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eNews
is taking a holiday next week, but will be in your inbox again
Thurs, Nov 12
. Enjoy the four-day weekend!
Do you have great homecoming photos of our seniors?
How about senior photos from fall activities such as sports, band, chorus, MUN, It
'
s Academic, or Saxon Stage? The s
enior picnic or field trip?
Our next Senior Class Coffee will be Jan 7 at Trinity United Methodist Church, 1205 Dolley Madison Blvd. (Use Main Office entrance, and go upstairs to Langley Hall). Coffee served at 9:20 am and speaker begins at 9:30 am. Save the date!
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quick links
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Activities
703.287.2750
Attendance Line
703.287.2727
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At a point which now seems long, long ago, I supported the concept of No Child Left Behind. Then . . . I had kids.
Earlier this week, the President met with educators around the country to discuss curbing the number of standardized tests students are required to take. Since elementary school, our children have taken eCARTs, CogAT, Iowa and Naglieri tests, SOLs, WISC IV, PALS, and now PSATs, ACTs, SATs, AP exams and SAT subject tests. Some testing is obviously necessary, even critical, to student success, but when six-year-olds participate in
"drill and kill"
sessions to be successful on standardized tests, I have to wonder to what end?
I
'
m not sure those sessions helped my children to love learning, presumably a goal of any school.
Over the last few years, Virginia has tweaked some SOLs, and scores predictably declined the first year of the new format. Students couldn't understand why they passed advanced one year and failed the next. Eventually I stopped sharing my kids' test results with them. Why ruin their summers with the results of a test they took in May that had no correlation to their grades or what kind of students they are?
I wish the White House and Congress the best of luck as they attempt to figure out how much testing is too much. Next Tues, Nov 3, we have the opportunity to vote for State Senate, State Delegate and School Board. All of these elected officials play a part in defining what testing in Virginia and FCPS will look like in the future. Finding the right balance between high standards and reasonable workloads and administering only the tests necessary to measure comprehension is a constant challenge.
I recently read that students who take time off from studying actually retain more information and perform better, so enjoy this four-day weekend with your children, and go do something fun!
~ Terri Markwart, PTSA President
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last chance for a toy nomination
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Teacher of the Year (TOY) is the top honor FCPS bestows to those in the teaching profession. The winner, finalists, and nominees are all recognized at the annual FCPS Honors awards ceremony. The winner receives the Agnes Meyer Outstanding Teacher Award from the Washington Post, and competes for the VA Dept of Education State Teacher of the Year Award.
Parents, students, administrators and teachers are invited and encouraged to nominate a deserving teacher for this prestigious award. Click
here
for nominating forms, which can be dropped off at the main office or emailed to Lorraine Bucy at
lorrainebucy@aol.com
. Nominations are due no later than Fri, Nov 6. The PTSA will honor the Teacher of the Year and finalists at a reception Nov 18.
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We could not have asked for a more beautiful day to host our PTSA Teacher Appreciation Lunch. A big thank you to our hospitality committee:
Kiersten
Allen, Gilly Basco, Aradhana Luthra, Susan Bourgeois, Allison Gardiner Wolverton, Ann Goettman, Jennifer Feinstein, and Clare Bradshaw. And thanks to El Tio restaurant of McLean!
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new student services
team member
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Please extend a warm welcome to Tracy Ballard, the long-term school counselor substitute for Mrs. McKain, who has taken a leave of absence to help with her daughter
'
s medical issues. Mrs. Ballard, a licensed school counselor, worked at Hayfield HS last year.
She began work last week and is excited to work with Langley students. Her email address is
tmballard@fcps.edu
.
Welcome to Langley, Mrs. Ballard!
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national merit semifinalists
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Langley's National Merit semifinalists are Shanell Fan, Yasmin Khodaei, Tyler Larkworthy, Nikhil Sakhamuri, Jing Wang, and Lyric Yu.
Congratulations!
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Some freshmen may describe their history classes as dull, but
no one shakes up a classroom like the enthusiastic Ryan Jackson. The classes he teaches are both fun and educational. He explains,
"
Laughter is important
. . .
hopefully there
'
s a fair amount of laughter and enjoyment in addition to learning a lot of content.
"
Growing up, Mr. Jackson
says, "
History was always a subject I enjoyed and found interesting and easy in school, but I never thought about doing anything with it.
"
He originally studied marine science before deciding on a different career path. As he describes it,
"
At the age of 20, I kind of needed to start college over again
."
Mr. Jackson faces struggles in the classroom, too. He says it's a challenge to deal with
"
students who are disinterested
. . .
and how to reach kids who don
'
t seem to care about much
." H
e suggests to students,
"
Experiment with different classes
. . .
join clubs, join activities
. . .
there are so many opportunities
."
Outside the classroom, Mr. Jackson likes to read, do yoga, and spend time with friends and family. His outlook on life is very positive.
