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Dorothy Hamm Middle School PTSA
PHOENIX POST
Monday, October 24th, 2022
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Mark Your Calendar: Upcoming DHMS Dates | |
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Monday, October 24th - NO SCHOOL (Diwali)
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Monday-Friday, October 24th-28th - One DHMS One Week Fundraiser
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Tuesday, October 25th - DHMS Lebanese Taverna Night, 5:30-6pm Pick-up @ DHMS
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Thursday, October 27th - DHMS Family Life Education Presentation, 7pm @ DHMS
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Monday, October 31st - Halloween Costume Competition & Candy Drive Awards
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Wednesday, November 2nd - School Picture Re-take Day
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Thursday, November 3rd - DHMS Gifted Service Night, 6:30pm (Virtual)
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Monday, November 7th - End of 1st Quarter
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Tuesday, November 8th - NO SCHOOL for students (Grade Prep for Staff)
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Tuesday, November 8th - DHMS PTSA Meeting, 7:00pm
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Friday, November 11th - NO SCHOOL (Veterans Day)
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Wednesday-Friday, November 23rd-25th - NO SCHOOL (Thanksgiving Break)
Please visit the online master DHMS Calendar for all 2022-23 school year dates.
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DHMS News & Announcements | |
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One DHMS One Week Is Here!
Week of October 24th-28th
It’s One DHMS One Week, our weeklong celebration to show off school spirit and raise funds for the Phoenix Fund, our annual PTSA fundraiser. We are currently at $X / X% towards our fundraising goal of raising $28,000 with X grade leading the challenge. Awards will be given to the Top TA in each grade level and overall class based on the most student percent participation. Donate to the Phoenix Fund anytime this week. We appreciate any contribution you can give! Contact Melissa Hardt with any questions.
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One DHMS One Week Spirit Week Schedule Monday, 10/24 - Monday, 10/31
Let’s show off our school spirit! Follow the daily themes and dress up to show your spirit during One DHMS One Week.
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Tuesday: Hawaiian Shirt Day
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Wednesday: PJ Day
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Thursday: Represent your favorite Sports Team/Jersey Day
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Friday: Grade Level Color Day (6th: Red, 7th: Gold, 8th: Black)
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Monday (October 31st): Halloween Costumes - school-appropriate
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Tomorrow! DHMS Lebanese Taverna Night
Tuesday, October 25th *Order by 10/25 @ Noon*
Place your order for DHMS Lebanese Taverna Night TOMORROW, Tuesday, October 25th! We are excited to partner with Lebanese Taverna to support Dorothy Hamm MS, where you will have a chance to order and pick up your dinner right at DHMS! Place your order by Noon tomorrow (Tuesday, 10/25) and pick up your order between 5:30-6:00pm at DHMS. Please contact Olga Kasyan with questions.
***Place Your Lebanese Taverna Online Order***
Tuesday, 10/25 Pick-up @ DHMS between 5:30-6:00pm
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Last Week to Support Our DHMS Halloween Candy Drive!
It’s time for our first PTSA fundraiser. We know you’re going to buy Halloween candy, so might as well support our students and earn points towards a pizza party.
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Shop Halloween Candy from the DHMS PTSA Store. The online store will be open through Thursday, 10/27.
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Order candy for yourself, friends and family for delivery to your student’s TA. ***Remember to include your student's name and grade on your order form. Orders will be delivered on Tuesday, 10/25 and Friday, 10/28.
- Check out and submit your payment online.
- Every $1 spent earns points for your student’s TA.
- TA with the highest gross sales gets a pizza party on October 31.
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DHMS School Pictures Now Available!
School photos from DHMS School Picture Day on Wednesday, October 12th are now available to order!
Click to view and order photos (Find your student using event code FE5622): https://shop.jostenspix.com
- You can personalize your photos with a variety of backgrounds and text.
- Photos are shipped directly to your home.
- High-res digital downloads are available.
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If you have more than one child, you can order together and pay once.
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Wednesday, November 2nd - School Picture Re-take Day: Mark your calendar if your student missed picture day, or would like to retake their photo. On Re-take Day, the front office will make an announcement to let students know when they should go and take their picture.
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Contact DHMS PTSA Picture Day Chair, Jennifer Meder, with any questions.
