Detailed Bell Schedule

Class Schedule

The TJ day begins at 8:30 A.M. and ends at 3:50 P.M. Monday through Friday. Every week follows a regular class meeting pattern. All days are either block days, where 4 classes are held, each one hour and thirty minutes long, or anchor days, where 8 classes are held, each forty-five minutes long. Block days can either be Blue days, where class periods 1 - 4 are held, or Red days, where classes 5 - 8 are held. In addition, 8th period is subdivided into two halves, A block and B block. Finally, note that Thursday is designated as a Jefferson Learning Community Day (JLC), where classes begin at 9:00 A.M.

Variations on this schedule occur periodically due to testing, all-school speakers, pep-rallies, etc. These changes will be posted on the TJHSST calendar. Closures, early closings and late openings will be posted on the Fairfax County Public Schools web site.

Attendance Policy

Students are expected to attend every class and activity scheduled for that school day. Students should be in their seats at the start of each class period.  Late arrivals and early departures must sign in/out in the main office.

Absences

Parents must call the attendance line at 703-750-8315 or send a note for any absence no later than two days following the student’s return to school.

Notes for absences, late arrivals or early departures should include the following:

• student’s name
• dates and time of the absence
• reason for the absence
• parent signature

Legitimate reasons for excused absences include:  student illness, death in the family, doctor or dental appointment, or observance of religious holiday.  Examples of unexcused absence reasons include:  family and/or student trip, nonschool-related activities, missed school bus, oversleeping, or traffic.

Prearranged Absences

Students should complete a prearranged absence form when they know that they will be absent.  The student brings to the main office a parent note with absence dates and reason and they will be given the prearranged absence form.  Students get teachers’ signatures on the form as part of a discussion of assignments, tests or quizzes they will miss and the schedule for make - up.  The student is expected to complete 50% of work missed prior to leaving.  This make-up plan must be agreed to with the teacher.  Prearranged absences may be requested two weeks before the absence.  The form should be turned in to the attendance office at least two days before the absence.  The parent note must be attached to the form or the form will be rejected by the administrator.

Late Arrivals

Students arriving late must report to the main office.  An excused tardy pass will be given if the student has a note or the parent has called and the reason for tardiness is excused under FCPS policy.  Students are responsible for any work missed.

Early Dismissal

Students should bring a parent note to the main office in the morning with the date, time and reason for leaving school.  Parents may call the attendance line with the date, time and reason but the student must come to the main office to receive a pass to leave class and to sign out. Students who leave without checking out will be marked unexcused.   Parents may come to the office to sign a student out but students are not paged during the school day or the classroom called.  Students are responsible for missed work.