Belmont Ridge Middle School

“EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION”

Dear Belmont Ridge Families,

I would like to begin by thanking our custodians and members of LCPS

Department of Facilities for clearing the parking lots and sidewalks following our

epic snowstorm. Through their efforts, we were able to have an efficient arrival

and dismissal on February 1st. While we still have a few areas that may need

some extra attention, our custodians and facilities crew ensured students were

able to navigate our campus safely.

February marks the end of the first semester and the start of the second

semester. It is hard to believe but we are halfway through the school year. For

students in 6th and 7th grade, the semester means transitioning from one

elective to another. For students in 8th grade, they are now one semester away

from being promoted to high school. While there is time to change the

trajectory of our path, we must dedicate ourselves to improving the areas we

wish to improve during the second semester. If we experienced success in an

area during the first semester, we must continue making the decisions which led

to those successes.

While half the school year remains, we will soon be turning our attention

to student course requests and initial placements for next year. During the

month of February, students will be selecting elective courses for next year. We

will also begin recommending core academic classes for students for school year

2016-2017. Please keep in mind these are preliminary recommendations and

students still have half the school year to impact these recommendations.

Decisions regarding promotion, retention, or summer school will also be made

during the second semester.

February also provides opportunities for our parents to gain an

understanding of the courses and expectations for students as they continue

their middle school journey. Our rising 6th grade parent information night will be

held on Wednesday, February 3rd. Rising 7th grade parent night will be held on

Wednesday, February 17th while rising 8th grade parent night will be held on

Wednesday, February 24th. Each presentation will be tailored for the specific

grade level and the information session should last approximately an hour. The

rising parent nights will be held in our auditorium and will begin at 7:00 pm.

Information shared during the presentation will be posted on our school website

following each parent night. If you have a current 8th grade student, Riverside

High School will be hosting rising 9th grade parent information night on Tuesday,

February 9th. We hope you will be able to join us for these informative sessions.

The end of the first semester closes one chapter during the academic

year. While the first semester set the scene and introduced the main characters

for the story of our school year, the second semester includes the rising action

and conclusion. How we want the story of our school year to end is ahead of us

based on the choices and decisions we make moving forward. We look forward

to witnessing several successful endings come June, which is four months away.

Thank you for your support and taking the time to read our newsletter.

Sincerely,

Dr. Ryan P. Hitchman

Principal

February 2016

Administrative Team

Dr. Ryan Hitchman Principal

Mr. David

McKenzie Assistant Principal

Mr. Michael Surma

Assistant Principal

8th Grade

Mrs. Veronica Zimmerman

Dean

Mrs. Terry Mawyer

Counselor

Mrs. Mary

Moorehead Secretary

7th Grade

Mr. F. Michael Skinner Dean

Mrs. Amy Scott

Counselor

Mrs. Marlo Newman Secretary

6th Grade

Mrs. Jasmine Carpenter Dean

Mr. Damien White

Counselor

Mrs. Tina Kamis Secretary

School Information

Office Hours

8:00-4:30

Phone: 571-252-2220 Fax: 703-669-1455

Absentee Line 571-252-2222

House A – 8th 571-252-2228

House B – 7th 571-252-2227

House C – 6th 571-252-2226

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1 2

3 Rising 6th Grade

Parent Night

7:00 p.m.

4

8th Grade Extended

Day Field Trip

9:30-5:00

5 Teacher

Work Day

NO SCHOOL for

Students

6

7

8

New Semester

B-Day

Relay for Life

1st Team Meeting

3:30 (B16)

9 Rising 9th grade

Parent Night @

Riverside HS

6:30 p.m.

10

Rising 9th Grade

Course Selection

during Resource

Spanish Club

3:30-4:30 Café

11 Rising 9th Grade

Course Selection

during Resource

12

REPORT CARDS

SENT HOME

13

14

15

President’s Day

NO SCHOOL

16

SCA Fundraiser

Manhattan Pizza/

Luv’nberry

4:00-9:00

Leesburg Location

17

Rising 7th Grade

Parent Night

7:00 p.m.

18

French Club

3:30-4:30 Café

19 20

21 22

23

24 Rising 8th Grade

Parent Night 7:00

p.m.

