School news roundup

Second graders at Bailey’s Elementary School harvested lettuce, spinach, and radishes grown all winter in the school’s hoop tunnel garden.

The news items and photos here about schools in the Annandale/Mason District are from Fairfax County Public Schools or individual schools.


Teaching acceptance – February is “Acceptance Month” at Camelot Elementary School. Administrators, teachers, counselors, and PTA members are working together to ensure all students have the tools and knowledge they need to fully accept one another.

Students at Belvedere Elementary School practice breathing exercises before story time.

Camelot offers programs for students with intellectual disabilities and a preschool program for students who are deaf or hard of hearing. Many of these students spend part of their day or are fully included in a general education setting, learning alongside their peers.

Teachers are provided with weekly activities and ways to promote acceptance in their classrooms. Acceptance month includes Be a Good Friend Week, featuring an anti-bullying theme. On Feb. 20, students participated in a Walk in My Shoes activity, and during Feb. 24-28, the school is celebrating the diversity and many cultures represented at Camelot.

A segregated education – Luther Jackson Middle School invited Ronald Reaves, a former student at Luther Jackson High School, to speak to students about what it was like attending a segregated school in the 1950s. The session was recorded with a live audience of students and teachers. At the end of the session, students told Reaves how the event affected them and how it will shape their thinking moving forward.

Reading pays – Columbia Elementary School is holding its annual Read-A-Thon March 2-27. The event is aimed at encouraging students to read more, while also raising money for PTA priorities, such as classroom technology, teacher supplies, and field day.

Parents are urged to have children read at home for at least 30 minutes a day. Students collect pledges from family members and friends, and the school receives donations based on how much students read. 

College exploration – The College Partnership Program is recruiting eighth-graders (rising ninth-graders) to learn about the benefits of college and how to apply. CPP is aimed at students traditionally underrepresented in higher education. It offers academic counseling, college visits, assistance with college and scholarship applications, monthly meetings, parent education sessions, SAT preparation classes, and an overnight experience on a college campus.

Students can apply online, but will need to log in to their G Suite account to do so. The deadline is March 18.

Food safety – Poe Middle School is one of two FCPS schools that received a 2020 14 Carrot Gold Food Safety Excellence Award. The award, from the Fairfax County Health Department, recognizes schools for prioritizing food safety practices and policies, minimizing food waste, and having no critical violations in the past 24 months.

Woodson students help fifth-graders at Canterbury Woods learn about the environment.

Environmental outreach – Students in the Environmental Club and Science National Honor Society at Woodson High School went to Canterbury Woods Elementary School to engage fifth-graders in hands-on, inquiry-based learning on such topics as hydroponics, watershed studies, and food webs. The Woodson students also used virtual reality to help the Canterbury Woods students explore ecosystems and watersheds around the world, with resources from the FCPS Get2Green program.

Tip line – FCPS offers a confidential tip line aimed at promoting safe schools. It can be used to report non-emergency threats, unsafe or dangerous situations, illegal drug activity, theft, gang activity, weapons, vandalism, and concerns about student wellness. Call 571-423-2020, text TIP FCPS to 888-777, or submit a tip online.

Shoe drive – Three students at the private Congressional School launched a shoe drive as part of a community service initiative with a global reach. Aaron Hjalmervik, Luke Pynchon, and Anderson Wexler collected more than 2,100 pairs of shoes and sold them to Funds2Orgs, a company that will deliver them to micro-entrepreneurs in developing countries to stimulate economic growth. The students earned 44 cents per pound, which they will donate to nonprofits.

A winning band – Band students at Grace Christian Academy won first-place in the American Independent Music Association Northern Virginia District’s solo ensemble competition earlier this month. Grace was also the only school in the competition to receive all superior ratings.