Stingray Scoop

Dear Stone Hill Middle School Families,

We are thankful for you!

As we prepare to take time off for the Thanksgiving break (Wednesday, Nov. 27 to Friday, Nov. 29), we are grateful for everyone who has supported Stone Hill students and teachers by attending school regularly, engaging with learning and making important connections.

We thank:

• Our students who do their best to attend class every day.

• Our families who support their student in attending school, completing school assignments and participating in events.

• Our teachers who go above and beyond to help make school a welcoming learning environment where students can thrive.

• Our administrators who help us work together to ensure we are healthy and safe and feel a sense of community.

• Our many, many helpers – the support staff and community volunteers – who provide the extra hands and attention our students need.

I hope that the Thanksgiving Break is restful and restorative. Remember that if your family or your student needs support, please contact me or any member of the Stone Hill team. We look forward to seeing your student again when school resumes on Monday, Dec. 2.

Thank you for partnering with us!

We are One. We are Strong. We are Stone Hill.

In service to you and our Stingray community,

Rohini Tohan, Principal

Monday, November 25th

• B-day
• Activity Buses

Tuesday, November 26th

• A-day

Wednesday, November 27th

• No School ~ Thanksgiving Break

Thursday, November 28th

• No School ~ Thanksgiving Break

Friday, November 29th

• No School ~ Thanksgiving Break

• December 5th ~ 8th Grade Band Concert, 6:00 pm, Rock Ridge High School
• December 6th ~ Math Counts Tryout Test, 3:45-4:45 pm, SHMS Cafeteria
• December 7th ~ PTO Winter Wonderland Event, 11am to 4pm @ Stone Hill
• December 10th to 17th ~ Scholastic Book Fair in the SHMS Library
• December 11th ~ Strings Concert, 7:00 pm, Rock Ridge High School
• December 12th ~ 7th Grade & Jazz Band Concerts, 6:30 pm, SHMS Auditorium
• December 12th ~ Guitar Concert, 7:00 pm, Rock Ridge High School
• December 18th ~ 7th Grade Chorus Concert, 6:30 pm, SHMS Auditorium
• December 19th ~ 8th Grade Chorus Concert, 6:30 pm, SHMS Auditorium
• December 23rd to January 3rd ~ Winter Break
• January 16th ~ 6th Grade Band Concert, 6:00 pm, SHMS Auditorium
• January 20th ~ No School- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
• January 21st ~ AMC 8 Test

Weeks of November 18th to 29th

Stingray Reports are a snapshot for families of what students will be learning in class during these weeks. Don’t forget to check out the “Show & Tell” sections, which include great conversation starters to ask your student at home!

In collaboration with our student leaders (Stingray Leaders and Student Equity Ambassadors), we are excited to launch our school as a NO PLACE FOR HATE school. Students learned about the program in Advisory last week and we held a kick-off event on Friday during morning arrival.

Congratulations to all our outstanding student actors and crew for three successful performances of Mean Girls, Jr. this weekend! It was great to see our Stingrays' talents and personalities on stage. After the final performance on Saturday evening, several students made speeches to the audience highlighting their director, Mr. Schlaf, and how their participation in Stone Hill Dramatic Arts has boosted their confidence. We're so proud of all of you! Here is the digital show program if you missed scanning it on the way in!

Congratulations to all of the 7th and 8th grade choir members that auditioned for District Chorus. We are proud of you whether you made the choir or if you didn’t make the choir - the most important thing is that you put yourself out there and gave your best effort! Here are the students who were accepted into the 2024-2025 All District Chorus:

Sulochana Alluvada, Arush Bannerjee, Aniruduh Bowmick, Lance de Leon, Meenakshi Dev, Atharv Gupta, Shivi Guraj, Poorti Kabra, Zaelynn Lewis, Hans Kabuti, Dhanya Mahesh, Arya Mohler, Nidhi Muthamasetty, Kavya Khanal, Arjun Jayendran, Rose Lodha, Deetya Mudumba, Emma Oxford, Soumya Punuru, Anaaya Shah, Ivy Snyder, Ishita Sharma, Aditi Sridhar

Congratulations to Aniruduh Bowmick (Grade 7) who not only placed 1st in our District for Alto, he placed first in the district for all voice parts, coming one point shy of a perfect score! A special congratulations, as well, to 8th Grade student Deetya Mudumba (Grade 8), who placed first in the District for Soprano 1.

