Good Evening, Cabin John Middle School Families!
This is your Principal, Ms. Snider with the Sunday announcements for the week of September 23 - 27. This Thursday, September 26th, is Picture Day. Students will get their pictures taken in their PE/Health classes. More information on purchasing pictures is in the digital newsletter as well as on the Cabin John website.
This week we also have an early release on Friday, September 27th. Students will be dismissed at 12:30pm on Friday after engaging in our first SWell day of the school year. On SWell day, students attend all of their classes and each teacher incorporates wellness activities into their lessons. It's an opportunity for students to engage in activities with their peers that are low stress and build relationships.
All students this school year are required to complete two different county created lessons on the Student Code of Conduct and the Culture of Respect. Students will receive 3 SSL hours for completing the courses. Many of our students were able to finish them after MAP testing last week, but some students still need to finish. We will be giving time during Advisory on Wednesday of this week to complete them, but students are more than welcome to get them done outside of that time as well. Please check in with your students to make sure they have completed these lessons so they can earn their SSL hours.
A reminder for everyone that Cabin John extra-curricular activities are also starting up. In the digital newsletter, you will find a link to an informational packet of what activities we and PTSA offer here at Cabin John. Also, if there is a club you don't see but are interested in, please speak to Mr. Siddons. As long as we can find a teacher to sponsor the club we can incorporate it into the rest of our activities.
CJMS SGA is one of the student organizations starting up soon. Ms. Pun, our 6th grade counselor, is sponsoring SGA this year. Students, if you are interested in running for an officer position please check out the digital newsletter for more information.
Please remember the phone message just highlights some of the information you can find in our digital newsletter that arrives through email. Please take a look for more opportunities for our students as not everything can be called out in the phone message.
We look forward to welcoming every back tomorrow into our Cabin John community focused on respect, positive relationships, and resilience.
Have a great evening!
Ms. Somer Snider
Principal, CJMS
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- Monday, September 23 - Finance Park, Mr. Barnhouse Pd. 1-4
- Tuesday, September 24 - Finance Park, Ms. Mihailidis Pd 3, Mr. McCutcheon Pd 8, Mr. Barnhouse Pd. 8
- Thursday, September 26 - Fall Picture Day - more details will come home soon!
- Friday, September 27 - Early Release Day, Students Dismissed at 12:30pm
- Thursday, October 3 - No School for Staff and Students
- Monday, October 7 - Friday, October 11 - Mental Health Awareness Week
- Wednesday, October 9 - 8th Grade Field Trip to AFI Theatre
- Thursday, October 10 - Mental Health Awareness Presentation for Parents
- Thursday, October 17 - 6th Grade Principal's Tea/Outdoor Education Information Night
- Friday, October 18 - No School for Students, PD Day for Teachers
- Thursday, October 31 - Last Day of Marking Period 1
Please take time to review what students are currently learning in their classes this week at Cabin John Middle School in our weekly assignment summary.
We strive to keep all of our students happy and healthy, so we appreciate your assistance by keeping your child home if they are ill. We do our best to inform you if your child is exhibiting signs of illness at school or if they have an unexpected injury. We appreciate communication from parents as well if a student is ill or injured outside of school and they need any special accommodations.
If you are concerned about respiratory viruses, which we do see more of in the wintertime, please feel free to have your child wear a mask to protect themselves from potential infection.
The Montgomery County Health Department and MCPS request that parents keep their children home when they are exhibiting signs of illness such as fever (over 100 F), vomiting, diarrhea, persistent coughing/sneezing, sore throat, severe headache, earache, eye infection, skin rash or other symptoms of infection.
As always, we are here to help your child to thrive while at school! Please feel free to contact me (Brienne_B_Merritt@mcpsmd.org) if you have any questions or if we can be of assistance.
CJMS students: registration will be opening soon for extra curricular activities!
Visit the ECA Information Packet on the CJMS website to learn more about each club before you register your preferences. All clubs and activities rely on an adult sponsor. After reading the options, sign up for activities here!
