Cougar Times

Dear Cougar Families,

Happy Monday! I hope you and your Family had a wonderful weekend! This week begins our final 8 instructional days of the 1st Quarter! Our Cougars have worked hard and learned a lot. It's time for Parent Teacher Conferences! If they haven't already done so, your Child's Teachers will be reaching out to schedule parent teacher conferences. We value your Partnership and look forward to meeting with you to discuss your child's learning.

This week, we have Girls on the Run on Tuesday (There is no Girls on the Run on Monday). We also hope you will join us for our October 9th Math Parent Cafe. Please be sure to read the following section if you would like to learn more and to complete the RSVP if you would like to attend. We hope to see you there!

As a reminder, we have 2 Spirit Days on the 1st and last days of each week. Please help us show school Spirit by encouraging your child to wear Conway Spirit Wear on 1st day and House Colors on the last day. This is not a requirement but intended to be a fun way to begin and end the week. If you would like to purchase Conway Spirit Wear from our PTA, please send them a message at conwayespta@gmail.com or use the QR Code included at the end of this Newsletter.

Finally, on the horizon, we have two things coming up. First, on 10/21, please have your Cougars wear Orange in support of Unity Day, when we stand united against Bullying! We also have Trunk or Treat coming up on October 23rd. Please be sure to complete the Trunk or Treat Volunteer Signup if you would like to set up a vehicle or volunteer at this event. This event will be a lot of fun and we are accepting candy donations now! Thank you to EVERYONE who has already donated Candy! According to our Cougars, we can never have enough!

Thank you for the important work you play in our School Community. We appreciate you and the support you provide us. Wishing you a wonderful week ahead and grateful for your Partnership!

Take care,

Mark Hayden, Principal

We know the holiday season can bring extra joy, but also extra pressure. We want to ensure every family in our school community has what they need this season. If your family could benefit from support this year, please take a moment to fill out the confidential forms below:

• Holiday Gifts: If you need assistance with holiday gifts and may not qualify for local agency programs, please complete the Holiday Help Form by October 15, 2026.

Our #ONEfamily Community Trunk or Treat is on Friday, October 23rd in the parking lot from 6:00-7:30pm. Trunk Decorating will be from 4:30 - 5:45 pm. Vehicles MUST be parked by 5:15 pm and may not leave before 8:00pm to ensure everyone's safety. If you would like to participate by decorating your vehicle for Trunk or Treat, please sign up at Trunk or Treat Volunteer Signup.

To make this morning a success for our veterans and students, we need your help! We are looking for parent volunteers to assist with set-up, food service, greeting guests, and clean-up.

If you are available to lend a hand, please view the specific time slots and roles needed and sign up here: Veterans Day Volunteer Signup.

Great news! Our school has partnered with Smile Virginia to offer in-school dental care. Simply complete the permission form or go to www.myschooldentist.com to sign up your child TODAY. There may be no cost to you if your child is insured with Medicaid or Virginia FAMIS! Private insurance and self-pay options are also available.

The Smile Dentist in-school dental program saves you time and provides a safe and comfortable place for your child to receive gentle dental care from licensed local professionals. Dental care includes a complete dental exam, x-rays, cleaning, fluoride and sealants when necessary, and in some cases, restorative care such as fillings.

Help Us Celebrate Our Staff this December! Let's show our hardworking staff some love this holiday season! We’re bringing back our annual Gift Card Tree, where staff members randomly draw a donated gift card ($5–$25 value). We need your help to ensure every staff member is included. Please consider contributing a gift card or two! Giftcard Tree Signup

Bingo Night is back on Friday, January 22, 2027, and we need your help to make it a winning success! It takes a village to pull off the fun, and we have a spot for everyone. Shift times are flexible so you can still play. Ready to join the fun? Bingo Night Volunteer Signup. Helping is almost as much fun as Winning and we are always looking for a few good Parents and Guardians to help with...

• Entry Team: Welcome families and hand out cards.
• Popcorn Stand: Keep the snacks flowing and the smiles glowing.
• BINGO Verifiers: Be the ultimate judge of those winning cards!
• Setup & Cleanup: Help us transform the room (and put it back together).

In addition to sleep, Attendance is an incredibly important part of Learning and students who frequently miss school will fall behind. In case you were not aware, research has been done to suggest that missing 10 Days of School for the entire year is the maximum amount of absences a student can have before they begin falling behind. Although our Goal should be for our Cougars to miss no more than 10 days throughout the year, some parents keep their children home for 10 days each quarter. Not being here makes it difficult for students to learn and, after students reach 18 absences, they are labeled by the state as chronically absent. and are unlikely to make up the learning that they have missed (learning is different than catching up on "work"). Even missing 2 days each month will result in Chronic Absenteeism, which puts our students at a disadvantage in comparison to their peers who attend regularly. This includes both excused and unexcused absences as excessively missing school has the same effect regardless of the reason.

