COVID-19 Outbreak Notification
October 11, 2022
Dear Parents and Community Members,
In cooperation with the Fairfax County Health Department, we are sending this letter to inform you that an outbreak* of several cases of COVID-19 in a single classroom has been identified at Common Ground. This outbreak will be posted on the Virginia Department of Health Dashboard. Individuals with COVID-19 have been isolated from in-person care as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Fairfax County Health Department. Our school remains open to all other staff and students.
Parents should continue to monitor their child’s health and the health of their families for COVID-19 symptoms. Children with COVID-19 generally have mild, cold-like symptoms, such as fever, runny nose, and cough. Vomiting and diarrhea have also been reported in some children. It is important that children with symptoms of COVID-19 stay home from school and get tested to stop further spread from occurring.
The COVID-19 cases in your child’s daycare and in the community are a reminder how important it is for everyone to take steps to protect themselves and others, whether in daycare or in public places. Vaccination of children 6 months of age and above is an important tool to protect against COVID-19 and reduce the spread of infection in our schools and community. Visit https://www.vaccines.gov to find locations to receive a vaccination. Additional recommendations to prevent COVID-19 are provided here.
If you have questions regarding this information, please contact your health care provider or me, either by email liz@commongroundchildcare.org or phone/text or ADMIN message in Brightwheel.
Liz Badley
Executive Director
Common Ground Childcare
*A COVID outbreak is defined as multiple facility-associated COVID-19 cases making up at least 3 cases within a specified core group, occurring within 14-days of each other and not associated with exposure in another setting outside of the facility (such as a household). A core group may be a classroom, extracurricular activity, cohort group, before/after school care, etc.
Newsletter: October 7
Dear Families,
We will see you on TUESDAY as we are closed on Monday for Indigenous Peoples’ Day!
Upcoming Field Trips:
Three of our classes will be taking a field trip to Pumpkin Village in Leesburg during the month of October.
The Love Bugs will go on Thursday, October 13th: click here for details and chaperone sign up
The Busy Bees will go on Thursday, October 20th: click here for details and chaperone sign up
The School Aged Program will go on Monday, October 24th
We are asking for Chaperones for the Love Bug and Busy Bee field trips, though please keep in mind that parents will need to drive separately.
Sign up for Saturday Hours
Don’t forget to sign up for our Saturday hours on October 22! The sign up will close a week before the event: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f4faca723abff2-october
Our Teacher Bonus Donations Drive has started!
Common Ground Policies do not allow our staff members to accept gifts from families other than home cooked treats. We ask that if you would like to thank our teachers this holiday season, please make a donation to the Teacher Bonus Fund! Common Ground matched the funds donated by our parents to reward the teachers with bonus before the holiday season. We ask that you make your donation through the PayPal giving fund or by reaching out to Liz with the amount that you would like to donate.
Remember, we are a listed charity, so ask your employer if they have a matching program!
Have a wonderful three day weekend and we will see you on Tuesday!
-The CG team!
Newsletter: September 22
We will be adding additional dates for the springtime later on.
Virginia Quality Practice Year 2 - Curriculum Roll Out Underway!
We are so excited to be rolling out the Creative Curriculum across all classrooms this year! We have been successfully using this curriculum in our preschool program for the last 6 years. With our participation in the VQB5 Grant Program, the state paid for the curriculum and trained our teachers in it last spring.
The curriculum, in addition to being evaluated using the CLASS tool, help to ensure that we are meeting and exceeding state quality standards, which are all a part of the unifying framework for early childhood education.
That said, your teachers may be reaching out for information about your child at home! You can also find out more at our Curriculum Night on October 20th from 6-7pm.
Parking Lot Etiquette
We have CONTINUED concerns raised about the parking lot during pick up after our notice of this in August 18th’s Newsletter. As a reminder, with small children around, it’s important to drive and park slowly and carefully. We began closing the front driveway along the fence during pick up hours this week to assist in keeping our kids as safe as possible.
We ask that if you need to back into a space, please do so at least 5 spaces down from the driveway along the fence. This will help make it easier for parents who are crossing the lot with their children at pick up.
The kids get excited when they recognize their car pulling in, so please try to make an effort to conclude any calls or meetings before pulling into the lot, so that you are distraction free when it’s time to get your kiddos. We understand that things come up, so just send us a message if you need extra assistance getting your child to the car safely.
It’s Official - We’re a Laboratory!
While we have been performing on-site COVID tests since October of last year, we are now OFFICIALLY a clinical laboratory able to perform waived tests. This means that we can perform any simple COVID test on-site without a proctor.
While this doesn’t change much in practice for COVID testing, it’s possible that we may be able to order other simple tests, like flu and strep in the future. For now, it means that our COVID testing will continue through the end of at least January 2023, as that is how long the VDH has said they will provide tests
Thank you for taking the time to read our newsletter! Make sure you scroll below for the important dates coming up at Common Ground!
Love, the CG Team
Newsletter: September 14
Dear Parents,
We have been having a ROCKIN’ and ROLLIN’ great start to our school year! You may have seen our new rollercoaster on our Instagram - Miss Gitti even took a turn! We also have some GREAT NEWS! Mr. Josh will be back tomorrow to sub in the Playful Panda’s classroom!
School Portrait Orders are Due TOMORROW!
Reminder that your school portrait orders help Common Ground in our fundraising efforts! Please check your ADMIN message in brightwheel for the link, our school code (SF04579509), and your child’s code! You may have noticed that we have updated your child’s photo in brightwheel with their school portrait, if they have one!
Our MAKE-UP picture day will be Monday, September 26th! This will allow any interested School Aged children to get their portraits done, as well as the opportunity for any sibling photos between children in our Early Childhood Education program to get photos with their School Aged siblings! Please sign up for make up photos here by Monday, September 19th.
Mark your calendars to see the school and meet the teachers!
Back-to-School Open House: Thursday, September 22, 2022 6pm-7pm
This will be a time that you can stop by and meet the teachers, see the classrooms, as well as the entire school with our map activity! This is a very informal night to drop in at your leisure between 6pm and 7pm. Children are welcome to attend!
Curriculum Night: Thursday, October 20, 2022 6pm-7pm
This is the night to learn about the curriculum that we are using center wide as well as our second year of participation in the Preschool Development Block Grant, practice year 2! It will be more difficult to bring children to this event. We recommend that one parent represent the family, however if you are a one parent household that week, please sign up for care here.
Here’s the schedule of events:
6-6:05pm - Arrival and meet in the Great Hall
6:05-6:15pm - Whole center curriculum and quality presentation
6:15-6:20pm - Transition to child’s classroom
6:20-6:30 - Curriculum presentation in child’s classroom 1
6:30-6:35 - transition to second child’s classroom
6:35-6:45 - Curriculum presentation in child’s classroom 2 (this is the same as the 6:20 presentation)
If you only have one child, you are done after the first presentation - refreshments/mixer will continue until 7pm in outdoor area
We are excited to have parents inside the building for both of these events!
Need COVID Tests?
We have you covered! We have plenty to send home at any time. Just let us know and we will send some home with you. Currently, the tests that we have are the Binax Now tests that can be used with or without a proctor. We DO NOT require the use of a proctor. The boxes do not come with instructions, but they can be found here.
We are happy this is a service that we can continue to provide for our community members.
Thank you for staying informed by reading our newsletter!
yours,
The CG Team
Newsletter: September 7
Happy First Week of School!
We are so excited to have kicked off our school year program this week with a LOT of updates to share with you!
