Dear Harmony Families: Can you believe it? The first quarter of this school year ends on November 2nd and report cards will be sent home on November 14th. We hope that nothing on the report card is a surprise to you, and that you have been able to keep up with your child‘s academic progress using Clarity, the online grade book. If you want access to this grade book for the first time or you are having trouble accessing your child‘s account, please contact the House Secretary (Mrs. Dacey - 8th Grade, Mrs. Kipfer - 7th Grade, and Mrs. Schilling - 6th grade). On November 1st, the Federal Impact Aid Survey Cards will be sent home. Please complete the information and have your student return the cards as this identifies federal money for LCPS. In this tight economy, it is extremely important that we receive this revenue to support our schools.

Students will be out of school on November 5th and 6th for teacher workdays. Please take time

on Tuesday, November 6th to vote. It is a great time to share with your child the importance of civic

responsibility. We may not all agree on how we vote, but it is extremely important in our country

that we all participate in the election process. November 11th is Veteran’s Day, and Monday the

12th is a school day for LCPS students. We will mark the day with an opportunity for all of us to

recognize and be thankful for the commitment and sacrifices endured by those who serve our

country.

During the week of November 12th-16th, we will celebrate American Education Week. This annual theme, Great Public Schools: A Basic Right and Our Responsibility, calls upon America to provide students with quality public schools so that they can grow, prosper, and achieve in the 21st century. Come have lunch with your children or visit their classrooms during this week. We would love for you to see the excellent learning and teaching going on at Harmony Middle School. We also want to invite you to the school’s annual International Night on November 15th from 6 – 8 in the auditorium. School is out November 21st – 23rd for the Thanksgiving Holiday. Don‗t forget to let the attendance secretary know if your child will be out of school on the 19th or 20th that week so she does not try to reach you if you have gone on a trip. Whatever you do or wherever you go during this holiday break, we hope you will have fun and be safe!

Sincerely,

Yvonne Balfour Acting Principal

Message From the Principal

NOVEMBER 2012

www.lcps.org/harmony

In this issue

Students of the Month

Yearbooks

At the Library

School Cancellation

Team News

Guidance News

International Night

German Department News

Spotlight on Faculty

PTA News

Harmony Outreach

SCA News

Band News

High 5 Program

2012-13 Calendar

Drama News

Lunch Menu

Calendar

Empty Cup Program

Buzz the

540-751-2500 main office

540-751-2501 fax

540-751-2502 absentee call-in

540-751-2504 clinic

Address Changes

A proof of residence is required for students who move to another physical address in order to make the change on the student record. This is important to insure that the students are attending the appropriate school. Please see the Attendance Secretary or call the main office if you have any questions or concerns.

NOVEMBER 2012 PAGE 2

Yearbooks!

Attention Parents: You received a yearbook order form in the mail directly from our yearbook company, Jostens. Please use the form to purchase your yearbook either by phone, through the mail, or online. You may access the online link to order a yearbook from Harmony's homepage. Please do not send any money to school. If you have any questions, email Ms. Whitney Svensson at Whitney.Svensson@lcps.org.

Gemini: Hannah Carter and Mark McGregor Eagle: Claire Biane and Casey Abashian Scorpion: Cara Grady and Andrew Melacarne Hercules: Kelsie Benney and Kaivon Fields

Orion: Katie Brantingham and Art Olson Phoenix: Nicolle Stutt and Jacob Rodal Taurus: Virginia Mullins and Berkley Umbaugh Ursa Major: Paige Kerins and Daniel Shelton Pegasus: Bailey Brooks and John Beisler

Please note: Students of the Month are chosen based on their accomplishments during the named month. Their names are an-nounced at the end of the month and their biographies are displayed in their house for the next month.

The BUZZ

The administrative newsletter of

Harmony Middle School

38174 West Colonial Hwy. Hamilton, VA 20158

540-751-2500

FAX 540-751-2501

Sherron Gladden, Principal

Dr. Yvonne Balfour,

Acting Principal

Jim Hepner, Assistant Principal

Gail Lucas, Assistant Principal

Andrew Olejer, 6th Grade Dean

Patrick White, 7th Grade Dean

Christina Thompson, 8th Grade Dean

NOTICE If, due to a disability, you need assistance to enable you

to participate meaningfully in any school activity, please contact Mrs. Gladden at 540-751-2500 at least five working days prior to the activity.

Over the course of the next three weeks, we will be conducting a survey using a federal pink card. The results of this survey provide information for federal funding by simply answering the question: Do you as the parent/guardian of a child that at-tends Harmony Middle School work on federal property in Virginia? Whether you answer yes or no to this question, please reply as so and return the pink card to the House office. If the card is not returned by November 9, 2012 expect a reminder call, because it is necessary to have a completed card returned for each student. A letter explaining the survey was sent home with each student on Thursday, October 26th. The survey pink card will follow and be provided to each student on Thursday, November 1st. Thank you in advance for your assistance in completing this task.

PAGE 3 BUZZ

@ the Library

The Scholastic Book Fair was a huge success. The Library staff would like to thank Harmony‘s students, parents, and staff members who supported our book fair this year. Proceeds will be used to purchase library materials and fund activities for students and staff. We send a special thanks to all of our volunteers who helped us during the fair. We had 30 parent volunteers who helped with set up, crowd control and sales. Thank you so much for your extra time and effort. Our annual Used Book Sale will be held in March. Please save all of your used books. Once again, we will be giving 50% of our profit to the Empty Cup project sponsored by our art department. It‘s a wonderful way to get lots of inexpensive books into the hands of our students. Donations accepted at any time. Are you aware that Loudoun County schools subscribe to many online databases that can be accessed at school, home or anywhere with an internet connection? These include encyclopedias, magazines, newspapers, reference books and many other reputable and accurate sources. These are great resources for research projects, reports and current events. Students only need to stop by the library to obtain the passwords. There are 23 student helpers in our library this year. These are 8th grade students who filled out an application and were accepted into our student aide program. They help us with various duties such as straightening shelves, delivering books, shelving books and other special duties. Congratulations and thank you to these dedicated students who have become part of our library staff.

