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1. Important Dates
November 18 – 7th Grade Wellness Screening and 8th Grade Youth Survey during Rock Time
November 22-24 - Fall Musical
November 25-26 - No After-School (all students depart at 2:15 PM)
November 27-29 - No School (Thanksgiving Break)
December 3- 7th Grade Family Coffees by Team
Emerald: 7:45-8:45
Platinum: 11:30-12:30
Meteors: 1:00-2:00
December 5 - 8th Grade Family Coffees by Team
Sapphire: 7:45-8:45
Tigers Eye: 11:00-12:00
Kryptonite: 1:00-2:00
December 5- Fall Picture Retakes, Rock Time and during lunch periods
December 23 - January 3 - No School (Winter Break)
2. A Note from the Principal
Dear Rocky Run Families-
Fall has officially arrived at Rocky Run! It was quite a jolt this past Wednesday to arrive at school with the freezing temperature. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the recent 80 degree weather the past few week, but I'm excited to welcome the brisk, sweater weather for a while. Please remind your students to dress appropriately for each day's weather. As a school, we will go outside each day for recess, so be sure to wear long pants and bring coats, hats and gloves.
Next week, November 18-22 is American Education Week. We will specifically recognize support professionals on Wednesday and substitute teachers on Friday. We want to extent the recognition to ALL who work in our Rocky Run community: our bus drivers, cafeteria workers, counselors, support and clinical, and more! Rocky Run would struggle to function without these important groups of professionals. I encourage you to submit a nomination to the FCPS Cares program for some of our amazing Rams.
November is also Native American Heritage Month, which is a time to celebrate rich and diverse cultures, traditions, and histories and to acknowledge the important contributions of Native Americans. It is also a time to raise a general awareness about the unique challenges they have faced both historically and in the present, and the ways in which tribal citizens have worked to conquer these challenges.
Thank you for your continued support and please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Peter Kownacki
Principal
Rocky Run Middle School
@pakownacki
3. Action Items for Families
- Please watch this video going over Kiss n Ride procedures! As the weather gets colder, we want to make sure that all families are aware of our procedures! When everyone follows the process, the line moves much more smoothly. Thanks for your cooperation!
- If you’re looking for a holiday gift for your Rocky Run student, the spirit wear store is open, including a new design! Hurry – the store closes on November 25 for early December delivery. Click the link or visit tinyurl.com/RockyRunSpirit.
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School Photos are now online!
Families should have received an E-proof via email. Please remember to check your spam. For any questions about your student's school pictures please contact: underclass@vosphoto.com
Picture retakes will take place on December 5th.
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Get Your Yearbook Today!
ONLY 2 WEEKS LEFT BEFORE THE PRICE GOES UP!
Buy your Yearbook at https://prod.yboc.varsity.com/
School Code: 5333
Get Yours While Supplies Last!
- Thank you to the families who attended our Fall Family Night last week! If you missed it or would like to review resources, you can find them on our website.
4. Student Celebrations
RAISE the Ram Card Winners
Congratulations to this week's Ram card winners:
Marim Mikhail (Respectful)
Cedric Chantemsin (Engaged)
Ellie Lander (Engaged)
Rylan Woo (Respectful and Engaged)
Nora Lee (Safe)
Andrea Hackney (Engaged)
Great job Raising the Ram!
Punctual on Purpose Student Winners
We recently began our Punctual on Purpose (POP!) drawing to recognize students who are on-time to all classes during the prior week. Each week, students have a fresh chance to be entered into the POP drawing. POP winners are announced every Monday, and students can select from a variety of rewards. Please encourage your child to be on time to all classes, including 1st and 2nd period. This week's POP winners are Marelin Guzaro Raymundo, Eyad Elmashy, Jonathan Bahour, Javier Velazco, Jayden Nguyen, and Lilian Cardoza Reyes. Congratulations and thank you for Raising the Ram by getting to class on time!
5. Student Services Updates
7th Grade Wellness Screening
All middle and high schools in FCPS teach students about mental health and how to seek help if they are worried about themselves or a friend. All schools use an evidence-based program called Signs of Suicide (SOS). During the lesson, students learn:
- That depression is treatable, so they are encouraged to seek help.
- How to identify depression and potential suicide risk in themselves or a friend.
- To ACT (Acknowledge, Care and Tell a trusted adult) if concerned about themselves or a friend.
