Compass News & Announcements: Week of January 15, 2024
Happy New Homeschool Year, and Welcome to Third Quarter at Compass! We look forward to seeing everyone after our long winter break.
COMPASS NEWS
(1) Class Registration: Registration for 3rd quarter/2nd semester classes remains open. Last minute, same day, walk-in, and late registrations are welcome. Registration for 4th quarter spring classes will take place on Tuesday, February 6 starting at 6:00 am.
(2) MLK Day/Calendar: Compass classes DO meet on Monday, January 15 (MLK Day) and Monday, February 19 (Presidents’ Day). The annual Compass calendar can be reviewed in the Family Handbook or online.
(3) Inclement Weather: In the event of a closure or delayed start due to snow or ice, Compass will make an announcement by 7:00 am on the Facebook page and through the subscriber list. Compass will make an independent determination about closures and does not necessarily follow the decisions of the large area public school systems.
(4) Make-Up Days: Classes cancelled due to instructor illness, inclement weather, power outage, etc., will be rescheduled for the week of March 11 at the same day, time, and room unless otherwise announced.
(5) Compass Collaborative Newspaper Complimentary copies of the 2nd quarter Compass newspaper will be available to pick up at the front desks the week of January 15. Students are invited to submit art, photography, and news about awards, honors, scholarships, or college admissions for the 3rd quarter edition. Students in grades 6-12 can register for the staff online.
SPECIAL EVENTS
(6) Geography Bee: The 11th annual Greater Fairfax Homeschool Geographic Bee will be held on Wednesday, January 31, at 4:00 pm. This is a fun bee for students in 4th-8th grade which uses past National Geographic Bee questions. Register on the Activity Fees page.
(7) Valentines Cookie Academy: Join chef Mimi on Saturday, February 10, from 1:30 pm- 4:30 pm. Kids (grades 2-6) will make, bake, and take home a platter of 3 kinds of beautiful Valentines cookies. Limited number of spaces. Register Online.
(8) Annual Valentines Exchange: Sign-ups for the annual Valentines Exchange will take place through Sign-Up Genius starting Monday, January 22 Watch for additional details.
(9) Teen Winter Ball: Save the date! The annual winter ball for teens will be held on Saturday, February 24 at Compass. Watch for additional details.
(10) Junior & Senior Spelling Bees: Registration is now open for our annual Junior Spelling Bee on Wednesday, February 21 (under age 9) and Senior Spelling Bee Wednesday, February 28 (ages 9-14). Register on the Activity Fees page.
(11) Annual Homeschool Quads Chess Tournament: Registration is now open for two tournament sessions: AM and PM on Wednesday, May 22. Register on the Activity Fees page.
CLUBS/ACTIVITIES
(12) First LEGO League Robotics Team (grades 5-7 in fall 0f 2024) meets weekly on Mondays starting January 29 from 5:30 pm- 7:30 pm. The FLL team is seeking additional team members for its Spring Pre-Season to practice and prepare for the fall competition cycle. Members should have taken at least one quarter of: Robotics Fab Lab, LEGO Robotics Training Team, Build it Better or Experiments in Engineering, or have equivalent experience. Contact Compass for your information to be forwarded to the organizer.
(13) Dungeons & Dragons Club (for grades 9-12) will meet next on Monday, January 15 from 4:00 pm- 6:00 pm. (Club is Full)
(14) Astronomy Club (for grades 7-12, minimum age 13) will meet next on Tuesday, January 23, from 3:00 pm– 4:00 pm. Contact Compass for your information to be forwarded to the organizer.
(15) Crafty Kids Club (for grades 2nd-5th) meets weekly on Tuesdays starting January 16 from 3:00 pm- 4:00 pm. 3 open spaces. Register online.
(16) Kids’ Game Day (for ages 8-13) is held weekly on Tuesdays at 3:00 pm at Haley M. Smith Park for outdoor play (324 Van Buren Street, Herndon VA 20170) or at Compass for indoor board/card games. Contact Compass to be added to the list for meet-up information.
(17) Middle School Social Club (for ages 12-14) will meet next on Wednesday, January 24, from 3:00 pm- 5:00 pm at Compass. Contact Compass to be added to the list for meet-up information.
(18) Cryptids Club (grades 3-5) will meet next on Wednesday, January 24, from 3:00 pm- 5:00 pm to discuss and debate mythical (or real?) creatures. Contact Compass for your information to be forwarded to the organizer.
