop the skills they need to succeed. The screener works by asking questions or presenting statements that students can think about and respond to. This gives students a way to share how well their school community makes them feel valued, included, and supported.
After each screening, results are available in the Documents tab of SIS ParentVUE and mailed to families who do not have a ParentVUE account. For more information, including SEL Screener questions and opt-out information, please visit the Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Screener webpage.
Order Your 2024-2025 Yearbook
Yearbook orders are due on April 11, 2025. The cost of a yearbook is $20. Please order and pay online at https://ybpay.lifetouch.com/Order/ with ID 14267225. you may also pay for your child's yearbook by bringing your cash payment to the main office during school hours.
FCPS’ Construction Projects Offer Community-Wide Benefits
The Fairfax County School Board approved the annual update to FCPS’ FY 2026-30 Capital Improvement Program (CIP) at their regular board meeting last week. A CIP is a working budget document that shows the timing and costs of improvement to school buildings, such as renovations, additions, and new schools. Learn more about planned improvements. Fairfax County Public Schools’ updated plans for new school construction, capacity enhancements, and renovations are outlined in the CIP. Projects include constructing two new elementary schools; renovations at 18 elementary schools, two middle schools, and two high schools; and relocation of modular buildings.
Would you like to get the latest construction updates at Dranesville Elementary School? Sign up for our Dranesville renovation updates newsletter.
You can also check the Dranesville Elementary Capital Project page for updates about our renovation and addition. We are excited to grow with you!
Community Flyers
Herndon Reston Youth Baseball Spring 2025
Herndon Optimist Spring Flyer 2025
1515 Powells Tavern Place, Herndon, VA 20170 | Main Office: 703-326-5200
Attendance: 703-326-5252 or [email protected]
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