October 13, 2023 YHS Weekly Newsletter

Good Afternoon Patriot Families,

Spirit week has been exciting at Yorktown and we are looking forward to Homecoming events this weekend! We want to encourage parents to make a plan with your children to have a safe homecoming weekend. We encourage you to emphasize that there are no alcohol or drugs allowed at sporting events or the dance, as well as making a plan for safe and prompt return home after events. Students found under the influence will be sent home with parents. School Safety Coordinators will be present as well as administrators and chaperones to monitor students. Together we can make sure students have an enjoyable and safe homecoming weekend.

We also want to acknowledge that the recent terrorist acts and war in the middle east are impacting members of our community. Our counseling team is available for students who need support. There have also been cautions to families about the impact of graphic and violent social media images and videos. Given the proliferation of disturbing content on social media, we encourage you to communicate with your kids about its impact and whether staying off social media for the time being may be beneficial. For more resources for speaking with students about what is happening, please visit the APS Resources and Supports for Students on Recent World Events.

Have a great weekend!

Dr. Kevin Clark, Principal

In this message:

• What’s Happening at Yorktown
• Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
• Counseling
• Activities Updates
• Senior Updates
• Technology Corner
• Upcoming Dates

WHAT’S HAPPENING AT YORKTOWN

Homecoming Football and Dance Information

The Homecoming football game will be tonight at 7 pm against Langley. Come cheer on the Football Team, Cheer Team, Dance Team, Color Guard and Marching Band! We also have our Activities walk at 6:30 starting at the Rock and highlighting our many amazing clubs.

The Homecoming Dance is Saturday night, October 14 from 8-11 pm in the gym.  Tickets will be available online until we reach capacity. All YHS students will need to show their StudentVue or student ID at the entrance to the dance.  Guests will need to produce a form of identification to match the guest pass.

This Week’s Advisory Plan

Students will participate in the following lessons next week. We are continuing our focus on the “Self-Awareness” CASEL competency.

• Tuesday (10/17)
  • 9th, 10th, and 11th Grade Advisories: Naviance Learning Inventories.
    • 9th and 10th Grade: “Learning and Productivity”: Students will discover their environmental, sensory, and mindset preferences to help develop their study practices
    • 11th Grade: “Career Cluster Finder”: Students will explore their interests  and discover career clusters. We’ll have an in depth lesson to help students explore careers and potential colleges and majors in the spring.
  • 12th Grade: Senior Circle Check In
  • 12th Grade: Senior Help sessions in cafeteria for certain Patriot Period classes

• Thursday (10/19): 
  • Academic Check-In Meetings
  • Senior Meeting

Upcoming Yorktown Choir Concert

The first choir concert of the year is on Tuesday October 17th at 7pm in the Auditorium.

DIVERSITY, EQUITY & INCLUSION

John M. Langston Community Outreach Day This Saturday!

If weather permits, this Saturday, October 14th, come visit with the Halls Hill – High View Park Historic Preservation Committee Community Outreach Day! Download the Walking Tour Brochure at this link.

Walking Tour Stops

• Segregation Wall – 17th and Culpeper Streets
• Langston School – 2121 N Culpeper Street
• Fire Station 8 – Blue House on N. Culpeper behind the construction
• Calloway Church – 5000 Langston Boulevard
• Mt. Salvation Baptist Church – 1961 N. Culpeper St
• Welcoming Area – Langston Boulevard and Cameron Street

Tour Guides will begin presentations at 12:00, 12:20, 12:40, 1:00, 1:20 and 1:40p. You can start the tour at any stop and move to the next at your own pace.LGBTQ+ History MonthThe month of October is

LGBTQ+ History Month!

This observance was created by a Missouri history teacher in 1994 and is currently recognized by the National Education Association. LGBTQ+ History Month is a time to acknowledge, celebrate, and center the histories and experiences of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer community.

Thursday, October 19 is Spirit Day!  Students can wear purple to show solidarity with LGBTQ+ youth.  Spirit Day is an anti-bullying movement aimed at supporting youth living their lives in authenticity and truth.  Learn more about the movement here: glaad.org/spiritday/

Unity Day – National Bullying Prevention Month

Unity Day is typically held on either the third or fourth Wednesday of National Bullying Prevention Month in October.  This year, it will be celebrated on Wednesday, October 18.  The goal of the day is to bring together youth, parents, educators, businesses, and community members across the nation to emphasize the message that bullying is not acceptable and that all students deserve to be safe in school, online, and in the community.  Students can wear orange to show that you support creating and maintaining a safe, supportive school community that is free from bullying.

COUNSELING

Parenting a Child in the Age of Anxiety:  Counterintuitive, but Effective Strategies

Earlier this week, APS Student Services staff listened to this presentation, and felt the information was relevant and practical strategies were offered.  Now parents have the opportunity to hear from Dr. Dalton, a clinical psychologist, whom many consider to be one of the leading specialists in treating anxiety in the DMV area. Use this link to register for the session

When: Monday, October 16: 7pm to 8:30pm

Where: Virtual session via Zoom

In this presentation, Dr. Dalton will focus on practical, yet sometimes counter-intuitive evidence-based skills and techniques to help their children and teens experience less anxiety and develop greater tolerance for emotional distress. Specific topics include why anxiety and avoidance are teammates, how to teach specific coping skills to your children, which types of positive reinforcement should be used to decrease anxiety, and when active ignoring of anxious behavior is the best method to decrease the child’s experience of anxiety. View event flier

College/Career Application Help for Seniors

Counselors of seniors will be in the College and Career Office during lunches to assist seniors with applications, or anything else related to graduation and beyond.  Students may drop in during their lunch as needed.  Also, over the course of the next month, specific senior Patriot Period classes will be invited to the cafeteria on Tuesdays and Thursdays for assistance with post-graduate plans and college application processes.

