Digital Resources - Information for Families and Educators (Under Construction)
Digital Resources Compiled by the Family Resource Center
Listed below are resources from FCPS and the community on a wide variety of topics to help families and educators support student success.
Please email [email protected] or call 703-204-3941 the Family Resource Center for more information.
Digital Resources from FCPS and the Community
Resources by Topic
Summer 2022 Resources
Padlets: Digital Bulletin Boards with information collected by the FRC for families.
Summer Activities: Suggestions for independent play, water play, family-time activities, and other resources.
Summer Survival Guide: Are you ready for summer? We want to help you have the best possible summer, whether you are feeling worn out from the last year or ready to do it all. We are breaking it down to a topic a day to help you think through your options, have conversations with your family, and implement new strategies to set you and your family up for success.
Special Needs Summer Camps: The FRC organized a list of summer camps that are accessible to children with special needs. The summer camps listed here are provided for informational purposes only. They do not reflect recommendations or endorsements by Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) or The FCPS Parent Resource Center. Please contact the camps directly for fees and availability.
Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drug Resources
Vaping
- Videos
- Tip Sheets
- Community Resources
- Fairfax County Health Department: Helping Kids Stay Vape Free
- Surgeon General Tip Sheet: Know the Risks, E-Cigarettes & Young People
- Partner for Drug-Free kids: The Teen Vaping Trend – What Parents Need to Know
- Stanford Medicine Tobacco Prevention Tool Kit: E-Cigarettes and Vape Pens
- Virginia Department of Health Recommendations Regarding Cigarettes and Vaping
- COVID-19 & Smoking
- Severe Lung Illness Associated with Vaping - Fairfax County Health Department Fact Sheet
Opioids
- Webinars and Videos
- Tip Sheets
- Talking With Your Teen About Opioids: Keeping Your Kids Safe Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) provides help starting a conversation about Opioids
- Talking with Your Child About Opioids Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) provides help starting a conversation about Opioids
- Community Resources
Alcohol
- Webinars and Videos
- Tip Sheets
- Talking to Kids About Alcohol and Other Drugs: 5 Conversation Goals
- Why You Should Talk With Your Child About Alcohol and Other Drugs
- Why Small Conversations Make a Big Impression
- Answering Your Child’s Tough Questions
- Impaired Driving: Talk With Your Kids
- Why Your Child Might Start Drinking Alcohol
- How To Tell If Your Child Is Drinking Alcohol
- What You Can Do To Prevent Your Child From Drinking Alcohol
- The Consequences of Underage Drinking
- Family Agreement Form: Avoiding Alcohol
- Talking With Teens About Alcohol and Other Drugs: 5 Conversation Goals
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Other Resources
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The Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Prevent and Reduce Underage Drinking: This guide gives you the knowledge and tools you need to take action against underage drinking. It
- Virginia: LAWs Facts Lead: Learn Alcohol Basics Information for High School Students A guidebook for students about the dangers of Alcohol Use
- Virginia: Bac, ID, Risk Learn Alcohol Basics Information for College Students A guidebook for students about the dangers of Alcohol Use
- Virginia: Health Safety Choose Learn Alcohol Basics Information for Middle School Students
- Fairfax County: Teenage Alcohol Use in Fairfax County: Statistics and Information about alcohol use.
- Alcohol, Tobacco, and Marijuana: From Virginia Rules: Office of the Attorney General: Virginia laws and legal penalties associated with underage alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana possession and use; the health and safety risks of underage drinking and strategies for staying safe and sober.
