Eagle Eye

Hello, HVMS Family!

Please take a few minutes to read through the latest newsletter. As always, please do not hesitate to reach out if you have questions or concerns.

Thank you,

Hidden Valley Middle School

Our mission at Hidden Valley Middle School is to cultivate knowledge, to promote civic responsibility, to provide opportunities for the exploration of interests and abilities, to foster positive attitudes, and to develop essential skills necessary for all students to become productive citizens capable of thriving in the dynamic world of the twenty-first century.

Please join us in celebrating our amazing teachers and staff here at HVMS this week. We are incredibly fortunate to have such a dedicated group of individuals teaching our students every day!

Friday was School Lunch Hero Day, and we are fortunate to have such an amazing group of staff members in our nutrition department here at HVMS. They really do help ensure that our students are Opportunity Ready every day by providing them with nutritious meals!

"Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new."

- Albert Einstein

RCPS recognizes that in order for students to succeed, schools must foster a positive learning culture. One of the core tenets of learning culture within the broader C-Change Framework is the idea that students need to develop resilience and view failure as a learning opportunity. While everyone makes mistakes, we want our students to learn from those mistakes and treat them as opportunities for growth. I am proud of the hard work our students have put in this year, and the growth I have seen from the start of the year to this point has been remarkable. Eagles, please continue SOARing as we approach the end of the year!

Dr. Christopher Benson

Principal

We strive to help students become Opportunity Ready by developing skills in communication, collaboration, critical thinking, creativity, and citizenship.

If you have any photos of your students applying their Opportunity Ready skills in an activity outside of school, please email them to me (cbenson@rcps.us) to be included in a future newsletter!

We have a limited number of extra yearbooks that are available for $40. If you are interested in purchasing one, they are on a first come, first served basis. Payment must be received at the time you or your student comes to the office to be added to the list!

On Monday, May 20, Hidden Valley Middle School is holding a promotion/awards ceremony for our eighth-grade students. All parents/guardians and family members of eighth-grade students are invited to attend. The program will begin at 9:00 a.m., so please arrive with enough time to sign in and be seated. Guests may start entering the building at 8:30 a.m. We will have tables set up in the front lobby that will be organized alphabetically. When you and any other family members arrive, please sign in and get a name badge. We ask that you wear the badge the entire time you are in the building. We hope you can join us, and we look forward to seeing all of you on May 20th!

Permission slips for the seventh-grade field trip were due on May 3; however, we will now accept them through Friday, May 10. Please make sure your student returns this form if he or she plans on attending!

• May 7: Science 8 SOL

• May 9: Civics 8 SOL
• May 10: IRW (8th grade writing SOL)
• Some students will test on alternate days, and you will be contacted with those dates by the end of April if that is the case for your student.

Students should be well rested before their SOL test and eat a good breakfast. Please have students bring a charged laptop and charger with them to school. Students should not have stickers, sticky notes, or writing on their laptops. If you have trouble with the removal, please have your students visit the Laptop Depot at school for help.

We encourage good attendance on scheduled test days. Make-up testing causes students to miss some of their last few classes. We want them to be able to wrap up grades and enjoy end-of-year class activities and projects instead of doing make-up tests!

The SCA is hosting an 8th Grade Dance this year on Friday, May 10 from 7:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m. Tickets went on sale today, and sales will continue through lunches all week. We hope all of our HVMS 8th graders can attend!

Thank you to Mrs. Cobb and all of our band students for hosting a fantastic spring band concert!

Mr. Miller and his students performed wonderfully at their spring choir concert last week. Thank you for such a great show!

Trevor Overstreet took his interest in anatomy and applied it in STEAM class when tasked to create a phone stand. He 3D-printed the bones, put them together, and used a wooden block and some epoxy to make it all work.

The Roanoke County Public Schools Online Academy is offering a small number of high school classes to rising 9th grade students this summer. Students must meet the prerequisite requirement for the course they're interested in taking. Students may take up to two classes this summer.

Courses begin June 3rd and run through July 12th. All courses require a face-to-face final assessment or an End-Of-Course SOL test. The assessments dates are currently set for July 10th, 11th and 12th.

There is a $400 fee for each course and payment must be made prior to registering your child for the course(s). Payments should be submitted to the HVMS bookkeeper (Mrs. Hinchee), and the course names should be listed in the memo line of the check. Once payment has been received, your child's school counselor will enroll them in the course. Refunds are not available after the course has begun. Additionally, if your child would like to repeat their current world language class, they may repeat it online with the requirement of some synchronous online instruction at no cost.