Welcome and Welcome Back:
With the start of our new school year, we have some staff updates to share with you:
We are excited to welcome Miss Masomah to our Infants and Toddlers Team! She comes to Common Ground after working as a nanny for several Common Ground Families who referred her to us. We are so happy to have her join our community!
We also have Miss Elizabeth to welcome to our Preschool Program! She will be working in the Love Bugs room and comes as a family referral, as she is Miss Victoria’s niece!
Welcome back, Mr. William to our school aged program! William was a Common Ground kiddo from infants through school age, who worked in our Summer Camp program both this summer and last summer, but has decided to come work after school a few days a week!
We are still working to hire a few more staff members to help us close out the center and give us some additional coverage. If you know of anyone looking to work in the classroom, we would love to chat with them!
Picture Day is TOMORROW
Lifetouch will be here for school photos tomorrow morning! We have sent home forms with some picture day tips. You DO NOT need to return the forms for your child to have their pictures taken, but the forms do allow for you to choose a background color and to send in an item to have your child photographed with.
We will do our best to capture sibling photos!
After picture day, we will be sending home physical order forms as well as the link to order through Brightwheel. You will be able to find your child’s code on their order form.
Brightwheel Scheduled Maintenance
🛠️ Scheduled Maintenance!
Brightwheel will be offline for scheduled maintenance between 10 p.m. PDT–11 p.m. PDT on Wednesday, September 7. During the maintenance window, you will not be able to access the brightwheel app or website and any scheduled notifications will be delayed.
Hopefully this doesn’t impact us tomorrow.
Classrooms and Teacher Teams:
We will be having a fall open house so that everyone can come and meet the teachers and see the school later this month, but ahead of that, here’s the list of who’s where at Common Ground:
Bubble Buddies: Miss Nana, Miss Marita, and Miss Susie
Little Penguins: Miss Patty, Miss HuiHui, and Miss Gitti
supporting both infant classrooms: Miss Masomah
Playful Pandas: Miss Simi and Miss Samra
Dancing Monkeys: Miss Delia, Miss Petty, and Miss Kisha
Love Bugs: Miss Yolanda, Miss Kristel, and Miss Elizabeth
Busy Bees: Miss Adella and Mr. Zach
Kindergarten and Specials: Miss Janette
School Aged: Miss Janette and Mr. William
Bus Driver: Mr. Jordon
Administration: Miss Liz, Miss Victoria, and Miss Mimi
Fall Open House is not to be confused with our curriculum meetings that will come during the month of October. At that time, we will share the overview of the curriculums used at Common Ground. For all age groups here, we use the appropriate Creative Curriculum, either Infants, Toddlers, and Twos, Preschool, or Kindergarten. We also use the social emotional curriculum from Second Step.
We’re so glad that you’re all members of our Community!
Love, The CG Team
Newsletter: August 30
Dear Parents,
Just a reminder, this is our LAST week of summer programming at Common Ground and our Fall Programs begin on September 6th, 2022. This coincides with one of our three big transition periods as well!
TRANSITIONS:
There are several students in each age group that will be joining new classes on the 6th. If your child is included in a transition, you have been notified via brightwheel. Otherwise, your child will remain in the classroom that they are currently in for our Fall program! If your child is transitioning to a new room, hopefully you all have had a chance to log into one of our transition meetings, but if you missed it, please reach out and we can set up a one-on-one with your child’s new teacher.
HOW PROGRAMS/TRANSITIONS WORK:
For informational purposes, we thought that we would share how we organize the program year and when we transition students:
School Year Programs run from the Tuesday after Labor Day to the Thursday before Memorial Day
We transition children into new classrooms with both the end of the School Year Program and at the beginning of the School Year Program
Summer Programs run from the Tuesday after Memorial Day through the Thursday before Labor Day
Again, transitions happen at the beginning and end of the Summer Programs
Winter Transitions and Rolling Transitions
We plan for a winter transitions/rolling transitions to allow children who turn two and who are under the age of two to move into the next classroom group based on:
age
readiness
classroom availability
If you have questions about your child’s transitions, please reach out to us and we would be happy to share how those decisions are made and the specific details on when we have transitions planned for your child, noting that transition plans are subject to availability in the classroom.
PICTURE DAY is September 8th
Picture Day is coming on Thursday, September 8th! Lifetouch Preschool Photography, known for capturing images from infants to toddlers for preschools and daycares nationwide, will capture our photos this year. For more information about Picture Day, check out the flyer provided or visit https://preschoolportraits.lifetouch.com/get-ready-for-picture-day
Picture Day forms will be coming home of Tuesday, September 6th and can be returned on Wednesday or Thursday morning before picture day! We will then send home packets and ordering information after photos on Thursday! If you order within the window, Common Ground receives a commission from portrait sales!
REMINDER: We are CLOSED on Friday, September 2nd and Monday, September 5th
Thank you for being members of our community!
-the CG Team
Newsletter: August 25
Dear Parents,
Our FCPS kids have started back at school and our Early Childhood Education programs are enjoying our last two weeks of summer while the office gets ready to kick off the new school year! You may have received or will be receiving some forms via adobe sign. Please return those to us so that we can keep our files up to date. Please also remember to send us or bring us up to date vaccination/health records after well visits for your child(ren).
CHILD AND ADULT FOOD CARE PROGRAM FORMS FOR 2022-2023 SCHOOL YEAR
It’s that time of year again! Since the grand majority of our students filled out their CACFP forms in September of last year, we will be doing a complete school renewal for the 2022-2023 school year during the next week. This includes our new families who may have filled out forms over the summer. We apologize for the inconvenience, and we really appreciate your help with streamlining our bookkeeping!
There will be tables set up by the gate at pickup starting on TODAY Thursday, August 25th. We will have forms organized by classroom! Please swing by and sign your forms. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us via brightwheel or email!
Staff Announcements
We have a few staff announcements to share with our community:
Miss Pinky’s last day at Common Ground was Monday. We wish her all the best in her future endeavors! Miss Simi is leading the room for the time being, while we work to find a replacement lead teacher for the Toddler program.
Miss LJ will be stepping down from her full time position while her husband attends Law School! She’s already agreed to stay on to help us with community events, including our October Stuffy Sleep Over and Trunk-or-Treat for Halloween!
Mr. Jordon has rejoined our staff as a School Aged Bus Driver!
We are currently interviewing for several positions, both full and part time. Those jobs can be found on all the job board sites due to a wonderful state sponsored partnership with Aquire4Hire!
Sign-Up Reminders:
We are still missing laundry helpers for the Love Bugs and the Busy Bees classrooms. Remember, ANY FAMILY can sign up for ANY CLASSROOM laundry. We currently using the honor system for tracking parent volunteer hours, but if it continues to be difficult to get volunteers, we may have to track those hours more closely.
Laundry Sign Up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f4faca723abff2-laundry
Morning/Evening extended hours are staffed base on sign-ups. It’s important that we have an accurate count so that we can staff appropirately. Please make sure that you sign up at least 2 days ahead of time and communicate any changes as soon as you are aware of them via brightwheel message. We will do our best to accommodate late sign-ups.
Extended Care Hours: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f4faca723abff2-fall
SATURDAY HOURS ARE BACK! Make sure you sign up for September Saturday Hours prior to the Labor Day Weekend! Again, this program is staffed according to sign ups, so it’s important that we have an accurate count a week prior to the event. Donations can be made at our PayPal Giving Fund page and will be applied to your account.
