We hope to see you and your family on campus this Friday evening, October 28, for Potomac’s first-ever Friday Night Lights celebration. The event, which runs from 5:30 to 9:00 pm, will feature fun activities, food trucks, music, and varsity football as the Panthers take on the Maret Frogs at 7:00. It’s not too late to RSVP! Special thanks to our IS Chorus, which will sing the National Anthem before the game; the Potomac Drumline/Pep Band, which will be performing throughout the festivities; and the Senior Athletics Committee, which is helping to organize and staff this event. Come to campus and join the fun!

Please note: The Middle School basketball clinic that is part of this event has reached the maximum number of participants, so we are unable to take additional RSVPs for that clinic or the corresponding MS parent social. 

Last Saturday was an amazing day! The Fall Frolics carnival saw a record turnout, with hundreds of Potomac community members in attendance. Thank you to the many parents, students, and faculty and staff who volunteered their time to ensure the event’s success!

We extend special appreciation to Fall Frolics Co-chairs Diane Halpin and Elizabeth Sutphin for their leadership and enthusiasm. Thanks also go to the individual committee chairs who helped organize various aspects of the carnival. Putting on something this complex is a big job, and we are very grateful to everyone who shared their time and talents. Enjoy the photos from this event and from the Homecoming Pep Rally. 

Book Fair is a treasured annual event that raises funds to support our campus libraries. Please gather your gently used children’s and young adult books (all genres) and adult fiction to donate to Book Fair. We will accept an unlimited number of children’s and young adult books, but adult fiction donations are limited to 10 books per student. Donations of boxes and reusable bags will also be appreciated!
 
Donations will be accepted on

• November 5, 9:00-11:30 am – Drive-through drop off at Flag Circle Building
• November 7 -10 – Drop off at morning carpool/students may bring their books on the bus; volunteers will be present to accept the donations.
• November 11 – Parents may drop off donations at LSAR on Conference Day, 9:00 am-3:15 pm.

Book Fair sales will take place November 14-17. Please be sure to send in a reusable bag and up to $10 per student for purchasing books. The schedule for K-6 class visits to Book Fair will be provided by the teachers. November 17 will be Bag Day, 8:00 am-12:00 noon.

Book Fair is only successful because of our dedicated volunteers! If you're interested in helping, please sign up here. All Book Fair sales benefit Potomac’s libraries. For more information and to make a donation directly to our libraries' Amazon Wish Lists, please visit our Book Fair webpage.

The INOVA Bloodmobile will return to campus for Potomac's semi-annual Blood Drive on Wednesday, November 16, 11:00 am-4:00 pm. Parents, faculty and staff, and students 16 years of age and older are welcome to donate blood. Students must have written parental consent to participate. Please contact Ellen Grass for an appointment. 

On Monday, October 31, the Kindergarten Halloween Parade will begin in the K-1 hallway at 8:30 am. Head of School John Kowalik and LS Head Donnette Echols will lead the procession of superheroes, princesses, and more through the halls. The best photo opportunities will be on the LS playground and at the front of the US East Building.

Please have kindergarten students come to school dressed in their costumes; if possible, have them wear their costumes over their regular school clothes. After the parade, our costumed kids will transform back into kindergartners and resume their day. Please note that only kindergarten students will be allowed to dress in costume on October 31.

Diwali, also known as the festival of lights, is a holiday observed by Hindus, Sikhs, and Jains worldwide. Many members of the Potomac community celebrate Diwali. On Monday morning, a rangoli was created with the help of K-1 math specialist Gladys Alfaro Moisa, parent Bela Aggarwal, and our second and third grade students. 

Our teachers look forward to sharing your child's progress and goals for the year! The Lower School will hold its parent-teacher conferences in the afternoon on Thursday, November 10, and throughout the day on Friday, November 11.

Please note that LS students will have a full day of school on November 10, with buses, ETC, and Extended Day running as usual. We will have a normal morning, then some special programming in the afternoon. If you would like to pick your child up from school early that day, please be sure to fill out the early dismissal in SchoolPass and sign out on the form outside Joanna Huang's office. There is no school for LS students on November 11.