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Marijuana
Advanced Academic Programs (AAP)
Parent Resource Center Workshops on Youtube
Twice Exceptional Students: What Parents Need to Know
Neurodiversity At School: Strategies and Supports for Elementary School Families
Neurodiversidad: ¿Qué quieres decir con que todos
FCPS Links: Parent Information
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AAP Overview Video | La sinopsis de los servicios del Programa Académico Avanzado
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AAP Screening and Identification Video | Evaluación e identificación para los servicios AAP Nivel IV (a tiempo completo)
FCPS Links: School Services
FCPS Links: Applications
- AAP - Level IV Appeals
- Forms, purpose, and deadlines
- Identification and Placement for Private/Home Schooled Families
- Identification and Placement for Students New to FCPS Boundaries (Including Military Families)
- Identification and Placement for Current FCPS Students
FCPS Links: AAP and Special Populations
Digital Citizenship
FCPS Parent Resource Center Workshops on Youtube
- Family Digital Wellness: When is the Internet a Problem?
Assistive Technology to Support Executive Functioning - Digital Citizenship
- Raising Screen Smart Kids
- Strategies for Implementing Communication Device in your Home
- Tech Tools to Support Struggling Readers
- Using Technology to Support Reading and Writing While Encouraging Independence
- Digital Citizenship Series Part 1: How to Find Balance with Technology
- Digital Citizenship Series Part 2: Hot Topics: What Concerns You the Most?
FCPS Links:
- Choosing Digital Apps, Games and Services Wisely
- Digital Citizenship: Establishing Expectations at HomeRewriting your Parenting Story
- Digital Citizenship Student Curriculum
- Digital Citizenship For Families with Teens (Online Course)
- Resources for Families
- Information for Students
- Videos and Tip Sheets
- Podcast: Digital Citizenship: When Technology and Social Emotional Learning Intersect
- Social Media Best Practices for Students
- Things to Consider when Getting a New Phone, Computer or Gaming Device for Your Child
- Using Technology Mindfully: A Podcast
Community Resources
Dyslexia
Parent Resource Center Workshops on Youtube
What Parents Need to Know about 504 Plans
Community Resources
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Effective Reading Instruction: Structured Literacy instruction from International Dyslexia Association
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Do I have Dyslexia?: Self-Assessment Tool from the International Dyslexia Association
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Dyslexia Assessment: What Is It and How Can It Help? How to identify and assess for Dyslexia from the International Dyslexia Association
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Dyslexia Basics: Definition and causes from the International Dyslexia
- English Language Learners and Dyslexia: This fact sheet provides information about important considerations when evaluating English learners for dyslexia from the International Dyslexia
- How to Teach Kids With Dyslexia to Read: Systematic phonics instruction is key to building skills and confidence from Child Mind Institute
- Tips for Recognizing Learning Disorders in the Classroom: Characteristics of learning disabilities that can hide in plain sight from Child Mind Institute
FCPS Links: Instruction and Assessment
- 504 Plans for Students with Dyslexia
- Accommodations for Students with Dyslexia
- Assistive Technology for Students with Dyslexia
- Core Instruction for Students with Dyslexia
- Responsive Instruction for Students with Dyslexia
FCPS Links: Characteristics of Students with Dyslexia
- Characteristics and Signs of Dyslexia
- Common Co-Existing Conditions with Dyslexia
- Signs of Dyslexia
- Self-Advocacy and Voice for Students with Dyslexia
- Social Emotional Impacts of Dyslexia
- Twice Exceptional (2e) Learners and Dyslexia
FCPS Links: General Resources
- Dyslexia Regional Points of Contact, Family Guides, Books, and Websites
- Dyslexia Resources: Includes Regional Points of Contact, Family Guides, Books, and Websites
- FCPS Dyslexia Handbook
- Dyslexia Online Training for Parents
- Family Guide to Dyslexia: Elementary Schools
- Family Guide to Dyslexia: Secondary Schools
Early Childhood Education
Parent Resource Center Workshops on Youtube
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Families as Partners Supporting Your Student’s Social and Emotional Learning SEL
- Supporting Healthy Habits and Routines in Early Learners
- Challenging Behaviors: ABCs of Behavior and How to Respond
- Seven Steps to Behavior Success at Home
- Exploring Early Childhood AT at Home
- Pathways to Preschool: Video Playlist
FCPS Tip Sheets
FCPS Links: General Information
- Apply for PreK and Early Head Start
- Best Practices
- Daily Schedules in an FCPS Early Childhood Classroom
- Early Childhood Child Find
- Early Childhood Curriculum and Instructional Resources
- Early Childhood Portrait of a Graduate
- Families as Partners
- Fairfax Early Childhood PartnershipsHigh Quality Support in Early Childhood
- Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY) Program
- Nutrition and Health Education in Early Childhood
- School Readiness and Transition to Kindergarten
- Self-regulation Skills in Early Childhood
- Special Education Resources
Community Resources
- Potty Training Resources Padlet: Books, videos, apps, articles, tools, and more all to assist with potty training. Helpful for toddlers and for children with special needs.
