POWES Family Press

Good Evening Powhatan Elementary Families,

We had a GREAT two weeks of school! As we head into week 3 we will be wrapping up our last week of Color Days supporting our kindergarteners. The Color Day calendar is below so keep reading. We will have our 1st Spirit Day on Wed., Sept. 9th at school and continue it at 6:00 pm at the West Chester Chick-fil-a in support of our PTO's spirit night. So let's see our kiddos all dressed in Powhatan colors and swag!! Some grade levels will start some beginning of the year assessments to see where your kiddos currently is academically in reading/math.

We can't wait to watch your kiddo(s) 📈LEVEL UP🥇this year with academics and overall performance in school!

Below is what you will find in this Sunday's message regarding the 26-27 school year. Enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

1. POWES Updates
2. POWES Expectations & POWES PRIDE
3. Bus & Transportation Information
4. Important Dates and Resources
5. Drills
6. Meet Our NEW 2nd Grade Teacher
7. PTO Info
8. Dr. Gill's Message
9. We have Powhatan PRIDE!
10. Helpful Links ALL year long for Parents
11. Previous POWES Family Press Newsletters
12. PCPS Calendar! Check it out...ALL of the date your kiddo is OUT of school! THIS IS THE TIME TO PLAN appointments & trips!

• Tardy Bell rings @ 8:40 am...Tardies will start this week so please be on time.

• We are asking parents to stay in the car when dropping off students as this should help us speed up the dop off process. A staff member will make sure your child gets out of the car so please have them get out on the passenger side of the car.

• Please view the Free & Reduced Lunch Form on the PCPS website. You can print it out from the site or let us know if you would like a "hard copy" version and we will make sure you receive one.

If your child is interested in joining the Cub Scouts please view the 2026 Cub Scouts flyer. An info session will take place on Sept. 9th during school with a family info session on Sept. 10th from 6:00pm to 8:00pm in the POWES cafeteria.

• If you have any changes in your child's NORMAL mode of transportation throughout the school year please email powespickup@powhatan.k12.va.us and your child’s teacher. Please be patient as arrival and dismissal will take a little longer the first few days.

📜 Over the next couple of weeks your child will either learn or review what it means to..."Have Powhatan PRIDE"! They will review our school's expectations of: Being Respectful, Being Responsible, Being Safe, and Being Kind. Please use these same guidelines at home to bridge the gap between home and school. They will recite our school pledge each morning..."I am Respectful, Responsible, Safe, & Kind...I have Powhatan PRIDE"! 🧡

As you continue to read our newsletter you will see how we wrapped up the '25-'26 school with regards to attendance. We did AMAZING so let's keep it going! We need your kiddo at school every day so they can learn with us. Research shows that if your child misses 2 days a month then he or she is trending to be Chronically Absent (missing 10% or more time from school) as they move through their school career. To put this into perspective at this point of the year...if your child has missed ONE day or MORE already from school this year then your child is Chronically Absent. We've only been in school for 9 days and 1 day absent means he/she has missed 11% of the school year already. Now, as we continue to be in school longer and your child doesn't miss any more days then the percentage will drop drastically.

Here are our Perfect Attendance by Grade percentages so far (% of the grade that has NOT missed a day) :

PK: 76.1%

K: 87.3%

1st: 75%

2nd: 89.3%

3rd: 84%

4th: 90.5%

5th: 86%

WAY to GO 4th grade! But watch out...2nd is closing in FAST! Who will have the BEST attendance at the end of September? We celebrate "Attendance Matters" each month with some sort of celebration (popsicle, popcorn, etc). Who will WIN our 1st month of school? GAME ON...Let's 📈LEVEL UP🥇 OUR LEARNING by being at school EVERY DAY!!

Family Trips & Vacations:

We NEED your kiddo at school every day, but we know some trips/vacations have already been planned. Please remember family trips/vacations MUST be approved by the principal ahead of time. Please email Dr. Jason Gill at jason.gill@powhatan.k12.va.us in order to get PRIOR approval. Last minute communications CAN result in an unexcused absence. Even though a vacation/trip may be approved, does not mean the absence goes away. An absence from school is an absence from school. We need all students in school each and every day, but we know things come up. Please keep in mind if your child misses 10% of the school year at any time you will receive a call, a letter or both. We just want to make sure your child(ren) is not missing valuable instructional time.