All visitors must report to the Main Office upon entering the building to sign in and get a visitor‘s badge. All persons except registered or enrolled students and employees of Harmony Mid-dle are classified as visitors.

School Cancellation/

Delayed Opening/Early

Closing and

Announcements

In the event that weather or other reasons require either closing or delaying the opening of school before buses start on their routes, announcements will be made over the following radio/TV stations by 6:00 AM. These stations are notified by direct calls and should be the primary stations that are monitored. Comcast Cable (TV 21) Loudoun County WRC (TV 4) Washington, DC FOX (TV 5) Washington, DC WJLA (TV 7) Washington, DC WUSA (TV 9) Washington, DC News Channel 8 Washington, DC WINC (92.5 FM) Winchester, VA WTOP (1500) Washington, DC WMAL (630 AM) Washington, DC In the event of a delayed opening, please stay tuned to the radio/TV station in case some change in the weather causes schools to be closed for the day. A one-hour delay would mean that all morning programs would operate as usual except that they would start one (1) hour later. A two-hour delay would mean that school opening would be delayed for two (2) hours, with specific alternatives to certain programs.

Early Closing

In the event that circumstances necessitate the early closing of school after school is in session, announcements will be broadcast on the same radio/TV stations listed above. When we have an early closing, it will probably be announced that school will close either one or two hours earlier than usual. For more information log on to:

http://alert.loudoun.gov to register for electronic notifications.

NOVEMBER 2012 PAGE 4

Team Orion Orion's writers are meeting in their work-shop groups and putting the finishing touches on their first quarter creative writ-ing. Be on the lookout for their Book Quilt to see all of the great reading they have been doing so far this year! In Science class, students are working on Newton's laws of motion. This will lead up to a project where they will be con-structing action-reaction racers! In Civics, students are anxiously awaiting the presidential election as they finish up the unit on political campaign-ing. Then they take a trip back in history to analyze docu-ments that influenced the creation of our national and state constitutions.

Team Phoenix

Civics classes are in the middle of their Elec-tions unit. Students are writing an essay on the Electoral College and watching the Presiden-tial election with interest. English classes are finishing their narratives. Students are also currently working on a quilt square to showcase one of the books they read this nine weeks. Finally, conferences will be held on their creative writing at the end of the nine weeks. Science students have been learning about speed, velocity, and acceleration and are now learning about forces and how they affect falling objects. The unit ends with Newton‘s laws of Motion.

Team Taurus

Science classes explored forces in motion and studied Newton's three laws of motion to wrap up the first marking period. In Novem-ber, students study work, power, and simple machines. Civics classes are studying historical documents, beginning with the Constitution and holding a mock election. English classes will begin working on the concept of voice and how to insert voice into their writing and prepare for their first literature circle

8th

Grade News and Notes

Mrs. Sharp and Mrs. Thompson are so proud of all the 8th

graders for their contributions to World Hunger Day and their

support of breast cancer awareness. We are "tickled pink"

that our students are so aware and become involved in the

efforts of Harmony Middle School to make a difference.

In academic news, plans are in the works to reward the win-ning team of the academic challenge based on grades, be-havior and Hornet Hi--5 earnings. Team Orion is the winner of the Academic Challenge for 1st Quarter. As a reward, they will be traveling to the Purcellville Skating rink on Fri-day, November 9th from 11:30 to 2:00 PM. Permission slips have been handed out and are due back by November 7th.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Thompson and Mrs. Sharp

Trex Recycling Challenge

Harmony Hornet family, this year, we will be participating in the Trex Recycling Challenge. We will begin collecting plas-tic bags beginning on Nov. 15th through Earth Day- April 22nd. Bins will be in each house area to collect bags. Plastic bags are not limited to those plastic grocery bags; we can take pellet bags, dry cleaning bags, etc. If you are interested in helping tally our bags at the end of each month, we would appreciate it! As a school, we will receive a birdhouse for participating. Also, the winning school in our area will receive a bench. We could work on an outdoor classroom or adding to our court-yard???

Team Ursa Major—From the Bear’s Den

U.S. History students completed the Big Business unit and have started the Progressive Movement. Start working on your Immigration project by calling your relatives for information about your ancestry. Thanksgiving break is a great time to meet with them. Math 7 finished with evaluating exponents, squares and square roots, and scientific notation. Students are starting a unit comparing and ordering numbers in various forms: fractions, decimals, percents, square roots, and scientific notation. They are also evaluating expressions using order of operations. Science students wrapped up their study of Classification by creating books describing the six kingdoms of living things and completed the project with excellence. Upcoming for December: the Cell Model Challenge! Start saving recyclables for this project. The English persuasive essays on school uniforms were submitted and, along with the last Lit. Circle summative, round out the first quarter grades. Next quarter, students look forward to a unit on non-fiction in preparation for the Virginia SOL Reading assessment in the spring.

Team Pegasus

In U.S. History classes, students completed a unit on Westward Expansion, and the Native American experience, and are wrapping up a unit on U.S. Immigration and its impact on our county during the late 1800's and early 1900's. Students were assigned a project in which they discovered and presented the history of their own family's past. Over the following weeks, they will study industrialization, the growth of "big business," and the "progressive era." English students are typing up their essays and submitting publish-worthy work. They have worked hard all quarter to craft the best argument possible. Also, students are finishing up their second novel of the school year! Science students worked diligently on their Six Kingdom projects and are learning how living things are classified

BUZZ PAGE 5

Team Gemini History classes have moved beyond West-ward Expansion and completed the Immi-grant Experience. Now students venture into the world of Big Business and the Progres-sive Era. Science Gemini‘s are starting out the new quarter learning about microscopes. Students will need to under-stand how to use microscopes so that they can take an in-depth look at our next topic - CELLS! First, they learn about the history and function, then about cell structure, and finally about cell processes. Students will be completing a recy-cled model of a cell during this unit. In math, Gemini‘s con-tinue to learn the fundamental skills needed for Alge-bra. The next assessment covers exponents, scientific no-tation, and square roots.

