Dear Patuxent Valley Families and Community,
Thank you to everyone who Wore Red Instead today to celebrate Autism Acceptance Month at Patuxent Valley.  We are so fortunate to live in a community that seeks to celebrate the uniqueness of every individual and I was encouraged to see so many people supporting autistic people at school and in our community. 

Thank you Ms. Chelidona for your hard work with our seminar students who have been participating in the MCEE Spring Stock Market Game. Please congratulate the following students (7th grade) on winning the spring session for the state of the Stock Market Game!
Luke B
Colin M
Ryan V
Bram S
Jordan B
David O

Tomorrow is the PTA-sponsored Spring Social for our students.  The PTA committee has been working tirelessly to create an amazing experience for our students.  Please read the message below carefully and share with your young people who are attending. Thank you PTA for all you do for our students!

"From the PTA Final Reminders: PVM Spring Social on Saturday from 5:30 - 7:30 pm
1. The Social is FREE to attend but a student can not be admitted without a permission form completed before Friday night! Thank you to the over 250 students that have already submitted their permission form for the PVM Spring Social; it should be a great time! This is the last call for anyone else that would like to attend;  Paper forms are still available in the Front Office but, if you are able, please use the online form: https://forms.gle/vMtkwggLrPUFrveH6

2. Upon arrival on Saturday, students will need to check-in at the Brick Gazebo by the Bus Lane. Check-In begins at 5:15 and doors open at 5:30. The entrance to the Social will be the "Back Lobby" double doors. The event will end promptly at 7:30. Students must remain inside PVMS at the Social until 7:15; if a student needs to leave earlier, a parent will need to come inside to escort them out.

3. Students coming from Columbia / Savage North should by dropped off/picked up using the PVMS Bus Loop on Savage-Guilford Road. Students coming from Laurel / Savage South should use the Bollman Bridge Elementary car loop. Please be patient at drop off & pickup and remember that the usual front parking lot will be closed & used only for volunteer parking.

4. Concession snacks will be $1 each, CASH ONLY, so students may want to bring some $1 bills. All HCPSS behavior codes and dress codes apply. Students are encouraged by the Student Council to dress up a bit; "dressy casual" is fine.  There will be many options for socializing & fun: the dance in the gym, board games & cards in the media center, concession snacks in the cafeteria, as well as trivia & guessing games, prizes, decorations, & photo backdrops!

5. Finally, to ensure a wonderful experience, a few more volunteers and a few more items are still needed. If you can volunteer your time or donate an item, please communicate your plans using the signup genius website. In particular, more traffic directors, more interior door monitors, and more coolers with ice would be very helpful!
Volunteer SignUp: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0D4AA8AB2FA1FC1-48612160-pvmspring
Item Loan/Donation SignUp: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0D4AA8AB2FA1FC1-49133401-spring

Come celebrate Spring and have fun socializing!”

As I have been sharing the past two weeks, you may have noticed last summer that we added large decals to our grade level doors and more Bulldog Decals within our building to add to the decals in the Cafeteria and Gymnasium.  It's now time for Patuxent Valley to update the quotes on Bulldog Boulevard as a part of our continued efforts in Building Beautification.

We'd like to put up quotes that are motivational and representative of the diversity of our school community.  We'd love for there to be quotes from individuals who represent different genders, races, communities, languages, abilities and cultures.

This upcoming week is our last week to collect quotes from students, staff and the community.  In May we will put out a short list of quotes to identify which ones resonate with us, and then the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion team with input from student leaders will finalize the four quotes.

Please complete this survey to submit your quotes to include them in the process: https://forms.gle/8uE8SgtLhULBDEZH8 

Check out the information below for items we’ve been sending out this week, and a number of new items. Let us know if you have any questions or if there is something you’d like to see in the newsletter.  All of this information is also posted on our website at http://pvms.hcpss.org/ .

