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Williamsburg Middle School PTA Newsletter
January 20, 2025
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From the Williamsburg Middle School PTA
Greetings Williamsburg Families,
Congratulations to our Science Fair winners
Next week the PTA will host a virtual meeting via Zoom.
As always, please feel free to contact me at president@wmspta.org.
Jill Gaspar
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Support the Williamsburg Middle School PTA
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Individual Membership, $15
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Dual/Family Membership, $30
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Class Activity Fund, beginning at $40 per student. Pay this annually and the funds will remain with your student's Class year.
Did you know the WMS PTA is a 501(c)3 organization and your donations are tax-deductible?
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WMS PTA Volunteer Open Positions
- 6th Grade Parent Activity Coordinator(s)
- Restaurant Night Fundraiser Coordinator
- Teacher Appreciation Week Co-Chair(s)
- Website Coordinator
- Volunteer Coordinator
- Nomination Committee Volunteers to seek/nominate PTA Board
If you would like to volunteer please email president@wmspta.org.
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A Message for 8th Grade Families
Hello 8th Grade Parents!
This year is flying by and our kids will be moving onto high school before we know it!
Please SAVE-THE-DATES on your calendars for the following 8th Grade events:
- Boardwalk Beach Carnival at WMS - Friday, June 6, 2025, from 6 pm – 8 pm, parents to drop off/pick up at the school, children to dress in boardwalk/beach attire (no swimsuits);
- Kings Dominion Day Trip - Thursday, June 12, 2025, from 8 am - 6 pm, buses transport children to/from school;
- Graduation/Promotion Rehearsal at WMS - Monday, June 16, 2025 at 7:50 am, parents to drop off at school; and,
- Graduation/Promotion Ceremony at WMS - Tuesday, June 17, 2025 at 8:15 am, parents to attend. Families receive 2 tickets only!
For our Boardwalk Beach Carnival, we will reach out closer to the event with a Sign Up to recruit parent volunteers and obtain donations to make the event fun and fabulous for our 8th Graders!
For the other events, the school administration is mainly involved and organizing them, but as soon as we know more, we will contact everyone!
In the meantime, if you have not donated to the 8th Grade Activity Fund yet but plan to do so, please do so now! Our budgets for the above events come directly from the activity fund for our class. We'd like to be able to solicit few donated items so that our children AND their parents can enjoy these events as stress-free as possible! There is a video on our PTA website that shows how we use the Class Funds for our fall and spring festivals as well as for our 8th Grade events.
Here is the link for your contribution if you plan to donate and have not done so, please make sure to mark your donation for 8th Grade - PTA Membership
8th Grade Activity Coordinators,
Kelly Jones, Leigh Taylor, Courtney Holmes, Melanie Mickelson
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Arlington Special Education (SEPTA) Monthly Meeting - Jan. 23
The Ins and Outs of IEP Meetings with Kathleen Gibson, PEATC
Thursday, January 23, 2025
7:00 – 8:30 p.m.
Syphax Education Center
2110 Washington Blvd., Room 454
Or online via Zoom
Following SEPTA business, join Kathleen Gibson, Early Childhood Specialist from the Parent Educational Advocacy Center (PEATC) to discuss the ins and outs of IEP meetings. This presentation will help prepare parents for what to expect in the IEP meeting, the importance of measureable IEP goals, and how to have a productive, student-focused meeting. From pre-planning before the meeting to working together afterwards, this presentation will help participants learn how to build relationships while focusing on the needs of the student.
Learn more about the Parent Educational Advocacy Center (PEATC) and its incredible resources at https://peatc.org.
RSVP: https://forms.gle/JXfsFNatih85T3Ey7
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Marjorie Hughes Fundraiser for Uninsured APS Kids - Jan. 25
Come on out and support the www.marjoriehughesfund.com while listening to some great music.
World famous dad band RelaxedFit will be playing:
Ballston Local
January 25th
8:00
The Marjorie Hughes fund helps low-income Arlington Public School students with expenses relating to vital medical and dental needs. We help keep kids healthy. We help keep kids in school.