(19) Kids’ Knitting and Crocheting Club (for ages 7-12) will meet next on Thursday, January 25 from 3:00 pm – 4:00 pm. This is a drop-in with no sign-up needed.
(20) Girl Scout Troop 3327 (grades K-12) will meet next on Thursday, January 18 from 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm. New members welcome. Contact the troop to learn more: gscnctroop3327@gmail.com
(21) Teen Social Committee (grade 9-12) will meet next on Friday, January 26 from 3:30 pm- 4:30 pm. Additional teens are needed to plan the winter ball and spring prom. Contact Compass for your information to be forwarded to the organizer.
(22) Alpha Rho Honor Society (grades 8-12) will meet next on Friday, January 19 from 3:30 pm- 4:30 pm. New members accepted through February 28. See webpage or contact the chapter for more information HSAAlphaRho@compassclasses.com
(23) High School Mock Trial Team (grades 9-12) will meet next on Friday, January 19 from 5:00 pm- 7:00 pm. (Team is full).
(24) TGIF Teen Game Night and Teen Jam Sessions are held weekly on Fridays from 4:00 pm- 6:00 pm in Suite D. These casual, drop-in social events are for current Compass teens age 13+.
RESOURCES
(25) Middle School Look-Ahead: (Parents of 6th-8th graders) Are you wondering about middle school milestones or what the path to high school looks like? Come for a casual presentation and facilitated Q & A discussion on Wednesday, January 24, from 10:00 am – 11:30 am or Tuesday, January 30, from 3:00 pm- 4:30 pm. There will be a short Power Point presentation and then open discussion. Sign up online through Sign-Up Genius.
(26) High School Roundtable: (Parents of 8th-11th graders) Join us for a facilitate discussion on all of the common high school questions: What courses does your teen need? Will they be able to get into college? How do you create a transcript? What about all of the fun, social aspects of high school? How do you track credit, assign grades, and calculate GPAs? There will be a short Power Point presentation and then open discussion. Friday, January 26, 1:00 pm- 3:00 pm or Monday, February 5, 10:00 am – 12:00 pm. Sign up online through Sign-Up Genius.
(27) Tutoring & Private Instruction: A limited number of spaces are available for tutoring and private instruction with Compass teachers. Ask us about the availability in math, science, reading, writing, and foreign languages along with instruction in piano, flute, clarinet, ukulele, voice, guitar, violin, or drums. Private (or small group) cooking and sewing lessons are available. Contact Compass for more information
(28) Co-Working Offices: Parents may rent quiet Co-Working Offices in Suite H while their children are in class. Offices are available for $20.00 per hour with a 1-hour minimum. Parents who wish to rent an office must contact Compass to be added as a parent user and then set up user name, password, and reservation through the online system.
(29) Lunch-N-Learn: There are two scheduled lunch-n-learn sessions this winter: Tuesdays from 11:00 am – 11:55 am or Thursdays from 1:00 pm – 1:55 pm This gives kids a supervised lunch hour where educational programming is shown, and kids eat, socialize, or play games. As a reminder, kids under age 13 may not have unsupervised hours-off between classes. Families can sign up for a quarter-long session on the Registration page or for a one-time drop-in for $15.00 per day on the Activity Fees page.
PARTNER PROGRAMS
(30) Civil Air Patrol (for ages 12-18) meets at Compass every Thursday evening from 7:00 pm- 9:00 pm. Prospective cadets and their parents can visit in February. The next Great Start (i.e. beginners) cohort will begin March 7. For more information, contact Squadron Commander – 1st. Lt. Les Flores at lester.flores@vawg.cap.gov
(31) Highest Speak will be offering public speaking classes at Compass on Sunday afternoons from February 19 through April 2 for students in grades 2nd-4th (2:00 pm – 4:00 pm) and 5th-8th (4:00 pm- 6:00 pm). Find more information online.
(32) Spark Reading with Jennifer Nowicki, a Certified Academic Language Therapist, Certified Structured Literacy Dyslexia Specialist, Certified Reading Specialist (M.ED., CALT, C-SLDS) and a former homeschool mom is now co-located at Compass full time in private office H-10. Families seeking support or skills assessment in these areas can reach her through her website.
(33) Virginia School of Math, run by Fairfax Collegiate, is offering math classes and math circles for students in 3rd-12th grade at Compass on Saturdays and Sundays. Find more information online.
(34) Therapeutic Arts & Science Growth Mindset with Sheila Anwari is now co-located at Compass full time in private office H-12. TAGSM is hosting the Science Sense series of afterschool workshops this quarter.
