Rockburn Report

Hello Rockburn Families,

We hope you enjoyed your snowcation and then a fun week of delays, no school, and early dismissal. This week is trending towards 5 full days! We are excited to get the students back into a routine.

We hope you were able to join us for family fun night! It was a great time had by all. If you did, would be able to fill out our survey. Thank you!

Family Fun Night: A HUGE thank you to all of the families who donated materials for Family Fun Night- it was greatly appreciated! It was great fun seeing all of the families! Please take our quick feedback form to help us plan for next year!

Report cards will be available through HCPSS Connect today, Monday, February 9th at 4pm.

• Log in to HCPSS Connect Synergy using parent/guardian credentials
• Select More Options from the left panel
• Select Report Cards from the middle
• Select the report card you wish to access

Understanding Your Child's Report Card

Thank you, as always, for your continued support and partnership.

Our 4th graders participating in Unheard Perspectives have worked hard to prepare their presentations! They've started sharing information with students and staff on the morning announcements. We look forward to sharing that information with our broader school community. Here are some Spotlight Black Innovators, researched and written by our fourth graders!

Have you ever wondered where vanilla came from? Well you're in luck because you're about to learn a lot about vanilla and its creator Edmond Albius.

1829 was a great year for vanilla lovers because Edmond Albius was born. Edmund Albius was born into slavery in 1829. When Edmund was young his parents passed away. His owner was Bellier-Beaumont,he learned how to hand pollinate a watermelon.

He learned how to hand produce the vanilla bean because Ferreol Bellier Beaumont taught Edmond how to hand pollinate the watermelon. Edmond used the things he was taught to pollinate the vanilla bean. Later that day when Beaumont was walking through the garden he saw vanilla beans! When Edmond told him that he was responsible for the pollination Beaumont wrote to other plantations telling them that Edmond had solved the vanilla mystery. Then Beaumont sent Edmond to other plantations so he could show them how to hand pollinate the vanilla bean.

Today vanilla is a big part of baking lots of beloved sweets.Vanilla is such a big part of baking sweets and so much more. So let's give a big round of applause to Edmond Albius for the smell of candles, perfume, lotion, and the baked goods of America and the world.

Amy Sherald makes portraits of black people. She makes people feel different about black skin tone. She was born on August 30th, 1973 in Columbus, Georgia. She got interested in art after she went on a field trip to an art museum. She kept drawing portraits after that trip.

Her parents did not want her to be an artist. Instead they wanted her to be a doctor. They said artists don't make much money. She loved art so much that she skipped recess to do drawing and coloring and art.

She went to school at Maryland Institute College of Art. Now she works at a studio in New Jersey. Amy Sherald had heart health challenges in 2004. She stopped doing art to take care of her health. She started working on art again in 2012 when she recovered.

She completed a lot of accomplishments. She was the 1st woman to win the National Portrait Gallery. Amy Sherald sold one of her artwork at an auction for $4,265,000.

Though, her biggest achievement was painting a portrait for President Barack Obama. That portrait got hung up at a museum and got lots of attention.

Her portraits made people think differently about skin color. These are the accomplishments of Amy Sherald.

We love our Rockburn families and all of the traditions you celebrate. We value all the many cultures in our building and want to hear from you, our treasured families. We want to learn more about you and highlight our families in our Rockburn Report.

Thanks to those that have already shared your amazing traditions. If you haven't already, please fill out the google form,

Please fill out this google form so we can learn more! RES Family Traditions

Do you have a kindergartener who will be attending Rockburn next year, 2026-2027? If yes, come join us, the Kindergarten Team, March 5th from 5-6:30 pm in the Cafeteria. (This event is for future kindergarteners and not current kindergarteners!) Drop in at any time during the evening to verify your incoming student’s registration, meet some teachers, and build a toolkit to prepare for Kindergarten. We recommend you complete registration prior to the event or bring a non-cellphone device with you to complete the online portion of registration. You will also need your driver's license. Note that the registration for 2026-27 incoming kindergarteners will begin March 2nd. Please do not register prior to this date.

