ST. AGNES FROM A TO Z: 2004-5

This is an unofficial list created by the PTO Welcome Committee to answer questions frequently asked by new families. Any word that appears in bold within a paragraph is a cross-referenced term that is defined separately in this list.

All Saints' Day : Every year the school celebrates All Saints' Day with Mass. Traditionally the 1 st grade children dress up as saints.

Announcements : School announcements, which include the morning prayers and Pledge of Allegiance, begin each morning at 8:20. Children should be in their classrooms by 8:15 a.m., ready to start the day. If your child is late, he/she must stand quietly in the hallway during announcements. Parents must walk tardy children to the office to get a tardy slip before the child may proceed to the classroom.

Auction : This is the school's biggest fund-raiser and is run by the PTO. The Auction will be held on February 12, 2005, and includes dinner, entertainment, a silent auction and a live auction. Save the date; it is a very fun evening! Plans are well underway, and you will hear more about it throughout the school year. This is a great volunteer opportunity and a fun way to make new friends. The Auction Committee's goal is 100% participation from school families.

Backpacks : They should be large enough and sturdy enough for a lunch box, a folder, and for heavy books in the upper grades. Bags with wheels may be used as long as the wheels do not mark the floor.

Backpack Mail : Each child will be given a special backpack folder with the St. Agnes logo on the front. That folder is your essential communication device, in which all “backpack mail” is delivered. ALL KINDS OF ANNOUNCEMENTS ARE SENT HOME VIA BACKPACK MAIL, INCLUDING IMPORTANT MESSAGES FROM YOUR CHILD'S TEACHER, PRINCIPAL, THE PTO AND OTHER PARENTS. You should check the folder each day, and make sure that it goes back in your child's backpack each morning. You also may send messages back to school in the folder, and you may send missives to other parents through the folder, via “backpack mail.” The commonly accepted means of sending notes to other parents is to address them as follows: “To Mr./Mrs. Smith, c/o of Jane Smith, through the kindness of Jane Smith in Mrs. Brown's class.” It is school policy that Birthday Party Invitations may not be sent through backpack mail.

Back-to-School Nights: This is a must-attend event for the parents! There is one night for parents of children in Pre-K through Grade 3, and another for parents of children in Grades 4 through 8. This year the dates are September 14 th and 15 th , 2004 . It is held in the school gym and includes a welcome from our pastor, principal, and the PTO. Representatives from many of the PTO volunteer opportunities will also be there to share information prior to the formal presentations. Most importantly, all parents then visit their children's classrooms and hear a brief presentation from the teachers. This is not a time for a Parent-Teacher conference; the purpose is for the teachers to explain the daily schedule, the curriculum, homework, and classroom policies.

Birthdays : If you receive advance permission from your child's teacher, you may send in birthday treats (such as cupcakes or cake) for the class to share. Doughnuts, pizza lunches, ice cream bars or any other birthday goodies your child chooses are certainly welcome birthday celebrations if you prefer to do that instead of cake! Birthday celebrations should be held in the classroom rather than the lunchroom. Students may dress up rather than wear their uniform on their birthdays.

Birthday Book Club: Your child may donate a book to add to the library's collection. Your child's name and birthday are inscribed in the book, and they have the chance to be the first person to check it out from the library. To do this, please contact the school librarian (Mrs. McFaden X106).

Birthday Party Invitations : It is school policy that birthday party invitations, or other personal party invitations, should not be distributed in school (via backpack mail or hand-delivered). There is too much potential for hurt feelings. Whether you are inviting selected children or your child's entire class, these invitations are to be sent through the U.S. mail system.

Box Tops for Education : Run by the Student Council, each class competes in the collection of “Box Tops For Education” – which help raise money for Student Council projects. Various products in your grocery store feature Box Tops For Education stamps – small square logos that may be cut out and collected for the school. To mention just a few, you may find box tops on “Gogurt” boxes, Progresso soup cans, certain “fruit roll up” and “gummie” boxes, frozen pancake boxes, etc. Throughout the school year, notices go home in backpack mail notifying parents of the deadlines for submitting boxtops to the school.