September Saturday Hours: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f4faca723abff2-september
Where to find information:
We know that it can seem overwhelming to know where to look for everything, so we try to keep you up to date through multiple channels. Here’s a handy list of where you can find information about your child’s room and events at the center:
Brightwheel - There are so many amazing features in this app! - Open your APP and select your child to follow long:
Messages - you have the option to send a message directly to us to ask questions:
staff & admins - this chat goes your child’s classroom teachers, the administration, and the adults associated with your child’s account (both parents, any approved family or pick up persons)
admins only - this chat only goes to the center admins. It can be used for questions about billing, transitions, or anything that your child’s classroom teacher doesn’t need to be privy to
Add Photo - if there is something that you do at home or over the weekend that you’d like to share with the teachers, please use this feature and let the teachers know through messages that you have shared something to the feed. We don’t get notifications for this, but it is a great way to share “at home” fun with the teachers! You do need to actually take the photo in the moment through the Brightwheel app to utilize this feature though. I have made the request that parents be able to upload photos from their albums with their tech support, so hopefully that will be coming soon!
Calendar: You will find information about our CLOSED DAYS, center wide events, and classroom events in this calendar. Full details for these things are always available on the the calendar on our website, just consider this calendar a reminder.
Learning: Lesson plans are available under this tab, remember that our fall programs do not begin until September 6th, so lesson plans may not be published yet.
Documents: relevant center-wide documents are available here
Our Website and Newsletter -
Subscribe to both our Newsletter and never miss one! We try to remember to share the link via messages, but we don’t want to overload the chat midday.
This is the main CALENDAR for the school
Menus can be found here
Our BLOG is available here
Sign Ups
We share our sign up genius links in most newsletters and on the calendar for events. They can also be found on the front page of the Newletter.
If you ever have a hard time finding something, please feel free to call, message, or email! We are always happy to send things along!
Thank you all for being important members of our community
-the CG team
Newsletter: August 18
Dear Parents,
REMINDER, we are closed tomorrow, Friday, August 19, 2022 for a staff development day! We appreciate your understanding as this was an addition to the calendar at the beginning of July.
Happy LAST DAY OF CAMP!
We had a great summer with our school aged campers! We wish them well as they head on to the school year and can’t wait to see how they grow over the next year!
Parking Lot Etiquette
We have had some concerns raised about the parking lot during pick up. As a reminder, with small children around, it’s important to drive and park slowly and carefully. We began closing the front driveway along the fence during pick up hours this week to assist in keeping our kids as safe as possible.
We ask that if you need to back into a space, please do so at least 5 spaces down from the driveway along the fence. This will help make it easier for parents who are crossing the lot with their children at pick up.
The kids get excited when they recognize their car pulling in, so please try to make an effort to conclude any calls or meetings before pulling into the lot, so that you are distraction free when it’s time to get your kiddos. We understand that things come up, so just send us a message if you need extra assistance getting your child to the car safely.
Check In/Out
It’s very important as part of our license that we have records for check in and check out. Parents/approved pick up persons MUST check their children in and out using Brightwheel. You can do this by:
using your device, scanning the QR code, and using your 4 digit pin code to check your child in/out
OR by alerting a staff member and using your 4 digit pin on a school device to check your child in/out
In the coming weeks, we will have new QR code signs, since we understand that ours don’t always work when it’s wet, AND two check in kiosks with iPads in them so that parents can use their codes on those to check their children in/out.
2022-2023 Program Year Tuition
You have already received notice in your emailed invoice about our tuition increase for the 2022-2023 school year. This increase was approved on November 20, 2021 and went into immediate effect for new enrollments. Tuition rates can be found here: https://www.commongroundchildcare.org/policies/2021/11/23/2022-tuition-information
Saturday Hours are BACK
We have scheduled the following Saturday’s where we will have teachers here at Common Ground to provide care for your littles!
September 10th - Sign up is HERE by September 5th
October 22nd - Sign up HERE by October 16th
December 10th - Sign up HERE by December 4th
And speaking of signing up, remember that we ALWAYS need laundry helpers AND that we do not schedule teachers to work extended afternoon care hours if there aren’t children signed up at least 2 days before. Please visit both our laundry sign up and our extended hours sign up to help and be helped! :)
Thank you for being members of our community!
- The CG Team
Newsletter: August 9
Dear Parents and Community Members,
It’s been a FUN and busy summer here at Common Ground, but our summer programming for our younger children has another FOUR weeks of FUN planned! While FCPS schools begin on Monday, August 22nd, our fall programming for preschoolers will begin on Tuesday, September 6th!
Upcoming CLOSED Days
Common Ground will be CLOSED the following days:
Friday, August 19th - Staff Development Day
Friday, September 2nd - Staff Development Day
Monday, September 5th - Labor Day Federal Holiday
We use our staff development days as a chance to meet, update required certifications, and prepare the classrooms for the FALL programs!
COVID Updates
We have made it through our very first outbreak since the pandemic began! The classroom that experienced the outbreak is now open with children returning as they are cleared from their isolation periods.
While we had to notify the center of the outbreak last week, the outbreak was contained to one classroom, despite having 3 other independent COVID exposures in the center at the same time. The health department credits layered mitigation approach in preventing the spread of COVID in the other three exposures. Our high vaccination rate, use of masks indoors, use of rapid tests as a screening tool, and how we incorporate fresh air, were all cited as excellent strategies when our application of each was reviewed.
Here’s a copy of the guidance issued by the Fairfax County Health department that we have been following.
Sign-Ups
Extended Hours Sign Ups:
Summer, through August 18th: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f4faca723abff2-summer1
Fall, through the end of December: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f4faca723abff2-fall
Laundry Sign Ups:
We rely on parent volunteers to do our classroom laundry each week. It is one to two loads of blankets and cot sheets per classroom. You may sign up for ANY classroom’s laundry, it does not have to be the laundry for your child’s classroom.
Laundry Sign Up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f4faca723abff2-laundry
We’re Hiring!
We are looking for a few new staff members for the upcoming school year!
Our school aged program has been growing, so we need to add some year round staff to have fun with our older kiddos! Both full and part time positions available!
Our infants and toddlers team needs some wonderful new team members to assist with closing down the classrooms
Our preschool program needs assistant teachers as that program is growing too!
Know of anyone interested in working with our wonderful team and children here at Common Ground? Send them our way! Have them email their resume to info@commongroundchildcare.org
Listening Session for Families with Infants and Toddlers
Today is the last day to register to participate in one of these listening sessions hosted by the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation. You can register here and see this post for more details. There is a $100 gift card being offered for participation!
Thank you for taking the time to read our newsletter!
Yours,
The CG team
COVID-19 Outbreak Notification
August 2, 2022
Dear Parents and Community Members,
In cooperation with the Fairfax County Health Department, we are sending this letter to inform you that an outbreak* of several cases of COVID-19 in a single classroom has been identified at Common Ground. This outbreak will be posted on the Virginia Department of Health Dashboard. Individuals with COVID-19 have been isolated from in-person care as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Fairfax County Health Department. Our school remains open to all other staff and students.
Parents should continue to monitor their child’s health and the health of their families for COVID-19 symptoms. Children with COVID-19 generally have mild, cold-like symptoms, such as fever, runny nose, and cough. Vomiting and diarrhea have also been reported in some children. It is important that children with symptoms of COVID-19 stay home from school and get tested to stop further spread from occurring.
The COVID-19 cases in your child’s daycare and in the community are a reminder how important it is for everyone to take steps to protect themselves and others, whether in daycare or in public places. Vaccination of children 6 months of age and above is an important tool to protect against COVID-19 and reduce the spread of infection in our schools and community. Visit https://www.vaccines.gov to find locations to receive a vaccination. Additional recommendations to prevent COVID-19 are provided here.
If you have questions regarding this information, please contact your health care provider or me, either by email liz@commongroundchildcare.org or phone/text or ADMIN message in Brightwheel.