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Next Monday: Halloween Costume Competition on October 31
Let’s close out October with a day of Halloween festivities on October 31. DHMS students are welcome to dress up (or down) for Halloween. Students are welcome to wear their easy-on/easy-off costumes to school, subject to accessibility requirements. Students will be expected to remove costumes during PE. No weapons (fake/toy guns, knives, swords), no blood, no face masks, and PG-13-only costumes allowed. Students will compete across multiple categories:
- TA Class with the most costumes worn (% population, inc. both students and TAs)
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Best costume per grade (6th, 7th and 8th)
- Best overall costume
- Best faculty/staff costume
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October 2022 - No Place For Hate Pledge Activity
The week of October 3rd, DHMS was formerly introduced to No Place for Hate (NPFH) and its pledge. To date 423 people have signed the pledge which includes 375 students, 47 staff members, and 1 parent. Take a look at the display of the signed pledge sheets that is in the front of school by the main door.
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Online DHMS PTSA Directory 2022-23
Connect with fellow DHMS families with the online DHMS PTSA Directory: DHMS PTSA Directory 2022-23
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To be included, opt in via ParentVUE as part of the APS Online Verification Process (AOVP). You can opt into the directory under "PTA Directory Information").
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Additional information and resources are available on the Annual Online Verification Process webpage, including instructions for activating your ParentVUE account.
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The online DHMS PTSA Directory allows parents to communicate with other DHMS parents. You can search by Name, Grade, or TA for students who choose to opt into the PTSA Directory. For additional details, visit: dorothyhamm.apsva.us/ptsa/ptsa-directory, and contact directory@dhmsptsa.org with any questions.
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APS Student Services: SOS (Signs of Suicide)
During this challenging year, APS school staff are working to teach students about mental health and how to seek help if they are worried about themselves or a friend. As in previous years, APS middle and high school student services will be using a program called SOS (Signs of Suicide) in grades 8 and 10. The program teaches students about this difficult topic and encourages them to seek help.
SOS has been used by thousands of schools over the past few decades. Studies have shown that it effectively teaches students about depression and suicide while reducing the number of students’ self-reported suicide attempts.
Through the program, students learn
- that depression is treatable, so they are encouraged to seek help
- how to identify depression and potential suicide risk in themselves or a friend
- to ACT (Acknowledge, Care & Tell a trusted adult) if concerned about themselves or a friend
- who they can turn to at school for help, if they need it
Students will watch age-appropriate video clips and participate in a guided discussion with a staff member of the Student Services department about depression, suicide, and what to do if they are concerned about a friend. Following the video, students will complete a response slip which asks whether they would like to talk to an adult about any concerns. A member of the DHMS Student Services Department will conduct brief meetings with any student asking to talk.
We encourage you to visit www.sossignsofsuicide.org/parent for information on warning signs for youth suicide, useful resources, and some of the key messages students will learn. The student services department will be pushing into PE & Health classes on Oct 31st and Nov 1st to do the SOS lesson.
If you have any questions or concerns about your child’s participation in this program or want to opt your child out, contact Janae Rittenhouse or 8th grade school counselor, Carrie Schaefer.
List of local resources:
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Provide your input to the Advisory Council on Teaching and Learning (ACTL)
The ACTL met on October 12 to discuss the topic of school climate and culture, with a focus on Social-Emotional Learning (SEL). Kristin Devaney, Supervisor of Counseling Services at APS, shared the following key points: (a) every school has at least one staff member designated as that school’s SEL Lead to guide SEL curricular resource development at their school, analyze their schools’ data, and develop action plans; (b) secondary schools should have 30 minutes twice a week focused on SEL instruction. The lessons should follow the Virginia SEL Guidance Standards and emphasize areas of focus identified by survey data (2022 Your Voice Matters survey and 2022 SEL Survey); (c) APS will again conduct SEL surveys for students in grades 3-12 to inform curriculum that builds and reinforces prosocial skills. The surveys will be conducted in late Oct 2022 and April 2023. More information about Social-Emotional Learning at APS
The middle school representatives gathered during the ACTL meeting and identified the following key topics for your feedback:
- Do you feel you are provided with information and/or resources that help you support your child in the SEL topics?
- What does your child find helpful about the SEL lessons?
- What would your child find helpful in addition to, or instead of, the formal SEL lessons?
- What does your family think about your school's cell phone policies and how those policies impact social-emotional development and engagement at school?
If you would like to provide feedback on these questions or other issues related to school climate and culture, with a focus on Social-Emotional Learning, at Dorothy Hamm, please send them to DHMS ACTL Representative, Erik Johnson and he will share them with the ACTL and Arlington Public Schools.