25 26 27

28

29

2016

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Help Fight Cancer… Join Belmont’s Relay for Life Team!!!!

Belmont Ridge Middle School

TESTING WINDOWS 2015 – 2016 SCHOOL YEAR

TEST START OF WINDOW END OF WINDOW

ACCESS for ELLs (ELL students) January 11 March 18

SOL English: Online, P/P - Writing March 7 March 18

SOL End-of-Course (Alg 1, Geometry) May 13 May 18

SOL Non-Writing (All grades) May 13 June 10

SOL Non-Writing (All Grades) – Make-ups June 8 June 10

For more information and resources on the SOL assessments, you may go to the following websites:

Virginia Department of Education: http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/sol/standards_docs/index.shtml

Loudoun County Public Schools: www.loudoun.k12.va.us Go to: Academics>Testing

The opportunity for students and staff to FIGHT BACK AGAINST CANCER is here.

The first meeting of Belmont's Relay for Life team will happen on Monday, Feb. 8, after school in Ms. DiMario's room (B16). Relay for Life is an annual

event held all over the country, where local teams raise money for the American Cancer Society, remember and honor cancer patients, and celebrate life. Belmont's

Relay for Life team has been raising funds and awareness for the past eight years. Last year we raised more than $16,000! Students can join us every Monday (or

when they are able) as we come up with fundraising ideas and get ready for Loudoun County's Relay on Sat., May 21. If students are unable to attend

the first meeting, they can see Mrs. Muller and Ms. Page in 6th grade; Ms. DiMario, Mrs. Newman and Ms. Hodges in 7th grade; or Mrs. Branch and Mrs. Mawyer in

8th grade. We look forward to an awesome team this year!

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SOL Grade 8 Writing – Online Spring 2016

MULTIPLE CHOICE – March 8 (B) – 9 (A)

DATE BLOCK Computer

Lab 1 Computer Lab

2 Computer Lab

3 Library Library

Tuesday, March 8

1 Branch Pitts

2 Branch Stokes

3 Branch Pitts Stokes

4 Pitts Stokes

Wednesday, March 9

5 Branch Pitts Stokes

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7 Branch Pitts Stokes

8 Branch Pitts Stokes

SHORT PAPER – March 10 (B) - 11 (A)

DATE TIME Computer

Lab 1 Computer

Lab 2 Computer

Lab 3 Library Library Library

Thursday, March 10

8:40 Branch –

1,2

Pitts – 1,2 Stokes – 3,4

Branch – 3,4

12:30 Branch –

5,6 Pitts – 7,8

Pitts – 5,6 Stokes – 5,6

Stokes – 7,8

Friday, March 11

8:40 Branch –

1,2

Pitts – 1,2 Stokes – 1,2

12:30 Pitts – 5,6 Branch –

5,6 Branch –

7,8 Pitts – 7,8 Stokes –

5,6 Stokes –

7,8

Students taking Art class second semester may purchase their art supplies from

the school store. One sketch book, a plastic eraser, and two pens is $10. The

school store is open every day before school. You may come to the main office

to purchase these items if the store is closed.

2nd Semester Art Class…

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8th Grade Extended Day Field Trip

Belmont Ridge’s 8th grade class will travel to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in

Washington, D.C. on Thursday, Feb. 4. This museum trip will coincide with students reading

The Diary of Anne Frank play in English class and other texts related to the Holocaust and WWII

outside of class. Students will look at museum exhibits to further their understanding of this time

period and to learn how exhibits are staged. Their One To The World project will be to create a

museum exhibit about their outside reading and its connection to Anne Frank’s story. These

exhibits will be set up in the library for parents and other students to view in late February.

The trip requires an extended day. Buses will leave at 9:30 a.m. and return by 5 p.m. All students

and chaperones will pack their lunches, and students will need to be picked up at 5. Permission

slips are required for each student and are due Wednesday, Feb. 3rd at the latest.

The Holocaust Museum addresses the serious issues of genocide, war, racism and discrimination

through words, images, maps, and objects. The English teachers will prepare students for the kind

of exhibits they will view and the importance of appropriate behavior. Parents are encouraged to

talk to their children about these topics as well.