Liz Badley
Executive Director
Common Ground Childcare
*A COVID outbreak is defined as multiple facility-associated COVID-19 cases making up at least 3 cases within a specified core group, occurring within 14-days of each other and not associated with exposure in another setting outside of the facility (such as a household). A core group may be a classroom, extracurricular activity, cohort group, before/after school care, etc.
Newsletter: July 25
Dear Parents,
We hope you are all enjoying your summer! We know that each classroom and program has enjoyed having some summer fun with our students! This newsletter has a lot of important information since we have been taking a little breather from weekly updates.
CLOSED ON Friday, August 19th
We are in need of a Staff Development Day and have some construction repair projects that need to be completed. The board has voted to allow us to close to students on Friday, August 19th, the last Friday before Fairfax County Public Schools open for the 2022-2023 school year.
We hope that this day won’t be too inconvenient for parents. We appreciate the support that you all give to our teachers.
New COVID Guidance
The Fairfax County Health Department has released up to date COVID guidance for child care centers. We will be following their guidance issued on Friday, July 22nd.
Here is the FAQ that we will reference: COVID FAQ for Childcare
When in doubt, we will consult that Health Department for case specific guidance.
We will be updating our policies on our website to reflect the guidance in this document. Please note, that since over 50% of our teacher population has risk factors that place them at high risk for severe illness, we will continue to strongly encourage masking indoors.
Fall Programs Begin September 6th
While our School Aged Summer Camp ends on Thursday, August 18th, our Fall Programs for infants, toddlers, and preschool do not begin until after Labor Day. Classroom transitions will happen at that time and the classes for the fall will be set through the end of December.
We will communicate with all families in the coming weeks if your child will be transitioning.
BOOK FAIR is NEXT WEEK!
We have the Scholastic Book Fair returning to Common Ground next week!
Thank you so much for being a part of our community!
-The CG Team
Newsletter: June 29
Dear Parents,
We have a mild laundry emergency! Our Busy Bees and Dancing Monkeys classes need volunteers for laundry! Please message your class in brightwheel if you are willing to take the laundry this week. Please remember that ANY Common Ground Family can take classroom laundry from any classroom. Sign up here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f4faca723abff2-laundry
Thank you so much for helping us out!
COVID Vaccines are approved for children 6 months and up!
We are working with the county to get an on-site vaccination clinic set up in the coming weeks, but we know that a lot of people have already taken their littles to get their first shots! Please keep us up to date by uploading your child’s COVID Vaccine records here: https://www.dropbox.com/request/pVSv7FfZlbNSCgTUmAog
We will not require the COVID vaccine for children until schools require it. If you are hesitant to get your child vaccinated, we have several parents who have volunteered to share their decision process in choosing to vaccinate their own children. We believe that vaccines are a crucial tool in mitigating the spread of COVID.
Check In/Check Out
It is VERY IMPORTANT for our records that you check your kids in and out correctly through Brightwheel. Each parent/person that drops your child(ren) off and picks them up must have their own Brightwheel account and must utilize the Check In/Check Out feature so that we have accurate records.
Stations are located:
in the driveway
at the gate by the blacktop
at the corner of the playground fence by the picket fence
at the front door
If you do not have your cell phone with you, you can Check In/Check Out using your 4 digit PIN with one of our staff members.
If you need help, please as a staff member and we can assist you. Thank you for helping keep our records accurate.
Food Policy
When we reopened after the pandemic we were fairly lenient with allowing children of all ages to bring outside food in. However, now that we are back into more normal operations and are participating in the USDA food program, we need to move back to following our food policy.
Common Ground provides breakfast, lunch, and snacks (one to two based on age) for all children who eat table food, over the age of 12 months
Children over the age of two with a documented food allergies, sensitivities, intolerances, or other restrictions may bring outside food provided:
we have a form filled out with instructions on what Common Ground food can be served, what will be brought, and when
the meal does not contain peanuts, tree nuts, OR any allergy ingredients present in the classroom your child attends. That includes, but is not limited to:
eggs
sesame
shellfish
fish
Children under the age of 2 may bring in outside food without any forms or documentation, providing:
the meal does not contain peanuts, tree nuts, OR any allergy ingredients present in the classroom your child attends. That includes, but is not limited to:
eggs
sesame
shellfish
fish
Food brought for birthdays or treats must include the ingredient lists if they are homemade or must be school safe if store-bought. Please note they must be free of peanuts and tree nuts.
If you have any questions about this policy, please reach out to us.
This week’s theme in Summer Camp is ANIMAL JAM!
We are so excited that summer is well underway here at Common Ground Childcare. Part of that is sharing our outdoor space (and sometimes our indoor space!) with some truly spectacular animals! We teach compassion and love for all neighbors here at common Ground… whether it’s a gorgeous white-tailed deer (amazing what you see out our back windows!), a fox with her pups, or a wolf-spider with hundreds of babies on her back (scooping that one into a cup to get to safety was a little harrowing…) we do our best to share our space!
Read more here to see some photos of some other visitors who came to see us!
SUMMER NIGHT CELEBRATIONS!
Whether you’re having a party outside with a fire and s’mores or a movie night inside with popcorn and milk duds, what amazing Summer Shindig is complete without…..
PIZZA PIZZA!
That’s right! From July 5th to August 4th we will be hosting a LITTLE CAESAR’S PIZZA FUNDRAISER!
It’s super duper easy. Little Caesar’s has created these amazing kits with all the fixins you need to create a pizza night for your family! They have mini pizzas, regular sized pizzas, breadsticks, and so much more!
Kids can help you create your perfect pizza! They can spread the sauce, sprinkle the cheese, add the ingredients. Did you know that kids are more likely to try foods they help prepare? You can reward them with a scrumptious cookie they also baked themselves!
These are frozen! They keep for any occasion. Movie nights! Birthdays! Rainy days when you don’t feel like cooking. Rough days when you want to see a smile. Have a perfect memory stored away for when you need it most.
Anyone can buy them and support us! When our link is live, all you have to do is share it on your social media, with your office, with your fam! Anyone who buys a mouth-watering pizza, breadsticks, cheese bread, or cookie kit with our link earns us money!
This fundraiser is completely online and runs 24/7! The Pizza Kits get delivered right to your door, so it’s simple, easy, perfect.
Other Important Information:
CLOSED ON JULY 4th:
Please remember that we are CLOSED on July 4th for the federal holiday. If you plan to take any vacations this summer, please use our absence report form to let us know: https://www.commongroundchildcare.org/absence
COVID UPDATE:
We have seen an increase in COVID cases connected to our center, but have luckily still not experienced any spread within the center. We are treating each situation uniquely with the goals of both protecting our community AND keeping healthy children in care. This may deviate from the official guidance provided by the CDC and the Health Department, but after a few test cases in our CAMP, we are confident in our layered mitigation strategies and our interpretation of the intention of the guidance, in line with our community goals.
Please continue to report ALL COVID cases, even if they happen while on vacation, to our office so that we can best guide you on your specific circumstances.
Virginia has also extended the length of protection from a recent infection from 90 days to 6 months. Common Ground will follow that practice as well. Please keep in mind that now that vaccines are available for everyone ages 6 months and up, vaccines remain our best defense against infection and serious illness. Vaccines are recommended even with a recent infection and there is no waiting period once symptoms have resolved from an infection before you can get vaccinated.
TEACHER BONUS PLEDGES
Teachers have received their bonuses and pledges that haven’t been billed/invoices will go out in the next week. We were able to give a very generous bonus to each full time teacher as an appreciation of their efforts during the last school year, with parent donations making up 12% of the total! We were able to make up the difference through non-tuition grant revenue and other fundraiser that we have had throughout the year.