Parents can sign up for their parent-teacher conferences in the parent portal section of CampusNET beginning on Tuesday, November 1, at 12:00 noon. If you have questions about accessing the parent portal, please email Loretta Sevier. Note that our conferences will be in person; if you would prefer a Zoom conference, please email your child’s homeroom teacher, with a copy to Joanna Huang. 

For those who have in-person conferences scheduled on Friday, November 11, drop-in short-term childcare will be available free of charge between 8:00 am and 4:00 pm. Please remember to sign your child in and out.

Kindergarten parents are invited to join the conversation at our annual Kindergarten Parent Forum. It will be held on Wednesday, November 2, 8:30-10:15 am, in Ramsey Assembly. Parent forums are informal gatherings of the parents in a particular grade. At these programs, parents have the opportunity to discuss topics and challenges that are most relevant to their children's developmental stage. We hope to see you there!

Please join us on Friday, November 4, 11:00 am, in Ramsey Assembly for our next Sharing Assembly. We will be featuring Mr. Gustavson's and Ms. McIntire's first grade classes and Ms. Passano's and Mr. McEwen's third grade classes.

On Tuesday, November 1, Freed Photography will take individual photos of LS students who were absent on our scheduled picture day or who would like their photo retaken. If you want a retake for your child, please email both your homeroom teacher and Joanna Huang in the Lower School office.

The George Washington University Speech and Hearing Center will be on campus on Tuesday, November 8, to conduct hearing screenings with our kindergartners, first graders, third graders, and new-to-Potomac second graders.

On November 1, Freed Photography will take individual photos of MS students who were absent on our scheduled picture day or who would like their photo retaken. If you want a retake for your child, please email Kim Mackay in the MS office.

The Real Me club is a space for grade 6 girls to gather during the MS lunch period to hear from female role models. The program’s goal is to empower girls to embrace who they are, practice showing up for one another, and leave with kernels of wisdom that older females wish they had known at this younger age. (The Real Me club for sixth grade boys will be offered in the winter.)

Our fall 2022 session is underway. Peyton Zarate ’23 joined the students to speak about her adjustment to Potomac as a new ninth grader and how she balances academics and co-curriculars now, as a senior. Then, club leaders from Girls Learn International (GLI) Selma Elrefai ‘24, Sami Krilla ‘25, and Lola Monroe ‘24 spoke about advocating for equality and why having positive female role models in your life matters. And second grade teacher Joy Webster reflected on the shifting terrain of middle school friendships. She acknowledged the inherent challenges and offered these guiding principles for navigating friendships: stay open, stay strong and true to yourself, and stay on your journey. As a culminating activity, the sixth graders painted rocks with inspirational messages and spread them around our beautiful campus to lift spirits. 

Earlier this week, our fifth grade students spent a full day at the Maryland Corn Maze. They enjoyed finding their way through the Jurassic Park-themed maze, taking hayrides, and engaging in a wide variety of activities in the farmyard, including zipline rides, climbing the giant straw pyramid, tight ropes, a ladder climb, and flying through the air on trampoline bounce pads. The entire grade had a picnic lunch together, then the students enjoyed carnival treats like cotton candy and funnel cakes. A great time was had by all!

The Middle School’s Mid-Autumn/Halloween Assembly is today, Thursday, at 1:45 pm, in the Langstaff Auditorium. Here is the livestream link for those who are unable to attend in person. 

On Tuesday, November 1, grade 4 will visit the Hall of Human Origins at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History to kick off their social studies unit on early humans. The students will complete a scavenger hunt to find information about what it means to be human, how artifacts help us learn about the past, and the use of tools by early humans; they will even come face-to-face with lifelike replicas of early humans! The students are sure to come back to school energized and ready to begin their research projects. Students on the hot lunch program will be provided a bagged lunch for this field trip. 

