Stingray Scoop

Dear Stone Hill Middle School Community,

This past week we enjoyed celebrating OneLCPS and proudly showcasing our school spirit with Splash. We launched our schoolwide chocolate fundraiser. We also celebrated our hardworking bus drivers on Friday for Bus Driver Appreciation Day.

This week we are excited for a new Spirit Week starting on Tuesday planned by our Sources of Strength student and staff committee. Sources of Strength is a student-driven, strength-based, comprehensive wellness and prevention program. This program promotes student mental health by helping students identify and develop protective factors that build their resiliency. It provides messages of hope, help, and strength. These messages are spread through student-led campaigns designed to address the eight pillars of strength: family support, positive friends, mentors, healthy activities, generosity, spirituality, physical health, and mental health. A dedicated group of staff, called adult advisors, support this program at each school. Adult advisors include teachers and school-based mental health staff - such as school counselors, school social workers, and school psychologists. Student members, called peer leaders, are identified through staff, student, parent, and community recommendations and represent a diverse sample of leaders within each school. Adult Advisors and Peer Leaders are trained annually by a group of nationally certified LCPS staff trainers. I hope that all our students will participate in our spirit week this week. See flyer below.

Additionally, we are looking forward to our next parent coffee on Friday, October 25th (more information below) on positive peer relations. We hope you will join us.

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

In service to you and our Stingray community,

Rohini Tohan, Principal

This week are having a Sources of Strength spirit week related to Positive Friends. Positive Friends lift us up, make us laugh, are honest with us, and are there for us when we need them.

Monday, October 21st

• B-day
• Drama Rehearsal, 3:45-4:45 pm
• Flag Football, 3:45-4:45 pm
• Activity Buses

• A-day
• One (1) Week Until End of Quarter 1

Wednesday, October 23rd

• B-day
• Drama Rehearsal, 3:45-4:45 pm
• Flag Football, 3:45-4:45 pm
• Activity Buses
• PTO Spirit Night at Scotto's Rigatoni Grill, All Day (Splash joining 5-7 pm!)

Thursday, October 24th

• A-day
• Flag Football, 3:45-4:45 pm
• Activity Buses

Friday, October 25th

• B-day
• Parent Coffee: Building Positive Peer Relationships @ Stone Hill Auditorium, 10:30am (check-in begins at 10am)

• October 29th ~ Last Day of Quarter 1
• October 30-31 ~ No School (Teacher Work Days)
• November 1st ~ No School (Diwali)
• November 4-5 ~ No School (Staff Professional Development)
• November 6th ~ First Day of Quarter 2
• November 11-12 ~ School Picture Day During PE Blocks
• November 12th ~ PTO General Meeting, 6:30 pm, SHMS Cafeteria
• December 6th ~ Math Counts Tryout Test, 3:45-4:45 pm, SHMS Cafeteria
• December 10th to 17th ~ Scholastic Book Fair in the SHMS Library

Weeks of October 21st to November 1st

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!

Students in grades 7-12 work on a STEM project that tackles a real-world challenge using scientific and engineering practices. Up to 150 National Champions will win a trip to the National STEM Festival in Washington, D.C., in March 2025. Deadline for entries is October 20.

It was fantastic seeing so much Stingray spirit around our building this past Thursday, October 17th, for ONE LCPS Celebration Day!

We are excited to share that we launched our annual fundraising event with World’s Finest Chocolate last week. This fundraiser will allow us to engage in additional school initiatives to support student learning experiences as well as a variety of school beautification projects.

For students who are participating: Once the entire box of chocolate that was distributed last Friday is sold, students can turn in the $60.00 payment. You can write a check made out to Stone Hill Middle School or preferably pay online by creating an account at https://lcps.schoolcashonline.com. Please provide a copy of the online receipt with your child to bring to school.

You may give your child permission to sell additional boxes of chocolates; however, students will only be provided one box of chocolates at a time. The last day to check out a box of chocolates will be Friday November 8th. All payments will be made by Friday November 15, but collections will be ongoing throughout the fundraiser.

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.

Save the Date: Winter Wonderland Celebration!

Mark your calendar for our Winter Wonderland Celebration!

Date: 12/07/2024

Time: 11:00 AM - 4:00PM

Location: Stone Hill Middle School

Join us for a magical day of winter-themed fun and treats. More details will follow, but for now, save the date! Please see the attached flyer.

Stingray Spirit Night

Spirit Night at Scotto’s Rigatoni Grill

Our first Stingray Spirit Night is on Wednesday, Oct 23rd at Scotto’s Rigatoni Grill, Brambleton Town Center. Meet Splash the Stingray from 5pm to 7pm and support our school!

Mention “Stingray” or “Stone Hill” when ordering for 20% of the sales to benefit the school. See the flyer for more info.

Volunteer Opportunities

Vision and Hearing Screening

Stone Hill is conducting vision and hearing screening on Oct 24 and 25th and need help from volunteers to conduct that smoothly.

Parents, please make yourselves available to help out with this effort and sign up for the slots in sign-up Genius below as it works for your schedules -

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050848AEAE2DA2F49-52249348-school

Build Makerspace

Calling All Dads! We need your help! Stone Hill is building an exciting new makerspace for our students, and could use some extra hands to assemble furniture and set things up. If you’re handy with tools (or just eager to lend a hand), please sign up to volunteer below;

<sign-up Genius link>

Upcoming PTO Meeting

Join us for the PTO General Body Meeting on Tuesday, November 12th, 2024, at 6:30 PM in the cafeteria. Learn about what the Admin team and PTO are working on. All Stingray Families are welcome.

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.

We appreciate your involvement!

Stone Hill PTO Website

Click Here to Become a PTO Member!

Join the Stone Hill Middle School (SHMS) PTO and become a member of an active volunteer organization committed to enriching the academic and social experience for all SHMS students and families. The SHMS PTO provides financial and volunteer support for a wide variety of school based activities aimed at building a strong school community, supporting academic and extracurricular activities, and providing opportunities for social and service related events and projects.

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.

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

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