Important Upcoming Events
- March 5 - School Planning Day - No School for Students
- March 7 & 8 - Spring Pictures
- March 14 - RCMS vs. LHMS Basketball game at South Lakes High School
- March 21 - RCMS vs. Stone Basketball game at Westfields High School
- March 25 - 29 Spring Break - No School
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- Message from Mr. Stokes
- Spring Pictures
- Attendance Report Card
- Summer Programs
- Other Schools Are Sharing
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A Message From Principal Stokes
Greetings Panthers,
The 3rd quarter often feels particularly challenging. Aside from Presidents’ Day, we are in the midst of nine solid weeks of teaching and learning. The routines that we’ve worked on and students have adjusted to their particular needs will sustain us. We ask students to maintain their practices with on-time arrival and consistent attendance. Further, students can use Panther Time and after school time to receive extra support for specific classes. If a challenge does come up, students can communicate with their teacher or school counselor to get additional help.
Meanwhile, we’ll continue to punctuate the work with fun opportunities. Last week’s SCA spirit week was a lot of fun. Our after school dance was a hit, with hundreds of students in attendance. We get to show off our spirit at basketball games against Hughes (Mar. 14) and Stone (Mar. 21). We encourage our students to show up and stay involved in the many upcoming experiences.
Thank you for your ongoing support.
Gordon Stokes
Principal
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Spring Picture Day is Quickly Approaching!
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School Name: Rachel Carson Middle School
Picture Day Dates: Thursday, March 7 - Friday, March 8
Picture Day ID: EVTRZS4QW
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Supports for Students with Eating Disorders
According to the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA 2023),
Eating disorders are serious but treatable mental and physical illnesses that can affect people of all genders, ages, races, religions, ethnicities, sexual orientations, body shapes, and weights. In the United States, 28.8 million Americans will suffer from an eating disorder at some point in their lives.
There is no single cause of an eating disorder. Rather, it is a complex combination of biological, psychological, and sociocultural factors that converge and set off an individual’s predisposed genetic vulnerability.
In collaboration with the Fairfax County Health Department, FCPS has developed a web page with detailed information and resources about eating disorders. To find out more, please visit the FCPS Eating Disorders website.
In addition to the information on the FCPS website, the National Eating Disorders Association has a toll free, confidential Helpline, 1-800-931-2237.
Student Services Newsletter
Check out Student Services third quarter newsletter to learn more about our recent events such as academic advising. Take a look at our upcoming events including information about Wellness Week and Career Day
Attendance Report Card
This week, every Carson MS family will be receiving an “Attendance Report Card” via email. This gives families an opportunity to embrace their student’s personal attendance data and to partner with our staff to ensure that students are in class every day and on time every day. We recognize that there are a variety of reasons that students are absent, and this update is not to judge the validity of these absences. We value the role families play in their child’s education and believe that, by working together, we will make a difference in the lives of our students!
Please know that parents have access to their student’s ongoing, updating attendance data through ParentVue and are encouraged to check it often. This “Attendance Report Card” is merely a report at a moment in time to help you make sense of your child’s data. We appreciate your efforts and partnership to help improve our school’s performance for student attendance!
Academic Advising
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During the month of February, students will be meeting with their school counselors for individual academic advising sessions through their Science classes. Counselors will review their course selections and assist them with entering requests into StudentVue. Courses will be finalized in StudentVue once students meet individually with their counselor.
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Parents will be able to view the courses students have selected using their Parent Vue account; however, all changes must be processed by your child’s middle school counselor.
CLICK HERE if you need help accessing your Parent Vue account.
Understanding High School Mathematics Course Offerings
Please work with others in your building to share this info with families (through Schoology, News You Choose, etc.)
How can students participate in mathematics throughout high school in a way that is relevant to and supportive of post-secondary and career interests?
During this session we will discuss mathematics graduation requirements and how to support students in navigating the various course offerings currently available in FCPS.
Students and their families may start thinking about what course pathways are available beginning in middle school. Join us to learn more.
Presented by Jennifer Allard FCPS High School Math Specialist and Erin Sylves FCPS Math Specialist.
March 8, 2024, 10-11:30 a.m. Add to Your Calendar
Register for Understanding High School Mathematics Course Offerings
Lightspeed Classroom Management Tool
Our school will be using a new classroom management tool that will help teachers better connect with student devices during classes. The new tool will provide teachers with a number of helpful features:
Easily view student screens in real time from the teacher console to see which students may need guidance or support.
- Focus student attention on a particular website on their device to minimize distractions.
- Pause student access to the internet to focus on other classroom tasks.
We believe this classroom management tool will allow us to maximize class time to support your student’s learning while at school. Currently, we have a pilot team of teachers using it in order to identify best practices for school-wide implementation. Following feedback from the team piloting the tool, all teachers will have access to the tool. We anticipate all teachers utilizing the tool by the beginning of March.
