| Review |
 First Art Show
a Success Did you go to opening night of the art show? We did and it was great! The art show will be in the gym until December 16. Check it out! On opening night, December 4th, there was wonderful food and musicians. There were 80 entries from 65 participants. Approximately 200 people attended. We caught up with art teacher Miriam Cutelis (above) at the show and she said it only took about two hours to set up because there were so many volunteers. She was very happy with the show and said there was "amazing variety in the pieces."  Some of our favorites on display now are: "Pears," by Eileen Rose Reynolds -Collette, and "African Elephant" by Andrew Tam. One of Murch's younger artists, Duncan Kanach, drew a bear called "Time to Hibernate." 
The first Murch art show was definitely a success. It looked like everyone was having a great time on opening night. One of the artists, Johnny McInerney, said he had fun making the artwork and looks forward to doing it again. We hope there will be another art show next year!
-- Sophie McInerney, 3rd grade, and Julia Arnsberger, 3rd grade
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| Auction Party |
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| Auction |
 Bring It On...Donations!
Those curious little blue postcards that have been appearing in your child's Friday folders are a sign that the Murch Auction is getting closer -- March 6! The auction committee is in full swing, soliciting donations and planning the googolplex of details that make for a spectacular event. (It's not too early for parents to book a babysitter!)
The success of this crucial fundraiser depends on the generosity of the entire school and community. You probably have something-an item, a connection, a skill -- that could earn big bucks for Murch and help maintain our wonderful school.
Here are a few ideas for popular auction items that you might consider donating (or asking a friend or business to donate):
VACATION HOUSES -- Do you, friends, or family members have a beach house, winter cabin, time-share, New York apartment, boat, etc.? Every year these are among the most desirable items in our auction catalog. Please consider donating a week's stay at your prized getaway!
TRAVEL & HOSPITALITY-- If you have connections to the travel/hospitality industry, please consider asking for a weekend package or other amenities at a nice hotel, B&B, spa, cruise, museum, or tour.
MURCH TALENT - Everybody's good at something! Donate your time and talent as a personal service. This is a great way to publicize a service business or simply utilize your professional expertise or amateur skills for a good cause. In the past, Murch parents have turned their professional expertise or amateur skills into such great auction items as:
* Lessons & Tutorials - Knitting, music, fine art, calligraphy, photography, cooking....
* Consulting - Interior decorating, nonprofit fund-raising, landscaping design, party planning....
* Personal Services - Accounting, fine art, photography, writing, massage, personal training, guided tours, house painting...
FOOD, GLORIOUS FOOD - Calling all bakers, caterers, and amateur chefs. Make a meal for 6...Bake dessert for 10... Whatever your specialty, our auction goers will eat it up! Combine forces with a friend to cater a dinner party or brunch. Or become a personal bagel delivery service on the weekends.
SERVICES -- What is your favorite shop, hair salon, spa, summer camp, home repair service, mechanic, showroom, or other businesses in the area? Next time you're patronizing it, please consider asking the proprietors if they'd like to donate a gift certificate or advertise in the auction catalog (if they haven't already). It's easy and tax-deductible! SPORTS -- This especially means tickets-tickets-tickets! Redskins, Nats, Caps, Wizards, Georgetown, Yankees, Ravens, ACC teams, Big East. Would you or a season-ticket holder you know be willing to donate a few tickets? Or does your company have a box? These are highly popular items as are sports training sessions and camps for kids, new equipments, and memorabilia.
TICKETS - ... to movies, plays, concerts, performances, exhibitions, etc.
GIFT BASKETS -- Pick a theme and buy $100 worth of goodies to fill a gift basket. The auction committee will donate the actual basket and assemble them with a flourish. Possible themes include: Star Wars; Harry Potter; Breakfast in Bed; Pajama Party; Car/Travel Games; Holidays; DC Tourist; Middle School Survival Gear...or whatever your creative powers can come up with! These are a great time-efficient way for busy families to contribute a memorable and useful item. Note: Before plunging ahead, please consult with April Richards or 202-244-7014 to confirm your theme - and ensure that we don't end up with 20 Harry Potter baskets.
Remember: All donations are tax-deductible and are due by January 15. Contact auction chair Karissa Kovner or 202-237-7807 with your wonderful donations and ideas. |
| Student Council Minutes |
 School Store to
Open Dec. 11 At the Student Council's Dec. 4 meeting we discussed what to sell at the school store. We also considered selling used books. The grand opening will be Friday, Dec. 11, though the regular days of operation will be Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30 to 4 p.m. Next, we talked about possible gifts for the school. Some of our ideas were: energy-efficient light bulbs, pencil sharpeners, books for the library, goals for the soccer field, and fans for the classrooms. After a question session, the meeting was adjourned. --Justin Atwood, Student Council secretary, 4th grade |
| Open House |
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Check out Alice Deal Middle School
Current and prospective parents are invited to visit Alice Deal Middle School for these open houses.