- Who they can turn to at school for help if they need it.
At Rocky Run Middle School, the SOS lesson and accompanying screening will occur on Monday, November 18, 2024 during Rock Time. Rock Time will be moved to the start of the day. Please remind your students to go straight to 3rd Period Rock Time on Monday morning!
If you have any questions, please reach out to your child’s school counselor listed below and/or Young Hong, Director of Student Services at yjhong@fcps.edu.
8th Grade Fairfax County Youth Survey
Rocky Run Middle School will be administering the Fairfax County Youth Survey to all 8th graders on Monday, November 18th during Rock Time classes. The Fairfax County Youth Survey, a collaboration between the Fairfax County School Board and the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, is a comprehensive, anonymous, and voluntary survey given each year to students in grades 6, 8, 10 and 12. The survey examines behaviors, experiences, and other factors that influence the health and well-being of Fairfax County's youth. The results, published each year at https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/youthsurvey, identify trends and areas of need, providing a snapshot of the county's youth and serving as a barometer of the community's effectiveness in fostering healthy choices in young people.
Rock Time will be moved to the start of the day. Please remind your students to go straight to 3rd Period Rock Time on Monday morning!
6. Instructional Updates
Theatre at the Rock Presents You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown
Theatre at the Rock presents You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown, a musical based on the comic strip “Peanuts” by Charles M. Schulz! Performances are November 22 at 7 pm, November 23 at 2 pm and 7 pm, and November 24 at 2 pm. General Admission Tickets are $10 for 7th grade- adult, and $8 for 6th grade and younger, and are available now at https://www.etix.com/ticket/v/15634/. Buy your tickets early and be ready to explore life through the eyes of Charlie Brown and the whole Peanuts gang
 RRMS Family Coffees
Please join us at our upcoming Family Coffees on December 3rd (7th grade) and December 5th (8th grade). Come meet other Rocky Run families, chat with your child’s team teachers, enjoy refreshments in an Open House format, and get answers to your questions about RRMS.
December 3rd:
Team Emerald: 7:45-8:45
Team Platinum: 11:30-12:30
Team Meteors: 1:00-2:00
December 5th:
Team Sapphire: 7:45-8:45
Team Tiger’s Eye: 11:00-12:00
Team Kryptonite: 1:00-2:00
RSVPs are appreciated to help us with our planning
Hope to see you there!
 Library Happenings
This week we had a very special event in the library during Rock Time on Thursday! Thanks to funds from our Asha-Jyothi makerspace grant, instructors from the KidCreate Studio in Fairfax Station hosted a watercolor painting class for 16 interested students. They explored how adding water dilutes the paint color and created a monochromatic, misty mountain landscape with a fall color. Students had a great time and their creativity really shined in their finished products. Students used critical thinking, active listening, and most of all, had fun during this unique event!
 
7. After-School Program Information
- Schedule for the week of 11/18
- Mark your calendars: there will be no after-school programs on these upcoming dates - 11/25, 11/26, 12/20, 1/16, 1/17, 2/14, 4/11, 5/23
- Our next intermural sport is Futsal (indoor soccer). We will host a Rocky Run tournament right after Thanksgiving break and the winning girls and boys team will move forward to play some other middle schools in January and February. The information and sign-up form and are posted on the After-School Schoology Course. The form is due by Tuesday, 11/26. Students must be logged into their fcpsschools account to access the form.
- Late buses will depart Monday - Thursday between 4:45 - 5:00 PM. Routes differ from regular AM/PM buses as there are fewer late buses and fewer stops. Routes are posted on the After-School Schoology Course. Please make sure your student knows their late bus number prior to staying after.
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Late Bus Runs were updated on 10/2 - the updated route sheet is pinned on Schoology with the impacted buses highlighted in yellow
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Registration form is required for ALL RRMS students (regardless of intent to participate). Your student will not be able to stay after for any clubs, activities, or events if this form is not completed.
- Program updates, announcements, and schedules are posted on the After-School Schoology Course - all families have been added.
- Check out our Program Preview for information on program times, pick-up, etc.
After-School Program Questions? Contact Shannon Campbell, After-School Program Specialist, at SLCampbell@fcps.edu
8. Community Corner
Rocky Run PTA is on Social Media!
Stay updated with the latest Rocky Run PTA activities and announcements by liking and following our brand new social medai accounts on Facebook and Instagram!
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