Our next bonus drive will take place in the fall, but as a non-profit we are able to accept donations at any time! If you company has a matching program, we can work with you to help take advantage of that match, so please reach out if you are interested in that program.
THANK YOU!
We have received SO MANY referrals from YOU, our happy parents! You remain the BEST marketing and advertising for our center and we appreciate all of your kind words. Please keep it up! We currently have openings in our preschool, kindergarten, and school aged programs for the fall. Your participation is what makes the Common Ground Community so special.
We are so appreciative to have each and every family here!
Love,
The CG Team
Newsletter: June 20
Dear Parents,
Summer is here and we are here for it!
Welcome Back, and Welcome to our new, Summer Staff!
We have Katie, Lizzie, Ryan, Mia, Kassia, William (not pictured) and Elise all returning, and we are welcoming Amaani, Oliver, and Hyun to our center this summer! Elise will sub for us in June, while Ryan works in the preschool and the rest of our summer staff are up in our Camp program!
Covid Notice
We have a COVID exposure linked to our center from an event over the weekend. Several children from different classes attended the event and we will be using our Test-To-Stay protocol for this exposure.
The children in attendance of the event were contacted and they will be tested on site daily through the quarantine period if they are not vaccinated. If any of them, regardless of vaccination status, develop symptoms, they will go into isolation through the remainder of the quarantine period and can return, pending a negative PCR test or after completing a full 10 day isolation period.
If you were not contacted and have questions, please send them via email: liz@commongroundchildcare.org
We hope that using this protocol over several classrooms will prove an effective way to keep kids in care, while mitigating the risk of spread in our center.
On a positive note, our younger students should have the opportunity be get vaccinated very shortly! We have reached out to the Health Department about hosing a clinic, and will share all the information that we get in the coming days and weeks!
Water Play
Love Bugs and Busy Bees:
Tuesdays starting June 21st: North Shore Pool
they will depart by bus at 9am sharp!
Swimming is from 9:30-10:30am in the North ShorePool, staffed with 3 Reston Association Lifeguards
they will then walk back to the center, arriving approximately around 11:15am
Wednesdays starting June 22nd: Water Play at Common Ground!
We have sprinklers all ready for tons of splashy fun!
Thursdays starting June 23rd: North Shore Wading Pool
will depart by bus at 9am sharp!
Swimming is from 9:30-10:30am in the North ShorePool, staffed with 3 Reston Association Lifeguards
they will then walk back to the center, arriving approximately around 11:15am
Dancing Monkeys:
Thursdays, starting June 16th: Water Play at Common Ground!
We have sprinklers all ready for tons of splashy fun!
Playful Pandas:
Tuesdays, starting June 28th: Water Play at Common Ground!
We have sprinklers all ready for tons of splashy fun!
Little Penguins:
Thursdays, starting June 16th: Water Play at Common Ground
on the infant and toddler playground
Camp Swim Schedule:
Campers swim EVERY DAY. Below is the pool schedule, but different groups swim at different times, depending on the week:
MONDAY - Morning Swim, All Groups. Groups will be assigned to either
North Shore Pool, 9:30-10:30am, depart on foot at 9:05am
Herndon Swim Club, 10-11am, depart by bus no later than 9:15am
TUESDAY - Groups are assigned either Morning or Afternoon:
Morning: Herndon Swim Club, 10-11am, depart by bus no later than 9:15am
Afternoon: Uplands Pool, 1-2pm, depart by bus at 12:45pm
WEDNESDAY - Double Swim Day
Morning Swim, All Groups. Groups will be assigned to either:
North Shore Pool, 9:30-10:30am, depart on foot at 9:05am
Herndon Swim Club, 10-11am, depart by bus no later than 9:15am
Afternoon Swim and Camp activities, All Groups at:
Autumwood Pool, 1-3pm, depart by bus between 12:30 and 12:45pm, arrive back by 3:30pm
THURSDAY - Groups are assigned either Morning or Afternoon:
Morning: Herndon Swim Club, 10-11am, depart by bus no later than 9:15am
Afternoon: Uplands Pool, 1-2pm, depart by bus at 12:45pm
FRIDAY - Morning Swim, All Groups. Groups will be assigned to either
North Shore Pool, 9:30-10:30am, depart on foot at 9:05am
Herndon Swim Club, 10-11am, depart by bus no later than 9:15am
Campers may also do water play in the afternoons at Common Ground!
Extended Care Hours - Sign Up
Just as a reminder, we staff our extended care hours based on who signs up. It’s important to sign up BEFORE the sign up locks so that we can schedule our staff.
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f4faca723abff2-summer1
If you miss the sign up OR need to cancel, please make sure to both email and send a Brightwheel message as soon as you can.
Call for Volunteers!
We always need volunteers at the center to help with laundry over the weekend or for odd jobs!
Here’s the laundry sign up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f4faca723abff2-laundry
Thanks for joining us for the summer!
Love,
The CG Team
Newsletter: June 7
Good Morning Everyone!
We have some important news for summer activities and supplies as well as transitions! Please read below.
Transitions and CAMP
This week we had a lot of changes, and we apologize for clumsily sharing the plan! In an effort to improve for next week, we have the following changes:
Bubble Buddies: 6 weeks to 14 months - NO CHANGES
Teachers: Miss Nana, Miss Marita, and Miss Susie
Little Penguins: 8 months to 19 months - NO CHANGES
Teachers: Miss Patty, Miss Huihui, and Miss Gitti
Playful Pandas: 15 to 28 months - NO CHANGES
Teachers: Miss Pinky, Miss Simi (on vacation until 7/7/22), and Miss Samra
Dancing Monkeys: 2 to 3.5 years - Staff Transitions
Teachers: Miss Petty, Miss Delia, and Miss Kisha
Miss Petty and Miss Kisha will be joining Miss Delia for the summer! Miss Kristel will be moving up to work with older kids in the final months of her pregnancy as she prepares for maternity leave
Rising Stars: Preschool 3-4.5 year olds - student transitions
the older half of the group who will be 4 by 11/30/2022 have moved into Miss Adella’s Busy Bees Classroom this week!
the younger half will be moving into Miss Yolanda’s Love Bugs! This will be a 3-4 year old preschool classroom, where children will stay in this classroom for the entirety of the next school year!
Love Bugs: Preschool 3-4.5 year olds - student and staff transitions
Teachers: Miss Yolanda, Miss Celestine, and Miss Kristel
The 3 year olds who will turn 4 on or after 12/1/2022 will be joining the Love Bugs classroom for the summer and will continue in this class in the fall
Miss Kristel is joining this class for the summer before she goes out on maternity leave
Busy Bees: Preschool 4-5.5 year olds - student transitions
Teachers: Miss Adella and Mr. Zach
the children from Rising Stars who will turn 4 by 11/30/2022 will join the 4 year olds who do not turn 5 before 9/30/2022 be in the Busy Bees for the summer.
CAMP: School Aged Program, must be 5 by 9/30/2022 - summer begins!
Hello Summer BBQ is Friday, June 10th!
ON FRIDAY, JUNE 10TH, WE WILL BE HAVING A BBQ TO CELEBRATE THE BEGINNING OF SUMMER!
It will be from 4:30PM-6:30PM in the grassy area by the swings.
We are providing Hamburgers, Hot Dogs, Chips, Water, Gatorade, and Lemonade!
PLEASE RSVP - It is not required to attend, but it really helps us!
We want to know how many people are coming so that we can purchase the right amount of food!