7th

Grade News and Notes

Mr. Thomas and I are very pleased with the commitment and dedication the 7th grade students are putting toward their academic success. Since October was Anti-Bullying month, he and I spoke with the 7th grade students during resource to inform and answer questions about bullying. The first quarter is near completion and ends on November 2nd. Please review your child‘s grades in Clarity by accessing the Parent Portal and encourage him/her to finish the first quarter strong. The overall success of each 7th grader is exemplified in the ongoing Team Competition. The score at the time of publication for this newsletter is as follows:

Team Pegasus = 1667 points Team Gemini = 1658 points

Team Ursa Major = 1624 points Please continue to encourage and support the students in the competition. The first reward for the top two places will be on December 21st with a visit to the skate rink in Purcell-ville. The 7th grade will be going on field trips by teams. Team Ursa Major is on November 29th, Team Pegasus is on No-vember 30th and Team Gemini is on December 3rd. A trip to the Madiera School will be made to conduct team building activities which includes a ropes course. Permission forms for the trip will be coming home on November 7th. If you would like to be a chaperone for your child‘s team trip, please contact the House B office or email Mr. White.

Sincerely,

Mr. White and Mr. Thomas

NOVEMBER 2012 PAGE 6

Team Eagle Science is starting to learn about matter. The whole 6th grade class will be making the world's largest periodic table of the elements. Stay tuned for the unveiling. English is working on their Slice of Life writing. The focus is on dialogue, strong introductory sentences, sensory language and grammar. They are also preparing for their book talks and Character Change Inter-views. Social Studies students are learning about Native American Tribes. They are creating totem poles and writing legends about their totem poles. They are starting to learn about the first explorers. Math is continuing fractions, work-ing with decimals and percentages.

Team Hercules

Math students have worked very hard crunching numbers with fractions, decimals and percents. English classes are working on novel studies. Academic classes are connecting October's Bullying Aware-ness month activities to Crash by Jerry Spinelli. Honors classes are venturing into the colonial era in their reading of Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson. Students are examin-ing the way writers intentionally craft images and create meaning for readers. Remember, students are reading 20 minutes per evening. In science, students finished their sci-entific method unit and moved into using metric measure-ments, and exploring matter! During the matter unit, they investigate the Periodic Table of the Elements. History stu-dents completed their studies of Native Americans and the regions that shaped them. Next is European Exploration. Since one of the first colonies was right here in Virginia, excit-ing discussions are anticipated!

6th

Grade News and Notes

As of November 2nd, the first marking period of your student‘s middle school career is in the books! They all have adjusted very well to life at Harmony. On October 26th, the 6th grade science teachers organized our attempt at the world‘s largest periodic table. All students participated by holding large table cloths with the elements. These were created during class. Unfortunately, our request to the Guinness Book of World Records was denied. Our accomplishment will be posted on www.recordsetter.com. A great time was had by all. The field trip to Inner Quest at the Madeira school is fast ap-proaching. All paperwork was sent home with students on October 22nd and must be returned by November 2nd. The cost is $20. All students must return their payment along with the LCPS permission form and the Inner Quest Waiver (to their Language Arts teacher) in order to participate. It will be a physical day working outdoors on various team building skills. Students should bring a bagged lunch and dress ap-propriately for the weather. Team Eagle will be going on November 19th , Team Scorpion November 20th, and Team Hercules November 26th. All students must be dropped off by their parents no later than 7:45 AM and picked up promptly at 4 PM. Please email Mr. Olejer at Andrew.Olejer@lcps.org or call 540-751-2500 with any questions. With the holiday season fast approaching, please discuss with your child the importance of remaining focused on their school work. As always, if you have any questions or con-cerns please feel free to email or your child‘s counselor at Virginia.DehavenDawson@lcps.org. We can also be reached by calling the school at 540-751-2500. Have a won-derful November!

Sincerely,

Mr. Olejer and Mrs. DeHaven-Dawson

Team Scorpion

English classes are studying cause & effect rela-tionships in literature, completing "slice of life" essays, as well as verbs. Social studies classes are learning about European explorers. Science classes are studying matter, including protons, neutrons, electrons, and chemical reactions. Math 6 class is finishing a unit on decimal operations and will begin reviewing fraction opera-tions, and applying those operations to real life settings. In Accelerated Math 6/7, students have completed a unit on fraction operations and are beginning to look at true Alge-braic concepts - solving equations.

BUZZ PAGE 7

From the Guidance Department

Counselors: Mrs. Jamie Sharp, Lead Counselor—Teams: Orion, Phoenix, Taurus Mrs. Virginia Dehaven-Dawson—Teams: Eagle, Scorpion, Hercules Mr. Henry Thomas—Teams: Gemini, Pegasus, Ursa Major

October was Bullying Prevention Month: Thank you to all the parents, teachers and students that participated in

Bullying Prevention month. All counselors have been in the resource classrooms teaching about bullying and what students can do to help keep Harmony a bully free school. Counselors worked with the SCA to help sponsor an anti-bullying poster contest, and also helped students make an anti-bullying pledge quilt that has lined our hallway. This is all in an effort to serve as a reminder to our students and staff that we are all working together to keep bullying out of our school.