Parents will be able to sign up for a conference time with their child's homeroom teacher on the parent portal section of CampusNET beginning on Tuesday, November 1, at 12:00 noon. Sign ups will run through Tuesday, November 8, at 12:00 noon. The conferences will take place over the course of two days – during the afternoon on Thursday, November 10, and throughout the day on Friday, November 11. MS teachers may offer additional dates and times outside of the given conference days, as necessary. 

Please note that MS students will have a full day of school on Thursday, November 10, with buses and Extended Day running as usual. There is no school on Friday, November 11, due to parent-teacher conferences.

On November 11, drop-in, short-term childcare will be available for Potomac students, free of charge, while parents are attending their conferences. Please remember to sign your child in and out.  

It has been an exciting few weeks in the fifth grade band class! During these early weeks, our fifth graders have taken the time to “get it right.” While students were eager to play their first notes, they spent time learning the musical alphabet, reading and counting rhythm patterns, and sitting with proper posture. They have also covered breathing methods, instrument care, proper embouchure (ask them if they can define that word!), instrument assembly, the basics of tone production, and much more. All details and materials will be posted on our Google classroom pages. 

The weather at Fall Frolics this past Saturday was beautiful, and the volunteerism that our IS students displayed was top notch. We truly couldn't have done it without them! So many of our students showed up to have fun and to work a volunteer shift. It was incredible to see how seriously they all worked to ensure that younger children enjoyed the activities safely. We also thank our IS families for supplying wonderful donations for our Bake Sale booth. Thank you to all for helping to make this event such a great success!

On Tuesday, November 1, Freed Photography will take individual photos of IS students who were absent on our scheduled picture day or who would like their photo retaken. Pictures will be taken in the IS Pingree Garden starting at 8:00 am. If you want a retake for your child, please email Joleen Hyde in the IS office.

This fall, the Admission Office has been offering tours of the Upper School for current eighth grade parents. Our last tour will take place on Monday, November 7, 8:30 a.m., starting off from the Flag Circle Building. The tour will be followed by a Q&A with an Upper School administrator. If you would like to join this final tour, RSVP by emailing the Admission Office or calling them at (703) 749-6313. 

For the past few weeks, seventh grade students in our Seminar class collaborated to create models of amusement park rides out of cardboard and other recycled materials. The students then presented their rides to be considered for the amusement park, Skyland. CEOs from Skyland (who looked suspiciously like LS and MS students) stopped by to hear from the ride creators and check out the construction projects. 

Last week, members of the IS and US Bands got the opportunity to work with Staff Sergeant Charles Sonoda from the U.S. Army Band. SSG Sonoda gave a masterclass for our students who are preparing to audition for the All-District Band next January, explaining the audition process, practice strategies, and tips for the day of the audition. The students got to play for SSG Sonoda, received individualized feedback, and learned how to make an effective practice plan. A member of the U.S. Army Band since 2018, SSG Sonoda studied music (clarinet) at DePaul University and Northwestern University, and has performed with such groups as the National Repertory Orchestra and the Chicago Symphonic Winds.

Next Friday, November 4, interim grades and comments will be shared with students during advisory and made available in the parent portal section of CampusNET at 3:00 pm. If you need assistance accessing the parent portal, please contact Loretta Sevier. On Saturday, November 5, at 9:00 am, sign-ups for parent-teacher conferences will open, also through the parent portal. The conferences will be held in 10-minute blocks of time on Thursday, November 10, and Friday, November 11. We ask that each family sign up for no more than three parent-teacher conferences, and we encourage you to think about these conferences as opportunities to learn more about how your child is experiencing their classes. To determine which teachers to select for conferences, parents can review the interim report, speak with their child, and touch base with the student’s advisor if needed.

This Tuesday, ninth graders participated in their Community Action Day, volunteering with 12 partner organizations across the DC metro area, including A Wider Circle, Red Wiggler Community Farm, and Bikes for the World. In the afternoon, advisory groups engaged in a repurposing project, a design-thinking activity focused on sharing and recycling resources previously used across Potomac's campus through dignity donations and upcycling. 

