THE WEEKLY WILDCAT UPDATES 2015-2016
Below are important reminders to help you stay involved and engaged with your student’s
upcoming events at Rocky Hill Middle School. Follow us on –
https://twitter.com/RockyHillPRIN
Rocky Hill Weekly Overview Section & Important News:
Monday, May 9, -67123
 PARCC Testing
 Penny Wars (Willpower Fundraiser)
 Afternoon Show-TV Studio 1:43 p.m.
Tuesday, May 10, -45671
 PARCC Testing
 Penny Wars (Willpower Fundraiser)
 Soccer-Boys @ Neelsville/Girls vs. Neelsville -3:15 p.m.-4:15 p.m.
 Homestretch Club-Room 278-3:15 p.m.-4:15 p.m.
 Tri-M-Room 143-3:15 p.m.-4:15 p.m.
 Green Team-Room 266-3:15 p.m.-4:15 p.m.
 PTA-Elections-End of Year Thanks & Recognition-Media Center-6:30 p.m.
Wednesday, May 11, -23456
 PARCC Testing
 Penny Wars (Willpower Fundraiser)
 CHS Field Hockey Clinic - 3:15 p.m.-4:15 p.m.
 Board Games Club-Room 259-3:15 p.m.-4:15 p.m.
 Model UN-Room 358-3:15 p.m.-4:15 p.m.
 Flag Football-Upper Fields-3:15 p.m.-4:15 p.m.
Thursday, May 12,-71234
 PARCC Testing
 Penny Wars (Willpower Fundraiser)
 National Archery Tournament-(Kentucky)
 Homestretch Club-Room 278-3:15 p.m.-4:15 p.m.
 CHS Field Hockey Clinic - 3:15 p.m.-4:15 p.m.
 Flag Football-Upper Fields-3:15 p.m.-4:15 p.m.
 Tri-M Music Honor’s Society Concert and Willpower Fund
Friday, May 13, -56712
 Last day to pick-up 6th grade- outdoor education medications. 8:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
 National Archery Tournament-(Kentucky)
 Willpower Games (15th Annual) 1st part @ RHMS-4:30 p.m.-Game @ CHS-7:00 p.m.
 NO AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAMS
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April -RHMS Highlights Section:
RHMS Spirit Week is Monday, May 9th- Friday, May 13th
Monday is Color by Grade Day.
 6th grade wear RED
 7th grade wear WHITE
 8th grade wear BLUE
Tuesday is PAJAMA DAY. Dress comfortable and appropriately in your PJs. Rocky Hill Dress
code policy applies and if needed students will be asked to change or put on clothes from our PE
department.
Wednesday is WACKY WEDNESDAY. Dress with mix matched attire, go crazy with your
hair. Remember Rocky Hill Dress Code policy applies.
Thursday is HAT DAY. Wear your favorite hat to school all day.
Friday is our PINK OUT to support our Willpower Game. Wear ALL pink to school that day!
PARCC Testing Information
Dear Parents:
As you may be aware, the state of Maryland is giving all public school students the Partnership
for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC).
The PARCC assessments serve as an "educational GPS system" assessing students' current
performance. It points the way to what students need to learn to be ready for the next grade level
and, by high school graduation, for college and/or a career.
The PARCC assessments are designed to give schools and teachers more information to improve
instruction. Moreover, PARCC is designed to let parents know how their child is progressing
academically. This more detailed information can lead to strong engagement between parents
and teachers. (See link for additional information)
http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/rockyhillms/news/news.aspx?id=480057
Annual WillPower Staff vs. Parent Basketball Game: The 15th Annual WillPower Staff vs.
Parent Basketball Fundraiser game for cancer research will be held Friday, May 13th! This year,
Chic-Fil-A dinner, inflatables, and kids games will be held at Rocky Hill from 4:30-6:30pm. At
6:30pm the crowd will be asked to go over to Clarksburg High School for the basketball game
where we will have plenty of seating for everyone! Also, this year we will have many vendors
selling their items at the high school from 7-9pm during the basketball game. This is a great
opportunity to pick something up for Mom for Mother’s Day or to give Mom a chance to shop
while you enjoy the game! We will also be raffling off an iPad, a bike, a chance to win a car, and
items donated by the vendors during the game. We will be selling snacks, pizza and beverages at
the game as well. So, make sure to mark your calendars for Friday, May 13th and show your
WillPower PRIDE!!!!