DATES TO REMEMBER Interims: Grading Period Ends: Report Cards: Oct. 3rd Nov. 2nd Nov.14th

Dec. 12th Jan. 22nd Jan. 30th Feb. 21st April 3rd April 10th

May 3rd June 10th June 12th

INTERNATIONAL NIGHT

Harmony Middle School‘s 3rd Annual International Night is rapidly approaching. Mark your calendars for Thursday, Novem-ber 15, 2012 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. It is a night to celebrate the cultural diversity of our school through food and entertain-ment. Please join us for a potluck dinner in the cafeteria at 6: 00 PM. The cultures and peoples of our student body will be repre-sented by dishes from all over the world. Please bring a dish that reflects your heritage or homeland. Due to concerns regarding food allergies, please be sure to present your recipe with your dish and list all the ingredients. After dinner, we‘ll have musical numbers, singers, dancers, story tellers and an international fashion show demonstrating the native dress of many cultures from around the world. Last year‘s International Night was a big success with many cultures represented. We hope that this year‘s experience will match the level of participation, color, and spectacle that Harmony hosted last year. See you there!

Loudoun County Parent Resource Center is a wonderful resource for parents; it is located in Leesburg. The website for the parent resource center is http://www.lcps.org/prc. The center provides workshops for parents, an updated tutor list, an online live homework help link, and so much more. Check it out today.

Page 8

German Club/Class Blitz

Busch Gardens: Over 50 German students from Harmony attended the annual meeting of the Virginia Organization of German Students at Busch Gardens on Saturday, October 20th, 2012. The students rode rides, ate German food and participated in various activities including a German song contest. If you were not able to attend, join us next year! This event is annual. St. Martinstag: The German Society of Lovettsville will hold its third annual Saint Martinstag Parade on Saturday, Novem-ber 10th. Students from Harmony Middle School are invited to attend. Students will prepare for this cultural activity by making lanterns and learning German songs about St. Martin. They will carry their homemade lanterns and sing as they parade. The German society will provide the students with hot cocoa and cider at the end of the parade. Students and parents can socialize by lantern light as they eat their home-made Weckmänner cookies after the parade. American Education Week: German students will be invit-ing parents, relatives and friends to visit our class during American Education Week (November 12th-16th). Some of these guests will share experiences of living or traveling to Germany, while others might show off their German language skills. Parents are invited to just pop in and see what our classroom is all about, and students will teach them simple phrases. Call or e-mail Frau Lenz if you are interested in taking part of American Education Week! Holiday Calendars: The German Club at Harmony is selling Advent Calendars. The cost per calendar is $3. These cal-endars are a German tradition and offer sweet, little chocolate surprises behind each of the 24 doors. Prizes will be awarded to the top sellers. Proceeds from these sales will be donated to the Harmony Outreach Fund (helping needy families), help fund the club trip to the German Convention in Fredericksburg in February, and will also be put towards various activities, prizes and treats throughout the year. Tutoring: Frau Lenz is available – contact her for an ap-pointment! German Class: German students participate in an ―Auktion‖ at the end of the year with their hard earned Euros. Dona-tions are always welcome!

The French Corner

Students in French 1 have been learning about how to have short conversations in French (greetings, farewells, descrip-tions, questions about self and others, expressing relation-ships, the family etc...). They will present skits in collabora-tion with a partner of their choice. The skit will focus on ordi-nary and simple conversation (asking and giving information about self and others). They will also take the CPA (Communicative Performance Assessment) test. This oral exercise will focus on the material learned to-date. The for-mat of the test is an interview in which the teacher asks questions of students, and they respond to the questions giving information about themselves or their friends. We have also been working on finding pen pals in France. French 2 students have been focusing on what to do/say when they travel by plane and by train. Tasks focus on communicative activities such as asking for and giving infor-mation, finding one's way at an airport, on a plane, or at a train station. We have also been trying to find pen pals so students can practice their language skills. We would like to get to a point where we create a classroom magazine and news flash in French. I am also working on starting a Vision course that students can use to supplement the face-to-face learning.

NOVEMBER 2012

Spanish News

Español I ―Abrigos por amigos‖ We are collecting clean, gently used winter coats and jackets on behalf of Loudoun Abused Women‘s Shelter. Please bring donations to Sra. Igoe in room B11. Español I and II: Sra. Igoe invites Spanish I and II students to join her for a musical presentation on International Night. If you would like to join, please stop by room B11 and talk with Sra. Igoe.

PAGE 9

Mrs. Teresa Weis comes to Harmony Mid-dle School with 10 years of experience in Fairfax County Public Schools teaching a variety of special education classes, as well as serving as part of the administrative team. In 1998, Mrs. Weis earned her Bachelor‘s Degree in Family and Child Development from Virginia Tech and went on to earn her Master‘s Degree in Special Education from George Mason University in 2005.

Mrs. Karen Radcliff-Ward has been teach-ing for six years. She earned both her Bachelor and Master degrees from Linden-wood University in St. Charles, Mis-souri. Mrs. Ward is certified in both Lan-guage Arts and Social Studies. Addition-ally, her Master's degree is in Educational Administration. As part of Team Orion,

Mrs. Ward is excited to be teaching 8th grade Civics and Econom-ics.

Ms. Kayla McCormick received her Bachelor's of Fine Arts and her Master's of Art Teaching from the Corcoran College of Art and Design in Washington D.C. Her fine arts concentration included silkscreen print-ing, film and editing, painting, drawing, ce-ramics, performance, sculpture, and pho-tography. Her experience outside of the classroom in museums includes work at the National Building Museum as a summer program instructor, in art galleries including the Corcoran Gallery of Art, and multiple outreach programs with museums and schools in the D.C. area.

This is Jennifer Dunn’s first year at Har-mony Middle School, and she is very excited to be here. She has been in Loudoun County for four years. She attended Longwood Uni-versity and Washington State University for her undergraduate education and completed her degree in Special Education from Grand Canyon University.

Mr. Bruce Tiller is excited to be a member of the Harmony Middle School Health and Physical Edu-cation Department. He has a Bachelor of Science from Virginia Commonwealth University and taught the last seven years at Park View High School.

Mr. Tiller has spent his adult life trying to impart an en-joyment of activities and sports to all students. He has coached basketball, football, baseball and softball at the high school level and encourages all students to sup-port these activities as a participant and fan.

