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| A Newsletter for the Belle View Elementary School Community | October 2010 |
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Did You Know | |
Fairfax County Public Schools do not pay for buses for our school field trips. Belle View PTA raised ~$6000 to support field trips last year. |
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Dear Belle View Parents,
Welcome new and returning students to Belle View! The school year is off to a great start. We hope that you take advantage of the opportunities to volunteer in your child's classroom and get connected through the PTA. Research overwhelmingly supports the fact that parent involvement in the school results in better student performance. Come see and experience the learning adventures at Belle View.
Thank you to all the families that attended Back to School Night. We hope that you had a chance to meet your child's teacher and see the classrooms. You will have another opportunity to meet your child's teacher on November 1st and 2nd during Parent/Teacher Conferences. This is a great time for parents and teachers to communicate about the positive accomplishments and learning taking place for students.
As a reminder, the safety of our students is of the utmost importance to us. Be alert and use your best driving practices around the school. Please allow our school busses to have the right of way in the parking lot so they can leave the school promptly. In the Kiss-N-Ride area, please form two lines in our parking lot and take turns merging at the end when you approach the drop-off/pick-up location. We would appreciate if drivers would not use their cell phones in this area. It is also recommended that children walk to school or the bus stop in pairs. It takes every adult to ensure that our children are safe.
Sincerely,
 
Tom Kuntz Eleanor Contreras
Principal Assistant Principal |
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 Meet and Greet in the Garden
The PTA is sponsoring it's second "Meet and Greet" at the school Sunday, October 17th from 2:00-4:00. The gardens at the school have been thriving, but so have some of the weeds. We would like to invite families to come socialize and help prepare our gardens and pond for the winter.
Belle View has a new staff committee chartered to develop our schoolyard into outdoor learning spaces. The Outdoor Classroom committee is working on many ways to use our outdoor spaces, not only to teach but to connect our children to the wonders in nature that are all around them. One of the areas the committee would like the teachers to be able to use more effectively is the pond in the front of the school. To allow better student access to the pond, some of the overgrowth around the pond needs to be cleared and large stones need to be added to the area around the pond.
The committee is also drafting sample lessons for each grade which will guide the teachers in using the school's existing outdoor spaces. We have gardens, wetlands, a nature trail and many other natural environments that can be used as powerful learning environments. The committee has designated October 25-29 as "Take Your Child Outside Week." During that week, teachers will be working with the children outside as much as possible and sending home outdoor activities students can do with their families. Come and help be a part of what is growing at Belle View.
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 Junior Great Books Needs YOU!
Junior Great Books is a volunteer run language arts enrichment program offered during the school day. Its purpose is to encourage students to think more deeply and critically about what they read. It's like a book discussion group where students, through active listening, group discussion and activities, analyze why and how characters behave the way they do .
Volunteering takes as little as 1 hour per week. We will train you with a current Junior Great Books parent and then set you up with a group of approximately 8 children. We try to place you with or without your child's class as you request.
If you like working with our students and would be interested in becoming a Junior Great Books volunteer, please email Talley Fulghum at Talleyful@verizon.net Questions? Call Talley at 703.768.8232
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On Friday, October 22 from 5:30 to 8:00 PM, Belle View will be hosting its annual Bobcat Buffet in the school cafeteria. The buffet gathering is a wonderful way for parents to meet their children's friends, socialize with other parents, and get to know their children's teachers in a casual and friendly atmosphere. The families of Belle View have long cherished this fall gathering. Please bring one of your family's favorite homemade dishes to share.
Again this year, we will have the top sellers from the Fall Fundraiser enter the cash grab booth. Come and watch as they try to grab as many of the flying dollars as they can.
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 Who's Who at Belle View
Where are you from?
I am from a town called Mt. Lebanon that is right outside of Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania.
Can you tell us a little about your family?
I am not married; but I live with two friends from college in Arlington.
Where did you go to College?
I went to Penn State University in State College, Pennsylvania.
My favorite hobbies are reading, traveling to be with friends and family, and shopping.
Do you have any favorite children's books?
I have so many favorite childhood books that it's difficult to choose, but I
love Charlotte's Web, The Giver, and Walk Two Moons.