Eating Disorders
Parent Resource Center Workshops on Youtube
Parent Resource Center Links
- Padlet (electronic collection of resources): Eating Disorders
FCPS Links
Community Resources
Eating Disorders Books in the FCPS Parent Resource Center (FRC): The FCPS FRC offers free library materials for the community.
Eating Disorders What Every Family Needs to Know: View this webinar on eating disorders from the FCPS Parent Resource Center.
Eating Disorders Awareness Week (EDAW) is an annual campaign to educate the public about the realities of eating disorders and to provide hope, support, and visibility to individuals and families affected by eating disorders.
- Where Do I Start? National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) can support you on your journey. These resources can help you take the first step to getting the help.
- Parent Toolkit (pdf): The NEDA Parent Toolkit is for anyone who wants to understand more about how to support a family member or friend affected by an eating disorder.
- Educator Toolkit (pdf): The NEDA Educator Toolkit is a resource for educators, staff who work in a school setting, or those who work with youth outside of school to understand more about eating disorders to support students and the young.
- Coach and Trainer Toolkit (pdf): The NEDA Coach and Trainer Toolkit is a resource for staff who work in gyms, school settings, outside athletic groups, dance studios, etc. who would like to know how to support athletes who may be affected by eating disorders.
The Body Project: This is a group-based prevention intervention that provides a forum for high school girls and college-aged women to confront unrealistic appearance ideals and develop healthy body image and self-esteem.
Academy of Eating Disorders Video Library The Academy for Eating Disorders provides a list of helpful videos available on a variety of topics on eating disorders
How to Help a Loved One: NEDA provides resources. Friends and family are often key to encouraging loved ones with eating and/or body image issues to seek help.
- How to Talk to a Loved One About Eating Concerns
- Tips for Encouraging a Loved One to Seek Professional Help
Free and Low-Cost Support: The National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) provides free and low-cost support options offer ways to connect with others and provides tools to promote recovery.
Support for Caregivers: Beat, a United Kingdom-based organization, has published guidance encouraging healthcare providers to ensure better support for families of people with eating disorders, including by offering an assessment of their own mental health needs and access to peer-to-peer support programs.
Fairfax County Government: Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board's Wellness, Health Promotion & Prevention team encourages people to get screened online, at no cost and confidentially, through their website.
Eating Disorders Screening Tool: NEDA provides a short screening — appropriate for ages 13 and up — that can help determine if it's time to seek professional help.