Guidance Corner…

Our students’ current English, Math, Science, History and World Language teachers will make 2016-2017

course recommendations, which will appear on the student’s course request screen in StudentVue.

Students will then select their elective courses as follows:

Mrs. Mawyer, the eighth grade counselor and Riverside High School counselors will be visiting resource

classes on Wednesday, February 10 and Thursday, February 11, 2016. You and your child will have from

Tuesday, February 9, 2016 until Tuesday, February 23 to choose their electives and view the teachers’

recommendations.

Mr. White, the sixth grade counselor will be visiting resource classes on Wednesday, February 17, 2016

to begin the pre-scheduling process for the 2016-2017 school year. You and your child will have from

Wednesday, February 17, 2016 until Wednesday, March 2, 2016 to choose their electives and view the

teachers’ recommendations.

Mrs. Scott, the seventh grade counselor will be visiting resource classes on February, 22, 2016 and

Wednesday, February 24, 2016 to begin the pre-scheduling process for the 2016-2017 school year. You

and your child will have from Monday, February 22, 2016 until Monday, March 7, 2016 to choose their

electives and view the teachers’ recommendations.

Instructions for the ParentVue and StudentVue course selection process can be found on the BEMS main

page under Headlines → Course Selection Quick Tips

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Link is below:

http://www.lcps.org/cms/lib4/VA01000195/Centricity/Domain/130/QUICK%20TIP-

SVUE_PVUE_Online%20Course%20Requests.pdf

Students and parents should review elective course selections in StudentVue immediately

after counselor classroom presentations and evening parent presentations.

Rising Parent Nights are as follows:

Rising 6th Grade Parent Night – Wednesday, February 3, 2016 at 7:00 P.M.

Rising 9th Grade Parent Night – Tuesday, February 9, 2016 at 6:30 P.M.

Rising 7th Grade Parent Night – Wednesday, February 17, 2016 at 7:00 P.M.

Rising 8th Grade parent Night – Wednesday, February 24, 2016 at 7:00 P.M.

Following the open windows for StudentVue which are listed above, any request for changes in your

child’s 2016-2017 courses will need to be submitted through e-mail to your child’s grade level counselor

no later than Tuesday, June 14, 2016 at 3:00 P.M.

To view available courses, please refer to the Middle School Program of Studies or the High School

Program of Studies. The links can be found on the BEMS main page under Headlines.

http://www.lcps.org/bmrms

TJ / AOS / CAMPUS Information for 8th Grade Students

AOS: February 5, 2016 – Deadline to submit Part II of the application

TJ: Friday, February 12, 2016 – Teacher Recommendation Deadline

CAMPUS Information:

College Visits:

During the 2014-2015 school year CAMPUS students visited three college campuses. George

Mason University, Towson University and Hood College. These campus tours help students

visualize what a college campus looks like, what that school has to offer them, and overall gives

them a glimpse into what is possible for them. These trips all included lunch in the main campus

dining hall. By eating in the main dining hall, it gave students a sense of what a dining experience

is like at a large or small college institution.

College Fair:

The LCPS College Fair features over 200 different colleges as well as different career options for

the students to consider. This event is well represented by all area high school students and

parents from LCPS.

Guidance continued….

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Conference and Community Service Opportunities

In the spring there are opportunities for CAMPUS students to attend The Executive Youth

Leadership Summit held at the US Capital Building in Washington D.C. The Summit’s goal is to

“Educate, Motivate, and Empower” future leaders.

The CAMPUS program recently started a partnership with the Loudoun County Parks, Recreation

& Community Service Agency. This partnership allows CAMPUS students the opportunity to

volunteer their time over the winter break at the Senior Center at Cascades in Sterling and at the

Senior Center in Leesburg. Student’s volunteers passed out dinners and shared stories with the

seniors at both winter break holiday parties.

Parental Involvement

Parents are an important part of the CAMPUS program. Parental support is so important for

success in high school and beyond. CAMPUS offers three Parent meeting nights throughout each

school year. Topics covered by the CAMPUS Program Manager and various community guest

speakers include financial aid, scholarship information and instruction on how to access and use

the different resources that the CAMPUS program has to offer its student and parents.

