Roadrunner's Digest

Good evening Farquhar Families,

I hope you've been able to enjoy the sunny weather today! We have an exciting week ahead at Farquhar. This Friday is an early release day, and it is also our fourth annual Be Well Student Wellness Conference! School will dismiss at 12:30pm. Our students eagerly look forward to this day every year, so we strongly encourage that your student be in school this Friday. If, however, you plan to pick your student up early, it is critical that you notify the main office on Thursday, as students will be in special locations throughout the day on Friday.

This week I've had the opportunity to connect with several parents on matters of safety and well-being for our Roadrunners. I want to thank all of you who have taken time from your day to strengthen our partnership and collaborate to prioritize the most important needs for our students. As we navigate challenging and difficult times that may breed anxiety or fear for your children at school, please do not hesitate to reach out to me. Being a parent of young children, there is no concern that I or my team cannot empathize with.

Thank you so much for your continued trust and support, and have an excellent week!

In this week's newsletter you will find:

• This week's schedules
• This week's Roadrunner Shout Outs
• Black History Month @ FMS
• TIMELY: Your Voice Matters: Family Survey for School Improvement
• DEADLINE ALERT: Doodle for Google submissions due TOMORROW 2/26
• DEADLINE ALERT: 8th Grade Baby Pictures for Yearbook due THURS 2/29
• NEW: Upcoming March Wellness Events
• NEW: Testing Season is Coming!
• NEW: Introducing Girls to Engineering
• REMINDER: JA Finance Park Permission Slips
• NEW: NJHS Annual Earth Day Project
• NEW: Spring Musical Update
• MCPS System Messages

PTA Corner Updates

• NEW: Healthy Minds Initiative
• NEW: Please consider supporting the PTA financially
• Pie Day at FMS
• Order FMS Swag by March 18
• PTA Fundraiser at Chipotle March 11
• Parent Support for the IXL Initiative

Need to get back to an previous edition of the Digest? Find them in the archive on our school's website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/farquharms/.

Clubs end at 4:15 and students must be picked up no later than 4:30. Students should take the activity bus if they cannot be picked up by 4:30, as the main office closes at this time.

Thank you to the following Roadrunners who have made a positive impact on our learning community!

• The Girls' Basketball Team
• Ms. Affinito
• Sonia Damas
• Sandy Orzel
• Alyssa Cunneen
• Aheean Rahaman
• Isabella Voss
• Dimitris Rementelas
• Kimmora Cole
• Gabby Davis

Would you like to recognize a student, community member, or staff member?

Submit a SHOUT-OUT!

This week at Farquhar we will be celebrating the end of Black History Month by appreciating the musical contributions of the Black community. Students will enjoy the music of various artists from Chuck Berry and Nat King Cole to Alicia Keys and Frank Ocean! We thank all of our students, staff, and community members for elevating the accomplishments and contributions of Black individuals across the content areas not just this month, but all year.

At Farquhar, we believe in the power of collaboration and the importance of your perspective. Your family's input is crucial in shaping the future of our school community, and we invite you to participate in our Family Survey.

This survey aims to gather valuable insights into your experiences and opinions regarding various aspects of our school district. Your honest feedback will help us understand what's working well and identify areas where we can improve to create a more supportive and engaging learning environment for all students.

Participating in this survey is easy, and it will only take a few minutes of your time. Your responses are completely confidential, and the information you provide will be used solely for the purpose of enhancing our educational programs and services. The survey closes March 15, 2024.

To access the survey, please click on the link provided below:

https://parentsurvey.mcpsmd.org/

We appreciate your commitment to our school community and value the unique perspectives each family brings. Together, we can continue to build a positive and thriving educational environment.

The deadline to submit your Doodle for Google is quickly approaching. Be sure to get your art to Mrs. Savage his Monday, February 26th to be entered. Here are a few of the submissions that have come in so far. Congratulations Eliza, Helen, and Lauryn for the creation of these amazing designs!

To ensure that your student has their baby picture included in this year’s yearbook, fill out this Baby Picture Submission Google form, or send them via email directly to Ms. Gramkow at amber_m_gramkow@mcpsmd.org. The deadline to submit pictures is Thursday, February 29th. Any pictures submitted after the deadline will not be included in the yearbook.

The 4th annual Be Well 365 student wellness conference will take place this Friday, March 1st. Students will engage in a variety of learning sessions related to wellness for the entire half day. Students will begin the day in their homeroom period, then rotate through the conference sessions, including physical fitness, social emotional well-being, and the impact of social media (see schedule in the weekly schedule section of the Digest). Students are dismissed at 12:30 p.m. for the early release day. We are grateful to our many community partners and MCPS colleagues for sharing their passion and expertise with our students on this day. Our presenters are shared below.