NEDA Blogs
- Back to School After Eating Disorders Treatment
- Back to School: Checking In With Yourself and Setting Reasonable Goals
- How to Cope with School When Struggling with an Eating Disorder
- Maintaining Recovery While in School
- Recovering from an Eating Disorder in College: A Survival Guide
- 3 Ways to Create a Healthy Dorm Environment
- Voices of Lived Experience of Eating Disorders
Parenting Education Resources
Parent Resource Center Workshops on Youtube
- Strategies to Diffuse Unexpected Behavior
- Tips to Improving Your Parenting Long Game
- Challenging Behaviors: ABCs of Behavior and How to Respond
- Seven Steps to Behavior Success at Home
- How to Subscribe to a School Calendar
- Setting the Stage for School Success
FCPS Links: General Information
- Family Engagement Resources
- Family Engagement in Title I Schools
- Family Literacy
- Immigration Family Reunification Program
- Information for Homeless Families
- In-Person Tutors and Tutoring
- Online Tutoring
- Kinship Care Support
- Library Resources
- Parent Information Lines
- Resources for Military Families
- School to Home Communication Tips
- School Year 2018-2019 Family Engagement Survey Results
Gun Violence Prevention Resources
The Gun Violence Prevention Resources webpage has information about the following topics:
- secure firearm storage,
- modeling responsible behavior around firearms,
- asking about secure storage practices in other homes,
- recognizing the role of firearms in suicide, and
- seeking help for a child who could be a threat to themselves or others.
Military Families
Parent Resource Center Workshops on Youtube
- Military-Connected Students and School Transitions
- Preparing for the Unexpected: Challenges of Military Families
- Schools and Military-Connected Students: Supportive Programs and Practices
FCPS Links
- Military Families: Planning your Arrival to Fairfax County
- Military Families: Student Registration-A 5-Step Process
- Military Families: Preparing your Move from Fairfax County
- Academic Planning for Military Families
- Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity foir Military Families
- Identification of Military Connected Students
- Impact Aid Student-Parent Survey
- Resident on Military Installation - Student Transfer Application
- Resources for Military Families
- Resources for Military Families with Children Requiring Special Accommodations
- Social, Emotional & Behavioral Supports
- Fort Belvoir School Support Services
Community Resources
- Military Connected Families: padlet with resources to support military connected families.
Section 504
Parent Resource Center Workshops on Youtube
What Parents Need to Know about 504 Plans
FCPS Links
- Elementary School Accommodations
- Middle School Accommodations
- High School Accommodations
- Section 504 Information
- Section 504: Identification, Evaluation, and Reevaluation Procedures
- Section 504: Forms, Related Documents, and Resources
- Section 504: Impartial Hearings
- Section 504: Knowledgeable Committees and 504 Plans
- Section 504: Purpose and Fact Sheet
- Section 504: Plans for Students with Dyslexia
- Section 504: Procedures Manual (PDF)
- Working together through the 504 process.
- Nondiscrimination / Americans with Disabilities Statement
Community Resources
Schoology
Schoology is the FCPS's new Learning Management System (LMS). It is a learning space that supports instructional practices aligned to FCPS’ learning model and helps students reach the Portrait of a Graduate goals.
FCPS Links
- How do I log into Schoology?
- How do I see my child's Schoology account?
- What can I see in my child's account?
- What can I do in my Schoology parent account
- What will I find in my Schoology parent account?
- Parent/Guardian Schoology support page
- Student Schoology support page
- Welcome FCPS Parents and Guardians to Schoology Parent Resource Kit
Schoology Support: Need Help with Schoology? Click on the language below to see QR codes and links to FCPS support pages.