Student Ambassadors

Student Ambassadors are selected each year to represent their school in different functions. As a

committee they decide on volunteer opportunities and pass on information to their schools. The

decisions made at the meeting help to encourage student participation. The Student Ambassadors

assist at our Rising 9th Grade Summer Seminar and at our CAMPUS Senior Celebration, where our

graduates from the CAMPUS program are honored.

February 4, 2016 – Countywide CAMPUS Middle School Parent Presentation 6:30 – 8:00 PM at LCPS

Admin Building Room 100B

******Applications available online – deadline for submission is Friday, April 1, 2016************

Students in the News…

Belmont Ridge Soccer Stars

The U.S. Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program (ODP) is a national soccer program

that identifies a pool of players in each age group from which a National Team is selected for

international competition. The program provides a high-level of training to benefit and

enhance the development of players. Virginia has 5 districts where players try out and are

selected for a district player pool. From there, players train and tryout for selection in a state

pool. The state pool produces a selection of players for international play and also prepares

and selects players for the region 1 team. U.S. Youth Soccer divided the country into four

regions, each with 11-13 states; Virginia is part of Region I.

This year we have two students from Belmont Ridge in the Boys ODP program. Ian Belforte

and Evan Pedraza both qualified for the 2002 boys North District pool and the Virginia state

team. Evan Pedraza also was recently selected for the International player group traveling to

Vienna, Austria and Budapest, Hungary over spring break. Congratulations to both boys on

these incredible accomplishments!

Guidance continued….

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Library Happenings!

We are celebrating “Love a Book Month!” and “Teen Tech Week” this month in the library!

Students and staff are invited to fill in a conversation heart with the title and author of their

favorite books. We are promoting literacy by recommending books to read for pleasure! Students

can always find a great book to read by not only checking out a book, but also accessing

Tumblebookcloud Library and Mackinvia (app) for audio and digital books as well!

We loved having authors Kwame Alexander and Mary Rand-Hess visit with seventh

graders at our school! Mr. Alexander, author of The Crossover, shared excerpts of

poetry from The Crossover and Booked, which will be out in print this spring.

Jasmine Kim. created a beautiful poetry project, and Jasmine won a prize of a free

copy of Booked, a soccer ball, the chance to share her poetry and to be introduced to

Mr. Alexander. “In this world, you’ve got to believe in yourself… so that when you

face adversity, you can still say, “YES” to yourself.” -Kwame Alexander.

Thank you to Ms. Rand-Hess for helping to bring about this enriching opportunity!

“Teen Tech Week” will take place in the library from February 16-26th! Students may ask to

obtain a pass through resource and participate in many “hands-on” activities, such as Cubelets

Robotics Activities, Duct Tape Accessories, Lego Structures, 3-D Goggles for Gaming, Puzzle

Perfection, Color Creations, and more!

The library staff would like to express our appreciation to Riverside High School students Brie

Wright, Madison Ruschaupt, Hailey Kunte, and Sushma Chappidi for sharing their “Coming of

age” beautiful display of artwork, creative writing, and inspiring music in the Gallery Walk in the

library.

Coming up, the Eighth Grade will create a World War II Museum in the library. Students will

have read both Fiction and Non-Fiction selections, conducted research, studied their topics and

incorporated museum exhibit concepts (including the Holocaust Museum trip) all leading up to

what will surely be an impressive, informative, and very moving display on March 1st and 2nd!

Scholastic Book Fair April 8th-16th.

Battle of the Books Club - Wednesdays after school in the library

o Semi-Final: Thursday, March 3rd

o Final: Thursday, March 17th

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Math Academy!

Who: Any BEMS Math 6 Student

What: Extra support in mastering Math 6 concepts though peer tutoring

from 8th grade students

When: Wednesday mornings from 7:40-8:15 a.m.

Beginning Wednesday, February 10!!

Where: Mrs. Raffensperger’s Room-C10

Why: Because math is:

- Fundamental

- Functional

- Fun!

How: Every Wednesday, students can arrive after 7:30 am to receive extra

support from 8th grade peer tutors on concepts of their choice. We will

reinforce content covered in the LCPS Curriculum Framework and Virginia

State Standards of Learning (SOL).

