Roadrunner's Digest

Good evening Farquhar Families and Staff,

As we approach the final stretch of the school year, I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to each and every one of you for your hard work, dedication, and support. With just 17.5 school days left, let's make the most of every moment!

Families of eighth grade students should have received an email detailing the number of promotion tickets to expect. If you did not receive an email, please reach out to Ms. Gaske and Ms. Bowles for information.

Let's make it an excellent week!

In this week's newsletter you will find:

• This week's schedules
• This week's Roadrunner Shout Outs & Special Congratulations
• TIMELY: MAP Testing Info
• NEW: Library Books Due May 31
• TIMELY: Staff vs. Student Volleyball Match May 21
• TIMELY: All SSL Forms Due by May 31
• UPDATE: Counseling Corner
• Earn Gold Tickets for IXL Day June 7

PTA Corner Update:

• Parent Support for the IXL Initiative

Need to get back to an previous edition of the Digest? Find them in the archive on our school's website: https://www2.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/farquharms/.

Thank you to the following Roadrunners who have made a positive impact on our learning community!

• Jenny Lipford
• Cynthia Merchant
• Alexis Merchant
• Lisa McDonough
• Linda Lindstrom
• Ms. Pignone
• Ms. Trahern
• Ms. Smith
• Penny Chaney
• Nana Osei Tutu
• Alyssa Kress
• Karla Rodas-Ruano
• Eli Yarnell
• Tessa Thompson
• Landon Thompson

Would you like to recognize a student, community member, or staff member?

Submit a SHOUT-OUT!

Congratulations to Ms. Lipford and the FMS Orchestra for earning all SUPERIOR ratings from the judges across the board at the 2024 State Large Ensemble Festival last Friday! FMS qualified for this festival when our ensemble earned superior ratings at the District II Orchestra Adjudication Festival back in March. This was a big deal for Ms. Lipford and our Orchestra students and they sure did come out on top!! Way to go!

Congratulations to all of Ms. Merchant and Ms. Savage’s students who were selected to have their artwork displayed in the 2024 MCPS Art Show at Montgomery Mall this past weekend! The exhibit looked fabulous thanks to our hard working Art teachers!

We will be taking the Measures of Academic Progress Reading Assessment (MAP-R) on May 20, 21, and 22, 2024 as well as the Measures of Academic Progress Math Assessment (MAP-M) on May 28th, 2024. The MAP assessments will determine the progress all students have made this school year in English and Math. MAP-R will be completed in the student's Reading or Digital Literacy classes for 6th grade and English classes for 7th and 8th grade. math will be completed whole school following the bell schedule below. Please prioritize your student's attendance on these four days to ensure all students complete both assessments. We are also asking all students to bring a charged Chromebook to school for MAP testing. Lastly, we always recommend a good night's sleep and a healthy breakfast for all testing days.

If you have any questions, please email our testing coordinator, Alyssa Cunneen (alyssa_d_cunneen@mcpsmd.org).

Please return all media center books by May 31st. Remember to continue reading eBooks and audiobooks using SORA. You can access SORA from your Clever Portal.

Instructions for Accessing SORA:

• Open the Clever Portal.
• Select Online Services (left side).
• Click on SORA (bottom).
• Click on Search (next to the magnifying glass in the top right corner).
• Type the title of the book you are interested in, and press enter.
• Enjoy reading!

Students are invited to attend the Staff v. Student Volleyball Match at 3:15 on May 21. Entry is $5.00. Entry wristbands can be purchased using School Cash Online or with cash during lunches this week. This event is for students only. Eighth grade students interested in playing on the student team should complete the interest form posted in the Team canvas tile.

The deadline to have Student Service Learning (SSL) forms turned in is Friday, May 31. All SSL forms for any service completed after June 1, 2023, must be submitted to a student’s SSL middle school coordinator or high school coordinator by the systemwide deadline of Friday, May 31. After May 31, SSL forms will no longer be accepted for service completed during the 2023–2024 school year or the summer prior. Students must earn 75 SSL hours in order to graduate from high school.

Learn more about the required SSL documentation and find SSL opportunities ahead of the summer months.

Please check out the FMS Counseling Website for upcoming community events!

Counseling Website: https://sites.google.com/mcpsmd.net/fms-counseling/home

Our last scheduled day for Open ROCK, June 7, will be extended to one hour and will be a celebration of all the hard work our students have poured into mastering their Math and ELA skills on IXL! While all students will enjoy the extended Open ROCK that afternoon, any student who has earned a Gold Ticket by mastering 60 skills on either the Math or ELA platforms by June 5, 2024 will earn access to outdoor inflatable attractions!

Want to know how many skills your student has mastered this year? Ask them to show you on the IXL platform directly, or email your student's Math and/or English teacher. We'd love to get as many students as possible to earn access on IXL day!

At FMS, teachers utilize the IXL learning platform to provide students with practice opportunities in math and literacy that is tailored to their needs and meets them at their level. FMS has instituted an incentive program that is very popular with students. The students look forward to trading in their earned tickets for fun merchandise. As we begin the new year, the school is planning to restock the store and could use our help. Please consider purchasing incentive supplies for the IXL store through the Amazon Wish List: Amazon.com

Feel free to contact me anytime and follow Farquhar on Twitter!

Email: Angelica_L_Smith@mcpsmd.org
Phone: 240-740-1200
Twitter: @farquharms