Bullying : St. Agnes has a strong policy against bullying. Please refer to the St. Agnes School Handbook for a detailed discussion of the behaviors and consequences covered by the school policy. If you become aware of any bullying behavior, please report it immediately to your child's teacher.

Cars, Carpools, Drop-Off and Pick-Up Systems : They work! The system is efficient, and designed for the children's maximum safety.

•  AM: There is one continuously moving line in the morning for drop-off. You must be inside the gate before releasing your student(s). The gate opens at 8:00 a.m. The parking lot in front of the school (on the opposite side of the school from Randolph Street) fills up with one line of cars at a time, the children are released, and the next line of cars moves forward. There are adults who direct this effort, and older student patrols are there to assist with opening doors and walking the kindergartners and pre-K to the sidewalk in front of the school. ( Parents may walk their Kindergartners into their classrooms for the first week, but after that, Kindergartners are to be dropped off in the line.) Please keep the line moving! Prepare your child in advance to leave the car quickly, with all of his or her things (including backpack!) in hand. The gate closes at 8:15 a.m. If you arrive after the gate closes, you must park in the parking lot, walk your child into the building, and obtain a tardy slip from the office.

•  PM: The gate opens at approximately 2:30 p.m. The parking lot fills with lines of cars (rather like a car ferry) that line up first at the back of the lot, then in successive rows toward the sidewalk. All children must stay behind the curb until the release bell, and parents should stay near their cars, motors turned off, until the release bell. The car pool lines will not be permitted to begin exiting the parking lot until all children are in their cars, and the car doors are closed. This entire process takes only about 20 – 25 minutes. By 2:50 or 2:55 p.m., the second car pool line starts entering the lot – again from the back and the process is repeated.

•  Rainy or Sleeting/Snowing Days: If the weather is severe, the children will be kept inside or under the porch roof, and released by grade to the cars.

•  Pre- K: Morning drop-off is the same as the rest of school. Afternoon pick-up is handled differently and information is sent home in a hand-out at the beginning of the year.  

Catholic Schools Week : This will be held the week of January 31 to February 4, 2005. All Catholic Schools in the Diocese of Arlington celebrate Catholic Schools Week with a series of events and activities. The week focuses on commitment to Catholic education. There are special workshops and entertainment throughout the week, along with other activities that focus on the unique spirit of our school. The week includes Special Person Day, which is described further below. Some weeks prior to Catholic Schools Week, parents are invited to volunteer as workshop leaders, coordinators and helpers. Announcements are usually sent home via backpack mail.

Coffees : On October 4th, 18th, and 25 th , groups of classes will be sponsoring a coffee with the Principal. These are usually held right after morning carpool at 8:30 am in the library and are a good opportunity for parents to meet the Principal and ask questions. There will also be a coffee to kick-off the school year on the first day of school, August 30 th , after drop-off in the library. Please join us!

Counseling Services: St. Agnes has a full-time counselor on staff. If you wish to speak with her about an issue, or have your child speak with her, please contact the counselor directly at ext.108. All counseling is treated with confidentiality.

Enrichment Fridays/Enrichment Program : This is a new program begun in 2003. One day each month, the student body participates in an enrichment assembly with a guest speaker, performer, teacher, professional, etc. The focus of these assemblies is academic in nature, rather than entertainment. The Enrichment Program has many other aspects; including after-school foreign language programs (currently Spanish and French), a chess club, drama classes, a public speaking workshop, math club and other academic interests. The programs may change from year to year and new programs may be added. Some enrichment programs may require additional fees. Information about these programs, including registration and possible fees, is sent home throughout the year via backpack mail.

Extended Day, Morning and Afternoon : This is a great service for K through 8 th grades! It is safe and secure, available before and after school hours, and offered at a reasonable price. Extended day is run by teachers and other trained, qualified adults. There is a morning extended day, held in the gym, beginning at 7:00 a.m. until the school day begins. There is also an afternoon extended day, also held in the gym, from release time (2:45 p.m. on M, T, Th, F and 1:45 p.m. on Wed.) until 6:00 p.m. Extended day is also available on early release days (11:30 a.m.) for an extra charge. The children enjoy spending time with all ages of students doing homework, playing supervised games (including computer), playing on the playground, doing arts and crafts, and watching movies. Snack is also served in the afternoon.