If you can’t make it, please consider donating - 95% of each dollar donated goes directly to students.
CLICK HERE for the flyer.
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A message from the Arlington Outdoor Lab
Have your students recently participated in an Outdoor Lab field trip and returned raving about their adventures? Or maybe they’re already looking forward to their spring overnight trip.
Did you know that the Outdoor Lab is supported by a non-profit, the Arlington Outdoor Education Association (AOEA)? The AOEA owns and stewards the 226 acres of land students visit during 3rd, 5th, and 7th grades. We also build and maintain the buildings – including the Animal Lab. We are thrilled that generations of Arlington students have benefitted from this strong partnership.
At the Outdoor Lab, students engage in hands-on STEM applications by applying what they learn in the traditional classroom to real life situations. The Outdoor Lab welcomes all APS families to visit and experience the Lab at our twice-yearly Open Houses.
To find out about our Spring 2025 Open House, and stay informed on other happenings and ways to support the Lab, please join our Lab Notes email list or visit www.OutdoorLab.org. See our calendar here: Calendar - Arlington Outdoor Lab.
You can also find us on Facebook (Outdoor.Lab) and Instagram (@arlingtonoutdoorlab).
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Williamsburg MS - Arlington Food Assistance Center (AFAC) Food Bus Program - UPDATE
The WMS community has been incredibly generous with their time supporting the Food Bus to transport donated, unopened food every week to AFAC.
There are a few remaining openings to help deliver food to AFAC at the end of the week in January and in the Spring. Parent volunteers can sign up here!
This partnership provides for our community's food insecure, diverts food waste, and promotes a culture of giving among the entire student body. Last school year, we donated more than 1,500 lbs of food to AFAC that would have otherwise been thrown away! It is SUPER easy, a great lesson for our children, and it feels good to help our community!
AFAC is located at 2708 S Nelson St, Arlington, VA 22206.
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Sixth Grade Families
Sixth grade parents have been coordinating get togethers for the sixth graders and their parents and would love to connect with any additional parents of sixth graders. If you have a sixth grader but are not currently on the google spreadsheet directory, please reach out to Liz Milans at pehickam@yahoo.com to be added. The spreadsheet is used to send the communications about upcoming gatherings.
So far the group has enjoyed a meet up at Ocean Dunes, moms lunch at Lebanese Taverna, ice skating, a mother/daughter dinner and a movie at Arlington Drafthouse, and a girls snow tubing trip (picture above)! We look forward to the next activity! Thanks!
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APS & Community Announcements and Events | |
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A reminder that APS Community Engagement Opportunities are available online with automatic translation into: Español Монгол አማርኛ العربية (Other languages)
Events are updated online throughout the month so check our website for the most updated information.
Upcoming APS Community Engagement Opportunities:
Thu. Jan 30 APS Teen Health Fair. Wakefield High School, 1325 S. Dinwiddie Street, Arlington, VA 22206. The health fair will offer: Free Health Exams Teen Immunizations Resource Fair for Teens and their Families Register online or contact your school nurse.
Arlington Parks & Rec Announces 2025 Summer Camp Registration Dates
Arlington Parks & Rec is excited to announce the registration dates for 2025 Summer Camps in Arlington County!
• Feb. 3—Early registration for those who are enrolled in DPR’s fee reduction program
• Feb. 12—Registration for camps led by our partners
• Feb. 19—Registration for Parks & Rec Camps
Registration starts at noon each day.
Visit our summer camps webpage to sign up for our Camps Updates newsletter to get notified when the catalog is ready and stay informed on other important announcements!
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Arlington Parks & Rec Fee Reduction Nights. Did you know Arlington Parks & Rec provides fee reductions for summer camps, programs, memberships, and more? Whether you have a short-term set back or something longer term, join us on Thurs. Jan. 23 from 6-8 p.m., or Thurs. Jan. 30 from 12-2 p.m. at Arlington Mill Community Center to get your household signed up, just in time for Summer Camp registration starting this February! Learn more here.
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Have content for a future PTA Newsletter? Send it to our Communications VP by Thursday and it will appear in the following week's newsletter. | | | | |