Do you want to start your own club? Talk to Mr. Siddons and find a teacher to sponsor your activity! ECA Information Packet
Join CJMS Coding Club (MCode)! We are a club where students will learn the foundations of computer science and the basics of programming languages such as Python and will use those skills in fun projects and exercises. For more information about the club and registration, go to: bit.ly/mcodeclass.
We have multiple classes for varying levels of experience with computer science at Cabin John. Our beginner Python class is open to all and teaches the fundamentals of computer science through the widely-used and popular programming language Python and will be given projects to help them develop their programming skills as well as logical and problem solving skills. Our intermediate Python class builds on the skills taught in the beginner class as students learn to build data structures and learn Object-Oriented Programming. This club is free, and students will need their laptops (or school-provided Chromebook) for either class. Interested students will have the opportunity to participate in both school-wide and multi-school Coding Fests.
The beginner class will begin Thursday, October 24th, and the intermediate class will begin Thursday, November 7th. If you are interested, email cjmscoding@gmail.com for more information and register with the link above.
Odyssey of the Mind (OotM) is a program that teaches students how to use creativity to their advantage when solving problems. Students will use teamwork, as well as critical thinking, engineering, and artistic skills to conquer the long-term problem of their choice. They will learn to "think outside of the box" and create new solutions to intriguing problems. For more information on the Odyssey of the Mind program overall, check out the OOTM website: https://www.odysseyofthemind.com
Teams of students meet weekly from fall to mid-spring under the supervision of trained parent coaches. Cost is minimal, but parent assistance is required given that OOTM is an entirely volunteer-led program. If you’re interested, we will be having an information meeting on Zoom on September 24, 2024 at 6:00pm.
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/71633921243?pwd=sYDLfkYPP1a8RzqKV453WkcMzyKbUx.1
Meeting ID: 716 3392 1243
Passcode: OOTM24
The first meeting for Odyssey of the Mind will be on Friday, October 11, 2024 from 3:15pm to 4:30pm at Cabin John. Click here to register! https://forms.gle/iBbdwmALCJ2vuvLk8
If you have any questions, please email Rachel Farnsworth and Erin-Alexandra Knight at CabinJohnOdyssey@gmail.com
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.
SGA is starting back up again, and Ms. Pun is this year’s sponsor! Our first SGA meeting is October 17th.
If you are interested in joining the CJMS SGA (Student Government Association) and in running for an officer position, check out the links below for information about the club and how to run for office! If running for office, please be sure to read all important documents and complete the Google Form to become a candidate. The candidate SGA Leadership Profile Google Form must be completed no later than September 24th. There was an optional elections information session for any students interested in running on Friday, September 13th during advisory in the Media Center. See Ms. Pun in the counseling office for more details if you missed it or if you have any questions!
Important Dates
- First SGA Meeting: Thursday, October 17th 3:15-4:25pm
Election Candidates Dates:
- SGA Leadership Profile Google Form & Letter from Sponsor - Tuesday, September 24th
- Speech/Video Submission - Friday, September 27th
- Campaigning (must be reviewed, approved, and signed by sponsor) - begins Tuesday, October 1st
- Officer Election Day - Wednesday, October 9th
Meetings begin in October and we will be meeting twice a month on Thursdays from 3:15-4:25pm. Location TBD. The first meeting is on October 17th and all students who are interested in joining SGA are welcome to attend! Any and every student can become involved with SGA at any time. Elected officers are required to attend. We will be organizing upcoming fun events for the 2024-2025 school year.
Please do not hesitate to reach out to Ms. Pun (pamela_z_pun@mcpsmd.org) with any questions.
The Social Studies team is hosting a series of Curriculum Night webinars for families to learn more about how social studies is taught in MCPS and how its curricula in kindergarten through 11th grade incorporate the history of various ethnic and cultural groups. The webinars will be held from 6:30–7:30 p.m. on the following dates:
- Thursday, Sept. 12–Black and African American History
- Thursday, Sept. 26–Asian History
- Thursday, Oct. 10–Hispanic History
- Thursday, Oct. 24–Arab History
- Thursday, Nov. 7–Indigenous History of the United States
- Thursday, Dec. 5–LGBTQ+ History (Middle and High School Only)
- Thursday, Dec. 12–Jewish History
To attend, families must register at the above links and a link to attend the webinar will be sent to them.