•  Registration forms: The school will send registration forms at the beginning of the year. Every family is required to register for Extended Day to allow for the possibility that a child may unexpectedly go to extended day.

•    Hourly extended day tickets: If you use Extended Day only occasionally, you may buy hourly tickets at the Parish office on the day you use it, to pay for the number of hours your child spends in the program. In order to ensure proper staffing, you must give your child's teacher at least 24 hours advance notice that your child will be in extended day.

Eucharistic Adoration : The Adoration Chapel, located near the church office in the Parish Hall, is open 24 hours a day, all year, for individuals to visit Our Lord and pray before the Blessed Sacrament. This parish ministry needs to have someone committed to cover each hour of the week. A group of school parents (Catholic and non-Catholic) volunteer to cover the hour from 2:00 - 3:00 a.m. on Mondays (Sunday night/Monday morning). Volunteers rotate the responsibility of praying for the hour. With 26 parents currently participating, each person is responsible for the hour twice a year. The Adoration Committee's goal is to have enough parents involved so each person goes once a year.

Extracurricular Activities : Depending on your child's age, there are many different extra-curricular activities available. For example, in the upper grades, there is Student Council, CYO sports, Yearbook and Band. The upper grades and most of the lower grades are welcome to participate in Junior Great Books, “Mad Science”, and private music lessons. Other extra-curricular activities include foreign language classes, chess club and a drama classes. If parents have a suggestion for an extra-curricular program they believe is worthwhile suggestions are always welcome. Parent initiative and volunteerism are essential to our extra-curricular program.

Family Support : This is one of the programs that makes St. Agnes so special. Each class has a Family Support Coordinator, who is responsible for arranging volunteers for meals, rides, or anything else to help a family in need. In the past, needs have included the birth of a child, the illness of a student or other family member, and the sudden and unexpected deployment of a parent.

Field Trips : Your child's teacher will send you advance notice of any field trips that your child's class takes, along with a permission form for a parent to sign and a place for your child to sign that they accept responsibility for their behavior. The teachers will indicate whether they need parent chaperones for the trip, and the teachers are responsible for lining up the appropriate number of volunteers. (There may be a number limit if the class is taking a bus.) If you do not get to go on one field trip as a chaperone, there is likely to be another for you to attend! Parents of Pre-K students are sometimes asked to drive for field trips, and must submit a copy of their auto insurance in order to drive.

Folder : Each child will be given a special backpack folder, with the St. Agnes logo on the front. That folder is your essential communication device, in which all backpack mail is delivered. Please cover the folder with clear contact paper, as it quickly becomes dog-eared if left unprotected! Messages come home in it from the teachers, as do general announcements from the school and PTO. You should check the folder each day, and make sure that it goes back in your child's backpack each morning. You also may send messages back to school in the folder, and you may send missives to other parents through the folder, via backpack mail. The youngest child in each family gets a folder with a blue dot, and that folder will receive all general announcements for the entire school year. Experience has shown that announcements are most likely to be delivered to parents if they go home with the youngest child!

Great Books Program : This is a voluntary, weekly after-school program, run by parents who have been trained to teach the Junior Great Books Program. It runs for eight weeks, from January until March and is available for 2 nd through 8 th graders. The students read and discuss short stories (not entire books!) each week. For more information check out the website at www.greatbooks.org .

Grocery Store Club Cards and Giant Scrip Program/Fund Raiser : Register your Safeway, Harris Teeter, and Giant grocery cards to designate St. Agnes School to receive a percentage of what you spend at those stores. Get grandparents, relatives, and friends to participate as well. The PTO also offers Giant gift cards (scrip) for purchase to use at Giant stores. The cards are sold in denominations of $50, $100, $200, and $300. There is no markup for purchasing the card, no surcharge for using them and you can use your Bonus card for discounts. St. Agnes will get four percent of every dollar spent. This program may be one of the biggest fund-raisers for the school in the coming year, and it costs nothing to use! The cards will be sold once each week during the morning drop-off time. Once each month you will be able to pre-order a card with a specific amount, and that card will be sent to you in backpack mail. 

