Rocky Hill Middle School Summary and Top 5 Accomplishments
Green School Recertification Summary
During the past 4 years, Rocky Hill Middle School has continued to make going green a way of learning and of life. Our local community has experienced much growth during this time frame, both in terms of construction, and of the infrastructure necessary to accommodate the added building.
Keeping our green mindset during this expansion has been a focus in classroom academics and throughout the building during our daily interactions - many of our students and staff have witnessed the conversion of rural green space surrounding the school to commercial and residential enterprise. The potential for learning, and the lessons inherent in this process have been utilized by our staff as our environmental curriculum is developed and modified.
This opportunity for recertification gives us pause to reflect on our past accomplishments and our goals for the future, as well as the on-going efforts at thinking and being green. We have built on the foundation established in 2009 and consider the following efforts to be indicative of the way students and staff meld thought and action into positive pro-active results.
Our 6th grade students continue to study habitats, adaptations, and the human interface through the "Museum" unit. They build on this knowledge with a unit called "Going Green" that blends local and national science standards with our school system's curriculum 2.0. They have spent time working collaboratively on a student service learning project which allows them the opportunity to recycle waste and reclaim habitat lost through development, and they continue to experience the environment first-hand at our outdoor environmental education facilities at Summit Lake and The L.E. Smith Environmental Education Center.
7th grade students are presented with the task of developing an alternative means of growing food to meet the needs of an increasing county population and limited available arable land. The hydroponic and aquaponic-based outcomes are their window to the world of the future of agriculture where problem solving skills and technology combine to lower environmental impact and increase crop yields. Biogenetics are included as part of the scope of this unit and a subsequent unit in an attempt to understand the role of modification and adaptation as plant meets environment.
Rocky Hill 8th graders practice environmentally friendly design by building model homes that utilize the surrounding habitat and geography. Their homes borrow from current design and alternative energy sources to create a potential template for future generations. Climate and cost effectiveness are considered, as are renewable building materials.
These learning explorations are reinforced during the day-to-day business of education and socialization. Rocky Hill continues to stress energy conservation and recycling. Our halls and communal spaces are filled with reminders to reuse and recycle and there continues to be an abundance of containers for specific types of recycling. We have celebrated our achievements locally and through county-wide awards through our SERT office and the Board of Education. Staff receives timely energy management directives and advice, and the use of task lighting has helped cool our building and has cut energy consumption in our computer labs. Our latest computer upgrade brought us lap tops to replace desktop units, saving more energy and money and enhancing portability and classroom access.
We continue to practice good environmental stewardship at Rocky Hill. The lessons learned through class explorations are put into practice on the grounds of the school as well. As part of our 5-year plan begun in the year 2008, we have planted more trees and kept our no mow areas intact. We continue to monitor the health of our school-side tributary of Great Seneca Creek and have plans to contribute to the National Geographic FieldScope program in the near future. Our wildflower and native plant area is underway through the efforts of our Garden Club, working with students from Clarksburg High School. As our school population and infrastructure have increased, another riparian buffer zone was recently added, giving our school two excellent ways to redirect water retention and outflow.
The involvement of our local community has been consistent throughout our time as a certified green school. We continue to receive support for field trips, such as our ESOL trip to Black Hills Regional Park from both outside and local funding sources. The Damascus Lions Club has been a key player in our coat recycling efforts, and in the production of rain barrels to benefit the Susan G. Kommen Breast Cancer Charity. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation helped sponsor several of our staff members through stipends to attend an environmental leadership program in the summer of 2012. The in-school chapter of the National Junior Honor Society has taken on the recycling of books and markers in an effort to lower landfill impacts. Our PTA generously donated funds to equip our school with portable 'classrooms' so that, weather permitting, no child needed be left inside.
There are more stories of giving, but none would be possible without the investment of the time and effort of the Rocky Hill Staff. It is to their tireless energy and belief in the 'Greening' of future generations to come that we dedicate this recertification effort.
Our Top 5 Proudest Achievements
Rocky Hill Middle School
1. The continuing environment-based professional development of our staff. Our principal successfully spearheaded efforts to establish a state-wide Principals Environmental Leadership Course, now a part of the CBF teaching curriculum
2. The combined efforts of our Environmental Science Club, The Leos Club, and our Sixth Grade Classes to continue our 5-year habitat restoration plan
3. Energy reduction and recycling increases led by staff and students. Our student SERT team has continued their efforts in this regard
4. Our partnerships with the community, especially the Damascus Lions Club, which helped fund projects ranging from recycling to rain barrel production
5. The Outdoor Environmental Education Program program for 6th grade students. A full staff and administration commitment to this program continues as we record a 98% student involvement rate. The students who attend have the opportunity to build on skills and knowledge shared in the classroom as they apply themselves in an authentic environmental learning environment
During the past 4 years, Rocky Hill Middle School has continued to make going green a way of learning and of life. Our local community has experienced much growth during this time frame, both in terms of construction, and of the infrastructure necessary to accommodate the added building.