Tuesday, December 15 9:30 am - 2:45 pm
Saturday, January 9, 2010 9 am - Noon
*Come visit classrooms and see why Deal is the highest performing middle school in the District
*Learn about exciting academic and extra curricular programs
*Sample advanced math offerings
*Try out World Language classes (Spanish, French, Chinese)
*See the results of Deal's work to establish an International Baccalaureate Middle Years program.
*Tour the newly modernized building
*Experience team teaching and the rigorous academic program first hand.
*See amazing students and teachers in action! For more information -- visit www.alicedeal.org Alice Deal Middle School, 3815 Fort Drive, NW, 939-2010 |
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Buddy Day
 The Real Deal
I attended Alice Deal Middle School Buddy Day with all the Murch fifth graders on November 18. My experience at Deal was great. The building is very large, with a new part and an old part. There are also a lot more students than at Murch -- a bit more than 900 students, I am told. Not all of the Deal students come from Murch, they also came from elementary schools such as Lafayette, Janney, and Shepherd Park.
First, a chorus in the cafeteria welcomed us. I think everyone was still nervous since Deal is a big school with a lot of different faces. After the chorus stopped, we received nametags that included our name, either an "N," "S," "E," or "W," and three numbers. The letters stood for North, South, East, and West wings. The numbers stood for the classroom number where our buddies were waiting. At Deal, the students are grouped into teams of about 100 students, and each team is named after a well-known location in the world. My buddy was in Team San Francisco, which is located in the West wing.
After that, I met my buddy who took me to the next class period. I went to English, science, and math classes. Overall, the teachers I saw were great and well organized.
Then we went to lunch, which is a lot earlier than it is at Murch. Lunch takes place at about 11 a.m. for the sixth grade. Students can buy lunch or bring it from home. Students even get to choose what to buy. I bought Doritos with beef and cheese. Also on the menu were fried chicken sandwiches and deli sandwiches.
After lunch the students go to recess on the patio or they can play basketball. After recess, it was back to class for only ten minutes, then all of us fifth graders reported to the gymnasium so we could go back to our school. The gymnasium was twice the size of Murch's gym. It had brand new basketball hoops and bleachers.
What a wonderful day!
--Lindsay Harper, 5th grade
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Share the Murch Mustang Express with your children!
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Volunteer
Parents are needed Jan 7, 19 and Feb 3 from 9:30 - 11:15 am to give tours to prospective Murch families. Contact Wendy Gualtieri |
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Shop for Murch
Start your holiday shopping at One Cause and raise money for Murch-- up to 20% of eligible purchases! (To register, our school's ID number is 120519.)This portal features a vast array of online retailers - Dell, LL Bean, Lands' End, Pottery Barn, Nordstrom, Shutterfly, and hundreds more. To maximize contributions, install the One Cause toolbar, which helps ensure that every eligible purchase counts, resulting in up to five times more contributions for our school. The toolbar will also alert you to merchant coupons and deals, and give Murch two cents for every eligible Yahoo search. And don't worry-- One Cause guarantees that the tool bar has no adware or spyware.
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Pre-K and Out-of-Boundary Lotteries
On January 28, 2010, the lottery application will become available on the DCPS Web site. The application must be completed online; no paper applications will be accepted. If you do not have Internet access, please call or visit the nearest DCPS school for assistance in submitting your application.
Information on requirements can be found here. |
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Sign Up |
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Join new Yahoo! HSA
Classifieds Group
In response to
the many requests for a way to post classified ads for the Murch community, the HSA has created a new online site. By joining the HSA Classifieds Yahoo! Group, you can see and post what is happening in the community -- garage sales, freebies, volunteer opportunities in the city, community events, nanny shares, etc. Please note, this is a separate endeavor from the Murch Forum and Mustang Express; you need to sign up separately to access the classifieds. This is a work in progress and we welcome your suggestions.
-- Alison Howard and Karin Perkins, HSA co-presidents
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Contributors Wanted
The Murch
Mustang Express
is looking for parents--and students!--to be reporters, editors, & photographers.
Contact Laura Kaiser or Catherine Cooney. |
| Got News? Comments? Contact us |
Copy deadline: Tuesdays at noon.
Editors: Laura Kaiser and Robin Schepper
Contributors: Julia Arnsberger, Justin Atwood, Lindsay Harper, Mike Heffner, Karissa Kovner, Sophie McInerney
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