Handbook : The St. Agnes Handbook is the school's official document that explains the school's philosophy, rules and regulations, accreditation, and much more. All parents receive a copy early in the school year, are expected to review it, and are asked to sign an acknowledgment form that they have done so.

Holy Days of Obligation : On every Holy Day that falls during the week, the school celebrates Mass with the parish at 9:00 a.m. Families are invited to join the school for this Mass (and of course all other Masses the school attends).

Hot Dog Day : Each month there is a PTO sponsored Hot Dog Day for K through 8 th grade. Hot dogs, chips and ice-cream are provided. To assist the volunteers in planning properly, you are asked to sign up and pay for the monthly Hot Dog days and Pizza Days at the beginning of the year (unless you want your child to be very unhappy with you twice a month). You too will begin to look forward to these days, as it is a welcome break from making daily lunches! This is also a good volunteer opportunity for parents.

Hours : School hours for Kindergarten through eighth grade are from 8:15 a.m. until 2:45 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. On Wednesdays, school starts at 8:15 a.m. but the release time is 1:45 p.m. On early release days the release time is 11:30 a.m. Morning extended day is from 7:00 a.m. until the beginning of school. Afternoon extended day is from release time until 6:00 p.m. The Pre-kindergarten school day is from 8:15 to 12:15. On early release days the Pre-K is dismissed at 11:30. The Pre-k school year also begins after the August 30 th start date for the rest of the school and has a phase in process. This information will be mailed to parents by the Pre-K teachers.

Inclement Weather and Emergency Closing: The school normally follows Arlington County School District closures during inclement weather. Closures are announced on major radio and television stations. The Room Parent phone tree may also be initiated to provide additional details if St. Agnes losure differs from the policy of the Arlington County schools. St. Agnes has a robust program in place to handle closure of the school in the event of an emergency. This program is described in detail in the Handbook and should be read in detail by parents.

Lunch Boxes : Children are asked to bring in lunch each day (except on special days, like Pizza or Hot Dog Day). You may want to buy your child a lunch box or bag that allows you to include a freezer pack/ice bag to keep food items cold or fresh. Parents usually pack sandwiches, yogurt, fruit juice boxes, fruit or carrot sticks, healthy snacks or dessert in their child's lunch box each day. Canned soft drinks are not allowed . Not sure about what to pack for your child? Talk to your child's teacher or room parent for more ideas. For field trips, the children usually bring in brown bag lunches with their names on the bags. (Your teacher will advise you on this prior to the field trip.)

Library Books : Be sure to return school library books via the backpack when your child is finished reading them. Your child's teacher will have a box in the classroom for the books, which will be returned on their library day (held once a week). This means that you will not have to help in a frantic search for the books at 7:45 a.m. on the morning of library day! Children may not check out new books until they have returned the old ones.

Lost and Found Box: Located in the gym against the left wall as you walk in from Randolph Street, this is the first place to have you child look when an item of clothing or school supplies are lost. A periodic check may help you find things you didn't even know were missing.

Mass : First through eighth graders attend Mass one day each week, with each class going on a different, designated day. Kindergartners attend only the All-School Masses the first semester; the second semester, they attend Mass once a week. The Pre-K start attending Mass at a point during the year when the teachers feel it is appropriate. In the event of a Holy Day of Obligation, or a special holiday such as Thanksgiving or Veterans' Day, the school will hold an “All School Mass” which will replace attendance at weekly Mass. Except in the event of an All School Mass, the students will attend Mass on the same day each week. On Mass days, children must wear their dress uniforms . If a child's birthday falls on a Mass day the child may dress up for his/her birthday on Mass day. Families are invited to join the students for Mass. Parents may sit with their Pre-K child at Mass but the other children sit with their classes and prayer partners.