These past couple of weeks your child's teacher spent quite a bit of time going over our POWES expectations for the:

• Classroom
• Hallways
• Bus
• Cafeteria
• Restrooms (inside classroom & hallway)

Please ask your child about our POWES Expectations and work with us regarding expectations of how we should leave the classroom, cafeteria, and restrooms when we leave. We have already had some issues in the hallway restrooms (both girls and boys) & on the school bus. We addressed them, but we need your support at home to reinforce our expectations.

Bus Expectations Talk with Admin on Tues. 9/8:

As we move into Week 3 of the school year, Mrs. Gobble and myself will get onto EACH bus on Tuesday afternoon (9/8) to review bus expectations. Please be aware as this may make our buses run behind schedule.

REMINDERS...While Riding the Bus:

1. NO standing up at any time unless the bus has stopped at THEIR stop.
2. Do NOT change seats at any time; especially, if the bus is moving.
3. Students MUST face the front and not turn around in their seats.
4. Talk to students in their seat or across the isle NOT yelling to seats in front or behind them.
5. Keep the hands, feet, and/or objects to themselves at all times.

Please help us review these expectations each day so a bus referral and bus suspension does not occur. We need to keep every student safe as they ride our buses. Thanks for your continued support of our bus expectations. View the PCPS Bus Expectations.

How to Track Your Student on the Bus:

Please continue to use the My Ride K-12 app. We know there were a few "hiccups" this past week, but please know we are working hard on making your child's bus ride experience a pleasant one.

Please have your student at the bus stop at least 10 minutes prior to the scheduled bus stop time. Being ready and waiting before the scheduled arrival time helps our buses remain on schedule and ensures students do not miss their bus.

Important Safety Reminder for Families of Young Children

For the safety of our youngest riders, PCPS requests that parents, guardians, or their designee accompany young children to and from the bus stop. Please plan to arrive at the bus stop with your child at least 10 minutes before the scheduled pickup time and be present to meet your child when the bus arrives in the afternoon.

We encourage all families to review bus stop safety expectations with their children, including staying a safe distance from the roadway, being aware of other vehicles on the road, waiting for the bus to come to a complete stop before approaching, and following the directions of the bus driver. For more tips and additional information, see the PCPS Transportation webpage.

Thank you for helping us start the school year safely and successfully. We appreciate your partnership and the trust you place in PCPS Transportation each day.

We wish all of our students and families a safe, successful, and wonderful school year!

Sincerely,

PCPS Transportation

View My Ride K-12 Parent User Guide (English).pdf

View Student Transportation My Ride K-12 Parent User Guide Spanish Flyer (1).pdf

PCPS Student Services:

Join the PCPS Student Services Department for their monthly Powhatan Strong Coffee Chat series on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, at 9 AM. They will discuss PCPS attendance guidelines and how your family and our school support your student toward great attendance. To join, click the link at https://bit.ly/PowhatanStrong26-27

Understanding the symptoms and daily care needs of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes helps keep our school community safe and supported. Please review this Diabetes Information Guide to learn about key warning signs, care management, and resources for coordinating support with our school nurses.

Reminder ..there is NO school for students & staff on Monday, Sept. 7th!

• September 7th: Labor Day

• September 9th: School Spirit Day & Night @ Chick-fil-a; Students and staff are asked to wear Powhatan black and orange, Powhatan gear/swag, etc ALL day on Wednesday. School spirit will continue as we hope you will join us at Chick-fil-a for Spirit Night (West Chester location).

• September 10th: Cub Scouts Night @ POWES 6:30 in cafeteria

• September 17th: Back-to-School Night

• September 24th: 1st day to have lunch with your kiddo (please remember to bring to your ID with you when you sign in & ONLY pull your child over to the family lunch table)

Additional Information

• ⏰ REMINDER: Elementary start time: Drop off begins at 8:25 am in the front loop of the school.

***If a need arises for some reason and you need to pick your child up early from school you will NEED to bring your photo ID inside the building in order to do so...EVEN if we know you!

• If you do not currently receive text messages from the school messenger program and you would like to OPT IN to receive TEXT messages. Text the words OPT IN to 67587.