Questions? Contact Mrs. Raffensperger (donna.raffensperger@lcps.org) or

Mrs. Nord (kelly.nord@lcps.org)

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Belmont Ridge Middle School Presents Disney’s The Little Mermaid

Riverhawk Productions at Belmont Ridge Middle School in Lansdowne invites you

to go Under the Sea this spring for its latest musical production, Disney’s The Little

Mermaid. This version of the Hans Christian Anderson story teaches us that growing

up means following your heart and finding your voice. Led by executive director

Jason Augustowski, vocal director Jill Kerr, pit orchestra director Michael Jones, and

student director Nick Darnell, 175 student cast, crew, and musicians will continue

the school’s award-winning tradition and welcome you to be part of their world.

Students in two casts will present the full-length Broadway version of the show

complete with live orchestra, Broadway-style costumes, and spectacular special

effects, including flying, skating and pyrotechnic simulations. The story follows the

mermaid, Ariel, who is enchanted with humans and their world. One day she rescues

a human prince from a shipwreck and falls in love with him. Her father, King Triton,

forbids her to go near the humans and sets Sebastian, the crab, to keep tabs on her.

Determined to follow her heart, Ariel makes a costly deal with Ursula, the sea witch,

sacrificing her beautiful voice to become human and win Prince Eric’s heart within

three days. She is assisted by her friend Flounder and the clueless seagull Scuttle as

she tries get Prince Eric to Kiss the Girl so she remains human or she will return to

the sea and belong to the sea witch.

Belmont Ridge’s past productions of Tarzan (2015) and Shrek! (2014) garnered

National Youth Arts nominations and awards. This year’s show promises to deliver

the same high-caliber performances from the amazingly talented student actors,

singers, musicians and dancers in a production the entire family will enjoy.

The Little Mermaid will run two weekends in April; April 1, 2 and 3 (White Cast)

and April 8, 9 and 10 (Red Cast). Friday shows will be at 7 p.m. There will be two

shows on Saturdays, matinees at 2 p.m. and evening shows at 7 p.m. Sunday shows

are at 4 p.m.

Advance reserved-seating tickets will be on sale online at www.lcps.org/tickets for

$10 per seat. Be sure to get your tickets early as the shows will likely sell out.

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Summer 2016 Math Boot Camp Summer Math Boot Camp registration will is OPEN.

https://fs4.formsite.com/bemsptso/form28/index.html

Math Boot Camp will review necessary skills from the previous school

year, make connections to new material and key vocabulary, and

preview topics covered in the first quarter.

Current Class Boot Camp

All current 5th

graders………………………………..

Middle School Math I

All current Math 6

students………………………

Middle School Math II

All current Math 6/7 or Math 7

students…..

Algebra 1

All current Algebra 1

students……………………

Geometry

All current Geometry

students………………….

Algebra 2

No refunds or changes after June 30, 2016

Session 1: August 1-5

Session 2: August 8-12

MS Math I Algebra 1 8:30-10:30 MS Math II Geometry

MS Math I Algebra 2/trig 11:00-1:00

MS Math II

Algebra 1

MS Math II Geometry

1:30-3:30 MS Math I Algebra 1

MS Math I 4:00-6:00 Algebra 2/trig

Questions: Contact Christine Spinosa at cspinosa@lcps.org

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Riverside High School Parent and Student Course Registration

Orientation/Curriculum Fair

February 9, 2016

6:30 – 8:30 p.m.

Rising 9th Grade Parent Program

Auditorium

6:30 – 7:00 pm

Presenters:

Doug Anderson, Principal

Rob Yarborough, Director of School Counseling

Curriculum Fair/Open House for all Grade Levels

Cafeteria & Adjoining Hallways

7:00 – 8:30 p.m.

All departments will be represented to answer your questions concerning Core Classes,

Electives, Pre-AP, Honors, Advanced Placement, ELL, and Learning Services

English

Social Studies

Math

Science

World Languages & Culture

Learning Services

School Counseling

Career & Technical Education

Fine & Performing Arts

Health & Physical Education

English Language Learners