Upcoming Dates  

Student & parent information

New: Pi Day at Deal 

Pi Day is celebrated on March 14th (3/14) around the world. Pi is the symbol used in mathematics to represent a constant - the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter - which is approximately 3.14159.  Pi has been calculated to over one trillion digits beyond its decimal point. As an irrational number, it will continue infinitely without repetition or pattern. Deal students will celebrate Pi Day in their math classes on Friday.  Additionally,  6th, 7th, and 8th graders should brush up on their memorization of the digits of pi for the Pi Recitation Contest. To qualify, students must be able to recite AT MINIMUM the first 20 digits of pi. Interested students should see Ms. Neal by the end of school on Wednesday. 

New: Briefing on Student Assignment & Boundary Review

Many people across the city are eager to learn more about the ongoing review of student assignment, school boundaries and feeder patterns.

The Deputy Mayor for Education ("DME") Abigail Smith has been conducting a briefing next Wednesday, March 12th, at Wilson High School. The purpose of the briefing is to answer questions and hear comments on the subject.  

The briefing takes place in the Wilson Auditorium (3950 Chesapeake Street, NW) at 7 pm on the 12th. Please enter through the doors to the theater wing on Chesapeake Street, NW. There is generally abundant parking on Chesapeake adjacent to the school at that hour.

In the meantime, should you wish to learn more in advance of the meeting, the DME website provides useful background information and links to the materials reviewed by the committee through January. For background information, see http://dme.dc.gov/book/student-assignment-and-school-boundaries-review-process and for the materials through January see http://dme.dc.gov/book/student-assignment-and-school-boundaries-review-process/advisory-committee-meeting-materials

New: March is Music in Our School Month!

This month, schools and communities around the country are participating in activities and initiatives to raise awareness of the benefits of learning music and the ways music empowers and enriches lives.

The music department has a variety of things planned, including special musical performances and workshops, weekly music challenges and daily music trivia. Students interested in participating in this week's music crossword puzzle should see Mr. Washington on Monday, March 10th. Students who complete the weekly challenges will receive special recognition and a prize on the Friday of each week!

Thank you to everyone who donated jeans--large and small, blue and other colors! As a school, we collected 887 pairs of jeans to be donated to local homeless shelters.

New: March Gladness

As you know, a small act of kindness can go a long way in brightening someone's day. Take a moment this week and plan how you will make someone smile. Spread gladness!

New: Vikings Compete @ "You Be the Chemist" 

Good luck to the group of Science Olympiad members who will be competing this week at the local "You Be the Chemist" challenge sponsored by the Chemical Education Foundation. Deal Vikings will face students from the area's private and charter schools in a quiz bowl format competition on Wednesday (March 12) evening at UDC. Go Vikings!

New: Deal Swim Team

Starting Thursday, March 13th, the Deal swim team will have three lanes from 3:30 - 4:30 at the Wilson Aquatics Center to continue to work on our strokes. This spring activity will be more of a stroke clinic than preparation for competitive dual meets with area schools. If interested, whether a returning swimmer or a new swimmer, email dealswimming@gmail.com with "Sign Up" in the subject line. You will only be able to swim with us once you have officially signed up.

New: 7th Grade Parents and World Language Trips! 

Any parent interested in having their student travel on next years (2015) 8th grade World Language trip either to France, Costa Rica or China in 2015 should come to an informational meeting at 6:00 pm on March 10th. We will discuss itineraries, pricing, and how to register. You can learn how to prepare for the trip and set up a payment plan at current trip rates (the cost of travel goes up as the departure date approaches). If you have any questions please contact Ms. Henderson at anna.henderson@dc.gov. We look forward to seeing you there!

New: Mathalicious

Students participating in Alice Deal's Mathalicious Club are building on their critical thinking and problem solving skills. In the club, we continually look at a variety of problems and situations and use mathematical questions to help lead us to finding solutions to the task at hand. There are so many different ways to answer questions and solve problems, it is the goal of Mathalicious to use math to create structure around the problem solving process. Come join us Wednesdays at 3:30! 

New: African Drumming

What an amazing first half of the year! We have come so far from our first meeting. From learning the proper way to play a djembe to learning all the different parts to pkanlogo - one of the traditional Ghanaian songs we have been relentlessly mastering. All members of the group have become master drummers and have begun the quest to learn and master more of the music of West Africa.