The Hearing and Vision screening is scheduled for June 1, 2, and 3 at Rocky Hill MS. All 8th
grade students, students who are new to Maryland, and teacher referrals will be screened. Please
remind each student to bring his/her glasses with them to the screening. Letters will be mailed to
parents/guardians whose children do not pass the screening. If your child is referred to a vision
professional, please take the form with you and have it completed. The form should be returned
to your child’s school after the evaluation in an envelope addressed to the School Nurse. If you
do not wish your child to participate in the vision/hearing please notify the health room in
writing before May 27. Please call the health room at 301-601-3188 if you have any questions.
Parents of 6th Graders-Outdoor Ed Medication:
All outdoor education medications must be picked up from the health room by Friday, May
13. An adult must pick up the medications. Medications that are not picked up by May 13 will
be destroyed. Thank you.
RHMS Volunteers -Volunteer Recognition Brunch -June 7, 2016
RHMS Volunteers- YOU ARE THE BEST!!!! The Rocky Hill staff and administration would
like to say THANK YOU to all of you for everything you have done for the school this past
year. All volunteers (including, but not limited to, Front Office, Outdoor Ed, Concert Crew,
Media Center Assistants, Field Trip Chaperones, Book Fair Crew, PTA Officers and
Board, Staff Appreciation Committee, Junior Achievement Financial Coaches, Drama
Production Crew, and classroom helpers) are invited to stop by RHMS on Tuesday morning,
June 7, 2016 between 9:00am and 10:30am for a wonderful brunch buffet to honor YOUR
service to RHMS. So that we may plan accordingly, please RSVP
to: [email protected] or [email protected]. We hope to see
you there-and again THANK YOU!
(See Link for Flyer)
http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/uploadedFiles/schools/rockyhillms/news/VolunteerThan
kBrunchFlyer2016.pdf
SSL Opportunities –May 2016
AAUW Gaithersburg sponsors a book sale May 5 - 7 to raise funds for scholarships and
programs for girls. We promote a clean environment by recycling books which otherwise enter
the solid waste stream. Most books sell at modest prices, $3 or less, to encourage reading and
literacy. The event has been preapproved by MCPS for SSL hrs.
AAUW needs volunteers to help sort and organize over 30,000 books. This event is at Asbury
Methodist Village in Gaithersburg, near Lakeforest Mall. Prior to the sale - from Thursday April
28 to Wednesday, May 4 - we prepare for the sale which runs from Thursday, May 5 to Saturday
afternoon, May 7. On Sunday, May 8 we will clean up.
Students can earn SSL hours at the following times:
Dates: Times:
Sunday, May 1 noon - 6 pm sort and organize Mon - Wed, May 2 - 4 3 - 5 pm: sort and organize
Thurs & Fri., May 5 – 6 3 - 8 pm: organize and straighten Saturday, May 7 9 am - 6 pm:
straighten, customer service,
Sunday, May 8 noon – 5pm: pack books into boxes and stack
We especially need help May 1 and Sat. & Sun, May 7 & 8.
Location: Asbury Methodist Village, Rosborough Center Community Rooms, Bldg 409,
Gaithersburg, 20877. Enter at Lost Knife & Odendhal Roads (across from the bus depot at
Lakeforest). Using a GPS, enter 301 Odendhal Road, 20877.
Students send your name, school, grade, telephone, and the exact days and times you wish
to volunteer to Elizabeth Hessel at [email protected] OR
Register on the website: http://www.montgomeryserves.org/
Keyword = AAUW ZIP = 20877
For questions contact Elizabeth Hessel [email protected] or 301-840-1258 (NO text messages
Wildcat Families,
Just a reminder that this year the Rocky Hill Middle School in conjunction with the Parents
Teacher Association (PTA) has an initiative designed to support those families and community
members in need called Wildcats Care. The Wildcats Care program has food and household
items that we can box up for your family. We are Wildcats helping each other!