The due date for submitting SSL forms for service completed after June 1, 2024, is September 27, 2024. Please turn in their SSL forms to the main office, counseling office, google form, or via email to Ms. Poole!
All SSL forms received by September 27, 2024, will be reviewed and processed by the end of the first quarter.
Resources for SSL:
- SSL forms, resources, and guidelines
- September SSL Opportunities
- SSL opportunities -September and Montgomery County Volunteer Center
- SSL program overview
- Step-by-step directions for viewing student SSL record on StudentVUE
- Introduction to SSL Handout: English | Español| 中文 | Français | tiếng Việt | 한국어 | አማርኛ | Portuguêse
This year we have 15 minutes at the end of each grade level lunch for student wellness time. During this time, students are allowed to go for a walk in the courtyard, play outside for recess (weather permitting), or play games in the cafeteria. Thank you to all the families who donated games to us on Back to School Night! If you have any old board games or activities appropriate for middle school age students, please feel free to donate them! We will put them to good use! All donations can be dropped off in the main office.
PTSA has also created a wellness wish list for us if you would like to purchase an item from the list. All items will be shipped directly to CJMS and used for our students wellness time. Thank you in advance for all of your generosity!
Welcome to our new CJMS PTSA Board that was voted in during the Back to School Night Welcome Back Fair! We appreciate you!
Please be sure to become a member of this important organization. Our PTSA is funded primarily through our memberships and donations.
Membership Information:
Family Memberships (2 parents) are $50
Student and Faculty Memberships are $10
General donations are welcomed.
Ways to join the CJMS PTSA:
**Preferred Method** AtoZConnect (payment can be made with any credit card) @ https://cabinjohnptsa.membershiptoolkit.com/
Mail in an application (send in your membership form with a check;
mail to Cabin John MSPTSA, Attn: Treasurer, 10701 Gainsborough Road, Potomac, MD 20854)
Questions? Send an email to PTSA Membership.
Our first meeting will be at the start of Back to School Night on August 28th. Please join us to hear more about how we can all support our CJMS school community!
General Cabin John Middle School Information
Main Office telephone: 240-406-1600
Counseling Office telephone: 240-406-1560
Health Office telephone: 240-406-1570
FAX: 240-740-4403
website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/cabinjohnms/
The school day for students is from 8:15 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. It is imperative that students not be dropped off prior to 7:55 a.m. Students being dropped off by parents/guardians at school must enter through the doors by the cafeteria. Parents/guardians, if you are using the student drop-off loop, please make sure to pull as far as possible to the stop sign at the end of the loop - students are not permitted to enter through the main office doors, so it doesn't help to drop them off at that location.
After school activities will start on September 10th and will be on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. Students must be picked up from after-school activities by 4:35 p.m. as supervision is not scheduled outside of these hours.
If you have questions about events, schedules or other school-related matters, including reporting the absence of a student, please call us at 240-406-1600.
If you need to report an absence and would like to submit a letter via email, please send an email to our attendance secretary, Ms. Jordan Murek (email: Jordan_Murek@mcpsmd.org). CJMS Attendance policies can be found here.
Cabin John Middle School
Assistant Principal (6th Grade): Mr. Casey Siddons
Assistant School Administrator (7th Grade): Mr. Andy Lee
Assistant Principal (8th Grade): Ms. Jen Wingate
Main Office Phone: 240-406-1600
Fax: 240-740-4403
Guidance Counseling Office: 240-406-1560
Health Room: 240-406-1570
Attendance Office: 240-406-1599 (to leave a VM)
Please call CJMS to notify us of your child's absence.
CJMS Attendance Office Procedures can be found here.
Email: Somer_Snider@mcpsmd.org
Website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/cabinjohnms/
Location: 10701 Gainsborough Road, Potomac, MD, USA
Phone: 240-406-1600
X: @CabinJohnMS