New: Staff vs Student Basketball Game

The Alice Deal Dream Team of faculty and staff will be taking on the students of Alice Deal Middle School in a winner-takes-all basketball game on Thursday, March 13, 2014. Come on down to gym at 3:30pm to support your team!

New: Deal Alum: I, Too, Am Harvard

Deal graduates go everywhere and everywhere they go they try to make the world a bit better. Deal alumna Kimiko Matsuda-Lawrence has been involved with a project at Harvard that everyone will appreciate. She is participating in a Tumblr that is part of a larger campus campaign that all started with a play she wrote as a sophomore. 

Matsuda-Lawrence and other members of the Kuumba Singers of Harvard College, Harvard's oldest existing black organization, came up with the idea last year around spring break. She conducted 40 interviews with black students on campus for an independent study last semester; those interviews are the basis of the play, called I, Too, Am Harvard, which premiered March 7th.

You can learn more about the project here: 

http://www.buzzfeed.com/alisonvingiano/21-black-harvard-students-share-their-experiences-through-a

Tryouts for girls soccer will take place on March 17th, 18th, and 19th. Parents/guardians of students trying out must complete and return the following forms to Coach Ngwa no later than March 12th:

- Consent for Athletic Participation

- Athlete data and Emergency Treatment Information

- District of Columbia Universal Health Certificate (current)

- Asthma Action Plan (if applicable)

Forms can be picked up from the coach in Room N111 (Cottage), from the Welcome Center, or downloaded from www.alicedeal.org under Student Activities (Athletics). Students will not be allowed to try out without these forms. Terence.Ngwa@gmail.com

Alice Deal Baseball Team

Coached by Nick Monaco and Tom Toggas

Practices will start the week of March 17th and will be after school until 5:00pm unless otherwise notified.

Participation forms can be picked up in the main office or printed from the school website www.alicedeal.org under student activities. Student will not be able to tryout without forms and students will NOT be permitted to try out at a later date. Please contact Coach Monaco (nicholas.monaco@dc.gov) with any questions. 

Spring Sports Coaches

Ultimate Frisbee - Ms. Kouri & Mr. Martini

Girls Soccer - Mr. Ngwa

Outdoor Track - Mr. Turner & Coach Downing

Lacrosse - Coach Downing

Softball - Ms. Spann

Baseball - Mr. Monaco

Student-athletes with later start times for practice are required to be in study hall until practice starts. With permission, students may work with other teachers as needed. Students must be under adult supervision at all times. 

Please ensure that your athlete has sufficient food for snacks or meals; individual teams may make arrangements for their students. Students are not allowed to leave school to travel for food in the neighborhood, nor are they allowed to ask others to do so.

Please speak with your child's coach if you have questions about any of these procedures.

This Week at Deal...

IB Learner Profile Students of the Month

Congratulations to the hardworking students who are featured on Student of the Month Bulletin Board outside of the Welcome Center. The IB Learner Profile represented this month is Principled. These students "act with integrity and honesty, with a strong sense of fairness and justice, and with respect for the dignity and rights of people everywhere. They take responsibility for their actions and their consequences."- IB definition

Timbuktu - Hugo Cornejo and Yirui Zhao

Rio - Ryan Cheney and Kaitlin Hunter

Sydney - Jahi Guise and Katherine Bouker

London - Madeleine Shapiro and Alexander Diaz-Lopez

Santiago - Aidan Ward and Destiny McPherson

Babylon - Robert Kovar and Evelyn Smyth

Dubai - Brenden Smith and Sarah Closser

Alexandria - Usha Hippensteil and Dasarath Kiridena

Mumbai - Chris Bond and Layla McEwen

Geneva - Abelina DeLeon and Nicholas Ortiz

Toronto - Josselin Hernandez and Jacob Rubin

Kiev - Nerissa Tunnessen and Boghdon Green

Eighth Grade Corner

8th grade students planning to attend Wilson High school please click on the following link for 

High School application deadlines are fast approaching!  

8th Grade Mock High School Interviews

If you plan to interview for high schools and would like practice and feedback, contact Ms. Redekopp in the library to schedule a mock interview.  They will be held during lunch periods and after school, and appointments last approximately 15 minutes.