Greetings MMS Families,

I hope you are as excited as I am for a new month starting tomorrow and hopeful for better days ahead. We have some key events coming up and I want to make sure we flag Literacy Night – correct date this coming Wednesday February 5th – as a next great chance to come together as a community. It is more important now than ever that we function as one MacFarland, connect with each other as people and support our young people in times that can feel uncertain. I look forward to continuing this work of unifying our school and extended community and building on all the growth we’ve made these past years. Please extend the invite to Literacy Night to friends, neighbors, younger siblings, etc. as another example of how MacFarland strives to be a community hub for all.

Tomorrow, (Saturday 2.1) is our first Math CAPE prep session of the year. Please note that targeted outreach has already occurred to the students/families expected to report tomorrow. Please reach out to your Mustang’s math/ELA teacher if you are interested in their participation. Sessions will run from about 8:45am-12:00pm.

I look forward to seeing you there and hopefully at our PTO meeting the following week as well. Be safe and take care of one another.

Have a great weekend,

Cooke

NEW INFORMATION/RESOURCES – new to this week’s Parent Email:

Please see the notes above – there is no additional new information this week.

REMINDERS/PREVIOUSLY SHARED – reminders and resources from previous Parent Emails:

REMINDER - 8th Grade/All Parent resource from Ms. Castro – please see attached is a HS Season One-Pager in English and Spanish.

As a quick note – We currently have 57 applications out of 157 students. We are encouraging all students to research their options and to apply to at least one school. Please reach out to Ms. Castro if you have any questions

REMINDER - Summer Bridge for New Mustangs 8.5-8.8 (Tu-Fri) – Yes – it’s a long way off, but we are always asked about Summer Bridge early in the year, and we are sharing our dates now so you can plan for your newest Mustang or share with feeder school partners and friends.

REMINDER - Literacy Night is Coming! CORRECTED DATE – 2.5 – this is a night for all families, staff, students and community members to come learn about how we are supporting literacy growth for our Mustangs and learn some great strategies to share and explore. We hope to see you all there!

REMINDER -2.11, 2.12 – ACCESS Testing – MLL Students – students will test and have an adjusted schedule.

REMINDER - 4.28-5.9 – CAPE Testing – All students – our biggest test of the year – students will test each morning and have a modified schedule.

REMINDER – Last OPEN HOUSE - February 19th, 5pm - Please share with other families and feeder school families!!

Parent Resource – REPEATED - As a new administration moves into our federal government, we know that some of our vulnerable communities and families may have concerns or seek information related to possible immigration actions. We have attached multiple resources for our families to review and are actively collaborating with our partner schools and central office to offer more workshops and resource support. If you have any questions or a specific need, please reach out to Mr. Novoa-Marcano – edgar.novoa-marcano@k12.dc.gov

The Scholastic Book Fair is coming to MacFarland Middle School! - Get ready—the Scholastic Book Fair is coming to our school! This is a great opportunity to connect with your child over the thrill of bringing home new books to dive into again and again. Studies show that kids read more when they choose books for themselves. A love of independent reading boosts academic success, plus children who read more frequently also report improved mental health[1]. Here’s everything you need to know about the Book Fair -

Dates: February 3-7 open during school hours AND Literacy Night

Location: Library

2.5 – CORRECTED DATE – Literacy Night – Open to All Families/Community Members

2.11, 2.12 – ACCESS Testing – MLL Students – All students will test and/or have an adjusted schedule.

4.9.25 – 4th Period/5:00pm for families – Spring Arts Showcase

4.28-5.9 – CAPE Testing – All students

6.6.25 – 4th Period – EOY Talent Showcase

8.5.25-8.8.25 – Tu-Friday - Summer Bridge for New Mustangs 8.5-8.8 (Tu-Fri)

Shout Outs and Celebrations: Please check out a few shout outs to MacFarland community members who are embracing our belief that we are one MacFarland!

Student shout out to Nicole A and Jenny D who participated in the student budget roundtable representing MacFarland this week. The students were able to share their thoughts on our local and broader school budgets this week in collaboration with other secondary schools across DCPS. Thank you Ms. Castro for facilitating their engagement and brainstorming to prepare thoughtful answers!

Our teachers excel at collaboration and common planning and it was great to see this on display when I visited Social Studies/Humanities LEAP on Wednesday. Teachers were sharing out lesson plans about current/upcoming lessons related to global studies and how children get to school. The team shared input/celebrations and feedback as they fine tuned these lessons. This is the work that makes good lessons great and great teachers even better!

