Timberwolf News & Notes
John Poole Middle School
May 15, 2016
Principal’s Message
Upcoming Dates:
Good Evening Timberwolf Families!

5/17 – Green School Field Trip
Week one of our PARCC testing has gone exceptionally well! Our
and
7th grade students have done an awesome job demonstrating what they
know and they are working hard! This week coming up, we have our 7th
grade students taking the Math PARCC and our 8 th grade students taking
the English/Language Arts PARCC. Keep up the great work
Timberwolves.

5/18 – Interims Mailed / Posted

5/19 – Sea Perch Field Trip

5/21 – 8th Grade Dance—7:00 PM

5-25 – Spring Concert–7:00 PM
This week has been a busy week for our parents too. This past Tuesday
night we had our last general PTA meeting. We talked about the great
work the PTA has done to support the school, PARCC testing, our TAP
program, as well as planning for next year. I would encourage and
challenge you to get involved. Our PTA does awesome work, but they
need support. Find out how you can join and get involved at the PTA
websitehttp://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/schools/poolems/parents/PTSA.aspx

5/26 – Reading Banquet–5:30 PM

5/30 – Holiday, No School

6/6 – Poolesville High School

6/13 – Spanish Exams
This past Thursday night, we had the cluster meeting with the MCPS
Board of Education. It was great to have so many families there and to
have the opportunity to talk with members of the Board of Education about
the great work being done in the Poolesville cluster, as well as the
challenges we face.

