News from the Nest

Another Great Week at Rockledge!

Throughout the week, students continued completing math and reading assessments. The results of these assessments will provide teachers with valuable information to help guide classroom instruction and ensure we are meeting the needs of all learners.

SAC & PTO Meetings

Our first School Advisory Council (SAC) and PTO meetings of the year were held Thursday evening.

During our SAC meeting, we discussed our School Continuous Improvement Plan and provided opportunities for families to ask questions, share ideas, and discuss topics that are important to our school community. Please see the SAC section below to access the minutes from our meeting. We hope you'll join us next month and become an active partner in helping Rockledge continue to grow and succeed!

At our PTO meeting, we enjoyed salad and rolls from Texas Roadhouse while learning about fundraising opportunities, including gift card sales and spirit nights. We also discussed PTO membership, upcoming events, and Boosterthon, which kicks off this week! Please see the Boosterthon section below for additional details. Candy donations for Trunk or Treat will begin on Friday. Please consider sending bags of candy for this fun community event which will be held on Saturday, October 17th from 12-2pm in the school parking lot. Thank you to everyone who joined us for our meeting. We appreciate your involvement and partnership!

🦅 Eagle of the Month

On Friday, we held our first Eagle of the Month ceremony! One student from each classroom, along with students from Art, Music, PE, and Library, was recognized for consistently demonstrating our SOAR expectations through their behavior, character, and effort.

Parents and family members joined us to cheer on our Eagles as we celebrated this special accomplishment. Congratulations to all of our Eagle of the Month recipients! Students’ photos will be proudly displayed on a hallway bulletin board. We hope their example will inspire fellow Eagles to demonstrate SOAR behaviors each and every day!

Our SOAR Student Expectations are available on our website under About Our School → Student Expectations, or by clicking here. We encourage families to review these expectations with their children so we can continue working together to build a positive, respectful, and safe school culture. Thank You, Rockledge Families!

Thank you to all of our families for following our arrival and dismissal procedures and reinforcing bus safety expectations with students. We saw a noticeable improvement in the flow of both foot and vehicle traffic this past week, and we continue to work with students on meeting expectations while riding the bus. Your partnership makes a difference, and we appreciate your help in keeping our students, families, staff, and neighbors safe!

🎉 Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month

From now through October 15, we will celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month through special events and activities that honor the histories, cultures, achievements, and contributions of Hispanic and Latino Americans. Our Events Committee is planning exciting spirit days and our annual Hispanic Heritage Parade. We look forward to celebrating together as a school community!

🏫 Back-to-School Night – Thursday, October 1

Please join us for Back-to-School Night this Thursday! This is a wonderful opportunity to learn more about your child's classroom, curriculum, routines, and expectations for the school year.

Kindergarten–2nd Grade

• 5:30–5:45 p.m. – Principal Welcome (Cafeteria)

• 5:45–6:15 p.m. – Classroom Presentations

Grades 3–5

• 6:15–6:30 p.m. – Principal Welcome (Cafeteria)

• 6:30–7:00 p.m. – Classroom Presentations

Teachers will provide an overview of instruction and classroom routines. Families will also have an opportunity to sign up for individual parent-teacher conferences.

Please remember that Back-to-School Night is designed to provide information for all families. Individual conferences will be scheduled separately to discuss your child's specific progress and needs. We look forward to seeing you Thursday evening!

🏃 Boosterthon Is Coming!

We're excited to announce that Boosterthon is just around the corner!

Registration is now open at MyBooster.com.

Our goal this year is to raise $15,000 to support:

• New playground enhancements, including much-needed shade structures

• Field trips

• School assemblies

• Teacher classroom grants

• PTO-sponsored programs that benefit our students

Important Dates

• Kickoff: September 29

• Fun Run: October 9

Our PTO is also looking for volunteers to help on Fun Run Day. Thank you in advance for supporting this exciting fundraiser and helping us reach our goal!

🚗 Arrival & Dismissal Reminders

As we continue settling into our school-year routines, we'd like to share a few reminders to help ensure that arrival and dismissal remain safe and efficient for everyone.

Vehicle Traffic

• Please enter and exit the front bus loop in the designated direction.