Ms. Salgado continue to lean in on our community building efforts and it was a pleasure to work with her at the Dorothy Heights Middle School Fair on Wednesday evening! She speaks with personal knowledge of MacFarland’s history as a former student and with passion reflecting our communal commitment to our growth and next steps as a school community. It was great to see her engage in this vein with our future Mustangs!

Shout out to our Spelling Bee participants and Ms. Beckett! This week we had the MacFarland round of the Spelling Bee and it was great to see kids in the auditorium competing and honing their skills for the upcoming rounds. Our local winner will move on to the next round of competition. Congratulations to our students who finished in the top 3:

• Alana Hrivnak - 1st Place
• Jocelyn Perez - 2nd Place
• Arisha Karem - 3rd Place

Via email or by appt. – lucas.cooke@k12.dc.gov

Next Curbside Coffee – TBD – we are working on coordinating with our next in person PTO meeting.

February PTO Meeting – 2.11 – 6:00pm - LINK

City Kids Wilderness Project is a DC-based youth development nonprofit that offers 6+ consecutive years of entirely FREE out-of-school time programs focused on utilizing outdoor spaces and experiences to build social, emotional, leadership, and college and career readiness skills to small cohorts of DC-based middle and high school youth in both the DMV area and Jackson Hole, WY. We take our youth to do everything from whitewater rafting to rock climbing to hiking in the Grand Teton mountains!

City Kids is currently recruiting our next cohort of 6th grade youth for the SY24-25 program year.

Please see below to learn more about the City Kids program, including what we look for in 6th grade applicants:

• The City Kids Journey: 90 second overview video of the City Kids Program
• City Kids Annual Report
• City Kids Recruitment Flyer

Below is the calendar of faculty meetings for the school year. There will be no afterschool activities on these days.

24-25 Faculty Meeting/PD Days Dates:

• February 5th
• March 5th
• April 2nd
• May 7th
• June 4th

Afterschool programming began on Monday 9-9-2024. Tutoring and clubs commence at 3:30 and end at 4:45. Students will have supper then go with their perspective teachers. All students will be dismissed at 4:45 to go home.

Students will need to fill out the emergency contact form prior to attending after-school activities. Students will also be able to list their club choices on the emergency contact form.

• https://dcps.nutrislice.com/menu/macfarland-middle-school

Please use this form to refer a student to the MMS Wellness Team. / Utilice este formulario para referir a un estudiante al equipo de bienes.

https://forms.office.com/r/S6pRi9yLRt

WELLNESS TEAM MEMBERS: Ms. Raphael, Social Worker Ms. Virginia, Mary’s Center Therapist Ms. Kent, Psychologist Ms. Sargent, 8th grade counselor Ms. Castro, 7th grade counselor Mrs. Thompson, 6th grade counselor LAYC: Ms. Rachel & Mr. Raul

The allergy season is here and many individuals who suffer from frequent asthma attacks are beginning to feel the impact of the various allergens and irritants in the air. For students and families, we are sharingthis link to Children’s National -- https://www.childrensnational.org/get-care/departments/impact-dc-asthma-clinic -- as a resource for helping to manage your students’ asthma related-illnesses. If your child suffers from asthma, be sure to complete and submit the Asthma Action Plan and Medication Plan and Procedure to the Nurse. The Anaphylaxis Plan must be completed for acute allergy sufferers who need to be administered an Epi-pen. Also, if your child is on any medication during school hours—including over-the-counter medications—a Medication Plan and Procedure Form must be completed and submitted to the Nurse along with your child’s Medication Treatment Administration Form, signed by your child’s primary care physician. All these documents must be provided to the Nurse by parents, along with the medication/s your child is taking during school hours. Students are not permitted to self-carry or self-medicate. All the forms mentioned in this message are attached, for your convenience.

For Mental Health Support Resources in English and Spanish for Students, Parents, and Teachers. Topics include: Stress, Grief and Loss, Anxiety, Suicide and Self-Harm, Healthy Relationships, Social Media, and much more! -- Mary`s Center (maryscenter.org)

This school year, DCPS is partnering with Children’s National Hospital to support our students’ health and attendance through the Collaborative for Attendance Resources in Education and Health (CARE-H); CARE-H is now available in all DCPS schools. Through this program, parents or guardians can give permission to DCPS to securely share attendance information with their child’s doctor(s), nurse(s) and medical office staff. This information will help these healthcare professionals to provide special outreach and medical attention to children that might be missing school and their families. Information about this initiative can be found here.

POC: Andrea.Allen@k12.dc.gov

The MacFarland PTO has set up an email list for discussion and connection among current and enrolled MacFarland families. Any family member or guardian of a MacFarland student can join by either of these methods:

Attention families, anyone with a child that would like a Kids Ride Free SmartTrip Card can sign up for one in the main office. We will process and distribute on a rolling basis.