The Mustang Messenger

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Good evening, Parents/Families of the Class of 2031!

It is our great honor to officially welcome you as our Rising 6th Grade Mustang Families to JL Simpson Middle School in 2024-2025!

While we know that you are in the midst of just beginning your second semester supporting your 5th grader in their final year of elementary school, we at Simpson want to be sure that you and our future Mustang(s) feel thoroughly comfortable and confident about the transition to a successful, personalized, engaging middle school experience.

The middle school time frame of a student's learning journey is one that produces a wealth of healthy changes that help to build pathways to greater levels of independence and responsibility, scholastic and social emotional growth, executive functioning skills development, and the exciting discovery of personal interests through student-centered classroom experiences in both core and elective areas of study, not to mention the plethora of extracurricular activities and student leadership endeavors available to our Mustangs. Our Mustang Professional Staff aims to intentionally ensure that each and every student has many trusted adults on campus who know them well and generate a safe, secure environment where they can flourish throughout their time at Simpson.

The next three years of your Mustang's educational career will be an exhilerating experience as they participate in ACADEMIC and EXTRACURRICULAR OPPORTUNITIES that promote:

• CREATIVITY and CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS in their authenticity with a focus on student-centered voice and choice
• POSITIVE COMMUNICATION and COLLABORATION with peers, our wonderfully talented Mustang Professional Staff, and remarkable high school aged mentors/role models
• CONTRIBUTION to the JL Simpson MS and global community through various project-based experiences of personal interest with quality support by our Mustang Professional Staff

We at Simpson also pride ourselves on the following important thematic expectations among our students, staff, and community, recognizing the beautiful diversity of our Mustang family and the greatness that can come with each of these core values:

• Positive Communication and Relationships

• High Expectations with Heart and Open Doors to Opportunities for All

• Visibility and Presence

• Individual and Collective Accountability

• Organization and Structure with Adaptability

• Welcoming, Affirming, and Safe Environment for All

We look forward to seeing you at our Rising 6th Grade Parent Information / Curriculum Night on Tuesday, February 6, 2024 from 6 PM - 7:30 PM as advertised by your elementary school principals over the past few weeks. We have some great details for you about this awesome event and many others as we look forward to the fall of 2024, so please read below this opening message to find out more!

We cannot wait to meet you on Tuesday, at our future events for our Rising 6th Graders, or whenever you would like to stop by and see us in the near future!

Have a wonderful evening and know that we will always be here to support you and our forthcoming Mustangs!

Frank G. "Tripp" Di Nicola, III, Ed.D.

Principal, JL Simpson MS

PS: We are playing a Kahoot focused on general facts about our school in our Simpson 101 portion of our Rising 6th Grade event...so be sure to have your personal devices ready to go since your family just may win a special surprise if you earn 1st, 2nd, or 3rd place among those in your session! How awesome is that? :-)

The purpose of this special edition of the Mustang Messenger is to share some important information regarding the course selection process, helpful resources for selecting courses, and upcoming parent and student information and engagement events for Rising 6th Graders.

We hope that this Academic Advising site will be a helpful overview while planning for middle school academics. Your child's elementary school counselor is very well versed on course options for Grade 6 and works collaboratively with our own Unified Mental Health Team to support great transitional supports to the middle school experience.

Please reach out to our Rising 6th Grade Counselor, Sabrina.Jeane@lcps.org, if you have any questions or concerns.

Join us at our Rising 6th Grade Parent Information Night on Tuesday, February 6, 2024 from 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM to attend in-person sessions on important topics for your Mustang as we look forward to the 2024-2025 School Year!

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I ARRIVE?

A Loudoun County HS Captain or JLS Simpson Mustang student chaperone will meet you at the front entrance by our auditorium to provide you with a site map and program for your sessions. We will also have Captains and Mustangs around the building to guide you to locations if you need any assistance.

Please proceed first to our CAFETERIA where you will have access to the following helpful resources at various tables from 6:00 PM - 6:15 PM:

• Parent-Teacher Organization Welcome Table
• LCPS Family and Community Engagement / Family Liaison Welcome Table
• Department of Digital Innovation - StudentVue/ParentVue Access Table
• Youth After School (YAS) Program Table
• World Languages and Cultures Student Leaders from LCHS - French, German, Latin, Spanish, Spanish for Fluent Speakers - A Look Ahead to Grades 7 and 8!

At 6:15 PM, a bell will sound and you will proceed with your student chaperone to each of the four sessions on rotation as a "class" based on the schedule in the graphic below this section.

WHAT SESSIONS AM I ATTENDING?

• Simpson 101: School Leadership Team + School Counseling Staff + Parent-Teacher Organization President + Information About Rising 6th Grade Events in March, June, and August 2024
• Getting Involved at JLS!: Electives + Clubs/Organizations + Opportunities for Student Engagement and Leadership at Simpson
• Mathematics at the Middle School Level
• English, Social Sciences and Global Studies, and Science at the Middle School Level

WHAT IF I HAVE ANY QUESTIONS PRIOR TO THE EVENT?

• Contact Sabrina.Jeane@lcps.org (Rising 6th Grade School Counselor) with any questions!

6th Grade Course Options: Rising 6th Grade Course Selection Chart

LCPS Program of Studies: The 2024-2025 LCPS Program of Studies

Math Placement Guidance: LCPS Secondary Math Course Selection Information

LCPS offers French, German, Latin, and Spanish at Levels 1 and 2 at the middle school level at Grades 7 and 8. Proficient speakers of Spanish approved after the completion of a language assessment by trained LCPS educators may also take Spanish for Fluent Speakers 1/2 at those grade levels.

Please review these very helpful resources to learn more about our World Languages and Cultures Program in our division. Each and every language has special value...and students can even branch out to taking more than one language in high school and beyond!

Check out opportunities to earn Credit Through Testing for students who are already proficient in a language other than English as well as the amazing avenue to earn a Seal of Biliteracy on their diploma for graduation from LCPS, a tremendous honor!

LCPS Credit Through Testing

Why take a World Language?

What language should I learn?

Virginia Seal of Biliteracy

English Learners may also find valuable information on the English Learners Family and Community Engagement (EL FACE) site.

Click here to learn more about navigating ParentVUE/StudentVUE resources.

Email: Tripp.DiNicola@lcps.org
Website: https://www.lcps.org/jlsms
Location: J. Lupton Simpson Middle School, Evergreen Mills Rd, Leesburg, VA, USA
Phone: 5712522840
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JLSimpsonMS2020/
Twitter: @JLSMS_Official