If you would like to receive food/household items from our pantry please email our PTA
President, Alicia Wilson at [email protected]
Yearbook- Deadline Information:
Yearbooks are still on sale! Flyers are in the main office. Each regular hard cover yearbook
costs $25.00. You can pay by a check written to RHMS or cash turned into the main office. Be
sure your name is on the order form!!! The deadline to pay by cash or check for a regular
yearbook is June 1st or until we run out of books. At this time there are about 50 books available.
You can no longer pay on line or order customized yearbooks.
Summer School Enrollment Opens May 9th:
Information and enrollment forms are available under the summer school tab on the left side of
the RHMS homepage. Forms and information letters are also available in the main
office. Contact Lisabeth Belman at [email protected] or 301-353-8282 if you
have questions.
Media Center Information: Media Center Maker space-Items needed for next near: The media
center is looking for old or broken equipment that students can take apart and explore. This
includes old electronics, toys, and small appliances. Please do not include anything that contains
chemicals. These items will not be returned.
We are also looking for tool donations such as: Flat Head and Phillips Head Screw Drivers of
various sizes, safety goggles, pliers, wrenches and a hammer.
Other maker spacer donations that would be greatly appreciated are: Little Bits kits
(http://littlebits.cc/), Snap Circuit kits (http://www.snapcircuits.net/), and Paper Circuits kits
(http://tinkering.exploratorium.edu/paper-circuits). These URLS are explanations of the products
listed and most of these can be purchased through Amazon.
If you have a donation, please bring it to the main office labeled Media Center Donation. Thank
you to all who have supported our program this year!
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RHMS PTA Highlights Section:
RHMS PTA Notes: Stay connected with the PTA and sign up to receive updates, events, and all
things PTA! To subscribe to our email updates, click here: http://eepurl.com/brnEVD
ROCK YOUR WILDCAT PRIDE:
There are many ways to support Rocky Hill and the PTA this year! We could not do all we do
without your support! Take a look at the following links for more ways to rock your Wildcat
Pride!
*Spirit Night - 2016 – Upcoming dates are: April 25th –May 2nd or May 3rd
*Non-Event Fundraiser
Executive Board Opportunities for the 2016 ~ 2017 School Year:
Changing Lives One Roar at a Time!
Dear Wildcat Families,
According to MD PTA bylaws, PTA needs to have a President and Treasurer to exist. Without
these two positions, RHMS will not have a PTA in 2016-17.
The following positions are OPEN for the Executive Board:
 President (close working relationship w/ RHMS administration, helps guide PTA
committee chairs, conducts 5 PTA meetings per year with the VPs, liaison between
students/parents/school/community. In addition, the President work to support Wildcats
Care and focuses on service to the community. )
 Vice President - Fundraising (organize Spirit Nights, oversee the Color Fun Run
committee, might create new ways of raising money to support the students at RHMS)
 Treasurer (bookkeeping of income/expenses of the PTA, deposit money, disperses
payment or reimbursement to PTA chairs)
 Secretary (attend 5 PTA meetings a year to keep record of the minutes).
Without a PTA Rocky Hill will NOT HAVE:
 Family events ~ including the Color Fun Run, International Night, the Craft & Vendor
Boutique, and the Black History Month Celebration.
 Cultural arts assemblies for our children during school day
 8th grade celebrations
 Chess
 FLES
 STEM
 MORE
 Student Directory
 Spirit Gear
 Organization of parent volunteers who assist the school
 Staff Appreciation
In addition the PTA subsidizes OVER $7,500.00 worth of activities, clubs and academic
enrichment.
Without a committed Executive Board, these items WILL NOT be funded by the RHMS PTA.
Because we did not have a slate for elections this year, all nominations for the Executive Board,
must come from the floor at the next PTA meeting on May 10th.
Regards,
RHMS PTA
Executive Board
2015 ~ 2016