Get SAT practice at Watkins Mill

Students can register with Deborah Prochnow in the Career Center. Along with their results, students will be provided with strategies for improving their scores on March 6. Parents are welcome to attend.

Share the love

Lakelands Park Middle Schoolers will boogie their hearts out Thursday to music provided by disc jockey ‘‘All in One” entertainment at a Valentine’s Day dance-a-thon on Thursday.

The event is hosted by the PTSA and GSA and is 3-5 p.m. at the school. Students are asked to bring a completed pledge card, indicating the amount a sponsor will pay them for dancing. All proceeds will benefit the Children’s Inn at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, said James Mullin, sixth-grade teacher and a GSA co-sponsor.

The nonprofit Children’s Inn is a residence for children under age 18 receiving care at NIH and their families. Students chose this organization because of its goals, which include keeping families together during serious illness and providing children and families with counseling and support as they heal.

Admission to the dance-a-thon is free and refreshments will be available for purchase. All grades are welcome, but only LPMS students are invited.

Congratulations

Evan Higgins, a senior at Watkins Mill High School, has been named a finalist in the National Achievement Scholarship Program. Higgins was among the 1,600 semifinalists nationwide vying for the $2,500 scholarship, which 700 students will win.

Step it up

The Watkins Mill High School Booster Club and the Montgomery Village Rotary Club are hosting a performance by the Capital Steps at 8 p.m. on Feb. 29 at Timothy O’Shea Theater at Watkins Mill High School, 10301 Apple Ridge Road, Gaithersburg. Tickets are $25.

The fundraiser will both benefit the high school’s instrumental program and help raise funds for a new electronic marquis to replace the current lettered sign outside the school at Watkins Mill Road and Apple Ridge Road.

To purchase tickets using a credit or debit card via PayPal, visit the Watkins Mill High School Web site, www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org⁄schools⁄watkinsmillhs or the booster club’s Web site www. wmhsboosterclub.com. Another way to buy tickets is to call Bob Anton, booster club president at 301-926-8095.

Cars, computer sale

The Montgomery County Students Automotive Trades and Information Technology Foundation Inc. students will hold a sale of student-refurbished cars and computers from 9 to 11 a.m. on Feb. 23 at Damascus High School, 25921 Ridge Road, Damascus. Snow date is March 1.

Maryland state inspected vehicles will be for sale for $2,000 and more and refurbished desktop computer systems will be for sale for $57-$159.

For more car information, contact Mike Snyder at 301-962-4810 or michael_c_snyder@mcpsmd.org or visit www.autocareers.org, where the list of vehicles and their sale prices will be posted. For more computer information, contact John Brewer at 301-929-6975 or john_n_brewer_iii@mcpsmd.org or visit www.itfcareers.org.

Share a short story

Maryland Public Television invites kindergarten through third graders to create and illustrate a short story for the 14th annual PBS ‘‘Reading Rainbow” writing contest. The contest encourages self-expression and discovery as children use their own words and pictures to create a storybook.

The contest runs through March 21. Entry forms and contest information are available at www.thinkport.org⁄FamilyCommunity⁄rr.tp. For more information, call 410 581-4246.

National prizes include a laptop computer, flat panel TV with DVD player and an MP3 player. All participants will receive a certificate signed by ‘‘Reading Rainbow” host LeVar Burton.

Reading Rainbow airs at 2 p.m. weekdays on Maryland Public Television. For more information on Maryland Public Television visit www.mpt.org.

NAACP scholarships

The Montgomery County branch of the NAACP will award five $1,000 scholarships to prospective college students residing in the county at the Freedom Fund dinner on April 27.

To apply for the award, students must fill out an application, available at school guidance offices, submit two references and a transcript, and write a 300-word essay that addresses the theme ‘‘Be a light in someone’s life.”

Eligible students must be high school seniors, maintain a 3.0 GPA, and participate in extracurricular or community activities.

Applications are due Feb. 21, and should be sent to George E. Bell, Carver Educational Services Center, Room 200, 850 Hungerford Drive, Rockville, MD, 20850.

Essay contest

Giant Food will celebrate Black History Month and Martin Luther King Jr. Day by sponsoring its second annual Martin Luther King Jr. Essay Contest, which will be open to all students in grades six to nine.

The contest invites students to address the question, ‘‘How can service to others make you great?” Each essay submission will be judged on the basis of originality, creativity and adherence to the essay topic.

One winner will be selected from every grade level and each winner will be awarded a $250 savings bond. Entry forms are available at all Giant stores and on its Web site. Entry forms and essays must be postmarked or received via e-mail by Feb. 15.

For more information, visit any local Giant or the company Web site at www.giantfood.com.

Got an hour?

Three Montgomery County non-profits, the George B. Thomas Learning Academy, Interages and Passion for Learning, are seeking volunteer tutors for the ‘‘Ruth Rales-Comcast Kids Reading Network Program.”

This one-on-one tutorial program, at 56 public schools, provides extra reading help to struggling second graders. Some of the elementary schools in need of volunteers include Brown Station, Gaithersburg, Rosemont and Summit Hall.

The weekly tutoring session may take place before, during or after school. Training and ongoing support, plus tutoring materials and books will be provided. Volunteers may select their top choices of school locations.

For more information and to find out how to volunteer, contact MCPS at 301-279-3890 or www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org⁄readingnetwork.

Student sought for board

The Montgomery College Board of Trustees is seeking a student board member to serve a one-year term from July 1 to June 30, 2009.

Applications are due Feb. 29.

The board is the governing body for Montgomery Collage, which has campuses in Germantown, Rockville and Takoma Park⁄Silver Spring.

Students should submit a letter of intent and a resume, along with supporting references and a telephone number, by e-mail to Fred S. Evans, chairman of the nominating committee, at fevans424@comcast.net.

For more information, call Arlean Graham at the Montgomery College Board of Trustees Office at 240-567-7120 or Fred Evans at 301-424-5169.

Send your School Notes by 10 a.m. Thursdays to Melissa A. Chadwick via e-mail at mchadwick@gazette.net, by fax to 301-670-7183 or by mail to 9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, MD 20877. Photos will also be considered.