There is nothing too big or too small for us to work on together, so don’t hesitate to reach out.https://forms.gle/8uE8SgtLhULBDEZH8

Regards,
Richard Smart, Principal (richard_smart@hcpss.org)

UPCOMING DATES:

4/27 - Spring Social 5:30-7:30pm (PTA Sponsored)

5/1 - Student Member of the Board of Education Election

5/6 - 5/10 - Staff Appreciation Week

5/6 - Romeo & Juliet field trip

5/7-5/10 - MCAP Social Stuies

5/15 - STEAM Night 5:30pm to 8:00pm

5/17 - 3-Hour Early Dismissal

5/17 - Music Dept Trip - Music in the Parks

5/20-5/24 - 8th Grade Chesapeake Shakespeare Company Acting Residency

5/21-5/24 - MCAP Math

5/23 - Orchestra Spring Concert at Hammond HS, 7pm

5/29 - ES Orchestra Feeder Concert at PVMS, 7pm

6/4 - High School Visits

6/7 - 8th grade dance

6/11 - 8th Grade Promotion from 6-8 at GPHS

PVMS Updates (Priority and New this week)

STEAM Night, May 15 - Fill out the interest form!

Steam Night Interest Form

 

PVMS Testing Newsletter Spring 2024

Dear Families, 

We are in our state testing season which began in March.  Our students have been working hard all year and this is their opportunity to show what they know in regards to the standards they have been taught.  Please see the testing dates below for grades 6-8.

 

ELA	4 sessions	70 minutes each
Math	4 sessions	40 minutes each
Social Studies 8th grade ONLY	4 sessions	40 minutes each

 

Testing Dates	Test being taken
4/16 & 4/23	MCAP ELA   *Starting @ 7:55 am
5/7-5/10	MCAP Social Studies In SS Classes
5/21-5/24	MCAP Math In Math Classes

*In the event that testing dates need to be changed,  we will communicate that information to families.  

Just a few reminders:

• Please try to have students here and on time on testing days so they do not need to be pulled out of class instruction for make-up sessions.  

• Please avoid coming to sign students out early during testing sessions.  Once a student leaves, they are not able to restart that test session. 

• Personal electronic devices (cell phones, ipads, smart watches, etc.) are not permitted in the testing areas. 

• Headphones may be needed for grades 7 and 8.  Please allow your child to bring their plug-in headphones (Bluetooth headphones are not permitted). 

• Routine is important when calming any nerves when it comes to testing.  Keeping to normal routines both at home and at school will help students to do their best.  

• Students need plenty of sleep in order to maintain the stamina needed to do their best. 

If you have any questions, please reach out to your child’s homeroom teacher or Ms. Porter (Testing Coordinator).

HC Drug Free

Drive-Thru Medication and Sharps Disposal – April 27 in the Wilde Lake Village Center Parking Lot near the Swim Center from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. Safely dispose of prescription medication, over-the-counter meds, sharps, vitamins, pet meds, vape devices, inhalers, and more!  Also, 100 medication lockboxes purchased by HCPSS will be given away for FREE!  

PVMS Updates (recurring from previous newsletters)

Report Cards

Quarter 3 report cards will be available in HCPSS Connect Synergy after 4 p.m. on Wednesday, April 17. Instructions on how to access report cards are available online.

GPHS Boosters and our coaches are proud to introduce our first edition of summer boosters camps for rising 4th-9th graders.   

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1td-B0-17CINm-PfC0rsWOsDbirz7be4M/view?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YTsOFoK3c_f0Tu0Cx52r0VcHFizXYSIfip-zMPJCzvA/edit?usp=sharing

LAST DAY OF SCHOOL SCHEDULED
HCPSS used three inclement weather days this school year, and as such, the last day of school for students in full-day Pre-K through grade 11 is now scheduled to be Friday, June 14, with June 12-14 being three-hour early dismissals. The last day for half-day Pre-K/RECC students is currently Tuesday, June 11.

IMPORTANT BUS REGISTRATION INFORMATION
Parents/guardians whose children are eligible for bus transportation are asked to register to receive bus service each year to help the school system plan for student transportation needs. The transportation registration process will open at 9 a.m. Monday, April 8 through May 31, and will be completed online via HCPSS Connect Synergy. Registration must be done for each eligible child. 

