10/3 RRMS School Updates

Learn more about events at RRMS!

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1. Important Dates

October 8 and 9 - Hearing & Vision Screening for 7th graders and new 8th graders during PE classes

October 9 - PTA Meeting, 7 PM, Library

October 10 - No After-School Program (all students depart at 2:15 PM)

October 13 - Staff Development Day - No School for Students

October 17 - No After-School Program (all students depart at 2:15 PM)

October 20 -Diwali - School & Office Closed

2. A Note from the Principal

Dear Rocky Run Families-

We had another great week of learning at Rocky Run. The absolute highlight of my week was teaching the Rock Time lesson to Mr. Hayes' class on Wednesday. We had a robust discussion on the appropriate use of Artificial Intelligence for students. The insight and discourse of the 8th grade students was amazing. I also loved hearing about the student perspective on the proposed start time changes. If you have not been following, take a few minutes to review the proposals and provide your opinion using the survey.

I'd like to take a moment to recognize the hard work of our custodial staff! Each year, October 2 is recognized as National Custodian Appreciation Day. Our team is hands down the hardest working team in FCPS! They keep our building immaculate and they take immense pride in their work. Thanks to Tuan, Will, Deysi, Huu, Khang, Quoc and Roberto! They ALWAYS Raise the Ram at Rocky Run.

Rocky Run will host our third annual Day of Service on the last day of the quarter, October 31. The day will be filled with opportunities for all students to provide service to the school and the community. One of the highlights of the day is for our 8th graders to pack meals in partnership with Rise Against Hunger. Please consider donating to the organization to guarantee that 8th grade students have enough food to package using this LINK.

Thank you for your continued support and please do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

Peter Kownacki
Principal
Rocky Run Middle School
@pakownacki

3. Action Items for Families

High School Sporting Event Reminders

Families!

We are looking forward to a great season of fall sports! We want to share expectations with our families who wish to attend high school sporting events, including upcoming football games.

All students are expected to show their school student ID or show their SIS profile.
Spectators are not permitted to bring backpacks or water bottles to any sporting events at FCPS high schools.
Elementary and Middle school students must be accompanied by an adult. Please be sure that you are supervising your student throughout the game.

Any spectators violating expectations will be subject to removal. We expect and know that our Rams will be on their best behavior!

Thank you for your support!

Review and Sign

Parents: interested in helping your students develop a healthy balance with technology? Let us know! We would love for interested parents to fill out this Google form so we can invite you to join us for events this year?
Review attendance procedures: Please review the procedures for reporting absences, late arrivals, and early checkout on our website.
Digital resource consent and After School Consent:
Please review and provide your consent for Digital Resource Access and After-School Consent through FCPS’s easy-to-use Parent Digital Consent System. The After-School form is required for students to be able to stay after-school. For more information, visit the Fairfax County Public Schools website.

Ensuring Student Safety: Register for Volunteer FCPS

At Rocky Run Middle School, our volunteers are a vital part of our school community. We deeply value the time and care they give to our students.

Recent updates to our volunteer process focus on one primary goal: keeping students safe.

These updates — such as checks against the sex offender registry and, in some cases, criminal background checks — are safety measures that will help us maintain a secure and supportive learning environment for every student in our care.

We encourage all our parents and community members interested in supporting our students by volunteering at school to visit Volunteer FCPS, click “Learn More,” and then “Sign Up.” After you create a profile, you will view an orientation video and complete a volunteer application.

Volunteer FCPS ensures a safe, consistent, and welcoming environment at all of our schools. All volunteers must be registered in Volunteer FCPS. This includes individuals who volunteer to chaperone on field trips, work at book fairs, and help out regularly in classrooms, libraries, or cafeterias. Volunteers who work unsupervised with students will also be required to undergo a background check.

We understand these changes may seem disruptive, especially for long-time volunteers. Our intent is to ensure that our students feel safe and supported with each and every person they encounter at school.