The Farquhar school community is invited to attend our first annual community wellness fair during the evening of Tuesday, March 12th. There will be multiple sessions on mental health, social media, communication, and a variety of physical fitness activities including yoga, pickleball, basketball, martial arts, personal training, etc. The Pacha Mama juice truck will also be at the fair selling a variety of delicious juices and there will be 100 boxes of fresh fruit and vegetables for participants, provided by Hungry Harvest.

As we prepare for our spring testing window, it is important for all students to prioritize their attendance for all state assessments. Please see the testing schedule below. For all testing questions, please contact Ms. Alyssa Cunneen or Ms. Jennifer Hallmark.

Introduce a Girl to Engineering, or Girl Day, is a time when volunteers, educators, and others act as role models, facilitate engineering activities, and show girls how engineers change our world. This week, thirty girls representing Farquhar MS ventured out to Tesla Rockville and engaged in hands-on STEAM activities, went on a behind-the-scenes tour of the Tesla location, and connected with Tesla employees on their interests and career goals!

7th Grade parents please remember to sign and submit your student's permission slip for JA Finance Park.

The FMS National Junior Honor Society students are currently working on their independent exploration Earth Day projects. Students will self-select how they will conduct and complete their project. NJHS members and new inductees will give back to the environment and community. These students will learn, explore, and help our local environment. Projects are due April 2.

Students received an email with the cast list Friday evening and an invitation to join the Canvas page. All cast members will rehearse on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday this week. See Mrs. Lipford's email for information about picking up your script.

• The 2024-2025 Change of School Assignment (COSA) transfer season is now open. The COSA process allows families to submit a request for their children to transfer out of their assigned home school. All COSA request applications must be submitted no later than Tuesday, April 2. Read full details. A special reminder to our current 8th graders on a COSA: All rising freshman must apply for a COSA to continue their feeder pattern.

• Join us for the Girls’ Summit on Saturday, March 9 at Northwood High School. This event will provide informative workshops geared towards students in grades 6–12 on a variety of current topics. Read more. RSVP

FMS PTA is excited to announce our first Wellness Fair on Tuesday, March 12th, 5:30-7:00 p.m. Join us and engage in activities and resources focused on physical and mental well-being including yoga, pickleball, personal training, anxiety, depression, and addressing overall mental health while balancing the influence of social media.

To follow up on our recent Healthy Minds family survey and insights from FMS administrators and counselors, check out the healthy mind family action plan by National PTA.

Based on the previous year's income, collected via membership dues and donations, the 2023/2024 budget was presented and approved on September 12, 2023. Unfortunately, we are currently at a 36% shortfall for our overall Income Budgets. This ultimately means having to reduce support to activities such as 8th Grade Activities, Career Day, English, STEM Night to name a few.

Shortfall Summary

• Direct Appeal - $3,660.00 falling short of projected amount of $6,300.
• Membership Dues Revenue - $1,034 falling short of projected amount of $4,000.
  

Please consider donating to the Farquhar PTA.

You can donate to the PTA at this link: https://fmspta.memberhub.com/store?limit=21&live=true

Families(s) are also invited to directly co-sponsor the following events. Please reach out to jrodriguez292929@yahoo.com if interested.

• English Resources - $500
• STEM Night - $1000
• Career Day - $300
• Bus Driver Breakfast - $150

Any Way You Slice It, FMS Has the BEST Teachers and Staff! Happy Pi(e) Day! Join the FMS PTA in treating the amazing FMS staff by donating a pie for Pi Day. Pies can be homemade or store bought. To donate, please sign up and drop off the pies in the front office on March 13 from 7:45am-3:00pm. The staff will enjoy pies with their lunches the following day. Please indicate what type of pie you will be bringing in the comment section so we don't have too many duplicates. We thank you for your support!

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090949ACAC2CA57-47572584-anyway

Sales raise money for the FMS PTA and are a great way to show off your school pride.

The store will be open February 14 and closes at midnight on Monday March 18th, 2024!

Here is the link and happy shopping:

https://farquharmiddle2024.itemorder.com/shop/home/

PTA provides funding for student programs from this and other fundraising events.

We thank you for your support!

March 11 at Chipotle in Olney. The battle of the classes continues!

At FMS, teachers utilize the IXL learning platform to provide students with practice opportunities in math and literacy that is tailored to their needs and meets them at their level. FMS has instituted an incentive program that is very popular with students. The students look forward to trading in their earned tickets for fun merchandise. As we begin the new year, the school is planning to restock the store and could use our help. Please consider purchasing incentive supplies for the IXL store through the Amazon Wish List: Amazon.com

Feel free to contact me anytime and follow Farquhar on Twitter!

Email: Angelica_L_Smith@mcpsmd.org
Phone: 240-740-1200
Twitter: @farquharms