Spring SEL Screener
Hello families,
The Spring Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Screener will be administered to RCMS students on Friday, March 8th during Panther Time. Students use the SEL Screener twice a year to share their perspectives on how well their school and community help them develop skills they need to succeed. The screener works by asking questions or presenting statements that students can think about and respond to. More information is available about the SEL Screener by accessing this link:
Thank you for your support!
Save the Date: Academy Open Houses
FCPS high school academies will hold open houses for interested students beginning in mid-January.
A high school academy is a center within a high school that offers advanced technical and specialized courses to prepare students for postsecondary education and/or career fields. Students enrolling in academy elective courses will be provided with opportunities to participate in a variety of career experiences including shadowing, mentoring, or internships with local businesses.
Learn more and view the calendar of Academy Open Houses.
FCPS Summer Learning and Fun
Career and Technical Education
CTE Summer Academy (CSA) is a week-long enrichment program that allows students in grades 6-11 to dive deeper into CTE program areas, develop skills, and begin career exploration. Visit the CSA webpage to register.
Institute for the Arts Camps
IFTA is a two- or three-week summer enrichment program for students currently in grades 6-11. Students select from nearly 90 classes in art, dance, health and physical education 9 (graduation requirement), music, and theater. Visit the IFTA webpage to register.
Self-Directed Economics and Personal Finance
Summer is a great time for high school students to fulfill the Economics and Personal Finance course requirement. During the self-directed course, students work independently to complete the requirements. Students must register by Friday, May 24. For more information, see the Summer Learning information page.
Summer Online Campus
Take advantage of the opportunity to earn a high school course credit via this summer’s online campus program. Registration ends Friday, June 7. Math, health and physical education, career and technical education, English, science, social studies, and world language courses are available to eligible students.
Additional Summer Learning Opportunities
Please go to the following website Summer Learning information page to learn about these summer opportunities:
- Credit Recovery Academy/ Extended Learning
- English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL)
- Self-Directed Economics and Personal Finance
VIP Camp: July 1 - August 1
Online Tutoring
This is a reminder that all students in FCPS have access to Tutor.com. This a free service where students have 24/7 access to an on-line tutor. Students can connect with someone about nearly any school subject. We encourage all families to take a few minutes to review the basics of Tutor.com and log-in to try out this great resources. You can go directly to tutor.com or review the FCPS overview page at: https://www.fcps.edu/family-resources/tutoring-options-fcps/tutorcom-online-tutoring-services
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We are excited to share a great opportunity that is available to all FCPS students! Your child now has unlimited access to 24/7, on-demand, online tutoring support services through Tutor.com.
www.fcps.edu
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Attendance Tip: Scheduling Family Trips or Events
Good attendance is an important life skill that will help students succeed in school and beyond.
When scheduling trips or family events, try to use weekends and school holidays, and refer to the FCPS Calendar when planning.
Watch this video with tips on understanding our school calendar and visit our Attendance webpage for additional information. Attend today, achieve tomorrow!
Spring Track & Field Information
We are very excited to announce Spring Track & Field interscholastic competition at the middle school level! This program will start in March, but students and parents will need to complete several steps prior to participating in middle school sports, including:
Please submit all forms to the Athletics Coordinator in the RCMS main office.
Please see important details about the program on our website.
We look forward to an exciting season!
Mr. Barrows will communicate with students about activities through email and Schoology and will also be in lunches where a daily schedule will be shown on the projector. We try our best to communicate any changes such as cancellations immediately though email and Schoology. Late buses will be offered Monday-Thursday. Late buses are different than your regular bus number. Please make sure students know their late bus number prior to staying after school. You can find your late bus number in SIS and it will say RCLR (Rachel Carson Late Run).
here is the Q2 After School Schedule
Riley Barrows
After School Program Specialist
Building Use Coordinator
South Lakes High School IB Information Night
Thursday, February 15th
6:30 pm to 8 pm in the SLHS Cafeteria
Learn about the IB Middle Years, Career-related, and Diploma Programs at South Lakes High School.
ClickHERE for information about Chantilly HS Sports
Link to Purchase: Yearbook Sales - MySchoolbucks
2023-2024 Yearbooks are available for purchase. Reserve your copy today by purchasing through MySchoolBucks!
We have a limited number of surplus, once we reach our sales limit yearbooks will be sold out. Sales are on a first come first serve basis.
Who to Contact
If you have a question or concern, please visit our website for a full listing of Who to Contact. This listing includes all of our administrators, our counselors, and who to speak to regarding a specific content area or class. Contact information for all staff members is listed on our website - just click on the name of the person you wish to contact to be redirected to their email address: RCMS Staff Directory.
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