Students registering for these classes will be allowed to keep their school-issued laptop for the duration of the class.

Please contact your child's school counselor for more information!

Thank you,

Melinda Farley

(Students with last names A - K)

Maggie Long

(Students with last names L - Z)

Just-in-time tutoring provides students in grades 6-12 with an immediate online live tutor 24 hours per day/7 days per week. If a student is struggling with independent work, they can get immediate help to get them “unstuck,” even if they are at home late at night.

In addition to covering multiple subjects, just-in-time tutoring provides online help via chat and voice. Tutor.com also provides paper proofreading (12-hour turnaround time) and industry-leading Princeton Review ACT/SAT prep courses and materials. This levels the field for students who don’t have the same amount of parent support or financial resources at home.

https://www.rcps.us/justintime

Our PTSO is instrumental in providing support to our entire school community, and the success of the program depends on you! Dues are $5 per individual who is joining. 100% of our membership fees go directly to supporting our school.

Parents, students, teachers, and more are ALL welcome to join HVMS PTSO! Together we can make a difference: Join here!

Please click below to learn more about our HVMS PTSO:

https://www.facebook.com/hvmsptso/

Thank you to everyone who contributed to our "One S'more Month of School" bags!

Students should restart their computers daily. Restarting laptops daily helps ensure they remain up-to-date with the latest software. If a student is having any issue that is not resolved by restarting, please have your student let his or her teacher know, and they will contact our Computer Depot for support.

We encourage students to speak up to report bullying and other concerns. SpeakUp is a program where students can send a confidential email, text or phone call to share concerns about a classmate or school safety. Students can send an email to speakup@student.rcps.us, or they can call or text 540-595-0706. All reports are anonymous and will be quickly acted upon. Once a report is sent, school administrators are notified and resources can be deployed depending on the nature of the report.

Congratulations to Isley Shepard for being named "Outstanding Track Athlete" for the middle school division at the Cosmopolitan Track Meet!

Congratulations to all of our track team members who participated in the Cosmopolitan Track Meet! As a school, HVMS placed second overall in the middle school division.

All students interested in participating in HVMS athletic open gyms, practices, or tryouts must have a valid VHSL physical on file with the HVMS athletic director. VHSL physicals dated after May 1, 2023 are valid through June 30, 2024. Starting July 1, 2024, all athletes must have a VHSL physical dated after May 1, 2024 to continue participating in HVMS athletics. Additionally, all students must have health insurance if they want to participate.

For questions, please email the HVMS athletic director at hriganti@rcps.us.

Carilion Clinic has teamed up with local high schools to conduct pre-season physicals on May 18. Please see the attached flyer for more information. For questions, please contact Ashley Simpson at the Carilion Clinic.

Hidden Valley Middle School open gym and tryout dates are scheduled for cheerleading! Athletes interested in attending an open gym or trying out for the 2024 HVMS Cheerleading team must have a valid VHSL physical on file with the HVMS athletic director.

Hidden Valley Middle School girls' volleyball open gyms are scheduled for May! Athletes interested in participating must have a VHSL physical dated after May 1, 2023 on file with the HVMS athletic director.

Hidden Valley Middle School girls' basketball open gyms are scheduled for May. Athletes must have a current VHSL physical on file with the HVMS athletic director to participate.

Hidden Valley Middle School will host several open fields in May. Athletes interested in participating in football during the 2024 season should attend! For questions, please contact Coach Phelps at dphelps@rcps.us.

Tuesday, May 7: Science 8 SOL

Thursday, May 9: Civics 8 SOL

Friday, May 10:

• IRW (8th grade writing SOL)
• 8th Grade Dance (7:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.)

Tuesday, May 14:

• 7th Grade Field Trip
  

Monday, May 20:

• 8th Grade Awards/Promotion Ceremony (9:00 a.m.)

Tuesday, May 21:

• 8th Grade Field Trip (Group 1)
  
• 3-hour Early Dismissal

Wednesday, May 22:

• 8th Grade Field Trip (Group 2)
  
• 3-hour Early Dismissal

Thursday, May 23:

• 8th Grade Field Day
  

• Last Day of School (3-hour early dismissal)

Website: http://www.rcps.us/hvms
Location: 4902 Hidden Valley School Road, Roanoke, VA, USA
Phone: (540) 772-7570
Facebook: facebook.com/HVMSConnect/