Special Education
Parent Resource Center Workshops on Youtube
- School-Based Physical Therapy (PT) and Occupational Therapy (OT) Family Support
- ADHD: Does Gender Matter
- Assistive Technology to Support Executive Functioning
- Autism Safety Considerations
- Introduction to Special Education
- Strategies for Implementing Communication Device in your Home
- Tech Tools to Support Struggling Readers
- Transition IEPs
- Twice Exceptional Learners in FCPS
- Using Technology to Support Reading and Writing While Encouraging Independence
FCPS Links: General Special Education
- Abbreviations and Acronyms
- Disability Categories
- Forms Related to Special Education
- Special Education Handbook for Parents
- Special Education Update Newsletter
- Students' Rights and Responsibilities Guidance for Parents of Students with Disabilities
FCPS Links: Special Education Instruction
- Accessible Instructional Materials (AIM)
- Assessing Special Populations in Middle School
- Assessing Special Populations in High School
- Assessment Options for Students with Disabilities
- Guidelines on the Use of Physical Restraint and Seclusion (PDF)
- Special Education Instruction
FCPS Links: Additional Services and Supports
- Adapted Curriculum, PreK-12
- Adapted Physical Education Services
- Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) Program
- Assistive Technology Services
- Behavior Intervention Services
- Bus Route Information for Special Needs Students
- Career and Transition Services
- Extended School Year ESY Services
- Occupational Therapy Services
- Physical Therapy Services
- Services for Students Who are Blind or Visually Impaired
- Services for Students Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing
- Speech and Language Services
FCPS Links: Special Education Procedural
- Special Education Procedural Support
- Procedural Support Liaison by the pyramid of schools
- Special Education Procedures for Identification of Students with Disabilities
Community Resources
- Special Education & 504 Resources Padlet: Support Guides, organizations, workshops, websites, and reading material to learn about disabilities, your rights, and resources that are available to support your child.
Student Wellness and Mental Health
Parent Resource Center Workshops on Youtube
- A Conversation about Compassion Fatigue
- Reducing the Stigma around Mental Health Challenges and How to Support Children in Asking for Help
- Rewriting your Parenting Story
- Building Healthy Relationships
- Depression in Children and Adolescents
- Helping Your Child Cope with Stress
- Knowing the Signs: Substance Abuse and Today's Youth
- Parenting Through Challenging Times
- Raising Children with High Self-Esteem
- Restorative Justice
- Supporting Anxious Children
- Why Won't My Child Go to School?
- Yoga and Mindfulness: Supporting Your Children's Social and Emotional Wellness
- Zones of Regulation
- Zoomed Out? 5 Strategies to Get Even the Most Reluctant Kids Focused, Engaged, and Motivated!
FCPS Links: Programs
- Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drug Programs
- Bullying Prevention and Intervention
- Gang Prevention Program
- Restorative Justice
FCPS Links: Crisis Intervention
- Crisis Intervention Services
- Difference between a Crisis and a Concern
- How to Help a Friend in Crisis
- Mental Health Resources and Emergency Services Information
FCPS Links: Wellness
- Family Support Partner Services
- Mental Health and Resiliency
- School Counseling Services
- School Health and Wellness
- School Health Services
- School Psychology Services
- Social Work Services
- Student Voice: Health and Wellness
- Sleep Health
- Student Wellness: Tips and Strategies
FCPS Links Characteristic Specific
Executive Functions
Parent Resource Center Workshops on Youtube
- Less Policing, More Parenting How to Improve Your Child’s Executive Functioning Skills Without All of the Arguements
- How to Improve Your Child’s Executive Functioning Skills Without All the Arguments This School Year
- Supporting Executive Functions at Home
- Setting the Stage for Behavior: Routines, procedures, & Expectations
- Challenging Behaviors: Prevention Strategies and Teaching Self-Control
- Challenging Behaviors: ABCs of Behavior & How to Respond
- Behavior Happens for a Reason: Behavior as COmmunication
- Strategies for Increasing Replacement Behaviors
- Tips to See an Increase in Replacement Behaviors
- Tips to See an Increase in Following Directions
- Effectively Communicating with your Student
- Maximizing Student Independence
FCPS Links
- 5-4-3-2-1 Early Childhood Tips for Today: Executive Function
- Assistive Technology and Executive Functioning
- Early Childhood Executive Functions
Community Resources
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Unstuck and On Target! This series of videos is designed to give practical parenting advice that they can immediately use to support their neurodivergent child’s executive functions. These engaging videos feature parents sharing their real-life wisdom and experts who give practical ideas and easy-to-understand explanations. If you have a child with ADHD, Learning Disabilities, or Autism, these videos will help you reduce conflict and turn can’t’s into cans.