Mrs. Susan Bosse has a Bache-lor of Science in Nursing from Kent State University. She was a postpartum/ baby nurse before becoming a school nurse. She began as a school nurse at Simp-son Middle School. While there, she completed a special educa-tion licensure program through the University of Virginia. She is endorsed in learning dis-abilities and emotional disturbance and completed a certification program through George Mason University last November for Autism.

Jean Walters, 6th grade lan-guage arts teacher, graduated from Virginia Tech with a Bache-lor of Science in English and Psychology. She completed the career switcher program at Shenandoah University af-ter working for over a decade in

Human Resources and Management.

Spotlight on Faculty

Welcome to the following new members of the Harmony Staff:

BUZZ

Page 10 NOVEMBER 2012

Spotlight on

Faculty

Welcome to the following new members of the Harmony Staff:

Ms. Susan McGilvray is in her 28th year of teaching and is so happy to be part of Team Gem-ini! Her goals for her students this year: read like a writer; write like a reader. She was a Creative Writing major as an undergradu-ate at the College of Wooster in Ohio. She received her Master's in Education from the College of William and Mary. She loves to write and especially loves helping students find their own writing voice. Get ready to write a novel during Na-tional Novel Writing Month in November! She has taught at Eagle Ridge Middle School and Frances Hazel Reid Ele-mentary School in Loudoun County and looks forward to helping her students reach their reading and writing goals. Mr. Sean Hartmetz Sean Hartmetz has been teaching in-strumental music in the classroom for 17 years. He has a Bachelor of Music Education from the Con-servatory of Music, University of Missouri, Kansas City. His gradu-ate work was at Florida Interna-tional University, Wichita State University, Ohio State Univer-sity, American Band College, Uni-versity of Southern Oregon, Eastern Illinois University and Duquesne University. He currently teaches orchestra and guitar at Harmony Middle School.

Welcome our new additional librar-ian, Mrs. Cori Rovang, who is a veteran middle school language arts teacher who took a five year ―break‖ to obtain a library master‘s. Her husband, Rich, taught at Har-mony for several years and is now teaching 9th grade at

Woodgrove.

Video Project

Lynne Gianelos, 7th grade life science teacher, is piloting a project that will create a library of videos introducing middle school students to science careers. Careers in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) are projected to increase in demand in the next 10 years. Furthermore, STEM careers are important to keeping the US on the cut-ting edge of innovation as the global market becomes more and more competitive. Research has shown that when young students experience ―real-life‖ science, they become more positive about science as a subject and become more interested in future careers in science. This can result in increased achievement in science class as well as a shift in how students view themselves and their future. Instead of fantasizing about NFL or American Idol careers, students are able to visualize themselves in challenging and rewarding STEM careers. This project, called ―How I do Science!‖ features parent vol-unteers in three to five minute video sharing how they ―do science‖ in their jobs. Students can assist parents as cam-erapersons or even narrators. So, all we need now is YOU! If you use basic science concepts in your job, you can volun-teer! There will be a training session in the next few weeks where you can view a sample video and get step-by-step guidance. To volunteer, email Mrs. Gianelos at lynne.gianelos@lcps.org or give her a call at the school. If you need more information or have questions, please reply or call Mrs. Gianellos at 540-751-2500.

Mrs. Mallary Chapple is so excited to be at Harmony teach-ing 6th grade Social Studies. She graduated from Virginia Tech with her undergraduate degree in history from Virginia Tech and received her Master‘s in Education: Curriculum and Instruction. A native of Loudoun County, she graduated from Loudoun County High School.

PAGE 11

HARMONY PTA NEWS

After School Clubs: Lego® Club for 6th and 7th Graders kicks off November 7th! Running Club is preparing for the November 11th Turkey Trot in Purcellville. Chess Club is sharpening it‘s skills for the Tournament beginning November 30th Knitting Club had a very successful first session for Beginners in October. Look for new sessions to cast on in January. Mad Science Club for 6th Graders was a big hit!

School Store: Thanks to our intrepid volunteers, the HMS school store will be open each Tuesday through Friday from 8:10 until 8:30 AM. Want to know the latest specials and what they sell? Click here. How You can Support the Harmony Middle School PTA Join: Membership is only $5 and goes to support Harmony directly. Fill out a PTA Membership Form, found on the PTA Website. Find out what the PTA is doing this Year: PTA Meetings this year will be scheduled during the third week of the month on alternating Wednesday and Thursday evenings at 6:30 PM. Tentative meeting dates are:

Wednesday November 14, 2012 Thursday March 21, 2013 Wednesday December 19, 2012 Wednesday April 17, 2013 Thursday January 17, 2013 Thursday May 16, 2013 Wednesday February 20, 2013

Lead a committee: We do have a few open positions available! If you are interested in chairing or joining any of the standing committees, or would like additional information about the open coordinator/representative positions, please contact us via e-mail: HarmonyMiddleSchoolPTA@gmail.com. The Minority Student Achievement Advisory Committee (MSAAC) is dedicated to work in partnership with the Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS), parents and community to further the academic, social and cultural development of every student and to ensure that the needs of all minority students are met. MSAAC meets monthly at the Loudoun County Public School Administration Building in the School Board Meeting Room. The Special Education Advisory Committee (SEAC) is composed of parents, educators, administrators, business repre-sentatives, and other interested community groups concerned with the education of students with disabilities. SEAC has focused on Research-Based Initiatives and Instructional Offerings for Students with Special Needs; Staff Devel-opment Opportunities for All Staff; Reading Approaches and Alternatives for Students with Special Needs. The SEAC continues to focus on the education for students who are Gifted and Talented as well as Special Education and on the impact of the No Child Left Behind regulations on providing services to students with disabilities. The Loudoun Education Alliance of Parents (LEAP) is a non-partisan network that promotes interaction between parents, teachers, School Board members and members of the Loudoun County Public Schools Administrative Team. The mission and objectives of LEAP are promoted via monthly meetings held during the school year on the second Wednesday of the month. Meetings are held in rooms 102 A and 102 B at the LCPS Administration Building in Ashburn, Virginia. Discussion of agenda topics commences at 7:00 PM. Please contact Kristen Thatcher, kthatcher@rstarmail.com, if you are interested in representing Harmony on these committees. Send in Box Tops: FREE MONEY ALERT! Yes, that is right. Every box top you clip and send into the school is like send-ing in free money.