"
Regret is so negative . . .
move on and improve,
" he says.
His advice for Langley students is simple, but particularly resonant:
"Be yourself, be engaged . . . and don't be afraid."
~ Marisa Mihori, Saxon Scope reporter
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distracted driving simulation
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The average text takes 4.2 seco
nds to read.
If you're trav
eling at 55 mph while reading that text,
you have traveled the length of a football field! During all lunch periods on Oct 22, representatives from AT&T, State Farm, and INOVA Fairfax talked with students about distracted driving and provided games and simulators students used to experience the consequences. Students were reminded that distracted driving is anything that takes your eyes and attention from the road, including using your phone, changing the radio, eating, or talking to friends in the car. Click here for the McLean Patch article on this event.
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LHS Spanish Honor Society (SHS) students Grace Stevens, Noor Alathari, Megan Wilkins, and Ashley Long participated in the first Games & Conversation workshop with fourth grade students at Lake Anne Elementary in Reston last week.
SHS
students will go Lake Anne once a month to connect with 16 fourth-graders in an after-school program focusing on speaking Spanish through conversation, games, cultural activities, and reading.
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Please join the
Leadership Honor Society's
snack food drive for the
Walter Reed-USO Warrior
and
Family Center
in Bethesda. We are collecting the following specific items for donation:
Mini Rice Krispy Treats, individual bags of Lays chips, mini fruit cups, individual packs of crackers (cheese, peanut butter, etc.), individual Quaker Oatmeal packets/cups, individual packs of cookies (mini Nabisco packs, single packs of Oreos/Chips Ahoy etc.), Quaker Chewy Granola Bars or Nature Valley Granola Bars, fruit gummy snacks, Nutri-Grain Bars, ground coffee (decaf and regular), hot chocolate, bite-size candy bars, and individual cups of noodles.
Please bring your items to the box located in
Ms. Roche's room 290 until
Nov 19. Contact
Ms. Roche
JBRoche@fcps.edu with questions.
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special ed resources and accommodations
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sat/act/ap test accommodations: Does your student have a 504 plan or an IEP? Do they regularly receive accommodations when taking a test? Your student may be eligible for accommodations on College Board or ACT tests. Please join us Thurs, Nov 12 at 7 pm in the library to learn about requirements for accommodations. RSVP by Nov 9 to mdsimon1@fcps.edu so handouts can be provided.
fcps parent resource center:
Mark your calendar for the following workshops and events.
Click here for a complete list of activities, details, flyers, and to register.
For information on the FCPS Parent Resource Center, including the Twice-Exceptional Newsletter and a parent resource guide, click
here
.
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service learning opportunities
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Oct 31
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Stop Hunger Now at
Lutheran
Redeemer School.
Sign up here.
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Nov 1
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Eddie
'
s Club:
Partner with a special needs teen at this
recreation
club.
For more
info visit
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Nov 2
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School Bond Referendum: Volunteers pass out bond information at area schools.
Contact Amy Prewett at
acprewett@yahoo.com
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Nov 2-3
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Columbia Baptist Food Pantry: Clean up the gardens. T
o sign up, get directions and a permission form, if necessary, email
Georgi Hall at
georgi.hall@verizon.net.
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senior nights
:
Volleyball Senior Night is Thurs, Oct 29
beginning around
6:45 pm.
Game time is
7:15 pm
vs McLean. Seniors to be honored are: Maddy Baldwin, Jessica Donaldson, Stephany Rivero-Anez, Katie Sissler, Kristian Stanford, and Catherine White.
The
Football, Band, Cheer, Dance
and
Madrigals Senior Nights
are
Fri, Oct 30
beginning at 6:15 pm. And this is the last home football game of the season!
Winter sports tryouts begin Mon, Nov 9. All eligibility requirements must be met to be eligible to try out. Click
here for information.
All requirements should be completed no later than Fri, Nov 6 by 12 pm.
Visit
langleysports.org for updated game schedule, field directions, and other information. Come out and support your fellow Saxons! Visit
langleyboosters.org for membership, booster wear, Saxon sales and sponsorships. Follow us on
Twitter @langleysports!
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Which will you score higher on -- the new SAT or the ACT? Experiment with both for free on National Practice Test Day. Click here for information on how to take the test live online or in person.
November dates available from Kaplan Test Prep.
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The School Board has approved a request from the Board of Elections and schools will open two hours late on Tues, Mar 1 to accommodate an anticipated increase in voter turnout for the 2016 presidential primary.
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Oct 30
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Two-hour early dismissal
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Nov 2-3
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Student holidays (teacher workdays)
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Nov 12
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SAT/ACT accommodations info night, 7 pm
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Nov 14
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Future Quest
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Nov 19-21
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Fall play Almost, Maine
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| Nov 25 |
Two-hour early dismissal
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| Nov 26-27 |
Thanksgiving holiday!
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