Medications : All medications, including pain relievers, must be administered by the school nurse. All prescriptions must be kept in their original container. A signed, up-to-date parental permission form must be on file before medication is administered. The St. Agnes School Handbook provides a full listing of restricted items and medications, including over-the-counter medications.

Milk Tickets : At the beginning of the year, a form will come to you via Backpack Mail that allows you to buy milk tickets in quantity. You may purchase milk tickets, using backpack mail and the special envelope provided, throughout the year. Milk tickets should be bought in quantities which cover no less than one academic quarter. All payments must be made by check. (Milk tickets cost 20 cents per ticket; the cost of one week of milk for one child drinking one milk a day is $1. The cost for three months is approximately $12.) Both regular and chocolate milk are available at lunchtime for all grades (PreK through 8 th ). You should include milk ticket(s) in your child's lunch box each day. If your child is likely to drink two containers of milk, please send in two tickets. Please note, milk is not available the first week of school. Milk service begins September 7, so please provide your child with a drink until that date.

Pizza Days : See Hot Dog Days, above. In the 2003-2004 school year pizza was provided by Papa John's in Arlington. The PTO provides fruit and Twizzlers. This is another fun volunteer activity for parents! The Pre-K does not participate.

Playground : Although St. Agnes has paid playground supervisors, parents' active participation is welcome on the playground between 11:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. daily. A flyer will be sent home at the beginning of the school year welcoming parents who wish to volunteer to help on the playground and in the lunchroom. Parents may designate a date they are available, and a reminder will be sent home in the weekly school newsletter.

Prayer Chain: Sponsored by the Spiritual Enrichment Committee, the prayer chain is open to anyone in the St. Agnes School community. The Prayer Chain coordinator communicates the concerns of the community to the prayer chain via email.

PTO Meetings : These meetings will be on Wednesday evenings at 7:30 p.m. in the Parish Center. The dates are on the school calendar. You will receive advance notice from the PTO Secretary via email and Backpack Mail. Back-to-School nights will be held in early September followed by three other meetings spread throughout the school year. The PTO strongly encourages attendance at these meetings which provide a good opportunity for communication between the parents, teachers, administrators and our Pastor.

Prayer Partners : The Kindergartners each have a “prayer partner” for Mass Days. This is an older child from the junior high who sits with your younger child during Mass, and helps them to participate appropriately. It is a very nice way for the younger children to meet an older student.

Reading Buddies : The Kindergarten and first grade students are matched up with a “reading buddy” from the upper grades (e.g., a first grader is matched with a fourth grader). These older children read to the younger ones. It's a great opportunity for the younger and older students to meet each other and know that everyone in the school community is connected.

Report Cards : Report cards go out twice a year for Kindergarten, four times per year (each quarter) for grades one to eight. In the middle of each quarter, either a “good news notice” (meaning your child is doing well in all areas) or an interim (if your child needs improvement in certain areas) may be sent home.

Resource Program : The resource room, Room 212, is staffed by a Resource Teacher four days each week for remedial and enrichment opportunities.

Room Parents : Every class will have at least one room parent. The room parent helps the teacher with communication to the parents, helps organize class parties and gifts, and traditionally works with the teacher and students to create an item for the Silent Auction. Room parents may also work with the Family Support coordinator from his or her class to help new parents and to ensure that those families that are experiencing difficulties, such as a parent's illness, have meals, rides, and whatever else they might need.

Snacks : These are provided for the Pre-K, but parents must provide snacks for the other grades in their lunch boxes. This should be one (relatively healthy) food item, and one drink, such as a water bottle or a juice box.

Special Persons Day : This occurs during Catholic Schools Week (January 31 st through February 4 th , 2005). The children will invite their special person to a picnic lunch, and a special event. The person may be anyone your child chooses such as a parent, godparent, relative or friend. The special person usually provides lunch for both himself and the student host. It is usually from a fast food place!

Supply Lists : Each teacher has a list of supplies that the students must have at the beginning of the year, for their entire year. The PTO also offers a School Supplies program at the end of the school year through which you may order supplies for the next school year. Fill out one simple form and all your child's supplies will be delivered to their classrooms for the first day of school. Otherwise, you may buy the required supplies from a store of your choice that sells school supplies (Staples, CVS, Target, Walmart, etc.). Please be sure to buy the exact brands and numbers of items requested by your child's teacher.

