Stratford Landing News You Choose 10/2

Safe Routes to School | Literacy Webinars | PTA Fundraisers

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Messages from Mr. Morris

At Stratford Landing Elementary, our mission is to ensure every student reaches their highest potential. A key driver behind our instructional approach is the thoughtful, intentional use of student data to guide our decision-making.

Here is how we leverage data to support your child’s learning journey, and how you can stay connected:

Partnering Through Data: You can view your child's academic data through your ParentVUE account. Additionally, during our upcoming Family Progress Conferences, we will dive deeper into the specific data points we use to tailor instruction for your child.
Proactive Communication: We believe in early and transparent communication. Through our mid-quarter interims, we keep you updated on your child’s progress and quickly alert you to any academic or behavioral concerns so we can work together as a team.
Targeted Interventions & Remediation: On October 12, during our School Planning Day, our staff will analyze beginning-of-the-year data to finalize math and literacy intervention and remediation groups.
Acceleration & Extension: Data isn't just for remediation. It also helps us identify students demonstrating mastery and growth. We use these insights to design acceleration opportunities that challenge students to reach even higher levels of achievement.

This year, we are maximizing every instructional minute to deliver targeted, specific instruction. Relevant student data is used to plan for instruction during Dolphin Time (our academic intervention block) and small groups for reading and math. Stratford Landing is already a wonderful school with dedicated teachers who make a profound impact on our students' academic and social development. By using data to fine-tune the great teaching already happening in our classrooms, we will continue pushing our students toward unprecedented levels of growth and success.

I wanted to highlight this survey for our community. Your feedback is a critical component to improving school safety, especially during high volume arrival and dismissal times. Please take the time to provide feedback to inform our safety practices. Your voice and partnership help us get all our families invovled in actively improving our safety conditions during high traffic times at Stratford Landing. Thank you.

Safe Routes to School Parent and Caregiver Survey

As part of the Fairfax County School Board’s Annual School-Based Traffic and Pedestrian Safety Assessment, the FCPS Office of Safety and Security and Safe Routes to School program are inviting parents and caregivers to share their experiences traveling to and from school.

The Traffic and Pedestrian Safety Survey asks about walking and biking routes, traffic near schools, kiss and ride experiences, accessibility, and other safety concerns.

Your feedback will help FCPS identify common issues. Your responses will be kept confidential and shared with school administrators and the Office of Safety and Security. The five-minute survey is open through Thursday, October 15.

Be sure to identify the school related to your feedback and include specific locations where you have observed a safety issue. If you have students at different schools in FCPS, please complete a different survey for each school.

If you have any questions about the survey, please contact SafeRoutestoSchool@fcps.edu.

Thank you for your ongoing partnership!

Kevin Morris, Principal

Calendar

October 5 - Dine Out with SLES at Five Guys (see PTA News section)
October 15 - AAP Continuum of Services | 6:00 to 6:45 pm. | Virtual
https://meet.google.com/ott-tzpp-iac
October 15 - Full-Time AAP Identification | 6:45 to 7:30 pm. | Virtual
https://meet.google.com/ott-tzpp-iac
October 21 - Early Release Wednesday | Dismissal 12:55pm
October 23 - Rock N' Run

Calendar Change: Eid al-Fitr

FCPS will mark the beginning of Eid al-Fitr with an evening-only observance day on Monday, March 8. There will be school on this day, but major school-sponsored events and activities (such as auditions or tryouts) will not take place.

Tuesday, March 9, will be a holiday for students and staff.

Wednesday, March 10, will be an observance day. There will be school on this day, but certain activities that cannot be made up (major tests, field trips, or mandatory events) will not take place on this day.

A new school year calendar has been published, which includes this change. Please note that holidays and observances on the calendar may shift due to anticipated lunar sightings.

Literacy Webinar Series

Fairfax County Public Schools is presenting a literacy webinar series to help families understand reading assessments, reading plans, and how to support your child at home.

Series Topics:

October 20 | 10:00 a.m. - Understanding Reading Assessments and Your Child
December 15 | 10:00 a.m. - What is a Reading Plan?
February 19 | 10:00 a.m. - How Do I Support My Child With a Reading Plan at Home?
May 14 | 10:00 a.m. - Continuing Reading Success Through the Summer.

Can't attend at these dates? Register now and a link will be emailed to you after the webinar is presented.

From The Stacks

First I wanted to say thank you to our parent volunteers for helping out in the library. There is always room for more! Please use our volunteer link or reach out to me directly at fegresham@fcps.edu. Having help in the library really helps it be a positive experience for our students which is a goal of mine. I want everyone to have the same love for the library and the gold mine of stories and ideas that it contains like I did growing up.

This week we are going to reflect on our library procedures and what it means to be a “good library citizen.”

Ellen Gresham, School Librarian

AAP Expansion

FCPS Seeks Community Input on Middle School AAP Centers

FCPS is exploring a plan to offer Full-Time Advanced Academic Program (AAP) services at every middle school. Under the proposal, students who qualify could attend their neighborhood middle school and take advanced classes with other AAP students. The School Board has approved community engagement at Franklin, Hayfield, Holmes, Key, and Whitman middle schools, where programs could open for the 2027-28 school year. The proposal is still under consideration, and the School Board is expected to make a decision in December.

Each community meeting offers in-person and virtual participation. Upcoming meetings are scheduled for:

Franklin Middle: Monday, October 5, at 6 p.m.
Holmes Middle: Thursday, October 15, at 6 p.m.
Whitman Middle: Thursday, October 22, at 6 p.m.

Current middle school students will remain at their assigned AAP centers through middle school. Learn more and find meeting sign-up forms on the Middle School AAP Centers page.

FCPS and Community Resources

Double SNAP Dollars at Farmers Markets