The Puma Paw
A Pinebrook community information source
March 15, 2024
Hello Puma Families!
We hope everyone has enjoyed the extra daylight and warm weather we've had this week. Hope your families have gotten outside to make the most of it! We are thrilled to be hosting a STEAM Night here at Pinebrook on Tuesday, March 19th from 6:00 - 7:30 PM. Bring your family and explore a variety of interactive STEAM activities including LEGO's, Ozobots, and more! Check out the flyer below.
"Pawerful Points"
The Points
- Mar. 18 - 22 is an A week
- Mar. 19 - STEAM Night at 6:00 - See flyer!
- Mar. 20 - Mercer Instrument Test Drive for Grade 5 Students: Sign up here.
- Mar. 21 - 5th Grade Field Trip to Luray Caverns
- Mar. 21 - 5:00-6:00 - PTA Krispy Kreme Pick up for those that ordered; if not picked up, donuts will be donated
- Mar. 25-29 - Spring Break
- Apr. 1 - School Resumes - please attend!
- Apr. 1 - 5 - National Asst. Principal Week,
- Apr. 3 - Paraprofessional Appreciation Day
- Apr. 4 - School Librarian Appreciation Day
- Apr. 4 - End of Quarter 3
- Apr. 5 - No School - Teacher Workday
The Pawer
- Attendance Update! The collective Attendance Rate (Percentage of Students Present) for Feb. 26-Mar. 8 was 91.54%.
- Kindergarten Registration is now open! Click here to register your child for the 24-25 school year, and share the link with a friend!
- 23-24 Pinebrook Yearbooks are on sale NOW! Click here to claim yours!
- Summer In Arts Sign-up opens on Mar. 6 for rising 5th-grade students. Click for info here and course selections.
Pumas That Pounce
We want to highlight our day custodian, Ms. Carmen! Carmen is always willing to jump in to help our staff, students, and school community. We are so thankful and appreciative for all her hard work, and we could not be more fortunate to have her at Pinebrook!
Classroom Highlight: Fusion Field Trip to Academies of Loudoun
Pinebrook 4th and 5th grade FUSION students had the opportunity to visit The Academies of Loudoun. While there, they toured the school to see all the opportunities available when they reached high school. They had programs from high-level science and STEM to horticulture, HVAC, automotive, nursing, and cosmetology! It was terrific, and our students are very motivated to be able to test into one of the many programs they offer at the school.
Tips from our Unified Mental Health Team!
As a new feature of the Puma Paw, our Unified Mental Health Team, or UMHT, will offer tips for parents. These are intended to be short and sweet and could make an impact.
Our UMHT consists of three school counselors, a school psychologist, a social worker, and administrators. If you have any questions, please contact us!
Here is this Week's tip: Having your children complete chores can build a sense of community within your home. Additionally, chores can help teach and build executive functioning skills! Here are some age-appropriate chores for your child.
A message from the Pinebrook Physical Education Department
Attention 4th and 5th Grade Families:
Our Mid-Year Fitness Testing and Goal Setting is now complete. Research suggests that support from home can dramatically increase a student’s motivation to improve and/or maintain their fitness goals. Your children have worked very hard in PE to learn about their individual strengths and weaknesses in relation to their personal fitness. Through this process they have learned how to evaluate themselves and set realistic goals to help them develop healthy behaviors for a lifetime.
Here’s how to check on your child’s progress:
The program LCPS uses to track your student’s fitness data is called WelNet and is located as an app in LCPSGo. The WelNet data stays with your child all the way through high school so their progress can be tracked.
Discussion topics and questions to ask about their fitness and goal setting:
- What fitness test they chose to improve after our fall baseline testing?
- Which health related fitness component it is measuring (Cardiorespiratory Endurance, Muscular Strength, Muscular Endurance, or Flexibility).
- Did they meet their fall goal after our mid-year testing?
- Discuss the goal setting process:
· If they met their goal, what is their new goal?
· If they didn’t meet their goal what is their plan for reaching the goal by spring testing?
- Discuss some examples of things you can do as a family to help your child reach their goal and make a plan together.
- Look at our “Pinebrook Virtual Gym” for some fun ideas to do with your child!
LCPS Community Input Survey!
Classroom Highlight: First Grade Has A Blast Learning about Scientific Method!
First graders learn about cause and effect, so they decided to do the mentos and soda experiment. They first predicted what would happen when you put Mentos in a soda bottle. Most students predicted that it would explode. Then, they tested out their theory by experimenting. After seeing the result, they confirmed their prediction and discussed what caused the soda to explode. The carbon dioxide molecules attach to the surface of the Mentos. The mentos in the soda make a lot of bubbles that rise to the surface and push the soda out in a big woosh!
Military Connected Families
Military-connected families are an integral part of our community. Military-connected families are families who are actively serving in one of the armed forces, National Guard, or Reserves. During April, we will be recognizing children in Military Connected families. We want to ensure that we know all the Pinebrook families who are actively serving. You could choose if your family is military-connected in ParentVue at the beginning of the year. If you have not indicated that you are a military-connected family and would like to, please get in touch with our counselor, Tory Walker, via email tory.walker@lcps.org.
Parenting Podcast Episode! Huberman Lab - Dr. Becky Kennedy
I always enjoy a great podcast, and I came across this recently and found the ideas mentioned to be real and insightful. Many of the ideas mentioned can be found at Pinebrook. One big topic that's discussed? The power of being a sturdy parent. It's more than you think. Check it out by clicking here (Youtube link) or wherever you get your podcasts.
PTA Updates!
Friday Spirit Week!
We're bringing back Friday Spirit Day! Each Friday, have your child wear their PNB Spiritwear or house colors!
School Colors - navy blue, maroon, white
House colors:
- Yukon - yellow
- Yosemite - red
- Patagonia - purple
- Sonoran - orange
- Everglades - green
- Andes - blue
*For many students, they might know their color ... we might not have locked up the specific house names yet.
Puma Pawd - Pinebrook's Own Podcast
What's the word on Word Study? Paul and Turner talk with Reading Specialist Jeannie Baier and 4th-grade teachers Brittany Harris and Amy Jo Bollinger about the power of Word Study.
Click here to check it out, or click below!
Check it out on Spotify, Apple, Amazon, iHeartRadio, and Google (Google by RSS feed). Click or search one of the listed platforms.
Have an idea for the Puma Pawd? -Big or small - click here to let us know! -And thanks again to those who sent some ideas! Send more!
School Information
Remember, when you come to school...
- When you come to school, it's essential to be in the habit of three things:
- Make an appointment
- Have your ID;
- Have your phone, especially if you are tardy, picking up, or returning a child to school, as we use an electronic form to record the child's return. You will access the form via a QR code scanned by your phone.
Pinebrook Elementary - "Every Teacher for Every Child ... Everyday"
Website: https://www.lcps.org/pinebrook
Location: 25480 Mindful Court, Aldie, VA, USA
Phone: 703-957-4325
2023 All Rights Reserved – Loudoun County Public Schools