• Please do not enter through the exit, as this creates conflicts with bus traffic.

TAG Pick-Up

During afternoon TAG dismissal, please use the sidewalk to your right and continue around the sidewalk to your destination. We realize this may require a few extra steps, but this traffic pattern helps keep pedestrians moving safely in the same direction as vehicles while students are loading buses.

If you need to cross between the island and the building, please use the designated crosswalk. For everyone's safety, please do not walk between buses or cross the bus loop anywhere other than the crosswalk.

Neighbor Parking Lot

Our neighbors across the street have asked us to remind families to drive slowly and carefully when using their parking lot. Thank you for helping us be good neighbors and for keeping everyone safe.

🚌 Bus Safety Expectations

A safe and respectful bus environment helps ensure that every student arrives at school and returns home safely each day. Please review these expectations with your child:

• Follow the bus driver's directions at all times.

• Remain seated and face forward while the bus is moving.

• Keep hands, feet, and belongings to yourself.

• Use respectful language and appropriate voice levels.

• Refrain from horseplay, throwing objects, or any behavior that distracts the driver or creates an unsafe environment.

• Respect school property and the property of others.

Thank you for partnering with us to reinforce these expectations. Working together helps ensure that every student has a safe, orderly, and positive experience each day.

Thank you for your continued partnership and support. We appreciate everything you do to help make Rockledge a wonderful place for our students to learn, grow, and SOAR!

The Week Ahead:

Monday (Day 5):
~Wear your NEST shirt or color

Tuesday (Day 6):

~

Wednesday (Day 1):

~

Thursday (Day 2):

~ Back to School Night 5:30-7pm

Friday (Day 3):
~ Wear Spirit Wear or Green&Gold

~ Candy donations begin for Trunk or Treat

Beyond the Week:

• September 15-October 15: Hispanic Heritage Month
• October 6: fall Picture Day
• October 9: Boosterthon Fun Run
• October 12: No School for Students
• October 15: SAC Meeting 5:15-6pm and PTO Meeting 6-7pm
• October 17: Trunk or Treat 12-2pm
• October 22: Literacy Night 5:30-7pm
• October 30: End of 1st Quarter, Eagle of the Month Ceremony (by invitation), Book Character Day

Have a wonderful week!

Mrs. Dennis

Principal

Rockledge Elementary

Each month we will post grade level and team newsletters so families can access information for their student(s). Links will be updated as teams provide their newsletters. Please click on the link below.

Thank you to all the families who attended our first Family Engagement Night! Families received an informative overview of our reading and math programs, assessments, and resources to support learning at home. All students have received a deck of cards to play the math games linked here. Please let us know if you have any questions. If you were unable to attend, or would like to review the information again, please click here to access the presentation and resources that were shared. We look forward to seeing you at our second-quarter Family Engagement Night on November 4th from 5:15-6pm in the library.

We have several opportunities for our volunteers to help! We will be holding a Volunteer Orientation soon to renew our roster of volunteers. Once you are screened and approved, please reach out to Ms. Santos in the front office to schedule a time you are available. We have teacher requests just waiting for a volunteer to come to the rescue.

Congratulations to our weekly attendance winners in each grade level!

Kindergarten: Ms. Godette

1st Grade: Ms. Rodney-Cornette

2nd Grade: Ms. Dixon

3rd Grade: Ms. Touwsma and Ms. Renteria

4th Grade: Ms. Brown

5th Grade: Ms. Cai

Multi-Grade: Ms. Hester and Ms. Toone

Thank you for helping us reach our schoolwide goal to reduce chronic absenteeism! Let's see which classes will have the best attendance this coming week.

Overview of PBIS at Rockledge Elementary

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) at Rockledge Elementary School is a schoolwide framework designed to promote a safe, respectful, and productive learning environment for all students. The program focuses on explicitly teaching, modeling, and reinforcing positive behaviors rather than relying on punishment. PBIS helps improve student behavior, engagement, and overall school climate by creating consistent expectations and a shared understanding of how students should act in different settings.