As a reminder, all volunteers — and visitors to a school — are required to sign in by scanning their ID at our visitor kiosk. Visit the Volunteer FCPS Frequently Asked Questions page to learn more.

4. Student Celebrations

RAISE the Ram Card Winners

At Rocky Run, students can earn RAISE the Ram cards for exhibiting our RAISE attributes: Rams are Respectful, Accountable, Inclusive, Safe, and Engaged. At the end of each week, we randomly select one winner from each team.

Congratulations to this week's RAISE the Ram card winners:

Meteors: Olivia Thornhill (Respectful and Accountable)

Platinum: Carter Smith (Respectful)

Emerald: Nad-E-Ali Jafri (Engaged)

Kryptonite: Krish Mathuria (Engaged)

Tiger's Eye: Kate McKenna (Accountable)

Sapphire: Kaya Magwire (Inclusive)

Great job Raising The Ram this week!

5. Student Services Updates

Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Screener

All students in grades 3-12 have the opportunity to participate in the screener twice a year, in the fall and spring. The SEL Screener elevates the voices of our students by making sure their perspectives are considered in decision-making. For more information about the SEL Screener, including the Screener questions, please visit the FCPS Website.

Rocky Run Middle School will give the Fall 2025 SEL Screener on Wednesday, October 15, 2025. If you DO NOT want your child to participate in the SEL Screener please make sure you’ve opted out of the SEL Screener in the Digital Consent System. Log in with your SIS Parent username and password. If you have any questions, please contact your child’s counselor.

World Language Credit By Exam

Students who are proficient in a language other than English can assess language proficiency and earn up to 3 high school world language high school credits by taking the World Language Credit by Exam assessment. To learn more about the exam and how earned credits work, please visit the FCPS World Languages Credit by Exam website.

If you and your student would like to register for the exam, please fill out this Google Form and your child’s counselor will submit the registration. Expect to receive a registration confirmation email within 1-2 school days of submitting the form.

Please make sure you and your child visit the Avant website to make sure you and your student know what to expect from this test, including sample tests and keyboard, computer, and headphone requirements. Please contact your child’s school counselor if you have any questions.

On Friday. October 10^th, during Rock Time, counselors will host an Information Session for all registered students to talk about the exam dates, how to prepare and make sure students have the necessary digital keyboards installed. Students who are interested can also attend for more details.

Opportunity for Future Centreville Students

October 14 - PTSA Meeting, “Thriving at CVHS” Student Panel: The Centreville High School PTSA invites you to their next meeting on Tuesday, October 14 at 7:00 PM in the Centreville High School Library for a special student panel, "Thriving at Centreville High." Hear directly from current juniors and seniors as they share their unique journeys and tips for making high school both successful and enjoyable. As a future Wildcat, this panel is a great opportunity to gain insight, ask questions, and feel inspired. All students and families are welcome!

6. Instructional Updates

Webinar Offerings for Parents

Supporting Your Child with Dyslexia: October 15, 10-11:30 a.m.

Join us for an informative webinar on Dyslexia Awareness, designed for Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) families. This session will provide essential information about dyslexia and the resources available within FCPS to support students with this learning difference.
- What You'll Learn:
  - Understanding Dyslexia: Gain a clear understanding of what dyslexia is, its common signs, and how it can affect students' reading, writing, and spelling.
  - FCPS Support Systems: Learn about the various supports and interventions FCPS provides, including evidence-based, structured literacy approaches and the role of reading specialists.
  - Virginia Literacy Act: Discover how the new Virginia Literacy Act (VLA) and FCPS's Equitable Access to Literacy (EAL) Plan are changing literacy instruction to benefit all learners, especially those with dyslexia.
  - Resources for Families: We'll share practical tools and strategies you can use at home to support your child's literacy development and partner effectively with their school.
  - This webinar aims to empower families with knowledge and resources to help their students with dyslexia succeed.
Register here

Reading Plans and Your Student: October 22, 10-11:30 a.m.

