Friday, October 27th

Happy Friday, Sharks! 

Hopefully, folks are enjoying the weekend before Halloween. All of the students are off today as we start to get ready for the start of the second quarter. Hard to believe that nine weeks of the school year are already in the rear view mirror. We had a lot of after school and in-school events this week. Our basketball season is winding down, so we had several great home games this week. We had a full house at the High School 2022 meeting on Tuesday night as folks from downtown and parents started to discuss what the high schools might look like over the next four years. During the school day this week, we had the Writer’s Eye field trips for some our 7^th grade students, the school climate survey, and an ICA schedule yesterday so students could close out the week with a little fun. Plus, a wonderful donut day yesterday from our spectacular PTO.

As we head into next week, we have a few calendar events to keep in mind. Tuesday will be a modified schedule allowing for our Chomp homerooms to have some fun at the end of the day. Each homeroom should have a theme for the day. Classes will be shortened allowing for a 90-minute block at the end of the school day for the Chomps to come together for a few activities. Standard rule applies: if you are picking up between 2:30 – 4:00 PM, allow a bit of extra time for dismissal.  Next week, we have the all-county choir trip on Thursday and our October birthday celebration on Friday. The PTO also has a busy week with a PTO meeting on Wednesday from 7:00 – 8:00 PM, the Yard Sale drop off here at SMS on Friday from 5:00 – 8:00 PM, and then the yearly SMS Yard Sale starting at 8:00 AM on Saturday. Looks to be a great Halloween week! Have a terrific weekend and on with the news…

Next Week @ SMS:

Monday, October 30^th: Teal Day
5:00 – 8:00 PM: Girls’ Basketball Tournament @ Burley Middle

Tuesday, October 31^st: Black Day
2:30 – 4:00 PM: CHOMP activity schedule

Wednesday, November 1^st: Teal Day
Ms. Harris’s class trip to UVA
5:00 – 8:00 PM: Boys’ Basketball Tournament @ Burley Middle
7:00 – 8:00 PM: PTO meeting

Thursday, November 2^nd: Black Day
All-County Honors Choir trip to C-ville High School
5:00 – 8:00 PM: Boys’ and Girls’ championship games @ Burley Middle

Friday, November 3^rd: Teal Day
3:45 PM: October Birthday Celebration
5:00 – 8:00 PM: Yard Sale drop off

Saturday, November 4^th:
8:00 AM – 12:00 PM: SMS PTO Yard Sale 

News from SMS:

1. It's time for our Annual PTO Yard Sale on Saturday November 3rd!! All proceeds come right back to the school!! We will be collecting donations on Friday November 3 from 5-8 pm in the Sutherland Cafeteria. Please clean out those closets and send in gently used items!! We are always looking for furniture, clothes, toys, games, books, household goods, tools and other items you would like to donate. We also need YOUR help to make it a success.
2. Want to start your Friday off in a relaxing and attention focusing way? Every Friday there is a Mindful Morning group for all interested Sutherland students - we meet in the library. Students are welcome to arrive as early as 8am, we will start at 8:15, and we will finish before first bell - SNACKS provided! You are welcome to bring any of your Sutherland friends. We will do movement like stretching and balance and sometimes add other activities like drumming.  We will do some mindful awareness practices, focused on noticing our thoughts and the present moment.  We also hope to connect with other students at other schools who do similar activities and possibly go on field trips.  No experience necessary. This is a great, healthy way for all of us to start each Friday. This is a drop in class without long term commitment, students are welcome to come any Friday that works. Any questions or comments, let me know. Kindly, Mr. Matriccino