April 2019 Newsletter
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SPARTAN<br />
News<br />
Stafford Middle School @WeAreSMSpartans / staffordschools.net/SMS<br />
<strong>April</strong> <strong>2019</strong><br />
RESPECTFUL RESPONSIBLE PRODUCTIVE - “The Spartan Way”<br />
Jeff Howard<br />
Assistant Principal<br />
howardjd@staffordschools.net<br />
Dr. Mark J. Smith<br />
Principal<br />
smithmj@staffordschools.net<br />
Jill Bryant<br />
Assistant Principal<br />
bryantjm@staffordschools.net<br />
Stafford Middle School<br />
101 Spartan Drive, Stafford, VA 22554 ● Phone: 540-658-6210 ● Fax: 540-658-6204
Happy Spring!<br />
<strong>April</strong> has arrived and we are excited that Spring has finally sprung. This<br />
month brings softball and track, the close of the 3rd quarter, and Spring<br />
Break! We appreciate our 940 Spartans at Stafford Middle and are looking<br />
forward to a great month!<br />
Softball and track kick off this month! We are excited for our athletes and<br />
will host several home contests in both sports. Please check out our school<br />
calendar to make sure you are up to date! The third quarter comes to a<br />
close on Thursday, <strong>April</strong> 4. Students and parents are encouraged to review<br />
Synergy to ensure that all grades are current. If you have any questions,<br />
please feel free to contact your student’s teachers or the Counseling<br />
Center. Spring Break is <strong>April</strong> 15 - 19 and all schools and offices will be<br />
closed. Monday, <strong>April</strong> 22 is a teacher workday so there will be no school for<br />
students. School will resume on Tuesday, <strong>April</strong> 23.<br />
Looking ahead to May, our students will have an opportunity to show what<br />
they know as we will begin our SOLs. Our testing window opens on May<br />
13 and runs until June 10. All students will take assessments in Reading<br />
and Math, 7th graders will take Civics and 8th graders will take Science. A<br />
detailed schedule will be posted on the website in early May.<br />
Don’t forget to follow SMS on Twitter and Instagram<br />
(@WeAreSMSpartans) as well as my account (@SMSVaPrincipal) so you<br />
can stay up to date on our story. If you need anything or I can better<br />
support you in any way, don’t hesitate to reach out!<br />
Go Spartans!<br />
Dr. Mark J. Smith<br />
Principal
For the month of <strong>April</strong>, our 8th Grade Spartan Scientists will be<br />
finishing up our unit on Chemistry and beginning our review for<br />
Mrs. Geslock’s Class...<br />
the SOL in May. All while reviewing, we will be starting our final<br />
unit of the year and investigating the Laws of Motion!<br />
Wow! It’s hard to believe we have started the last marking period<br />
of the year. Sixth grade students have been very busy. In March,<br />
we finished our study of nonfiction text features. Students also<br />
had the opportunity to participate in a school wide writing<br />
activity. Currently, we are studying poetry. Students are analyzing<br />
poems using figurative language. We will also be creating our own<br />
poems using these concepts. Students still continue to visit the<br />
library for lessons from our librarian every three weeks. They also<br />
have time to return and check out new books. Our next focus will<br />
be on reviewing for the Reading SOL. These tests will take place in<br />
May and June.<br />
Mrs. Castilleja Mrs. Geslock Ms. Jones Ms. Rodebaugh
Seventh grade is gearing up for the arrival of <strong>April</strong> and the fourth nine<br />
weeks. This is a busy time in middle school so be sure to keep an eye<br />
on Parent Vue for updates and announcements.<br />
Mrs.<br />
Our civics students have wrapped up their elections for<br />
governor and have signed several bills into law. Students<br />
will continue their study of government and will begin<br />
reviewing for the spring SOL test.<br />
In English, students will continue to work with a variety<br />
of texts, both fiction and non-fiction. Students will also<br />
continue to practice their writing and editing skills.<br />
In math, SOL review will take center stage. Students<br />
will review previously covered concepts to ensure<br />
that they are ready for spring testing.<br />
In science, students are finishing up a DNA Unit. They<br />
will then be learning about Mitosis and Meiosis, which is<br />
the process of cells reproducing and making more cells.<br />
A basic example is... if you get a cut, your skin’s cells<br />
reproduce and make new skin cells to heal your cut.
Congratulations to Stafford County Public Schools<br />
for our recognition as a<br />
<strong>2019</strong> Best Communities for Music Education! We<br />
are proud of our teachers, students, administrators,<br />
and community for supporting music education!<br />
Mrs. Geslock’s Class...<br />
The FACS classes have completed their second cooking lab this<br />
semester, which featured six different savory appetizers and<br />
smoothies! The chefs were well prepared, worked great in<br />
their teams, and their dishes were excellent! They provided a<br />
sample to several lucky staff members and received rave<br />
reviews. Ms. Runyon is very proud of her students.<br />
Five stars to the FACs culinary arts students<br />
who participated in these lessons!!
Greetings from the Health and Physical Education (HPE) Department at Stafford<br />
Middle School! The month of March is behind us and we welcome in the month<br />
of <strong>April</strong>! In the month of <strong>April</strong>, we will be celebrating Autism Awareness along<br />
with all other Spartans in order to raise awareness to Autism and Autism research.<br />
The HPE department would also like to recognize our HPE Students of the Month<br />
for March:<br />
8 th grade: Cayden B., Shania A., Angelina T., Ian B., Elizabeth G.C., Marcello<br />
R.-M.<br />
7 th grade: Connor P., Jason G., Andre M., Yanis G. Y., Allen M., Kane K.<br />
6 th grade: Kimberly G., Leavith M., Joshua S., Sophia C.G., Kayleigh L.,<br />
Preston S.<br />
CONGRATULATIONS to these students for showing “THE SPARTAN WAY”<br />
EACH and EVERY day…Be Respectful, Be Responsible, Be Productive!!<br />
We hope that all Spartans have a great and relaxing Spring Break.<br />
“Fashions, trends, runways, and designs…”<br />
Our Spanish level 1 students are creating a Fashion Show. We are<br />
learning all about clothing, shopping, and finding ways to get more for<br />
our money. We are also comparing our “Dollars” to the “Quetzal” in<br />
Guatemala. Every group has their own style and theme they will share<br />
with the class by the end of this month. I can’t wait to see what they<br />
come up with!!<br />
Señora Rodriguez
Connor P. Nathanael Y. Nemo T. Noe C.-G.
Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday<br />
1 2 3 4 5 6<br />
Autism<br />
Awareness<br />
Day<br />
Paraprofessional<br />
Day<br />
End of<br />
Quarter 3<br />
Softball Home<br />
Track @ Dixon<br />
Smith<br />
Softball @ Gayle<br />
Track Home<br />
7 8 9 10 11 12 13<br />
EARLY<br />
RELEASE<br />
7 th /8 th Focus<br />
National<br />
Zoo Trip<br />
Softball @ AG<br />
Wright<br />
Track Home<br />
Softball Home<br />
Track @ HH Poole<br />
Report<br />
Cards<br />
14 15 16 17 18 19 20<br />
SPRING BREAK—NO SCHOOL<br />
21 22 23 24 25 26 27<br />
Professional<br />
Day—<br />
NO<br />
SCHOOL<br />
28 29 30<br />
Softball @ Heim<br />
Track Home<br />
Softball Home<br />
Track @ Thompson<br />
Word of the Month:<br />
COOPERATION
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