It is important that your child is in school every school day (FCPS School Year Calendar)
To report absences (choose one):

• Call the attendance line - 703-460-4444
• Use PES Website Attendance Form:
• Email [email protected]
• If your child is absent due to illness, please indicate the type of illness in your details

An automated call is generated if the office has not received a message regarding your child'sabsence.
Students are tardy if they arrive at school after 8:40 A.M. Parents need to come into the officeto sign-in students when they are tardy.

• Band, Orchestra and Chorus are optional music electives conducted during school hours.
• Orchestra is open to 4th, 5th and 6th graders; Band is open to 5th and 6th graders.
  • Band and Orchestra instrument instruction occurs once per week during normal "specials" time. Band and orchestra students will attend one general music class and one instrument class each week. Teachers will help families find sources that rent and sell instruments.
• Chorus is open to 5th and 6th graders and occurs one morning a week during the Morning Meeting part of our school day.

• We encourage students to ride bicycles to school. Any parent may make the decision to allow his/her child to ride a bicycle to school and should determine the appropriate route.
• Students must lock their bike on the bike rack. FCPS is not responsible for the possible loss of personal property including bicycles.
• Remember, the law requires children to wear a bike helmet!

• Non-edible items, such as pencils and stickers, can be sent in to recognize your child's birthday. Please do not send food to share.
• Please notify the teacher if you plan to send in items so they can plan accordingly.
• Please refrain from passing out party invitations in the classroom unless every classmate is invited. We appreciate your cooperation.

Families are requested to help their children develop habits that contribute to safety at the bus stop and a safe ride on the bus.

• Students who ride the school bus are assigned a bus stop and should walk on the sidewalks when walking to and from the bus stop.
• Students are expected to follow and adhere to all safety rules enforced by the safety patrols and school bus drivers.
• Students who interfere with the safety of others may have consequences, including temporary removal of bus riding privileges.
• We cannot issue transportation passes for students to ride a bus students would not normally ride.
• Kindergarten students must be met by an adult, or a sibling in 7th grade or older, at their bus stop every day. If there is no adult, the bus will return the student to the school, and the child must be picked up right away from the front office.
• If a student is riding a bus from a child-care arrangement and not the home address, a Request for Exception to Ride Form must be completed and approved before the child may ride the bus. This form is available in the office and will not be processed by the FCPS Department of Transportation until after October 1st; therefore, other arrangements must be made until a decision is made on your request.

If you are interested in knowing when your bus is approaching your stop. Here Comes the Bus® app is a school bus tracking app that gives real-time bus location and text or email notification alerts.

• Access this link for more information: https://www.fcps.edu/resources/safety-and-transportation/transportation-services/here-comes-bus-mobile-app

• Breakfast and lunch are served daily - Lunch menu available on our school website
• Cost of breakfast is $1.75; cost of lunch is $3.25
• Information about free and reduced-cost lunch is available at https://www.fcps.edu/frm
• If your child is bringing lunch, print your child’s name on the outside of the lunch box or paper bag. Please do not send glass containers.
• More information about breakfast and lunch is available on the FCPS website here.

• Check the PES Website, Schoology, and ParentVue
• Tuesday Envelope: A yellow or white envelope will be sent home every Tuesday and will contain important written communication from the school (flyers, class work, tests, etc.). You will also receive an electronic part of Tuesday Envelopes through Schoology.
• Communication with your child's teacher:
  • Emails: You can find the email addresses for all staff members in our Staff Directory
  • Phone: Direct lines to the classroom are connected to voicemail during the school day. Leave a message and the teacher will call you back. Allow 24 hours for staff to return your call.
  • Talking Points: Talking Points is an easy and safe way families can communicate in their home languages with their child’s teachers for free. Click here for more information. Teachers will use Talking Points messages to send brief weekly updates.
  • Conferences: Email or call the teacher to set up a date and time.
  • Interpreters are easily available; let the teacher know if you would like one.
• News You Choose: Sign up to receive information specific to our school, as well as community outreach messages.
• Contact Information: Please help us by keeping your contact information current with the main office through SIS ParentVue. For information changes or other questions, please call the office.
• Our Facebook page is updated often with reminders, pictures, and other posts that will keep you connected to PES.

Send advanced written notice to the office if changes need to be made to your child’s normal dismissal arrangements. For play dates, the parents of both students involved must send a notice to the office prior to the date of the change and no bus transportation will be provided.

The purpose of the Emergency Care Card is to locate the parent/guardian of a child in the event of illness or emergency.

• Parents need to view and update their emergency information and contact information online through the ParentVue Account accessible here.
• Parents may also direct requests to update student contact information to the Student Information Assistant at their child's school.
• List the phone numbers of two emergency contacts who will know where you are for emergency calls and who may pick up your child when he/she is ill and you are unable to pick up your child.

Late openings, early closing, or the cancellation of school due to inclement weather (ice, snow, excessive heat, etc.) will be made by the Superintendent’s Office by 5:30 a.m.

• Closures will be announced via local radio and television stations as well as through the FCPS website, social media and “Keep In-Touch” email notification system.
• Parents are urged not to call the school office. Providence receives this information in the same manner that is available to all families (via the FCPS email, radio, television or FCPS websites).

Progress reports are sent home every nine weeks. Students receiving special education services will also receive an Individual Education Plan progress report at this same interval.

