River Hawk Updates
Week of December 9th - 13th
Belmont Ridge Middle School
Email: katie.johnson@lcps.org
Website: https://www.lcps.org/Page/124256
Location: 19045 Upper Belmont Place, Lansdowne, VA, USA
Phone: 571-252-2200
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BEMRiverHawks/
Twitter: @BelmontRidge
Updates from the Admin Team
Hope you are having a fantastic weekend RiverHawks and RiverHawk families! At Belmont Ridge, we value Academic Excellence, a Culture of Equity, and a Safe, Supportive, and Positive Learning Environment. Thank you for all you do to support us as a school!
- This week is Winter/ Holiday Spirit Week. Wear your favorite festive apparel. Remember, all school dress code rules apply.
- If there are any students who are still interested in becoming a Sources of Strength peer leader, a training will be held on December 14th. Please contact Dr. Lin (Kristine.Lin@lcps.org) or Ms. Stein (Rachel.Stein@lcps.org) for details.
- For student safety, please remind your child(ren) to exit the main office doors or the "kiss and go" doors at the end of the day. Any students meeting staff before 8:00 am must enter through the main office doors.
- Tuesdays and Fridays are spirit days. Encourage your child(ren) to wear Belmont Ridge or Riverside gear on those days!
BEMS Important Dates
December 2019
December 9-13 - Winter/Holiday Spirit Week
December 9-13 - BEMS Book Fair (see below)
December 10 - Chorus 6 Concert at BEMS at 7:00 pm
December 10 - Guitar 8 Concert at RVHS at 7:00 pm
December 10 - Excellent Options Inc. Club Interest Meeting at 6:00 pm (at Harper Park MS)
December 12 - Strings 7 & 8 Concert at BEMS at 7:00 pm
December 13 - PTO Meeting at 8:45 am
December 13 - PTO Sponsored Cookie Exchange for Staff
December 13 - Band 7 Field Trip to DC
December 16 - Flannel Day- Get Festive for Winter
December 17 - Shine Bright and Wear NEON
December 17 - Chorus 7 & 8 Concert at BEMS at 7:00 pm
December 18 - What does your HAT reveal about you Hat Day
December 19 - Wonder Twin Power Activate Twin Day
December 20 - Don't Sweat the Small Stuff Sweat Day
December 20 - Holiday Concerts (during the school day for students)
December 23 - January 5 - Winter Break
Belmont Ridge Book Fair
Belmont Ridge Families,
The Scholastic Book Fair will be open on Monday, December 9th and will run through Friday, December 13th! Book fair hours are 8:30-3:15 daily, and on Friday the 13th, we will be open until 5:30. Payment may be made by cash, check payable to Belmont Ridge Middle School, credit card/debit gift card, or eWallet (set-up through Scholastic). There will be tax on items purchased at the fair. If you like to shop online, the online fair is available until December 14th. See you at the fair!
https://bookfairs.scholastic.com/bf/belmontridge
Visit our school's homepage to hear the latest Book Fair news, RSVP for events, sign up to volunteer, and more!
bookfairs.scholastic.com
Monday, Dec 9, 2019, 08:30 AM
19045 Upper Belmont Place, Lansdowne, VA, USA
Belmont Ridge Minority Student Association
Belmont Ridge would like to invite you to consider joining our newest initiative, the Belmont Ridge Minority Student Association (MSA), in which students can more actively connect and have an impact on the BEMS community.
Racial identity development is based on the theory that people of all racial groups go through a series of steps in a cycle, with each step deepening an understanding of who we are racially, how racism impacts our lives, and how we view ourselves and other races. People with strong racial identities have a greater sense of comfort with relating to and working with all types of people. This awareness of others' cultures is often referred to as cultural competency. People with heightened senses of cultural competency and racial identity have a greater ability to be proactive (rather than reactive) when dealing with issues related to racism and diversity.