Last week, Vibhav Mamidipudi (Grade 7) participated in the Regional Online History and Geography Bee Competitions hosted by the International Academic Competitions (IAC). Vibhav placed 2nd in the History competition and has qualified to participate in the National History Bee competition to be held in Florida this May, and international History Olympiad to be held in Paris in the summer of 2025. He has also qualified to partake in the National Geo Bee to be held in Florida this summer and International Geo Championship in 2026. Congratulations, Vibhav!

Our school-wide competition is well under way. Currently, 7th grade is in first place having completed 13,279 units so far in quarter one, 8th grade is in second place with 12,020 units, and 6th grade is in 3rd place with 10,637 units! The grade with the highest number of units completed by the end of the quarter gets a GRADE LEVEL prize! More information coming soon. Keep up the great work everyone!

Congratulations to our top 10 students in each grade level for completing the MOST units in Lexia during Quarter 1! These students were invited to a donut party last Thursday morning during advisory to celebrate all of their hard work and dedication!

Stone Hill will offer the AMC-8 on Tuesday, January 21st after school. To sign up, please use this payment portal link. The portal will close on Dec. 15th.

The Math Counts Tryout Test will be held on Friday, December 6th right after school in the cafeteria. To indicate your interest in taking the tryout test, please use this Sign-Up Genius link to register for a place at the tryouts. Stone Hill's math department will choose 14 students to represent Stone Hill MS at the regional Math Counts Competition on February 1st. The test will be given in the cafeteria immediately after school ends and parent pick-up will begin at 4:40 pm.

Yearbooks are on sale! Buy one before we run out.

We already have a full academic quarter’s worth of memories to put in the 2024-2025 yearbook, and we’re excited to make more! Buy a yearbook so you can look back on our fantastic journey at the end of the year. There is a limited number of yearbooks available to purchase, so buy yours today before we run out!

Purchase at YearbookOrderCenter.com with the code 13630.

Dear Stingray Scoop Families ,

Get ready for an enchanting day filled with festive activities, exciting games, and holiday cheer for the whole family! 🌟 From DJ, Photo Booth, Hot Cocoa, Holiday Shop and Market Place to Raffles Prizes and Free Games, there’s something for everyone.

📅 Date: December 7, 2024
⏰ Time: 11 AM - 4 PM
📍 Location: Stone Hill Basketball Court; 23415 Evergreen Ridge Dr, Ashburn, VA 20148

(Note: Incase of inclement weather, Winter Wonderland will move to the Gym)

🎟️ Tickets are selling fast!

Online: $8/person (Open until 2:00pm on Dec 6th) Hurry!

At the Door: $10/person

(Free entry for children 5years and below)

· Purchase your tickets here: Stone Hill Families Purchase Tickets here

· Invite your extended family and friends to join the fun! They can get their tickets at Stone Hill Guests Purchase Tickets Here

· Supreme PTO Members - please check your email from SHMS PTO for code to get your 4 free tickets. Any additional tickets should be purchased through the link above.

Spread the joy and we are looking forward to seeing you there! ✨

Message from PTO President

SHMS PTO encourages all Stone Hill families to connect with the PTO by participating in PTO organized events, initiatives and volunteering activities. SHMS PTO also encourages Stone Hill families to join the PTO Board and help not only serve but enrich Stone Hill student and parent community with your vision and thought leadership. Please connect with us at pto-board@shmspto.org. Learn more about SHMS PTO and the activities they currently run at www.shmspto.org.