To be eligible for bus service, your child’s home address must be outside of a school’s walk zones. You can verify address eligibility in the HCPSS School Attendance Area Locator. After inputting your address, a window will appear that will indicate either bus or walk for each school level. Please note, the attendance area locator also includes a link for the bus stop locator, which is set for the current school year. Bus stop information for the 2024-2025 school year will be available in August.

You do not need to take any action if:

• Your child is not eligible for bus transportation
• Your child receives transportation as part of their Individualized Education Program (IEP) or 504 Plan, or
• Your child is a graduating senior

Details on bus transportation registration, including a guide to register and scenarios families may see when registering, can be found online.

Recognizing and Reporting Bullying

As we approach the second half of the school year, we wanted to remind you that HCPSS is dedicated to providing a safe and supportive environment that focuses on student well-being. We are taking this time to uplift the importance of reporting any type of bullying that has occurred. We will be reviewing this with our students and staff as we start the second half of the school year, and we hope that you, too, can uplift this at home. 

For children facing the emotional toll of bullying, a supportive individual can make all the difference. Please encourage your children to reach out to a trusted staff member at school should they need to report anything. As parents and guardians, you will use the same reporting form as students by following the steps outlined below. 

How do I report bullying?

1. When you believe bullying has taken place, you should report it through the Bullying, Cyberbullying, Harassment, and Intimidation (BCHI) reporting form.  Reporting can take place in one of three ways:
   1. Complete a BCHI online reporting form
   2. BCHI paper reporting form (available in the main office, staff workroom, school counseling office, media center, and health services office
   3. An oral report to a staff member 
2. It is important to note that the policy states “In the event the reporting party does not complete a BCHI Reporting Form, school administrators/supervisors will take the appropriate steps to address and document the incident.”  Therefore, if you or someone else makes an oral report, it then must be documented (i.e. through a BCHI reporting form) by the administrator.

Thank you for your partnership and attention to this important topic.

CELL PHONES - MIDDLE SCHOOL
This is a friendly reminder to our community that per HCPSS Policy 8080, middle school students “will not use personal technology devices during non-instructional time, to include but not limited to transition between classes, lunch, recess, or in bathrooms.”  Please remind your students that their cell phones should be off and away during the school day. Students are always welcome to use an office phone to reach out to a parent during the school day. If you need to contact your child at school, please call 410-880-5840.

PVMS Attendance Procedures 23-24

Please review for comprehensive attendance procedures.Read more

FAMILY FILE UPDATES

HCPSS utilizes Family File for parents/guardians to complete emergency information. All parents/guardians must verify and/or update information for each child each school year.  Parents/guardians can access their student's Family File by logging into HCPSS Connect, selecting the “More Options” tab on the left and then selecting “Family File” in the center column.

Please be sure to read each section carefully and answer all of the questions.  You can contact us here at school if you have any questions or concerns.

SAFETY PROTOCOLS FOR VISITORS

Please be aware of the following procedures for any visitor to a school/office:

• The front door is the only entrance point for all visitors.

• Please ring the bell and look into the camera.

• Be prepared to state your name and purpose for visiting.

• All visitors must walk directly into the front office with a valid photo I.D. and sign in using our LobbyGuard system.

• A visitor’s sticker will be given to visitors following the above procedures and must be worn and prominently visible.

• Any visitor in the school without a visitor sticker will be escorted directly to the front office by a staff member.

SCHOOL MEALS AND PAYMENT INFO

HCPSS no longer will use Nutrislice for school menus or MySchoolBucks for meal payments. LINQ Connect is a secure, online portal that allows families to view breakfast and lunch menus, make online meal payments, monitor their child’s account, schedule automatic recurring payments, set up low balance alerts, submit a Free and Reduced Meals program application, and more. Details and information. are available online.

WELLNESS CENTER AT PVMS

The Patuxent Valley Middle School-Based Wellness Center is a partnership between Howard County Health Department and Howard County Public School System. School Wellness Centers do not replace students' regular health care providers in the community. By providing some health care at school we can help parents stay at work and help students stay at school or more quickly return to school. There is no co-pay or fee for visits at the Wellness Center. Read more

COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS
Please visit the Community News and Programs page on the HCPSS website for announcements of upcoming events and programs sponsored by non-profit organizations.