(continued on next page)

BUZZ

Homework Hotline

Homework is posted on the Harmony website on each teacher‘s individual webpage. Please visit

www.lcps.org/harmony and then

choose the Staff channel to locate the teacher‘s name. Please visit the web site for daily an-nouncements and happenings at Harmony.

Harmony Outreach

The holidays are fast approaching. As Parent Liaison, I am starting to plan on how I‘m going to assist some of our Har-mony families (who are struggling financially) with their Thanksgiving meal as well as during the holiday season. If you feel you are in need of extra assistance, please contact me by email, cell phone (703-919-1281) or leave a message at school. All information shared will remain strictly confi-dential. If you‘re interested in helping, one way would be to pur-chase an extra turkey. I do it with my children and find that it is a great learning experience and way to give as a family. You may also make a monetary or gift card donation.

Rhonda Lough, Parent Liaison Rhonda.Lough@lcps.org,

703-919-1281 cell

LOST AND FOUND

Every day the number of unidentified items in the Lost and Found areas located throughout Harmony Middle School continues to increase. In order to manage this growing con-cern, the Harmony staff needs to easily identify the owner of lost items to ensure a timely return. Therefore, we are requesting parents to please remember to print the full name of your child on all of their belongings: lunch boxes, clothing, jackets, gym uniforms, eye glass cases, pencil bags, musical instruments, personal reading mate-rial, cell phones, Kindles, sports equipment, sport bags, etc.

NOVEMBER 2012 PAGE 12

HARMONY PTA NEWS

(continued) Stay informed: The Harmony Middle School PTA currently produces a weekly email newsletter. If you'd like to sign up to receive the newsletter, click on the link below! You don't have to be a member of the PTA to receive The Hornets' Nest, and you can unsubscribe at any time. Make sure you put our email address,

HarmonyMiddleSchoolPTA@gmail.com, in your trusted contacts list on your email program so that the newsletter doesn't end up in your spam or junk mail folder. If you have any questions or difficulty, contact news-letter editors Barbara Petzen and Tom Regan.

Sign up for our weekly Email Newsletter, The Hornets' Nest

2012-2013 A+ School

Rewards Program!

Get Ready for Great Rewards!

Thank you for registering!

Here are some "next steps" to ensure that your school achieves maximum A+ Rewards:

1. Request a GIANT Representative to attend your school's "Back to School Night", PTA or Parent Meeting by contact-

ing your local Store Manager. 2. Encourage families in your community to designate your

school via our website - www.giantfood.com/aplus. 3. Check out our monthly newsletter

www.giantfood.com/aplus/aplus-news for details on the Creative Display Contest and other ways to earn more points for

your school. For any additional assistance, please call

us at 1-877-275-2758 (1-877-ASK-APLUS) or e-mail us at

askaplus@cranecommunications.com.

Food Lion MVP Rewards Program

Designate Harmony Middle School with the Food Lion MVP Rewards! Food Lion will donate a percentage of all the dollars spent back to the schools you designate! For the 2011-2012 school year, we did not qualify for a donation since we needed at least 25 cards enrolled! You only need to register once for this program - you do not need to regis-ter every year (you can also verify your schools already cho-sen)! To register or verify your schools:

https://www.foodlionmvprewards.com/mvp_registration/cardno.php

The code for Harmony is 217435.

Band News

Harmony band members are off to a great start this year. The 6th graders are learning notes and how to read music. The 7th and 8th graders are digging into performance pieces. A few 7th and 8th graders have not yet turned in their uniform agreement and $10. All uniform agreements and money need to be turned in so that all students can be fitted in their uniforms prior to the winter concerts. Many 6th grade stu-dents have not turned in their contact form. Turning those in helps us with communication within in the band, so please turn them in. Alternately, you can email the information to Rene' Pettit at 5pettits@comcast.net. In October, the Harmony Band did a cookie dough fund raiser. Parents need to pick up their child's orders on Tues-day, November 13th between 3 -7 PM at the band room. The cookie dough is frozen, and there is no way to store orders that are not picked up. The November band booster meeting will be Wednesday, Nov. 14th at 7 PM in the Harmony band room. All band par-ents are encouraged to attend.

PAGE 13

Drama News

Drama Courses with Ms. Karlah Louis are at the half-way mark, and all three afternoon classes (which filled in a day), are having a great time. The first half of the drama program is education for all who want to participate. The second half of the year, HMS puts on a SHOW! Traditionally HMS musi-cals have sold out before they opened. With fantastic sets, costumes, and music, students have a blast on stage. This year, Ms. Nancy Stevens is back to help as well as music director Mrs. Stewart and director Karlah Louis.

THE Big COUNTDOWN!!!! to prep and auditions! We need jesters and jousters and singers and dancers! Fantastic cos-tumes and sets --- we just need YOU! Come on out and see if the SHOE FITS! ☺) Drama Dates to Remember: November 12th and 13th - FREE Musical Prep Courses (Mandatory for PLAY Auditions) November 14th and 16th -- Auditions for PLAY November 19th and 20th - Callbacks for PLAY November 26th - MANDATORY Parent Meeting for Play January – March, 2013 – Rehearsals for PLAY March 14th -17th - PLAY

Choral News

The following students are the choral students who will represent Harmony Middle School in this year‘s 6th Grade All County Chorus which will be held on November 2nd and 3rd at Sterling Middle

School: Luke Barbour, Tanner Barbour, Michael Cavallaro, Amanda Imthurn, Riannon Miller, Olivia Reed, Becca Rodal, Grace Szalay, Julianne Vennitti, Shea Whitehurst; Alternate – Casey Petrosino. Congratulations, singers!