What do you do with your free time when you aren't at school?
When I'm not teaching, I like to follow Pittsburgh and Penn State sports and
spend as much time outside as I can, especially rollerblading.
How long have you been a teacher?
This is my second year teaching and my first year teaching fifth grade. Last
year, I taught first grade in State College.
What have you enjoyed most about Belle View?
So far, what I have enjoyed the most about Belle View is meeting so many new
and warm people, including my colleagues, students, and their families. It has
helped me a lot with my move to Virginia!
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Together We Can...
The Reflections Program provides students with the opportunity to create works of art for fun and recognition. This year the program's them is "Together We Can..." According to the program, "Reflections can also serve as an outlet for students to creatively explore what they are learning in the classroom. When children express themselves through words, pictures, music, dance, film, and other art media, they grow intellectually; they learn to analyze their thoughts and feelings."
The deadline for submissions is October 22nd Judging will take place the following Monday and Tuesday and the winners will be announced on Wednesday, October 27th. All questions and comments can be directed to this years Reflections Chair, Leslie Fry,
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 Mini-Walk for the Homeless on
Belle View PTA, Faculty and Staff are excited to announce that we will be hosting a mini walkathon for the homeless on Friday, October 29th from 2:30 to 3:30 on school grounds. The student and adult participants will attend a 30 minute presentation on the needs of the homeless in our area, and then we will parade around the school grounds for 15 minutes. This is an educational opportunity to raise student awareness of those in need in this community.
There are no student fund raising expectations. There is no cost to participate. Registration fees will be paid for by local Alexandria businesses, and the program is sponsored by the Fannie Mae Foundation. If all our students participate, we hope to raise more than $17,000 to help the homeless. Parents please join us. The more people who walk, the more money raised for a great cause.
In order to participate, all walkers must complete a permission slip and return it to their teachers before the event. All children participating will receive a free t-shirt.
The proceeds from this event will go to Good Shepherd Housing and Family Services, a secular organization that has served the community since 1974. It is a 501(c)(3) charitable agency that reduces homelessness, increases community support, and promotes the potential for self-sufficiency. Their award-winning programs serve the working poor, the disabled, and the elderly.
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 Odyssey of the Mind
Odyssey of the Mind is kicking off its 9th year at Belle View Elementary! This international educational program is created to aid in the expansion of creative thinking for students in grades K-12. Groups are formed by age and contain 5-7 students along with 1 or 2 coaches. Each group chooses one of the problems provided each year by the OM foundation and works on a creative solution. This program helps develop "thinking outside the box" concepts which help students throughout the rest of their lives.
Groups will begin meeting in late October through the local competition in March. (Groups winning will travel to state and then world's competition.) The deadline for registration for both participants and parent coaches is October 17th. More information about the overall program can be obtained from the website: www.odysseyofthemind.com.
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 Staff & Teacher Appreciation Breakfast Thursday, November 11th 8:30 A.M. We are quickly approaching our first Teacher & Staff Appreciation Breakfast, to be hosted by our 5th and 6th grade classes. As you are aware, there are four breakfasts held each year to show our support and appreciation for those who work so hard to make Belle View the amazing school that it is. Your students will be receiving a flyer in their Wednesday folders at the end of October as a reminder. If you have questions regarding this year's breakfasts, please contact the PTA Breakfast Coordinator, Leslie Fry at (703) 598-3487, or lesliefry@cox.net. |
Advanced Academics Date to Remember!
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 AAP Level IV Referral Form to the local school principal no later than February 4, 2011. No late referrals will be accepted. Second graders not in the pool and all third through seventh graders are screened only by referral. Forms are available on the AAP website (www.fcps.edu/DIS/gt) and in the Parent Information Packet available at the local school. (Please note: Parents or guardians of students who are in the 2nd grade pool will be notified by the school. Students who are not in the 2nd grade pool will not receive notification. The benchmark score used to create the 2nd grade pool will be published on the Advanced Academic Programs website in mid-January.)