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DHMS Library Volunteers Needed
Volunteer to help out in the DHMS Library! See details in the link below and volunteer for as many days as you'd like. Feel free to come between 9am and 12pm for an hour or two (you can let Ms. Tsai know in the comments), and contact Ms. Tsai with any questions. Reminder: Make sure to submit your APS Volunteer Application BEFORE you volunteer.
DHMS Library Volunteer Sign-up - Fall 2022
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SEPTA Superintendent's Team Chat
Wednesday, October 26th
Superintendent's Team Chat on Wednesday, October 26th - please see the flyer for details. If folks are interested in submitting questions they may do so until October 19th.
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Monthly SEPTA Meeting
Thursday, November 10th 7:30pm
Guest speakers Beth Poss and Chris Bugaj are educators, speech/language pathologists and authors who are passionate about making education inclusive and accessible for ALL learners! Please join them at the Arlington County SEPTA meeting on November 10th at 7:30pm to hear them share ideas for nurturing an inclusive mindset, along with strategies to support access to education at school and at home, based on their book, Inclusive 365 EdTech Strategies for Every Day of the Year. Their book is available for purchase on Amazon and other online retailers. Go to https://inclusive365.com/ to order or for more information. They will be available to sign books after their presentation. Google form to sign up is here: https://forms.gle/RDun3VVkGftJmAJf7, and click here for details.
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Virtual High School Information Night
Attention 8th-grade families! The Virtual High School Information Night will take place on Tue, Nov. 1 at 6:30 p.m. Join in to learn about the transition to high school, core classes and electives, option schools/programs, neighborhood transfers, and the option/transfer application and lottery process. Families can watch the event online (the link will be posted before the event). Between November and January, each high school will host an information session for families to meet staff, learn about the school, and ask questions. Dates and times for these information sessions will be announced during the Virtual High School Information Night.
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Enter the 2023 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Virtual Literary and Visual Arts Contest
Arlington Public Schools students are invited to take part in the annual “Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Literary and Visual Contest.” Entries are due by 5 p.m. Friday, November 19.
This Year's Topic: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke up for people who were being treated unfairly. Dr. King explained that it is our responsibility to do something when we see someone being treated unfairly because of their race, skin color or other identity, even if those people are not like us. He believed we should care about fairness for everyone. In his renowned essay “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” Dr. King said: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere…Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” If we don’t speak up for all people who are treated unfairly, it has a negative effect on us all.
Prompt: Describe in writing or visual art a time where you saw someone treated unfairly because of what they looked like or who they were; OR an event in history where people were treated unfairly because of what they looked like or who they were.
Eligibility: You must be a resident of Arlington County or enrolled in APS.
- You must be in grade Kindergarten through 12.
Awards: Two awards will be given in each group:
- Grades K, 1 and 2
- Grades 3, 4, 5
- Grades 6, 7, 8
- Grades 9, 10, 11, 12
Each group will have two first place winners and two runners up in each category: Literary Arts Achievement (Writing or Poetry) and Visual Arts AchievementWinners will be announced on Wednesday, January 4, 2023. Students will be recognized by the Superintendent and members of the School Board on Thursday, Jan. 19 at the beginning of the School Board meeting.
Submissions:
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- Drop off your entry with this form attached at an APS school in the front office, or at the Syphax building 1st floor Welcome Center, 2110 Washington Blvd.
For more information please contact Dawn Smith, Volunteer, Partnership and Events Manager, at 703-228-2581 or at mlkentries@apsva.us.
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Phoenix Bikes Arlington Treasure Hunt
October 28th-30th
Join Phoenix Bikes on October 28-30, 2022 for the Arlington Treasure Hunt - the bike ride, scavenger hunt and food tour combo that will lead riders on a delightful adventure around Arlington to discover some of our true community treasures: its locally owned eateries! Guided by an online event site, riders will be led to each restaurant location to gather clues to win prizes, learn little known facts about local shops, and taste delicious treats along the way.
Register here to join the most delicious event of the fall!
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The DHMS PTSA Phoenix Post is a weekly newsletter that informs the DHMS community about DHMS, PTSA, and relevant APS and community news. Please send any newsletter submissions to newsletter@dhmsptsa.org by EOD Thursday for inclusion in the following Monday's Phoenix Post. | | | | | |