Last week, the SERC-11 Independent Research class welcomed Jason Lu, Potomac’s new science fellow, who shares his time between Lower School science classes and Upper School anatomy and physiology class. As a recent graduate in neuroscience from Pomona College, CA, Mr. Lu answered a variety of questions that the juniors in the SERC program had prepared, including “What advice would you give your high school self?” “What does a career in neuroscience look like?” and “What career paths will you follow using your neuroscience degree?” 

Using anecdotes from his college experience, Mr. Lu took the students on an exploration of the brain sensory reaction to bicultural norms and discussed preliminary evidence indicating that social media could trigger brain stimuli similar to addictive drugs. He also stressed that a major in a STEM field opens up a variety of job opportunities beyond science. He emphasized the importance of a holistic college experience to become “more than your major” and the influence that history, philosophy, and arts classes have had on him. Thank you, Mr. Lu, for such an amazing conversation!

After a spirited week of theme dress, including the fan favorite "Anything but a Backpack," we officially kicked off Homecoming Weekend with a rousing pep rally in the Spangler Center for Athletics and Community. Following Friday afternoon's athletic contests, the Upper School gathered outside the Panther Pit for our traditional bonfire. Thank you to the Fathers Association of The Potomac School (FAPS), Sean Conroy, and Albert Pingree ’00 for helping to build the bonfire and keep everyone safe.

On Saturday evening, following Fall Frolics and the Homecoming football game, ninth and tenth graders met for class dinners. The former gathered on campus for a Meriwether Godsey favorite – chicken tenders and french fries – while the latter met at the Greenhouse Bistro in Tysons Corner. The Upper School then came together once again in the for the Homecoming Dance in the Kettler Crossroads. Everyone had a terrific time and it was truly a beautiful weekend for our US community. 

The students in Robert von Glahn's Civil War, Reconstruction, and the Lost Cause elective took a day away from Potomac to explore the Gettysburg Battlefield last week. The focus of the trip was a 2.5-hour tour of the battlefield, where students explored the grounds and listened to engaging stories and explanations of the battle from their official guide. Reflecting on the trip, students appreciated how the battle impacted the residents of Gettysburg and how the destruction from the battle shaped the region. Several students questioned why slavery was not more central to the tour. The class will investigate this  question in their final unit on memory and the Lost Cause.

Next week, the Upper School Theatre Department will present David Bottrell and Jessie Jones' Southern-inspired comedy Dearly Departed. 

When the patriarch of the Turpin family keels over dead, the struggle to get him buried involves the whole family, including the not-so-grieving widow. Amid the chaos, the Turpin family turns for comfort from their friends and neighbors, an eccentric community of misfits who manage to pull together and help each other through their hours of need. The New York Post commented, “Not since Steel Magnolias has a more colorful and dysfunctional group of Southern eccentrics gathered below the Mason-Dixon line.”

The production features 13 actors, including four Intermediate School performing and technical students, as part of the new Potomac Upper School Theatre Bridge Program. This co-divisional program was started by theatre arts faculty member and director Mia Fisher-Phillips. Performances will take place in the Langstaff Auditorium on Friday, November 4, at 6:30 pm, and Saturday, November 5, at 2:00 pm and 7:00 pm. Admission is free. (Poster artwork by junior Sofya Donets)

Senior Ben Schirmeier has been named to the All-Virginia Jazz Band for his drumming excellence. From the many who auditioned, only a small number of students were accepted for this prestigious ensemble. Ben will travel to Richmond in November with some of the best high school jazz musicians in the state. The ensemble will prepare a concert under the direction of Dr. Barry Long from the University of Massachusetts at Lowell. Congrats to Ben on this outstanding achievement!

On Tuesday, November 1, Freed Photography will take individual photos of US students who were absent on our scheduled picture day or who would like their photo retaken. If you want a retake for your child, please email Helen Butler in the US office.

Paige Ramsey '24 and her horse, MTF Cooley Classic, clinched first place against a class of professional riders last weekend at the Waredaca Horse Trials in Laytonsville, MD. Congratulations, Paige!