SCA News

The SCA has been busy, busy, busy this month. The Anti-bullying month campaign did an Anti-bullying pledge paper quilt. There was a quilt patch for every homeroom on which students could sign their name. Later, the quilt was dis-played near the library. The Anti-bullying campaign also had a poster contest. Winners for each grade level received a $25 American Express gift card.

6th grade winner - Rachel Cohen. 7th grade winner - Christine Lewis. 8th grade winner - Thomas White.

The SCA would like to thank all students who participated in this event as well as the administration for taking their time to judge the posters. In addition, on October 16th, World Hunger Day, we worked in collaboration with the Art Department to provide critically needed food for the Western Loudoun Food Pantry. If a stu-dent brought in a non-perishable food item, they received a ticket to see visiting potters. And with that, we collected over 600 items! And last but not least, SCA is sponsoring a Yoplait lid collect-ing competition by homerooms in observance of Breast Can-

cer Awareness Month. For every Yo-plait lid collected, Yoplait Yogurt do-nates 10₵ to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Along with collecting lids, Harmony sponsored a school-wide Pink-Out day to promote breast can-cer awareness. Harmony went from maroon and silver, to PINK!

BUZZ

PAGE 14

NOVEMBER 2012

2012-2013 Calendar

August 27th: First Day of School for Students September 3rd: Holiday (Labor Day)

October 8th: Holiday (Columbus Day) November 2nd: End of the Grading Period

November 5th-6th: Student Holidays (Planning/Records/Conference Days)

November 21st-23rd: Holiday (Thanksgiving) December 24th-January 1st: Winter Break

(Classes Resume January 2nd) January 17th: End of Grading Period

January 18th: Moveable Student Holiday (Planning/Records/Conference Day)

January 21st: Holiday (Martin Luther King Jr. Day)

February 18th: Holiday (Presidents‘ Day) March 22nd: End of Grading Period

March 25th-29th: Holiday (Spring Break) April 1st: Student Holiday (Planning/Records/Conference Day)

May 27th: Holiday (Memorial Day) June 6th: Last Day of School for Students

End of Grading Period

2013-14 School Calendar

September 3rd: First Day of School for Students October 14th: Holiday (Columbus Day)

November 4th-5th: Student Holidays (Planning/Records/Conference Days)

November 27th-29th: Holiday (Thanksgiving) December 23rd-January 1st: Winter Break

(Classes Resume January 2nd) January 20th: Holiday (Martin Luther King Jr. Day)

January 27th: Moveable Student Holiday (Planning/Records/Conference Day)

February 17th: Holiday (Presidents‘ Day) March 31st: Student Holiday (Planning/Records/Conference Day)

April 14th-18th: Holiday (Spring Break) May 26th: Holiday (Memorial Day)

June 13th: Last Day of School for Students /End of Grading Period

Parent Resource Center

Fall 2012 Event Schedule

Adults Only- No Childcare Available

Autism Series: Promoting Positive Mealtimes

Causes and strategies for eating challenges Tuesday, November 13th from 9-11 AM

Moving on from Elementary to Middle School

with an IEP Topics Include: the role of the case manager,

block scheduling, and service delivery. Wednesday, December 5 at 7 PM

Moving on from Early Childhood Special Ed.

To Kindergarten with an IEP Topics Include: the Referral Process and an Overview of

the Kindergarten Program. Thursday, December 6 at 7 PM

Unless otherwise indicated, events are held at the LCPS

Administrative Building 21000 Education Court, Ashburn, 20148

Pre-registration is requested.

Call 571-252-2185 to register, or go to www.lcps.org/prc. You may also access the event flyer and on line

registration by clicking the workshop title.

Be sure to also register with ―KEEP IN TOUCH‖ to get regular announcements.

If due to a disability, you need assistance or an interpreter,

call 571-252-2185 seven days before an event.

School Improvement Plan

Go to www.lcps.org/harmony >Our School>School Improvement Plan

Coffee & Conversation

Attention Parents!!! Have you ever wanted to meet the administration, counselors, department chairs, PTA Vice President and other Harmony staff? Now is your chance, Please join us on November 12th, at 9:15 AM in the Harmony Library. We will offer coffee and conversation.

Computer Technology

Ink Cartridge Recycling Program—Don't forget our ink cartridge recycling program. We accept any ink jet or laser toner cartridge as well as cell phones. We have used these monies in the past to purchase extra technology equipment and computer project supplies for our school. Ask your employer if you can have the old cartridges they may be throwing away. Please drop them off at school or send them with your child.

Hornet High Five Program

The Hornet High Five Program recognizes students who model the nine traits that build the foundation of Harmony Middle School‘s community. These traits are: ●Effort ●Respect ●Kindness ●Preparedness ●Neatness ●Punctuality ●Pride ●Productivity ●Positive attitude All staff members have hot pink, Hornet High Five cards, which they give to any student they see going above and beyond in exhibiting any of the nine traits. Students can use the cards to obtain special privileges. When stu-dents receive five High Fives, their names are entered into a grade-level drawing for a gift card. Drawings are held monthly. Last month’s winners were:

6th grade: Carley Tantlinger and Ben York 7th grade: Connor Gilfillan and Fatimah Khan

8th grade: Erik Crossfield Congratulations and High Five!!