Keeping our green mindset during this expansion has been a focus in classroom academics and throughout the building during our daily interactions - many of our students and staff have witnessed the conversion of rural green space surrounding the school to commercial and residential enterprise. The potential for learning, and the lessons inherent in this process have been utilized by our staff as our environmental curriculum is developed and modified.
This opportunity for recertification gives us pause to reflect on our past accomplishments and our goals for the future, as well as the on-going efforts at thinking and being green. We have built on the foundation established in 2009 and consider the following efforts to be indicative of the way students and staff meld thought and action into positive pro-active results.
Our 6th grade students continue to study habitats, adaptations, and the human interface through the "Museum" unit. They build on this knowledge with a unit called "Going Green" that blends local and national science standards with our school system's curriculum 2.0. They have spent time working collaboratively on a student service learning project which allows them the opportunity to recycle waste and reclaim habitat lost through development, and they continue to experience the environment first-hand at our outdoor environmental education facilities at Summit Lake and The L.E. Smith Environmental Education Center.
7th grade students are presented with the task of developing an alternative means of growing food to meet the needs of an increasing county population and limited available arable land. The hydroponic and aquaponic-based outcomes are their window to the world of the future of agriculture where problem solving skills and technology combine to lower environmental impact and increase crop yields. Biogenetics are included as part of the scope of this unit and a subsequent unit in an attempt to understand the role of modification and adaptation as plant meets environment.
Rocky Hill 8th graders practice environmentally friendly design by building model homes that utilize the surrounding habitat and geography. Their homes borrow from current design and alternative energy sources to create a potential template for future generations. Climate and cost effectiveness are considered, as are renewable building materials.
These learning explorations are reinforced during the day-to-day business of education and socialization. Rocky Hill continues to stress energy conservation and recycling. Our halls and communal spaces are filled with reminders to reuse and recycle and there continues to be an abundance of containers for specific types of recycling. We have celebrated our achievements locally and through county-wide awards through our SERT office and the Board of Education. Staff receives timely energy management directives and advice, and the use of task lighting has helped cool our building and has cut energy consumption in our computer labs. Our latest computer upgrade brought us lap tops to replace desktop units, saving more energy and money and enhancing portability and classroom access.
We continue to practice good environmental stewardship at Rocky Hill. The lessons learned through class explorations are put into practice on the grounds of the school as well. As part of our 5-year plan begun in the year 2008, we have planted more trees and kept our no mow areas intact. We continue to monitor the health of our school-side tributary of Great Seneca Creek and have plans to contribute to the National Geographic FieldScope program in the near future. Our wildflower and native plant area is underway through the efforts of our Garden Club, working with students from Clarksburg High School. As our school population and infrastructure have increased, another riparian buffer zone was recently added, giving our school two excellent ways to redirect water retention and outflow.
The involvement of our local community has been consistent throughout our time as a certified green school. We continue to receive support for field trips, such as our ESOL trip to Black Hills Regional Park from both outside and local funding sources. The Damascus Lions Club has been a key player in our coat recycling efforts, and in the production of rain barrels to benefit the Susan G. Kommen Breast Cancer Charity. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation helped sponsor several of our staff members through stipends to attend an environmental leadership program in the summer of 2012. The in-school chapter of the National Junior Honor Society has taken on the recycling of books and markers in an effort to lower landfill impacts. Our PTA generously donated funds to equip our school with portable 'classrooms' so that, weather permitting, no child needed be left inside.
There are more stories of giving, but none would be possible without the investment of the time and effort of the Rocky Hill Staff. It is to their tireless energy and belief in the 'Greening' of future generations to come that we dedicate this recertification effort.
Our Top 5 Proudest Achievements
Rocky Hill Middle School
1. The continuing environment-based professional development of our staff. Our principal successfully spearheaded efforts to establish a state-wide Principals Environmental Leadership Course, now a part of the CBF teaching curriculum
2. The combined efforts of our Environmental Science Club, The Leos Club, and our Sixth Grade Classes to continue our 5-year habitat restoration plan
3. Energy reduction and recycling increases led by staff and students. Our student SERT team has continued their efforts in this regard
4. Our partnerships with the community, especially the Damascus Lions Club, which helped fund projects ranging from recycling to rain barrel production
5. The Outdoor Environmental Education Program program for 6th grade students. A full staff and administration commitment to this program continues as we record a 98% student involvement rate. The students who attend have the opportunity to build on skills and knowledge shared in the classroom as they apply themselves in an authentic environmental learning environment