6/15 – Honors Geometry Exams

6/17 – 8th Grade Awards- 9:35 AM

6/21 – Last Day of School- Early
6 th
We finished the week with an amazing performance of Fame Jr., with our
talented thespians. Congrats to Mrs. Turner and our students for such a
fantastic job with their spring musical.
Graduation
Release for Students
Have a great week!
Respectfully,
Mr. Robert Sinclair Jr, Principal
Green and Sustainable School Designation
John Poole Middle School is the first secondary school in Montgomery County to be designated as a sustainable
school through the green schools program. Having maintained the green school designation for 14 years JPMS
has now earned the sustainable school designation. This is a recognition of the great work done by our staff,
students, and our community partnerships around conservation and environmental education! This past Friday
Mrs. Yesnick, a group of students, and a group of parent volunteers traveled to Annapolis, in the rain, to accept
our award for this great work.
Hallway Heroes
Hallway Heroes are students we honor for demonstrating exemplary PRIDE behaviors as they move from class
to class, helping to keep our hallways safe and comfortable for everyone. The students recognized below
consistently demonstrate Purpose, Respect, Integrity, Dedication and Effort everywhere they go at JPMS. They
are Hallway Heroes and we are proud to celebrate their high expectations and their Timberwolf
PRIDE! Congratulations to last week’s winners:
Brad Blair
Ainsley Hagen
Bryan Kindel
Liam Murphy
Jolie Quiroa
Jordan Rendzio
Support the JPMS PTA
You can support the JPMS PTA through Amazon.com. Do all of your father’s day and special event shopping
on Amazon.com using the JPMS PTA smile link. If interested, click on the link below or you can click on the
icon on the main page of the JPMS website!. http://smile.amazon.com/ch/52-2145183
8th Grade Dance Update
Only one more week until the 8th grade dance on Saturday, May 21! Thank you to all the parents who have
signed up to volunteer and provide food and gift cards. If you have not already done so, please use the following
links to sign up to help. We are still in need of sliders, fruit, cupcakes, gift cards and volunteers. We are also
looking for drink dispensers and round white tablecloths to borrow.
Volunteers (set up, chaperones, clean up) for Friday 5/20 and Saturday
5/21: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/805084fada72fa02-volunteers
Food and Gift Card donations: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/805084fada72fa02-food
Any 6th or 7th grade parents who would like to see what the dance is like for future reference are also welcome to
volunteer! Please invite them to sign up too.
Yearbook
Time is running out to purchase your 2015-2016 JPMS Yearbook. Order one today at www.jostens.com
Contact Kelly Aulls at [email protected] with any questions.
PARCC Testing Schedule
At John Poole Middle School, students will be taking the PARCC between May 9 and May 27. We will run two
sessions a day, the schedule can be found below, please note that ELA stands for English Language Arts. Please
make every effort to avoid scheduling appointments on the day your child’s grade level is testing.
Click on the link to review more information to parents http://www.parcconline.org/resources/parent-resources
Week 2
7:55 – 9:38
9:42 – 11:52
Week 3
7:55 – 9:38
Mon 5/16/16
Tues 5/17/16
Math 7 Unit 1
Math 7 Unit 2
Algebra 1 – Gr. 7 Algebra 1 – Gr. 7
Unit 1
Unit 2
ELA 8 Unit 1
ELA 8 Unit 2
Wed 5/18/16
Math 7 Unit 3
Algebra 1– Gr. 7
Unit 3
Thur 5/19/16
Fri 5/20/16
Make Up
Make Up
ELA 8 Unit 3
Make Up
Make Up
Mon 5/23/16
Tues 5/24/16
Wed 5/25/16
Thur 5/26/16
Algebra 1 – Gr. 8 Algebra 1 – Gr. 8 Algebra 1 – Gr. 8
Unit 1
Unit 2
Unit 3
Make Up
Math 8 Unit 1
Math 8 Unit 2
Math 8 Unit 3
Fri 5/27/16
Make Up
9:42 – 11:52
ELA 6 Unit 1
ELA 6 Unit 2
ELA 6 Unit 3
Make Up
Make Up
Week 4
Mon 5/30/16
Tues 5/31/16
Wed 6/1/16
Thur 6/2/16
Fri 6/3/16
Memorial Day
Make Up
Make Up
Make Up
Make Up
Attention 6th Grade Parents
All incoming 7th grade students are required to have a Tetanus, diphtheria acellular pertussis and Meningococcal
vaccine. Contact your health care provider for an updated copy of your child’s immunization record and bring
this to the school as soon as possible. If you have any questions, please call the school’s health room at 301407-1029. Please note the health staff do not work in the schools when school is not in session; therefore, they
will not work over the summer.
Changes Coming to Way Semester Grades Are Calculated for High
School Courses
Last fall, MCPS eliminated two-hour semester final exams and replaced them with quarterly marking period
assessments. As MCPS transitions from semester exams to marking period assessments, there also will be changes
to the way semester grades are calculated in high school courses, beginning in the 2016–2017 school year. The
school district gathered extensive feedback from school and community stakeholders, including colleges and
universities, and examined the grading practices of various school districts in deciding how grades will be
calculated. Additional information, including Frequently Asked Questions, is available on the MCPS website at
www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org, search “assessment strategy.”
Graduations Begin May 27
The 2016 high school commencement season is set to begin on Friday, May 27, and will end on Friday, June
10. Graduations taking place at DAR Constitution Hall will be streamed live, courtesy of DAR, on DAR’s website
at www.dar.org/constitution-hall/watch-graduation-live-stream. MCPS is inviting parents to submit their favorite
graduation snapshots. Parents should select the best graduation photo of their child(ren) and email it
to [email protected]. Many of the pictures will be posted on the MCPS website. Parents and students also can
submit photos via Twitter (using the hashtag #mcpsgrad). We will retweet some of the photos on the MCPS Twitter
feed.
To contribute a photo via email, follow these simple steps:
 Choose your best, horizontal snapshot.
 Send the photo as a jpeg file (no larger than 4 MB) and email it to [email protected].
 Include your child’s first name and school name. (We will not publish last names.)
By submitting a photo, parents are agreeing to its use for publication on the MCPS website. If you have questions,
contact the Department of Public Information and Web Services at 301-279-3853 or email us at [email protected].
Safe Routes to School Sponsoring Don’t Be Distracted Contest
Montgomery County’s Safe Routes to School program is sponsoring a contest to bring attention to the risks of
walking or driving while using a mobile device. To enter the Don’t Be Distracted contest, students ages 5–18 are
asked to create their own artwork, essay, or 30-60 second public service announcement video to help prevent
distracted walking and driving. The contest ends May 31 and the grand prize winner will receive an iPad Air.
Additional information about the contest is available at www.montgomerycountymd.gov, search “Safe Routes to
School”, and on Facebook (Facebook.com/MOCOSRTS); Twitter (@mocosrts); and Instagram (@mocosrts).