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Student Showcase! |
 Back To Belle View
By Mia Sloan What to wear? I dislike the fact that in my mind I am thinking, it's the first day of school - wear something nice! Even though that's only in my mind, my mom also tells that to me. I am really nervous on the first day. So I search for an outfit for quite awhile and then look at the clock, it's 10 minutes until the bus comes! I rush downstairs to the kitchen where my mom gives me a bagel with cream cheese and tells me to get my backpack ready
and reminds me that I have a patrol meeting when I get off the bus. Then we walk down to the bus stop and for the first time I see friends that I had almost forgotten about. I am so happy to see people! The bus comes and we all load on and the bus takes off. There was no turning back now, we all had to go to school. When we arrive we see our other friends and as we walk toward our classrooms we all talk and laugh and then we split into our different classes. When I walk into my class room, I find my seat very fast and look at who I was sitting next to and I was in the back table next to my friend Julie and across from me was my new friend Kasey and next to him is Andrew. The first thing we do is organize our supplies and do a Social Studies scavenger hunt. Julie and I work together and we are "racing" against Kasey and Andrew to finish. Julie, Andrew, Kasey and I are laughing so hard Andrew almost falls out of his chair. After the whole class is finished we talk about our new sixth grade schedule. Then it is time to go to music. We line up and walk out the door into the hallway and go right to music. Mrs. Davis is so happy to see us. We practice our recorder song that we had gotten at the end of last school year and get our new assigned seats. Then we head to lunch. As we sit at our tables, talking and eating, I suddenly realize that this is my new family, these are the people I will be with for my last year in Belle View Elementary school and for the rest of the year. After lunch we go out to recess, it is so much fun! We get to see the other 6th grade class and the boys get to play their basketball and football. Then we go inside, return to our classroom and put together our science binder, reviewing the 3 states of matter; solid, liquid, and gas. After science it is time to go. Patrols pack up right on
time and leave. When I get off the bus all the parents are hugging their kids and asking
how their day went, for me the first day went just fine. Student Showcase is a new section of our newsletter. Each month we hope to showcase a student that has an interest in writing. |
Commit your grocery club card rewards to Belle View
This is a reminder note to either register or renew your club cards for Safeway and Giant and designate Belle View Elementary as the recipient if you have not done so already. Both stores are very generous with us and it is an easy way to raise funds for the school without spending any extra money. All you do is buy groceries and Belle View benefits. Over the last year, Belle View received over $4,000 combined from both stores. It really does make a difference. You must register to make this possible and if you have registered in the past, you need to renew annually to continue the benefits for Belle View. To register your card for the first time or just renew it with Safeway, please go to www.escrip.com . The id for Belle View Elementary is 6474005. To register your card for the first time or just renew it with Giant, please go to www.giantfood.com/aplus . The id for Belle View Elementary is 02260. Also, please encourage friends, neighbors and family members to also designate Belle View to receive the benefits from their club cards. If you need any assistance with signing up or renewing your club card, please feel free to contact Cathy Guthrie at Guthrie6714@aol.com. |
 Save the Date for Bobcat Bingo Twice a year the Belle View cafeteria is transformed into a lively Bingo hall. All the proceeds from the night go directly to the teachers for classroom supplies. Mark your calendars, this years first Bingo Night will be November 5th.
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 Your Guide to Buying School Lunch
Parents may prepay for school meals for the month, week, or day. Elementary,middle and high school students use Personal Identification Numbers (PIN). Parents may specify how payments are to be used by their children - lunch and breakfast only, or lunch and a-la-carte snacks.
Meal Payments
- online myLunchMoney.com
Easy-to-use, convenient, private, and secure. There is a convenience fee. Parents can check the fund account and usage anytime from the home computer or phone. You will need your child's student number to set this account up. If you are unsure of this number, please stop by the office and we can provide this information for you.
- Check written to Belle View Food and Nutrition Services. A detailed printout of student purchases is available upon request.
- Balances from the previous year remain in the student account and are moved to the new school for graduates to middle and high schools.
Parents are encouraged to prepay for their child(ren)'s meals so lunch money is always available.
Please be aware that if your student does not have money on their lunch account, they will be given cold cereal and milk for lunch.
Please note: FCPS no longer offers chocolate milk for student lunches. If you have questions or comments regarding this change, please send them to Kim Gallagher kim.gallagher@me.com |
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