Let’s get together, eat a bunch of food under a blue sky, and enjoy each other’s company.
Summer is Here! Supplies, Suggestions, and Safety Tips!
Now that it’s summer time we will be doing even more outdoor activities than before! We have water play for all the classrooms and swimming for kids 3 and up! Kids need to be outside. The pandemic has made daily outside time essential to health and safety, but daily outside time has been shown to increase attention spans, self-regulation, physical fitness, and mood while helping to decrease sensory issues, anxiety, and inner-ear weakness. It’s also just fun! Recess is essential for growth.
We are aware that it gets hot and steamy outside! We have heat index and heat codes hanging up in each classroom, and regulate outside time based on that.
We also have recommendations for summer attire and gear to keep your kids safe, comfortable, and happy:
Our Skin Care Product Form: We have sent out our new updated Skin Care Forms to all of our families via adobesign. If you have not received it, please let us know! We provide sunscreen, bugspray, aveeno, and aquafor and apply as needed. If you choose to opt out and to provide your own items, let us know so that we can send a different non-rx skin care form.
Water comfortable shoes: Crocs, Keens, jellies, and other shoes like this, are amazing for summer! Kids can play in the sprinkler and then quickly dry off without having wet socks all day. No flip flops please! The kids need to be able to safely play on playground equipment as well
Pool Time: For our older kids, we will have scheduled pool time! We will let you know in advance, of course! Please send with your children: Towel, Swimsuit, Wet bag, and goggles and toys are optional but allowed.
A Sun Hat and a Sun Shirt are recommended for kiddos who burn really easily! We apply sunscreen frequently, but extra protection is always advised
A Water Bottle: We require a water bottle all year, but it is especially important during the summer! We supply gatorade and water all day, but the kids need to be able to have water with them at all times to keep them hydrated.
Graduation Recap
Our graduating kids and teachers worked so hard to get to graduation last Friday, and it really showed. We want to personally thank Ms. Yolanda, Ms. Adella, Ms. Janette, Mr. Zach, Ms. Celestine, Mr. Josh, and everyone who has worked with our students this year to get them through the last year! Your kids are resilient, kind, brave, smart, hard-working, and HILARIOUS. Sometimes we go into those classes just for a hug or a pick-me-up. When we need the reminder that, despite all trials and tribulations, we WILL get back up again, we can turn to any bee, bug, or jellyfish in the place and know that they will help us shine brighter.
Learning begins at birth at Common Ground. It begins with cuddles and smiles, it begins with assurances and loving voices.
We got choked up seeing all of our baby teachers watching the ceremony, all the teachers that came before leaning over the fences to see the kids they helped grow up move on to better things. So thank you, to ALL of those teachers, who helped the kiddos from the start. Every single person at Common Ground has loved our children. That is a humbling feeling that we will carry too.
Lastly, THANK YOU to parents for helping us set up and clean up! For signing endless forms and celebrating Trunk or Treat. For laughing and crying with us, for learning about the planets with us, for watching our Common Ground Story Time Show and singing “The Goldfish” one more time. You are just as integral a part of our team, and we couldn’t be more grateful that we had you with us every step of the way.
WE LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH! LET’S GET READY FOR SUMMER!!!
Your CG Family
Newsletter: June 1
Dear Parents,
Happy JUNE! We have a LOT of exciting events happening this month, including:
PICTURE DAY TOMORROW
Our ON THE BORDER fundraiser is also TOMORROW
Graduation for Jellyfish, Busy Bees, and Love Bugs on Friday, June 3rd
Summer Cookout on Friday, June 10th
The first day of Summer Programs on Monday, June 13th
We are looking for Community Helpers and families to sign up for Laundry
We also have a new extended hours sign up for the summer season. Please make sure to sign up here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f4faca723abff2-summer1
Picture Day is TOMORROW in the Morning!
Please send their child in their Picture Day Outfits with a spare change of clothing in their backpacks so that they are comfortable!
Our On the Border Family Night Fundraiser is TOMORROW!
Reston friends, I've got the perfect excuse to eat out this week! Order from On The Border, 11880 Spectrum Ctr., tomorrow (Thursday, June 2nd) during 11:00 AM - 10:00 PM and 20% of your sales will be donated back to Common Ground Childcare. Your support is MUCH appreciated and all you need to do is order in store/by phone mentioning Common Ground Childcare!
RSVP & details here: https://grouprai.se/s217892
#groupraise #commongroundchildcare #ontheborder #fundraiser
On Friday, June 3rd, our Love Bugs, Busy Bees, and Jellyfish Kindergarten Classes are all Graduating!
PLEASE BE ADVISED: We will be cordoning off part of the parking lot for our Graduation celebration. We ask that you park in the spaces near the gate and move with extra care to keep our families safe.
We are so excited to close out another perfect school year here at Common Ground. Our students and teachers worked so hard, made some incredible memories, and will start out our SUMMER PROGRAMMING in style!! This means some of your children will be moving up to different classrooms, we will be starting water play, and we will put more summer fun on our calendar!
Please sign up for the clean up crew: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f4faca723abff2-common
OUR FIRST COMMON GROUND COOK OUT IS JUNE 10TH
We will be serving hotdogs, hamburgers, and some chips along with water and gatorade. We would love for you to join us!! This will start around 4:30PM and go until 6:30PM.
Please sign up to be on the clean up crew: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f4faca723abff2-common
*it may go later if everyone is having a blast!
And if your child mentions the ceiling being “broken”…
…we had a minor air conditioner leak that collapsed two ceiling tiles. Our landlord has someone coming to rectify the situation in the morning, but it was a team effort this afternoon.
Miss Liz took the soaked ceiling tiles down while Miss LJ and Miss Victoria cleaned up the soggy mess!
Thank you for taking the time to read our newsletter and participate in our events!
Love,
The CG team
Newsletter: May 18
Dear Parents,
Thank you again for your flexibility last week as we navigated a spike in COVID cases affecting the center. We have resumed before and after care and all classrooms are out of “test-to-stay”. We learned a lot implementing “Test-to-Stay” for the first time over the past 3 weeks. While we hope that everyone remains healthy and we will not have another exposure, we will use the lessons that we learned this time to help make the process smoother for everyone next time. Thank you again for helping us get through this.
Our current community transmission level remains at MEDIUM, we have no affected classrooms in quarantine, but do have families who attend the center who are in isolation with positive cases in their homes.
We were also alerted to a potential Measles Exposure in Fairfax County at three hospitals over the weekend. Please click through for details.
OUR RESCHEDULED PICTURE DAY IS JUNE SECOND: STUDENTS AND STAFF!!
Our picture day with LifeTouch has been rescheduled! Make sure to plan accordingly: The outfit you want, an outfit they can change into for play! That goes for you too, Teachers!! Let’s capture those amazing Spring 2022 smiles.
There are so many different things to celebrate in May!
Check out our latest blog post to find information on Jewish American Heritage Month, National Bike Month, and More!
We recommend children’s books, recipes, and other ways to teach your children all about the world around them. The best way to learn is making precious memories, so don’t hesitate to go all in!
Summer Camp Crafts are BEST WITH UPCYCLED GOODS!
Which is why we are doing a call for y’all to save your junk! We have a lot of amazing themed art projects planned for this summer, and we are looking for oodles of reusable goods:
CARDBOARD Egg cartons. Just not the foam ones
Gallon Milk Jugs (rinsed please!)
Paper Towel Rolls (no toilet paper rolls please)
Newspaper
Old Maps (no favorites! coffee stained/bent/not accurate are all fine)
Soda Bottles
Jam Jars
Unused Coffee Filters
Paper Shopping Bags
Any craft supplies in your craft bin that you aren’t going to use! No pressure here, we do not need new/unopened/etc. this is just if you’re looking to downsize your craft drawer.