This 1.5-hour webinar is designed to help parents and caregivers understand the new reading plans in Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS). Parents will learn about:
- What a reading plan is: A reading plan is a support system for students who are not meeting literacy benchmarks. It outlines specific, evidence-based instruction and interventions to help them improve their reading skills.
- Who requires a reading plan: All students from kindergarten through eighth grade who are identified as needing additional support based on literacy assessments will receive a reading plan. This is part of a broader effort by FCPS to implement the Virginia Literacy Act.
- How schools will support students: The webinar will explain how FCPS is using a science-based reading approach and will discuss the role of reading specialists, the curriculum used, and the assessments to monitor student progress.
- Resources and tools for parents: Parents will leave with practical resources and tools they can use at home to support their child's literacy development. The webinar aims to empower families to be active partners in their child's reading journey.
Register here

Day of Service

Rocky Run’s annual Day of Service will be held on Friday October 31, 2025. All Rocky Run 7^th and 8^th grade students will participate in various service-learning opportunities. 8^th grade students will get to pack meals with Rise Against Hunger. In order to give back with Rise Against Hunger, the 8^th grade class will raise $8,400. This money goes directly to providing and shipping meals to those experiencing food insecurities. We will seek donations from companies to support us – shout out to Tony Saa at Weichert Realtors for the generous donation – but also need support from each family in the community.
If each 8^th grade family donates $20 the class will meet their goal towards participating in this authentic service-learning opportunity. Donate here: http://events.riseagainsthunger.org/RockyRunMiddleSchool2025 (please only donate at this link, our volunteers are our students)
Parent volunteers and other donations are needed: Click Here to volunteer!
If you work with an organization that can support us in creating a service-learning opportunity for our students or can support us with fundraising, please contact Rocky Run’s Advanced Academic Resource Teacher, Anna Slevin, at agslevin@fcps.edu.
Know of a business that will donate? Have an 8^th grader? Donate here: http://events.riseagainsthunger.org/RockyRunMiddleSchool2025 (please only donate at this link, our volunteers are our students, a parent volunteer link to help us that day will go out later via a sign-up genius)

Advanced Academic Program Fall Screening

Students who are new to FCPS as of January 1, 2025 may go through Fall screening for full-time AAP services. Referrals are due no later than October 15, 2025. Please contact Rocky Run’s Advanced Academic Resource Teacher Anna Slevin (agslevin@fcps.edu) for more information.

7. After School Program Information

After-School Schedule for the week of 10/6

Note - there are no after-school activities on Friday, 10/10 - all students should depart at the 2:15 dismissal

Current after-school club offerings

More clubs will be added throughout the year so check back frequently.
Student Club Proposal form is now live on Schoology for students to submit ideas for new clubs.

Review the late bus routes that are posted on the After-School Schoology Course

For now, here are some steps to complete:

Review this general After-School Information.
ALL families must complete the After-School Consent Form (via the Parent Digital Consent System). Students cannot stay after until this is submitted. Almost all of our Rocky Run students will stay after at some point this year, so please make sure the form is completed ASAP so your student has the flexibility to participate.
If your student is interested in any of the following sports activities this year, they will need to submit an Athletic Physical Packet. A portion of this must be completed by a health care professional so do not delay working on this! More details on interest meetings, practice dates, game dates, etc. will be provided in advance of a sign-up or tryout.
1. Fall Cross Country
2. Basketball or Volleyball (dates/seasons pending)
3. Spring Track & Field

Questions? Contact Shannon Campbell, After-School Program Specialist, at SLCampbell@fcps.edu.

Fall Cross Country Team

Fall 2025 Cross-Country is open for registration. There are 3 required forms for your student to be eligible to participate:

Please review these slides, which were shared with students at the interest meeting on 9/10. All practice and meet dates/times are included, along with important team information.

Please stay tuned regarding a parent information Zoom meeting. If you have questions, please contact the Katy Speir, Athletic Coordinator (krspeir@fcps.edu).

8. Community Corner