*We are looking for help spreading the word about this event. If you are a parent of an incoming kindergartener and would be willing to pass out fliers to other Rockburn families, please let me, Mrs. Crance (Schmid) know so I can send some home to you. (My email is stephanie_schmid@hcpss.org)

Prize cart is back! Kids have the opportunity to trade in their tickets at the prize cart one week each month. We love to have two volunteers for each grade to help facilitate. If you are able/willing to volunteer, please use this sheet to sign up.

RES Prize Cart

*don't forget to do your volunteer training if you're coming in. See our website for more details.

Get your Rockburn gear here! Happy Shopping!

RES Spirit wear

Parents/guardians must verify and/or update emergency information for each child every school year. This is completed online in Family File, which has several new updates including how and where to access. Full details on updating your Family FileLinks to an external site. are available online.

One exciting new feature is that families now can submit a change of address via Family File, rather than completing a separate form and sending to their school. Full directions and information for familiesLinks to an external site. on this new process can be found online.

HCPSS families are invited to attend the 2026 Family Academy Conference on Wednesday, March 4, 2026, from 5:30–8:30 pm at Long Reach High School. This free, districtwide event brings families, educators, and community partners together for an evening of learning, connection, and support. Families can enjoy a light dinner, a community resource fair, interactive workshops focused on academic achievement and well-being, and free childcare. Workshops will include topics such as college and career readiness, special education supports, curriculum updates, and hands-on learning strategies for use at home. Interpretation services will be available. For additional information, please contact BSAP Supervisor, Nicole Brown.

Register online: EnglishLinks to an external site., EspañolLinks to an external site., 中文Links to an external site., 한국어Links to an external site.

Flyers are available in EnglishLinks to an external site., EspañolLinks to an external site., 中文Links to an external site., 한국어Links to an external site.

February

• 3 - Family Fun Night! 6:30
• 4 - County Wide PD - Schools closed for students
• 5 - P/T Conferences - Schools close 3 hours early - 12:15pm
• 6 - P/T Conferences - Schools close 3 hours early - 12:15pm
• 11- 100th Day of School! (as of 1/30)
• 16- President's Day - Schools and offices closed
• 17 - Schools and Offices Closed

January 20 - https://app.smore.com/n/dgfca-rockburn-report

December 8 - https://app.smore.com/n/35kzw-rockburn-report

November 24 - https://app.smore.com/n/041gb-rockburn-report

The PTA is looking for 5th grade parent volunteers to join a committee that will plan the 5th Grade Glow Night that will be held at Elkridge Landing Middle School in April. Please email president@rockburnpta.org if you are interested in helping plan this fun event!

Save the date of Friday, February 20th from 6:30 to 8:30 pm for our annual Bingo night! Entry is free for PTA bundle members or is $10 per family. As always, we will have free kid raffles, paid raffles for all ages, and of course bingo!

The PTA has begun planning staff appreciation week for this year, and like in the past, we are planning on assembling 72 gift baskets to raffle off to our wonderful staff during the week. In order to do this, we need your help. Please consider purchasing items from our wish list, which will be delivered directly to the PTA. Thank you for your support!

https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3SUFF606015LA?ref_=wl_share

Join us for our next PTA meeting on Wednesday, February 11th at 7 pm. This one will be a virtual meeting. Join using the link https://tinyurl.com/RESPTAMeetings and password 572034.

Please save the date of Thursday, February 26th for our spring book fair that will take place at Barnes & Noble. This book fair, along with a pop-up spirit day of dress like your favorite book character will kick off our March Read-a-thon. More details about all of these events are coming shortly.

The 2025-2026 PTA Membership Drive has begun. Your PTA contribution and membership helps fund many programs throughout the year such as Cultural Arts assemblies, Family Involvement events, Back to School Celebration, Fall Festival, Holiday Shop, Bingo Night, Movie Night, Sports Park NIght, 5th grade signature shirts, school gifts, staff appreciation, and enhancements to our recess and PE programs. All parents are encouraged to join the PTA.

You can pay your annual membership dues online via our MemberHub store (https://rockburnpta.givebacks.com/shop). You can also make a direct donation to the PTA there.