If you would like to provide your Child's Classmates with something to celebrate his/her birthday, we prefer it is non-edible. Children love things like silly erasers, cool pencils, stickers, and fidgets, which last longer than snacks and have less complications than food.

If you would like to provide snacks, however, all snacks must be (1) Nut Free, (2) processed with equipment that is not shared with nut products, and (3) made in a plant that does not process food with nuts. Before purchasing the snack, please check the package thoroughly to ensure that (1) the ingredients list notes that the snack is nut free and (2) make sure the packaging doesn't state the the snack has been processed with shared equipment or processed in a plant with peanuts and nuts. Additionally, although non-food items are preferred, if you would still like to provide a snack, please adhere to each of the following guidelines as well:

• All snacks must be pre-approved in advance with the teacher.
• All snacks must be nut free (the ingredients list must state this). If packaging states processed with shared equipment or processed in a plant with peanuts and nuts, this is considered as having nuts.
• The snack must be store bought and still sealed.
• Carbonated/caffeinated beverages are not permitted.
• Goodie bags with treats are super helpful for the teacher (makes it really easy to pass out).
• Please do not send full cakes that require cutting (we don’t have those resources or time in the room or cafeteria). Please also send napkins and plates if the snack necessitates it.

Caring for mental health is just as important as caring for physical health. To make it easier for our families to find support, we’ve gathered a list of trusted resources that offer information, tools, and help for those who may be struggling, and for those supporting someone in need.

Mental Health America Fredericksburg (Find a mental helth provider)

Rappahannock Community Services Board (Local resources and crisis support)

ParentGuidance.org (Coaching videos and ask-a-therapist)

Psychology Today (Provider search and psychology articles)

Common Sense Media (Technology and social media support)

National Alliance on Mental Health (Support groups and fact sheets)

JED Foundation (Suicide prevention support)

988 Suicide Helpline (Crisis services available 24/7)

Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank offers a new program, OrderAhead. To participate in this program

please visit orderahead.org. You can order food online, every two weeks, and pick it up at the food bank

located at 480 Central Rd Fredericksburg VA 22401 or your preferred location. The FredFoodVA app gives locations of food pantries as well as other food assistance programs in our community, their hours of operations, and any updates about pantry hours, pop up pantries, mobile pantry stops, etc.

Please click on the FredFood VAand SNAP Link to learn more about this program or to find out if you are eligible for SNAP benefits by making an appointment with the Food Assistance & Referral Specialist at the FRFB.

School Supply Lists: Click here to get each grade level's school supply list

NEW ParentVUE App: If you're using the ParentVUE App on your Android or Apple device, you need to download the new one. For more information, check out the county's website here

School Nutrition: SCPS uses SchoolCafe for payment and nutrition planning. Sign up for an account here. Free and Reduced Meal Application can be found here

Bus Assignments: To find your child's bus assignment, go to the county's website here, school down, and click on "Find my Bus Assignment."

School Year Calendar: Review the 2026-2027 School Year Calendar and be sure to plan ahead so that we can minimize student absences.

• 10/9/26: Math Parent Cafe (9:10-9:55)
• 10/12/26: Professional Learning Day (No School for Students)
• 10/15/26: End of 1st Quarter/1st 9 Weeks, PTA Meeting (Library, 5:30-6:30)
• 10/16/26: Staff Workday (No School for Students)
• 10/19/26: Parent Teacher Conferences (No School for Students)
• 10/21/26: Unity Day! Wear Orange and stand with us in Unity against Bullying!
• 10/23/26: PTA Trunk or Treat 6:00-8:00 PM
• 11/3/26: Election Day, No School
• 11/6/26: Science Parent Cafe (AM)
• 11/10/26: Veterans Day Celebration (AM)
• 11/11/26: Veterans Day, No School
• 11/19/26: PTA Meeting (Library, 5:30-6:30)
• 11/25/26-11/17/26: Thanksgiving Break, No School
• 12/4/26: Educational Technology Parent Cafe (AM)
• 12/18/26: End of 2nd Quarter/End of 1st Semester
• 12/21/26-1/5/27: Winter Break, No School
• 1/15/27: House System Parent Cafe (AM)
• 1/18/27: MLK Jr. Day, No School
• 1/21/27: PTA Meeting (Library, 5:30-6:30)
• 1/22/27 BINGO Night!!!
• 2/5/27: SOL Prep Parent Cafe (AM)
• 2/11/27: PTA Meeting (Library, 5:30-6:30)
• 2/12/27: No School for Students
• 2/15/27: Presidents Day, No School
• 3/5/27: Cooperative Learning Parent Cafe (AM)
• 3/10/27: Eid Al Fitr, No School
• 3/17/27: PTA Meeting (Library, 5:30-6:30)
• 3/19/27: End of 3rd Quarter
• 3/22/27-3/29/27: Spring Break, No School
• 4/9/27: Summer Learning Parent Cafe (AM)
• 4/22/27: PTA Meeting (Library, 5:30-6:30)
• 5/17/27: Eid Al Adha, No School
• 5/26/27: Last Day of School