Affinity Groups are voluntary associations of people who share common interests or who have an identifier in common, e.g. race, gender, religion, family status, etc. Affinity groups are for individuals who identify as members of the group and can speak to the experience of being a member of the group from the “I” perspective. Affinity groups play a vital role in articulating, promoting and supporting the needs and goals of their various communities. Their primary focus should be to develop and improve the campus climate by increasing morale, providing insight into diverse areas, building bridges to the community and spotlighting the achievements and accomplishments of the school.
The mission of MSA will be “To Promote Diversity and Inclusion, Not Exclusion at Belmont Ridge Middle School.” MSA will focus of 3 core priorities which include:
· Create an environment where everyone can feel safe, welcome, respected and excited to take part in the school.
· Ensure that consistent, timely and accurate communication is occurring between families and the school including faculty, staff and school leadership.
· Provide opportunities for the families to engage with the school in ways that are meaningful and support the school’s goals.
Our goal is that the Belmont Ridge MSA will provide an opportunity for students in our community to connect around shared identities or interests and to develop a stronger sense of connection and belonging. More specifically, MSA will offer an exploration of one's own identity, the celebration of shared identity, and debriefing of the common challenges and experiences that members of that community face. Businesses, colleges, universities, high schools, middle schools and elementary schools across the country who have made a commitment to diversity, and in particular, to building strong communities, offer affinity group members a greater sense of belonging in the school community.
For additional information or to express your interest in participating, please contact Mr. Damien White at Damien.White@lcps.org. We anticipate our first meeting taking place in early December 2019.
PTO Sponsored Cookie Exchange for Belmont Staff
We are looking for volunteers for our annual PTO Cookie Exchange for Belmont Ridge's teachers and staff on 12/13. Please use the link below to sign up:
PTO and Bright Life Buddies
The PTO will have big news to share this week. Stay tuned!
This is the final week for Amazon wish list contributions. Our Bright Life Buddies club is adopting a classroom at Amidon-Bowen Elementary School in SW DC, and taking a field trip to visit them on December 18. Our goal is to send snack bags and hygiene bags with BLB for the students there. Please visit our Amazon wish list and consider contributing an item or two to this effort! There are a number of items at various price points, and your purchase will be shipped directly to Belmont Ridge to be included in the bags. Deadline for ordering is this Friday, December 13.
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/158ZIX413JPPF?&sort=default
Bright Life Buddies' Ignite the Love Event
Bright Life Buddies' Ignite the Love event is this Saturday, December 14. Thanks to everyone who has donated coats and winter wear items to the Coat Drive! We are still accepting new, unwrapped toys for the Toy Drive until Wednesday, December 11. Please see the signup for details:
BEMS PTO
There will be a PTO general meeting this Friday morning, December 13, at 8:45am in the cafeteria. All are welcome and we hope to see you there!
If you're a Facebooker and haven't "liked" our BEMS PTO page yet, please take a minute to do so! It's a great way to stay up to date on all the fun, educational, and most importantly, student-centered things that happen at our school. Belmont Ridge PTO!
Smile Kits
Belmont Ridge is partnering up with Riverside High School to have a Smile Kit drive for the local Barnett- Searing National Cancer Foundation. We will be collecting fuzzy blankets, fuzzy socks, lip balm, adult coloring books and colored pencils from now through December 12th. Please drop off any of these items in our designated collection bins located in the main office as well as by the Kiss n’ Go doors. The “Smile Kits” will be assembled at Riverside HS in January by the Riverside and BEM Sources of Strength peer leaders.
Teacher and Staff Kudos
The Positivity Project
This week's topic -> Kindness
Belmont Ridge will again partner with the Positivity Project to foster character building and social-emotional learning.
The Positivity Project is thinking big. We know that powerful aspects of the civilizing process, like empathy, are in retreat. Yet, we believe that armed with a deeper understanding of character and an #OtherPeopleMatter Mindset, together, we will create citizens and leaders who will enhance our communities and country.