At Rockledge, PBIS is supported through visual tools such as posters, expectation matrices, and behavior reminders placed throughout the school. These resources break down expectations into clear, student-friendly language for areas like classrooms, hallways, cafeteria, and playground. By consistently reinforcing expectations such as being respectful, responsible, and safe, the school builds a positive culture where students are recognized for meeting expectations and supported when they need help improving behavior.

Students earn eggs for exhibiting S.O.A.R. behaviors. These eggs are accumulated and redeemed for classroom, grade-level, and schoolwide rewards.

Please click on the "Rockledge S.O.A.R. Expectations" header above, or visit our website directly, to access each of our expectations posters, descriptions, and how you can support our efforts at home.

https://rockledgees.pwcs.edu/about/pbis/index

Please click on the link to view the PWCS Cell Phone-Free Education Policy. At Rockledge, we have implemented the PWCS bell-to-bell policy that limits cell phone use during the instructional day. Our shared goal is creating classroom environments where students are fully present—mentally, emotionally, and socially. The student-created slogan, “Stop the scroll, take control,” reminds us that this policy is about empowerment, not restriction. It is about reclaiming focus, restoring meaningful human connection, and giving our students every opportunity to thrive. For more information, I invite you to review the PWCS FAQ page.

Please join our PTO so you can be a part of the Eagles community! Our next meeting will be on Thursday, October 15th from 6:00-7:00pm in the Library.

The purpose of a school advisory council is to provide opportunities for members of the school community to participate in the decision-making process at the local school level. A primary function of the council is to serve as an advisory body to the principal and school leadership team.

The school advisory council function is connected to the Prince William County Schools Strategic Plan, supporting Commitment 3- Family and Community Engagement, Objective 3.1- Prince William County Schools will engage families as authentic partners in education to support academic progress.

Our next meeting will be Thursday, October 15th at 5:15pm in the conference room.

Please click this link to access the minutes of our September meeting.

The Family Engagement Series provides families with resources that will assist with their student’s success. The series is led by the Prince William County Public Schools (PWCS) Community Outreach, Business Partnerships and Philanthropy Department, in collaboration with other PWCS programs, and community and business partners.

Focus: Specialty Programs Information Session for Elementary School Students

6:30-7:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 15, 2026 – Live Zoom Webinar

Target Audience: All PWCS students and families in elementary school

Join us on Thursday, October 15, for an informative webinar designed to help families learn about PWCS Specialty Programs and the opportunities available for elementary school students.

During this session, families will explore the variety of Specialty Program opportunities available to students, learn about the application process and important deadlines, and discover the resources and support available to help students and families make informed decisions. Parents and guardians will leave with the information and resources needed to explore program options and navigate the application process with confidence.

Presenters for this session: Jennifer Cavanaugh, Supervisor of Advanced Academics and Specialty Programs, and Dr. Laura Evans, Coordinator of Dual Enrollment, with Prince William County Public Schools

All requests for language accommodations are due by October 12, 2026.

• Register for the webinar
• Request language accommodations

ARRIVAL

• Supervision of students begins at 9:10am. Please stay with your students until that time. If they are walking by themselves, or with friends, students should arrive no earlier than 9:10am.
• When walking your student(s) to school, please say your goodbyes and wave from The Island. This will help us ensure we are getting students safely across the bus loop area.
• Please remember the church parking is not available for parking Tuesday-Thursday as they have parents bringing little ones to their program. Thank you for being good neighbors and keeping their students safe too.
• If your students are a Drop and Go, please have students hop out on the school side of the car with their things ready to go. We want to keep the flow moving as best we can. Also, a reminder there is NO PARKING in the drop off area and no U-turns on Mariner Drive. Please help us keep all of our students safe by following these procedures.

ATTENDANCE and GOING HOME CHANGES

• Please report student absences in ParentVue (use this link for directions ).
• Please email any going home change information to Ms. Rodriguez before 3:30pm and check for a confirmation email in return.

DISMISSAL

• Please make sure the adult picking up your student(s) has the tag you were issued. Pictures of tags are discouraged as we will need to have you wait until we can double check your ID before releasing your child. I have asked all staff to adhere to this requirement as we take our responsibility to keep your children safe very seriously, even if you are already recognizable by staff members.
• The playground will be open after buses leave school grounds.