• Progress reports are also available in SIS ParentVue.
• Sign the envelope and send it back with your child the next day; You may keep the progress report.
• More specific info about progress reports: https://www.fcps.edu/academics/grading-and-reporting/elementary-school

Interims are reports to parents that are sent home at the halfway point of each quarter.

• For the first quarter, all teachers will send home an interim for every child, even if the child is making great progress.
• Only students who need to work toward improvement and those who request an interim will have interims sent home during the 2nd, 3rd and 4th quarters.
• Always sign your child’s interim and return it to school so the teacher knows you received it.

Please ensure students do not bring toys, including electronic games, fidget spinners, and game cards, to school or on the school bus. The school cannot be responsible for the safety and security of items brought from home. Items causing disruption will be collected for parents to pick up from the main office.

Kiss and Ride is a service we offer for families who choose to drive their children to/from school. All students need to be dropped off in the K&R loop in our main parking lot- and not use the bus loop.

• Morning drop-off starts at 8:20 and ends at 8:40. Refrain from dropping students off prior to 8:20 as there is no supervision, and it is a safety issue. Try not to arrive more than 10 minutes before the start of arrival to keep our parking area open for teacher arrival.
• Afternoon pick-up starts at 3:25 and ends at 3:40.
• Our traffic pattern is different during K&R - Turn from Jermantown Road into the left-hand side of the parking lot to start the loop; cars will be exiting from the other side. Follow crossing guard directions.

Please label your child’s jacket, coat, book bags, lunch box, etc., with a permanent marker to avoid these items from becoming lost. Students who lose items at school should check the Lost and Found. Lost & Found items NOT claimed will be donated.

We are not permitted to administer any medication (including aspirin, etc.) unless a parent has filled out a “Medical Permission Form” which may be obtained in the clinic or using this link: https://www.fcps.edu/resources/student-safety-and-wellness/school-healt….

To protect the safety of all students. Students are not allowed to bring medication of any kind to school. Parents must bring all medication to school. Any questions may be directed to the school health aide at 703-460-4410.

The Annual Notice of Survey, Records, Curriculum, Privacy, and Related Rights and Opt-Out is available to review on this flyer and on the FCPS website: https://www.fcps.edu/registration/opt-out-forms

Continued support from parents and families in school activities can mean success of a strong program in our school and the fulfillment of school and community goals. Please watch for important dates of school activities. Notices about these meetings are sent home via your children and are posted on the school website.

Our Parent Teacher Association (PTA) supports the school in many ways and is an essential part of our community. Read more about how you can support our PTA and school on the PTA website: https://providence.ptboard.com/home

We also have a Family Liaison, Piedad Dwyer, who is available to answer parent questions and connect parents with resources in the community.

We welcome parents and visitors to Providence. Like all Fairfax County Schools, for security purposes, external doors are always locked.

• Visitors must ring the door bell at Door #1 to gain access.
• Next, all visitors must report directly to the main office and sign in before visiting any part of the building.
• We will check the ID of every visitor to our building.

FCPS respects students’ right to express themselves in the way they dress. It is important, however, that their appearance is appropriate for a K-12 school setting. As outlined in the dress code, any clothing that interferes with or disrupts the educational environment is unacceptable.

• We expect that students will dress appropriately for Physical Education class which requires that they wear sneakers. Flip flops are not safe footwear and shoes with wheels are not permitted.
• More information about the dress code can be viewed online at https://www.fcps.edu/about-fcps/policies-regulations-and-notices/student-rights-and-responsibilities/important-topics

Please help us to safeguard the health of your child as well as the health of all the children at school by adhering to the following guidelines. Please do not send your child to school if they are experiencing any of the following:

• has vomited at home or on the way to school
• has a temperature that is above 100.4
• has symptoms of pink eye (conjunctivitis) or any other communicable disease
• has an unidentified rash

Children will be sent home for any of the above conditions and will need to stay home until they are well and/or no longer have symptoms of a communicable condition. If a student misses 5 consecutive days due to illness, a doctor’s note must be provided.

All PES students are taught the Fairfax County Public Schools’ Student Rights & Responsibilities to help keep our school environment safe for all. Not following these expectations can result in the following: counseling, phone calls or letters to parents, conferences, individual behavior plans, removal from class, alternative instructional placements, suspension from school for up to ten days or, in the most extreme cases, expulsion from all Fairfax County Public Schools. Here is a link the Student Rights and Responsibilities: https://www.fcps.edu/srr

• When visiting school during school hours, parents must always show identification, sign in at the front office, and get a verified visitor sticker.
  • Parents who volunteer regularly must adhere to this procedure.
• Visiting classrooms outside of a special event (class play, class party, etc.) requires an appointment with teachers and/or administration.
• Parents wishing to observe a classroom must make arrangements with the administration. Observations will last no longer than 20 minutes.

One of the best things about PES is our strong group of parent volunteers! At the teacher’s request, parents may volunteer to help in their child’s classroom. Staff members and the PTA may also request volunteers for schoolwide events. Sign in and out at the front office every time you volunteer..

• Parents are responsible for selecting their children’s walking routes to and from home.
• Parents are also responsible for providing supervision that is appropriate for the student’s age, the student’s maturity, and conditions on the route.
• All walkers should obey crossing guards, walk on sidewalks when able, and walk directly to and from school