PAGE 15

Carley Tantlinger and Ben York

Erik Crossfield Fatimah Khan

Spectrum News

Greetings to all parents of Spectrum students at Harmony Middle School. As we near the finish of the first nine weeks here at Harmony, Spectrum students have done what they always do. With the completion of the first few assignments, it is clear that they have set the bar high for themselves and for me! The 6th and 7th grade Spectrum students have a new and deeper understanding of what it means to be gifted and tal-ented through the creation of their own gifted program. After choosing the criteria for screening and evaluating their many applicants, it became apparent that there are many types of gifts and many ways to enrich those gifts! They have now embarked on a harrowing plane flight where they narrowly escape with their lives! Survival is the key and with that a lesson in consensus decision making. The 8th grade Spectrum students will be putting the finishing touches on their resumes and making a reservation for the computer lab to complete the final copies. They, too, have been involved in a survival situation, one that had their feet planted firmly on the ground! Earthquake survival, again, a major consensus decision making occasion. Final preparations are being made for the Spectrum field trips that will be taken this year. The 7th grade will be in-volved in a forensics study at the National Museum of Natu-ral History on November 7th and the 6th grade on December 12th, while 8th grade will travel to the Shakespeare Theater on December 20th to see the much acclaimed Midsummer Night’s Dream. The last field trip will be preceded by a two-hour workshop given by the Shakespeare Theater personnel for those students who will attend the production. As always, I thank you for the wonderful opportunity you have given me in allowing me to work with you children. I hope they are getting as much as I am receiving!

Connor Gilfillian

BUZZ

Hot Meal Menu Schedule: Week of October 29th Week 1

Week of November 5th Week 2

Week of November 12th Week 3

Week of November 19th Week 1

Week of November 26th Week 2

NOVEMBER 2012 PAGE 16

NOVEMBER EVENTS

11/1 Federal Impact Aid Survey Cards sent home

11/3 All Co Chorus @ Smarts Mill

11/2 End of 1st Grading Period

11/5-6 Teacher Workday/Student Holiday

11/8 Picture re-takes

11/10 Band Booster Mtg @ 7 PM in Band Room

11/12 Coffee & Conversation

11/12-16 American Education Week

11/13-16 Play Music Prep classes @ 3:30-4:30 PM

11/13 Band fundraiser product pickup

11/14 Report Cards go home

11/14 Band Booster Mtg

11/15 International Night @ 6:00 PM

11/19-20 Play Callbacks

11/19 Eagle—Madeira

11/20 Scorpion—Madeira

11/21-23 Thanksgiving Break

11/26 Hercules—Madeira

11/29 Ursa Major—Madeira

11/30 Pegasus—Madeira

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 2 3

4 5 6 7 8 9 10

11 12 13 14 15 16 17

18 19 20 21 22 23 24

25 26 27 28 29 30

November 2012

A B A

B

A

Thanksgiving

Holiday

Thanksgiving

Holiday

Thanksgiving

Holiday

PAGE 17

American Education Week

A B B A B

A B

Teacher Workday

Student Holiday

Report

Cards

home

Survey

Cards go

home

Picture

retakes

A

A B

Empty Cup Project

(from the World Food Bank). Many thanks to the visiting artists for donating their time and their artwork to the World Hunger observance at Harmony Middle School. Students were treated to demonstrations of techniques used to throw clay pots, plates, and cups by visiting potters. Our visitors created 163 beautifully crafted cups that will be sold at Family Arts Night and the Empty Cup Dinner on March 7, 2013. Students who wished to observe the demonstrations brought in a donation of a non-perishable food item to contribute to a food drive to benefit the Western Loudoun Food Pantry—over 600 non-perishable food items were col-lected. The Art Department welcomed 200 non-art students to see the visiting artists at work. The 8th grade art students will be making cups soon for the project and after all the work is fired, 6th, 7th, and 8th,grade art students will glaze the work. Thank you for your help and support! We are all looking forward to the opportunity to see the final results of our visitors and students at Family Arts Night.

End of

grading

period

Teacher Workday

Student Holiday

Band Fundraiser

Products

Delivered

International

Night 6 PM

Early Dismissals/Bus Passes/Messages

Your help is needed to limit the disruptions to instructional time here at Harmony. If your child needs to be dismissed from school early, please send a note to school with them that day, and we will give him/her a pass to leave the classroom at your designated time. Doing this keeps us from having to call into classrooms and disrupt the learning and teaching that is going on in the room. Likewise, if your child needs to ride a different bus home from school or will be picked up by you, please arrange this at the beginning of the day, so that we are not disrupting class time to get transportation messages to students. Please know that we will give your children nonemergency messages via locker notes. We will not call into classrooms or remove them from their learning to deliver messages. Thanks for helping us keep learning the priority at Harmony Middle School.

6th All Co

Chorus @

Smarts

Mill

Eagle—Mdeira Scorpion—Mdeira

Hercules—Mdeira

Urs Major—

Mdeira

Pegasus—Mdeira

B A

BUZZ

C&C 9:15

AM in

library

Harmony Middle School 38174 West Colonial Highway Hamilton, VA 20158

Buzz The Non-Profit Std. Mail

Permit 10 Hamilton, VA 20158

Getting the Harmony Monthly Newsletter Electronically

Parents can now subscribe to receive automated notifications through E-mail when updates or changes are made to our Web site, including when the monthly newsletter has been posted. You can receive E-Alerts for announcements that are made on the Web site including emergency announcements or changes in event scheduling, when additions are made to the Harmony Calendar, Daily Morning Announcements, when teachers post announcements on their pages, and more.

To register for this free automated service, which you control, follow these quick steps: Visit the Harmony home page at http://www.lcps/harmony. Click Register on the Harmony home page in the top right corner of the screen. Fill in the form. The yellow fields are required. You may choose your own user name (as long as it‘s not already in use) and

password. Submit and it will confirm your registration and prompt you to login. Login using the information you just created for sign-in name and password. On the top right a new button will appear saying Access My Info. Scroll to the bottom and select the option Edit Subscriptions. On the Subscriptions page, change the drop down menu at

the top to Harmony Intermediate where it now says Loudoun County Public Schools. Wait; the screen will refresh and you can make selections to the pages on the Harmony site you wish to subscribe.

Be sure to check the following to keep in touch with what‘s happening in the Hive: Harmony Home Page (includes Monthly Newsletter) Hornet News Check any others you wish to receive E-Alerts, like your child‘s teachers‘ sections. Please note that you will

only get an E-mail when the web editor, or the teacher sends an E-Alert to let you know of anything im-portant that has been posted.