Signs of Suicide Lessons and Screener for 10th Graders

This year, school staff are working to teach students about mental health and how to seek help if they are worried about themselves or a friend. We are using a program called Signs of Suicide (SOS). The program teaches students about this difficult topic and encourages them to seek help. SOS has been used by thousands of schools for over 20 years. Studies have shown that it effectively teaches students about depression and suicide while reducing the number of students’ self-reported suicide attempts. Through the program, students learn:

• that depression is treatable, so they are encouraged to seek help
• how to identify depression and potential suicide risk in themselves or a friend
• to ACT (Acknowledge, Care and Tell a trusted adult) if concerned about themselves or a friend
• who they can turn to at school for help

On October 23rd & 24th, 10th grade students will watch age-appropriate video clips and participate in a guided discussion about depression, suicide, and what to do if they are concerned about a friend. Following the video, students will complete a brief depression screening form. This form cannot provide a diagnosis of depression but does indicate whether a young person should seek help from a mental health professional.

At the end of class, students will complete an exit slip which asks whether they would like to talk to an adult about any concerns. School staff will conduct brief meetings with any student asking to talk.

We encourage you to visit www.mindwise.org/parents for information on warning signs for youth suicide, useful resources, and some of the key messages students will learn. We are including:

• A youth suicide prevention handout

• Visit the 988 website for more information: English.

If you have any questions or concerns about your child’s participation in this program please contact Johanna Boyers, Director of Counseling, or any of our school counselors. If you do NOT wish for your child to participate in this program, please fill out the following opt-out form: SOS Opt-Out.

ACTIVITIES UPDATES

Homecoming Football Game Information

Rules for Attending Athletic Events:

• Only students from the participating schools are allowed admission without a parent or guardian.
• School IDs or StudentVUE will be checked at the gate.
• Any students in 8th grade or younger must be accompanied by an adult for admission to any Arlington high school sporting event. The adult accompanying the student needs to be in attendance as a point of contact for the duration of the event. This allows APS staff to respond appropriately if issues arise among younger students who are unfamiliar to high school staff, and can help ensure a safe environment for students and families who are there to enjoy the game.
• No backpacks or bags are allowed and no outside food or beverages can be brought into any games.
• No alcohol or drugs allowed, students found under the influence will be sent home with parents. School and extracurricular consequences will be applied for code of conduct infractions.

Congratulations Marching Band, Color Guard, Drum Line

Congratulations to our Marching Patriots for placing 3rd at the JMU Parade of Champions and especially to our guard and percussion sections who took honors as best in the class.

Upcoming Home Games

Where to find Athletics Information

Athletic Website – www.yorktownsports.org

Athletic Twitter/X – @yhssports

Athletic Instagram – @yhssports

Athletic Specific Sport Information – www.teamapp.com

Athletic Registration – https://yorktownhs-ar.rschooltoday.com/

Winter and Spring Sports

For your planning purposes, winter sports (basketball, gymnastics, swim/dive, wrestling, cheerleading, rifle team, indoor track) begin on November 6th and crew winter training begins on November 16th.  Parents must complete the online Registration and upload their child’s physical form by November 1st.

Spring sports (baseball, softball, soccer, lacrosse, tennis, outdoor track, crew) begin on February 19th.  Parents must complete the online Registration and upload their child’s physical form by February 14th .

Please note, tryouts and practices will be held on school holidays such as Grade Preparation Day (Nov. 7th), Veterans Day (Nov. 10th), and Presidents’ Day (February 19th).  Students can join www.teamapp.com for specific off-season and tryout information on winter and spring sports, which will be posted as it becomes available.

Please make sure to register on the new athletic registration site before attending any off-season activities or tryouts (see information above).

SENIOR UPDATES

Be sure to bookmark the Seniors website, which is linked on the Yorktown HS home page under Quicklinks and loaded with information for senior year.

Senior Class Meeting

There will be a Senior Class meeting on Thursday, October 19, during Patriot Period in the auditorium. Along with Senior year topics, the Senior Experience program will be discussed and Caps & Gowns ordered.

Senior Portraits

The final portrait session on site will be November 30-December 1. After this time, Seniors will need to self-schedule an appointment at one of the Studio locations in Hanover or Rockville. Be sure to submit your pose to the Yearbook within a week from your sitting. If you do not receive an appointment postcard in the mail, call 855-918-2930 to schedule.

Senior Portrait Gallery

Senior portraits taken in the June and August sessions have been hung in the main hallway Senior Portrait Gallery. If your picture is not up, please see Ms. Stotler in the Activities Office. Portraits taken during the September session will be hung after they are received from Lifetouch.

TECHNOLOGY CORNER

Technical Support for Student Computers

Students have access to technical support during the school day for computer issues. For anything pertaining to internet access, applications, or My Access (including getting your password reset for My Access) students can see our ITC, Ms. Cordero, in room 287. She will see students any time with a pass.  Students can seek assistance for hardware issues such as not being able to log in to your computer, the screen not working, computer not turning on, charger replacements, etc., from Mr. Wilson in room 235A during Patriot Period, or A, B, and C lunches.

UPCOMING DATES

See YHS Calendar for more information

• November 6th – End of 1st Quarter
• November 7th – No School for Students – Grade Preparation Day