School Store

🍬 Sweet News for All Students! 🍬

We’ve got something new and exciting just for YOU! 🎉 Our school store has just dropped some brand-new candies that’s sure to make your day a little sweeter.

PTO Members

Thank you for your support! PTO-paid members can pick up their complimentary spirit wear and magnet at the school store on Fridays (ONLY). If your child isn’t able to pick up their spirit wear on Fridays, please shoot us a note with their size, name and Homeroom teacher and we will have it delivered to their Advisory. Please email pto-board@shmspto.org

We appreciate your Support!

Bus riders should ride their assigned bus and always arrive at their bus stop five minutes early. Please help your student(s) get out of the door on time. Parents are also requested to periodically check transportation information throughout the school year for any changes. Parents will be emailed by LCPS Transportation when changes are made to their student’s transportation.

Carline parents: We thank you for your patience and cooperation in helping to make our car line a safe and efficient area during the morning drop off and afternoon pick up.

Please follow directions displayed on signage and from all car line staff. Please pull as far forward as possible towards the stop sign in order to keep the flow of traffic moving.

Designated walking zone: Only students who live within our designated walking zone are permitted to walk home. If LCPS Transportation has assigned your student a bus, they must either take the bus to and from school or be transported by car.

Exiting the building at dismissal: All student walkers should leave the building through the [B2 door/front of the building], located on the side of the building by the cafeteria. Students should walk either directly to their community behind the school or down the sidewalks in front of the school, as applicable. No student should ever cross Evergreen Ridge Dr. as there are no crosswalks, making it a safety hazard for both students and drivers.

All parents/guardians should report attendance, including absences and early dismissals, in ParentVue. Instructions with how-to videos are available on our website or by clicking here.

As a reminder for the 2024-2025 school year, there have been some changes to the counseling assignments. Please note who your child’s counselor will be this year based on your child’s last names across ALL grades.

LCPS is proud to provide free access to a suite of online learning resources available on the Varsity Tutors platform. To learn more about Varsity Tutors, a free, on-demand online tutoring service available to ALL LCPS students in Grades K-12, click here.

The SNAP in Schools initiative from the Virginia Department of Social Service, which is based on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), helps develop partnerships to bridge the gap of food insecurity among school-aged children. The objectives of SNAP in Schools are to reduce food insecurity in school-aged children, to increase the number of students directly certified for free school meals through SNAP, and to increase the number of students eligible without application for the summer EBT program.

Please advise families who could benefit from this program to access the CommonHelp portal link to submit online SNAP applications.

Please also share the flyer below with your families:

• English
• Spanish

A message from INTEGIRLS D.C., which works to encourage girls and non-binaries in STEM fields through competitions:

We’re hosting our annual day-long math competition on Saturday, December 14th, 2024, from 9 am - 4 pm at the Bioscience Education Center at Montgomery College Germantown Campus. We would be extremely grateful if you shared the following copy-pastable snippet with interested students:

The D.C. chapter of INTEGIRLS is hosting a beginner-friendly, in-person math competition Saturday, December 14th from 9 am - 4 pm at the Bioscience Education Center at Montgomery College Germantown Campus! Our mission at INTEGIRLS is to encourage girls and non-binaries in STEM fields through math competitions and events. This year, we will have math competition rounds (individual and team), an estimathon, a speaker event, awards ceremony, provided lunch, and lots of fun STEM activities. Teams of up to 4 students will be able to connect with and enjoy math with other girls and non-binaries around the DMV. There will be a lot of prizes and fun swag for all participants.

Register here directly or go to the INTEGIRLS D.C. website (dc.integirls.org) to learn more about the competition.

Email: rohini.tohan@lcps.org
Website: www.lcps.org/SHMS
Phone: 703-957-4420
X (formerly Twitter): @StoneHillMiddle