As always, thank you for being a part of this community.
You are what makes Common Ground special.
This morning a Common Ground mother of one of our infants offered to share breastmilk with other CG families that may be impacted by the formula shortage. She is going through the process to formally donate her milk, but wanted to make sure that our families here were also taken care of. This is what sets Common Ground apart. Our families are always ready for the Thanksgiving Drives, the Blood Drives, the Flu Shot Clinics, because they are primed to take care of each other. This helper mentality ripples out into our Reston Community, our Fairfax County Community, and beyond!
Our kids see those every day deeds. They begin to understand that every little bit of goodness has a far reach. It makes us hopeful for the future to know people like you.
Thank you,
Your CG Family
Newsletter: May 4
Dear Parents,
Thank you for your patience this week as we have had to adjust center operations due to cases of COVID affecting three children and one staff member across three classrooms. At this time only two households are affected so we do not have to report the cases to the health department at this time.
While we understand that this is a stressful time for all of us, your flexibility and understanding helps alleviate a portion of the stress. For that we are grateful.
As always, we thank you for using the tools that we have - masking, testing, and vaccination (if eligible) - to help protect the vulnerable people within our community.
Please continue reading for all the updates regarding this latest exposure.
Test-to-Stay is in FULL EFFECT
For those children who were exposed last week, we have implemented our Test-to-Stay procedure. This allows children who are in quarantine to remain in care, provided that they remain symptom free AND test negative daily. This is the first time that we have put this procedure into practice.
Hopefully it helps us achieve our collective goal of keeping people healthy AND keeping kids in the center.
Classrooms are SELF-CONTAINED and Extended Hours are PAUSED
We have gone back to self containing our classrooms and limiting the movement of staff between rooms through the end of quarantine for the current cases. That date is May 9th.
Extended hours are temporarily on pause to prevent possible spread during the current cases of COVID.
If we have no other cases attached to the current cases, we will resume our team approach and extended hours on May 10th.
Masking Update:
While we shared earlier this week that COVID cases are on the rise in the county, the transmission rate remains low. We are going to adjust our masking policy to be more in line with the recommendations of the County Health Department.
These changes are in effect when there are no COVID cases attached to the center. When there are COVID cases, such as right now, our policy is:
STAFF: Universal Masking indoors and outdoors when around any people who are not members of their houshold.
CHILDREN:
attending a classroom where no members have been exposed to covid:
Indoors: Mask Strongly Recommended
Outdoors: Mask Optional
attending a classroom where there was an exposure to COVID and any student is attending as part of our Test-to-Stay program:
Indoors: Universal Masking for ALL members of the classroom
Outdoors: Mask Strongly Recommended
When we DO NOT have a COVID case attached to our Center:
INDOORS:
STAFF AND ADULTS: Universal masking indoors when in the presence of unvaccinated individuals who do not reside in your household.
CHILDREN: It is strongly recommended that all unvaccinated children and all children who come within 6 feet of unvaccinated children over the age of 2 years old, wear a mask indoors. This recommendation is inline with the CDC recommendations due to the overall level of risk in our population (people over the age of 65, unvaccinated children, pregnant women, and people with weakened immune systems)
Virginia state law allows parents to choose not to have their child masked at any time. If you choose not to have your child masked, please communicate that with Common Ground.
OUTDOORS:
ALL: Masking outdoors is optional for everyone
As a note to all of this, we are working on a color code system for the center to help us ALL understand what level of exposure the center has had. Hopefully this will help all of us!
State of the Childcare Industry
Common Ground has been very lucky to not be hit as hard as some other child care centers, but we are not immune to the struggles of the industry.
Pandemic stabilization funding has allowed us to continue to operate with the increased supply costs, staff costs - necessary to keep groups separate during school hours, but it has dried up for the time being and federal legislation aimed to offset parent costs has yet to pass.
We share this because we refuse to sacrifice the quality of our program and are committed to providing fair and livable compensation for our teachers. Tuition alone does not fund the program that we provide. While we are priced comparable to the market, the rest of the market underpays and undervalues their teachers.
Teacher Appreciation Week is HERE!
Fairfax County has proclaimed that it is officially Early Childhood Educator’s Week! Of course, we know that ECE’s are Teachers, so of course that makes sense to all of us.
Remember, the best way to show your teachers that you support them is by donating to the bonus fund. We have budgets for half of the planned bonus, but rely on parents and donors to make up the rest!
So far this week, we have done the following for our AMAZING teachers:
bagels on Monday
Starbucks on Tuesday
lunch from Cava today
We have more treats planned for the rest rest of the week too! You can share your appreciation this week with your kind words, a card or hand made something from your kiddos!
WELCOME BACK MR. ZACH!!!
We are so pleased and excited to tell you all know that our beloved Mr. Zach has come back to us just in time for SPRING WEATHER!! He has stepped back into our classrooms without missing a step. While his absence was brief, it felt like a lifetime in our hearts, so make sure to say hello when you get the chance!
Thank you for being a part of our community!
Love,
The team at CG
PS. Please don’t forget to check the Laundry Sign Up. All CG families can lend a hand by doing any classroom’s laundry!
Newsletter: April 27
Laundry Sign-Up I Our Calendars I Early Drop-Off/Late Pick-Up Signups I Our Blog
Happy Wednesday, Common Ground Families!
We wanted to give a hearty THANK YOU to everyone who participated in our low-key, totally relaxing and fun Bring Your Own Dinner Event last Friday! Sharing space with all of you reminded us how much we miss spending time with our community, and we look forward to more of those in the future. All of these events will be outside, so make sure to bring a picnic blanket!
Speaking of being outside…
Spring has been showing its lovely, warm face here in Reston! We have sent you all SKIN PRODUCT FORMS via adobesign.
What is our skin product form? We provide sunscreen, bugspray, aquafor, and aveeno lotion in our classrooms to protect your child in all weather! This form is a permission slip for us to use our products on your child. You may choose to opt out of our skin products and provide your own. It is really important that you fill this out as soon as possible and send it back to us so that your child can be protected while they’re outside! If you have any questions or cannot find the form, please let us know.
PICTURE DAY WITH LIFE TOUCH IS TUESDAY, MAY 3RD!
The pictures are all in the morning so please send them in their nice outfits. Pack a change of regular clothes for the rest of the day!
62% increase in area COVID cases
Fairfax County has shared this post: https://fairfaxcountyemergency.wpcomstaging.com/2022/04/26/uptick-in-covid-19-cases-prompts-fairfax-health-district-to-urge-continued-vigilance/
With the uptick in cases, we ask that you continue to remain vigilant. We have PLENTY of proctored tests that can be used the night before or the morning of attendance of your child develops symptoms!
Please ask for a test if you need one and see the procedure below on how to use the proctored test.
Covid-19 Proctored Test Procedure
Covid-19 is on the rise again in Fairfax County. While it is allergy season, and a lot of our kiddos are experiencing symptoms that are MOST LIKELY allergies, we must work to keep our vulnerable population safe! You can review Covid-19 policies and FAQs HERE. Our Test-To-Stay program for ages 2 and up is live! We have a bunch of these tests pictured to the left, and Ms. LJ has gone through the process at home with her son(negative!). We are going to walk you through it now with instructions and pictures! The initial set-up takes five to ten minutes, but once the app is downloaded and the profiles are created, the process is pretty simple!
Get one of these BinaxNOW Covid-19 Proctored Test kits from the Common Ground Office: We will make sure to give you one any time it is necessary, but don’t hesitate to ask about it if we haven’t done so.