Teacher Conferences : These are scheduled twice a year, generally in conjunction with report cards . The conference in the fall is mandatory, and the spring conference is optional. You may always ask your child's teacher to schedule a conference at any time if you have concerns.

Tuition : Tuition may be paid in full prior to the start of school or on a monthly basis using the SMART pay tuition program. Anyone choosing to pay their tuition in full by July 15, 2004 will receive a 4% discount. Monthly payments must be received by the 10th of each month. Each family will receive a coupon booklet and monthly payments must be mailed to the SMART Tuition program. Do not send any payments to the school office. Any questions regarding the SMART tuition program should be directed to the Parish office.

Tutors: Tutors may be available either in the classroom when a teacher determines that a child or children need extra assistance or after school if parents wish to make separate arrangements for individual tutoring. If you are interested in pursuing tutoring for your child, please speak with your child's teacher or school counselor.

Uniforms: Detailed information about the uniform requirements is in the Handbook. The following is just an alphabetical list generated from questions that are commonly asked by new families.

•  Holy Days and Class or All-School Mass Days: Children must wear their dress uniforms on these days.

•  Names: Put your child's name in indelible ink, on the inside (preferably at the collar or on the back, in the case of ties) of any item of clothing that he or she is likely to remove during the day! That includes sweaters, sweatshirts, (for P.E. day), P.E. clothes, hats, coats, jackets, and even neckties, which boys may remove after Mass is over. At some point during the year your child is likely to misplace at least one article of clothing – the name will help you get it back. If the item is not in your child's classroom, then check the big lost and found catch-all box in the gym – against the left wall as you walk in from Randolph Street.

•  Physical Education Days: Kindergarten, first and second grade students may wear their P.E. uniforms all day on their classes given P.E. day. All other grades must wear the appropriate school uniform to school and change into their P.E. uniforms at school.

•  Seasons: There is a summer uniform (worn from the beginning of the school year until October 15th and from April 15th to the end of the school year) and a winter uniform (worn from October 15 th to April 15 th ). You will receive a full list of all the acceptable items and information about when to wear them. Exceptions to the uniform calendar may be made for unseasonably warm days, in which case notice will go home in backpack mail.

•  Pre-K: Uniforms are not worn. Children should wear clothing that is comfortable and can be worn during play at recess; i.e. safe shoes and nothing too dressy. The children go to P.E. one day a week and will be told to wear sneakers on that day.

•  Where to get uniforms: All uniform items must be purchased from Flynn and O'Hara located at 9650 Main Street, in Fairfax, in the Fair City Mall. (Phone: 703-503-5966) From Arlington, go West on US Route 50 (Arlington Blvd.), past the Beltway, to Fairfax City. Turn left on Pickett Road. Flynn and O'Hara is located inside Fair City Mall, which is on the right side of Pickett and across the street from the ever popular Chuck E. Cheese's. July is a great time to visit the shop, as it is generally not crowded. Once you know the right sizes, you may also order online at flynnohara.com. Again, all uniform items are required to be supplied by Flynn & O'Hara, unless otherwise specified by the school.

Veterans' Day : The school community celebrates Veterans' Day every year with a Mass and a reception for those who have served, or currently serve, in the armed forces. Members of the armed forces are encouraged to wear their uniforms to the Mass so the children can recognize them.

Virtues Program : St. Agnes School is proud of its virtues program, in which students focus on a different virtue every month. The program seeks to cultivate each particular virtue through practice as well as study. The students' practical experiences include collecting baby items for St. Ann's Infant and Maternity Home or coats for the poor in winter, and putting together food baskets for needy families around the holidays. 

Volunteer Opportunities : There are many volunteer opportunities available – and all parents are urged to sign up for at least one activity during the year. The school relies on your active support, and this is a great way to meet other parents and teachers! The PTO sends out a volunteer sign-up form with the August mailing, as well as flyers during the school year as volunteer opportunities arise.