- Understanding Executive Functioning
- Motivation: How Everyone in Your Family Can Get More of What They Want
- What do We Do When What We Want Seems Impossible
- Break It Down
- Compromising So Everyone Wins
- Is it a "Can't" or a "Won't"?
- The goal, The Why, The Plan
- Managing Intense Feelings
- Plan A/Plan B & Big Deal, Little Deal
- Talk Less, Write it Down
- Expect the Unexpected and Manage Disappointment
- Preventing Overload
- Videos de funcionamiento ejecutivo de UnStuck y OnTarget en español Esta serie de videos está diseñada para dar consejos prácticos de crianza que pueden usar inmediatamente para apoyar las funciones ejecutivas de su hijo neurodivergent. Estos videos atractivos presentan a los padres compartiendo su sabiduría de la vida real y expertos que dan ideas prácticas y explicaciones fáciles de entender. Si tienes un hijo con TDAH, discapacidades de aprendizaje o autismo, estos videos te ayudarán a reducir el conflicto y convertirás las latas en latas.
Transition
Parent Resource Center Workshops on Youtube
- Understanding the Transition Individual Education Program IEP
- Post Secondary Education
- High School Success: A Strategic Transition from MS to HS
- Thinking Outside the Box - Creative Postsecondary Employment Options for Parents of Students with Disabilities
- Transition IEPs
- Exploring Post-Secondary Options through the College & Career Center
- Into Adulthood: The Journey from Dependence to Independence
FCPS Links: General Transition
- Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID)
- Career and Transition Services
- College and Career Planning
- College Fair and College Night
- Employment and Transition Services
- Career Assessment Services for Secondary Students Receiving Special Education or Alternative Education Services.
- Postsecondary Options for Students Earning an Applied Studies Diploma
- Transition Planning for students with an IEP
FCPS Links: Transition Education
- Career Instruction in FCPS
- Career Education Programming for students aged 18-22
- College Partnership Program (CPP)
- Early Identification Program (EIP)
- Education for Employment (EFE) High School Course
- Education for Employment for the Office (EFEO) High School Course
- Job Coach Services
- Pathway to the Baccalaureate and Pathway Connection
- Secondary Transition to Employment Program (STEP) Post-Secondary Program
- Work Awareness and Transition (WAT) Middle and High School Course
- Transition to Independence Program (TIP) Post-Secondary Program
- Work-Based Learning Continuum
Twice-Exceptional 2E Learners
Parent Resource Center Workshops on Youtube
Twice Exceptional Students: What Parents Need to Know
FCPS Links
- FCPS 2e Handbook and Resources [Printable PDFs: العربية (Arabic) | English | 한국어 (Korean) | Español (Spanish)]
- Charcteristics of Twice-Exceptional (2e) Learners
- Common Misconceptions about Twice-exceptional (2e) Learners
- School-based Intervention Programs for Behavior and Wellness
- School to Home Communication Tips
- Strategies to Support Homework and Classwork for 2e learners
- Supporting Twice-Exceptional (2e) Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Supporting Social-Emotional Needs of Twice-Exceptional (2e) Students
- Twice Exceptional Learners Handbook Introduction Video August 2019
Community Resources
- Twice Exceptional: Definition, Characteristics & Identification
- NAGC’s report on twice exceptionality
- Finding the Appropriate Educational Environment for Gifted and Twice-Exceptional Children
- Strategies for Teaching Twice-exceptional Students
- How to Use a Strengths-Based Approach for Twice Exceptional Children
- Transitioning Twice Exceptional Children into Adulthood
- How Teachers Can Support Twice Exceptional Students
- Wrightslaw
- Ensuring Gifted Children with Disabilities Receive Appropriate Services: Call for Comprehensive Assessment.
- How Can I Fight for a Gifted Child?
- School Says, "No Advanced Classes for Kids with IEPs?"
- Tips for Parents: Meeting the Needs of Twice Exceptional Children.
- Gifted But Learning Disabled: A Puzzling Paradox.
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