Download the NAVICA APP: We know… another app?? The Navica App is pretty amazing, however. It records every test for each member of your family and makes sending the official, Health Dept. certified results anywhere you need them sent a breeze!
Set yourself up as the Primary Profile: Even if you are just downloading this app for your children, YOU must be the first profile you set up. The proctor will ask for a Photo ID during the test to make sure they are testing the right individual or testing with the right individual’s minor. Once your profile is set up the app will allow you to add other profiles for your family members that you can switch to for each test.
See Below for pictures on this next part:
On the home page of the app, click “I have a Test”
on the “which Kit do you have?” page, click the appropriate test box
On the next page, click “Test with eMed”
On the “Perform a Test” page, click “no take me to emed.com”
Once you’ve been redirected to the browser, click “Start Testing” on the Emed website page and choose your state.
Click “Other” when picking what you’re testing for, even if you’re testing for school/work
Sign into your NAVICA profile. Once you are, make sure you’re picking the appropriate person for the proctored test.
From there, you will be taken to your proctor, where they will walk you through step by step. You will be on camera, and asked to position the camera so that they can see the entire test box. They will ask to see your photo ID and confirm who is getting the test. They will ask you to show them the box, all the items in the box, and will want to be able to clearly see you following the instructions. Once you have set up the test, they will set a fifteen minute timer. Afterwards they will look at the results and have you confirm them. In about 15 minutes your shareable results will show up in your Navica App. They can be emailed, texted, airdropped, etc.
Teacher Appreciation Week is coming up…
Please make sure you check out our letter from our board of trustees for information on how to BEST show our teachers some appreciation!
You can access that here: https://www.commongroundchildcare.org/teacher-bonus-fund
Summer Camp at Common Ground!
We still have space in our AMAZING Summer Camp! If you know any families near you with school-age kids who are looking to give their kids a summer they’ll never forget, please have them send an interest form!
Our Summer Camp is for rising first graders to rising fourth graders, but we do have a "leadership" camper role that is up for discussion for older kids.
Summer at Common Ground Childcare is simple. It’s sunshine and sunscreen. It’s dirt and chlorine and tie-dye shirts. It’s learning to trust yourself, be brave, and try new things without fear of failure.
Our program runs from June 6th through August 19th for rising kindergarteners - 11 full weeks of summer fun! We only take off Monday, July 4th, but are otherwise open every day during the summer.
As always, if you have any questions or need anything please feel free to reach out!!
Love,
Your CG Family
Newsletter: April 20
Laundry Sign-Up I Our Calendars I Early Drop-Off/Late Pick-Up Signups I Our Blog I Saturday Hours Signup
Hello CG Families!
We have some important updates and messages for you this week.
First, our wonderful Miss Casey and Mr. Zach are both going off to new adventures, and are leaving us! Miss Casey has found a position in a new field, and Mr. Zach has decided to relocate out of state! They have given us so much and we wish them the best. If you have any messages/pictures/well wishes for them that you would like to share, please email them to us.
To help us out in the interim, Mr. Josh and Ms. Katie will be back so make sure to say hello!
With our classrooms growing (especially for the summer!) we are hiring. If there is anyone you know who would be an amazing addition to our teacher family, please let them know to contact us with their resume.
Some Nuts and Bolts - Weather and Drop-Off/Pick-Up
Spring has Sprung at Common Ground Childcare, and with it some exciting weather! We just wanted to put out a few reminders now that the days are longer and we are getting warmer temperatures.
Please remember to send your child with a jacket. Even if the morning is warm, high winds in the afternoon can make play time chilly! If they do not want to wear it in the morning, you can tuck it into their backpack.
Rain boots and Sneakers: Even if it isn’t raining currently, if it rained the night before or in the morning the ground will be wet and there will be puddles! Please send appropriate weather gear so that your child can play safely and comfortably with their friends.
REMINDER: The days are longer, so the afternoons are mostly outside and totally fun at Common Ground! If you would like to sign up for late pick-up, there is a place to do so here. Late pick-up is part of your tuition, but we do have fees for if you are late without letting us know, so please make sure to sign up!
A Family Fundraiser Thank-You and a BYOD
Our Chipotle Fundraiser earned us $108! That is a huge deal! We love how enthusiastic you all are when supporting our school, and can’t thank you enough.
We would like to actually do dinner with you TOGETHER this Friday!!
Celebrate Earth Day with us on Friday, April 22nd and bring a picnic dinner to Common Ground! We will have limited tables and tents set up from 4:30pm until 6:30pm (unless we are having so much fun that we need to extend it!), so bring a picnic blanket and dinner for your family!
While we will not be providing dinner, we will have jugs with water and gatorade available! Please pack a reusable cup so that we can show the earth some love on Earth Day!
Rain Date for this event will be Friday, April 29th!
Summer Camp at Common Ground!
We still have space in our AMAZING Summer Camp! If you know any families near you with school-age kids who are looking to give their kids a summer they’ll never forget, please have them send an interest form!
Our Summer Camp is for rising first graders to rising fourth graders, but we do have a "leadership" camper role that is up for discussion for older kids.
Summer at Common Ground Childcare is simple. It’s sunshine and sunscreen. It’s dirt and chlorine and tie-dye shirts. It’s learning to trust yourself, be brave, and try new things without fear of failure.
Our program runs from June 6th through August 19th for rising kindergarteners - 11 full weeks of summer fun! We only take off Monday, July 4th, but are otherwise open every day during the summer.
Teacher Appreciation Week is coming up…
Please make sure you check out our letter from our board of trustees for information on how to BEST show our teachers some appreciation!
You can access that here: https://www.commongroundchildcare.org/teacher-bonus-fund
That’s all for this week! Check our our blog for fun activities and updates!
Love, Love, Love,
Your CG Family
Newsletter: April 12
Dear Parents,
We have had so many new families join our community over the last few weeks that we thought we’d share a list of helpful links:
If your child will be absent, please message through brightwheel and report the absence here: https://www.commongroundchildcare.org/absence
we track all illnesses, not just COVID, to look for patterns and make sure that we don’t have any spread, so please communicate any symptoms through the absence form
If you need to sign up for Before or After care, you can sign up here: Before and After Care
Currently, our only volunteer activity is Laundry and the 15 hour per year requirement is on hold. We do need help every week with laundry and your child does not need to be in the class to sign up to wash laundry for us. Sign up here: Laundry Sign-Up
Saturday Hours are on April 30th - you can sign up here.
Our PayPal Giving Fund donation link is: http://paypal.com/us/fundraiser/charity/1778362
If you ever need a link and can’t find it, feel free to message through Brightwheel and we can send it!
It’s Nomination Time:
We have received this honor several years in a row and it’s time for nominations again! You can share what you love about Common Ground with the world (okay, with the readers of Northern Virginia Magazine) by filling out this nomination form:
https://northernvirginiamag.com/best-day-care-and-preschool-poll/
If you have time, we’d love for you to also share why you love Common Ground:
Our best marketing is when you share how much you love us. We are so grateful that most of our new families have been referrals from you!
BYOD - Bring Your Own Dinner
Celebrate Earth Day with us on Friday, April 22nd and bring a picnic dinner to Common Ground! We will have limited tables and tents set up from 4:30pm until 6:30pm (unless we are having so much fun that we need to extend it!), so bring a picnic blanket and dinner for your family!
Don’t want to pack a picnic? We are working on getting a pre-order together for pizza or some other delivery! We will share that information when we have it! Details to follow!
Rain Date for this event will be Friday, April 29th!