• Are you or someone you know interested in becoming a substitute teacher for PCPS? Apply here if you are interested! Please spread the word so we can increase our substitute pool.

This week...depending on the weather...we will have a FIRE DRILL.

As the year moves forward your child will practice different types of emergency drills. Some of which you will be notified at least 24 hours prior. Others will be "unannounced", but your child's teacher will go over all of these drill expectations this week and next. Please talk with your child about them at home. Pre-K & K will NOT participate in the "Lockdown Drill" this semester.

Types of Drills:

• Fire
• Tornado
• Earthquake
• Lockdown

A huge THANK YOU to everyone who joined us for our first PTO meeting of the school year on Thursday, 9/3 🎉! We loved hearing your thoughts & ideas…keep it coming!! As a reminder, our PTO thrives because of our incredible community of Powhatan Elementary families. By becoming a PTO member, you directly fund the magic we get to bring to our students & staff all year long. While we always welcome volunteers, becoming a member does not obligate you to work at events. You can support us just by signing up!

You all are the 🖤 heartbeat 🧡 of this school & we are so grateful for your time!

🖤 🧡 your POWes PTO!🖤🧡

📢 CALLING ALL POWES FAMILIES...WE WANT & NEED YOU 🫵!

Please join the PTO as we would love to have 100% of our staff and families join us as we plan and organize TONS of events for our school! We would LOVE to see ALL of you at our monthly meetings, which take place the 1st Thursday of each month at 6:30pm.

Keep scrolling to see our two order forms and see "What's Happening this Month" and a our "Year at a Glance":

1. POWES Spirit Wear
2. POWES Class Shirt
3. Meet Our 26-27 PTO Board
4. Our YEAR at a Glance
5. What's Happening in September?

If you are interested in joining or want to know more about what we do please contact us at powhatanespto@gmail.com. We are excited to partner with you to make this a successful and memorable school year for our students and staff.

Dear POWES Families,

🎉 A few highlights from around our school:

1. I'm hoping ALL of you are having a WONDERFUL weekend! Hopefully all of you have had a chance to take some time off and spend it with family. We will see all of our kiddos' smiling faces on Tuesday, Sept. 8th. Here's to starting Week 3 @ POWES!

2. Please continue to join us this LAST week of "Color of the Day" by sending your kiddos to school in the assigned color. We know Thursday, Sept. 9th is RED, but we would also like our kiddos to show Powhatan Spirit by wearing ORANGE & BLACK and/or anything else they may have that says, "I Have Powhatan PRIDE"! Don't forget to join us Wednesday, Sept. 9th at the West Chester Chick-fil-a location for Spirit Night!! It's actually an ALL DAY/EVENING event so if you happen to visit there for breakfast or lunch just mention POWES! Our PTO and some staff will be at that location to see your kiddos so come on out and join us starting at 6:00 pm!

3. Beginning of the year assessments will take place this week so please tell your kiddo(s) to always do their best on any assessment. We will use this data to assist with grouping in the classroom as well as build our math & reading intervention groups.

4. As always...if you ever have any quesitons or concerns please do not hesitate to reach out to myself or Mrs. Gobble, assistant principal.

5. Please make sure your student is getting the proper amount of rest as we will be CHALLENGING ALL of our students in order to 📈LEVEL UP🥇this year!

6. Please keep scrolling down to see a section that contains the previous POWES Family Press newsletters.

We are JUMPING FOR JOY for all of what the 26-27 school year has in store for you and your kiddo(s)! Mrs. Gobble, assistant principal, and myself are so glad that each of you will be partnering with us as we 📈LEVEL UP🥇 this school year. Again, I am HONORED to be your principal and I cannot wait to see all of you VERY soon!

See you soon,

Dr. Jason Gill

Your PROUD Principal

View Parent Guide with ALL Things POWES!

View Breakfast & Lunch Menus

View MySchoolBucks for lunch accounts

View SchoolCashOnline for field trip and other payment

View the 2026 - 2027 division calendar

View the PCPS website

View the PCPS Instructional website

📝School Supply Lists:

View Supply Lists for PK (3’s & 4’s)
View Supply Lists for Kindergarten, 1st, & 2nd

View Supply Lists for 3rd, 4th, & 5th