UPCOMING DATES
June 4-8                 School Spirit Week
June 8                     Field Day
June 10                   Retirement party for Mrs. Timony and Ms. Walker, 3-5 pm

June 14                   Last day of school (1/2 day)

First, we want to thank Julia Porter and her crew of workers who pulled off a record-breaking Rummage Sale last weekend. We raised $6,300 this year! Thank you for all your tireless work – it was a great job.

We hope everyone has had a chance to return the Principal Selection Ballot, which was due back today. Parent Reps will be announced by Monday. You have until the end of Friday to also turn in proposed questions for use in the interviews. Please submit any questions to MurchPrincipal@gmail.com.

Please mark your calendars for School Spirit Week, which will be June 4-8. Fun activities for the kids are planned for each day.

Maui Monday – dress in Hawaiian garb
Twin/Triplet Tuesday – make plans to dress the same as your friends
Wacky Wednesday – wear any zany outfit you want
Topper Thursday – enjoy a one-day suspension of the no-hats inside rule. Pull out your craziest hat for the occasion.
Friday Blue & Gold Day – wear your Murch t-shirt or anything blue and gold.
Field Day also is held on Friday. There are races and other fun events planned. Parent volunteers are welcome.

Don’t forget, this is a three-day weekend. Enjoy the start of summer and we’ll see you on Tuesday.

Michelle Cochran                                                 Martha Saccocio
MichelleCochran@starpower.net                     MarthaNS@aol.com

Principal’s Corner by Carolyne Albert-Garvey

In the past week I have received many, many cards, emails, letters and phone calls from members of the Murch community. Your outpouring of support and appreciation has been overwhelming. Thank you all.

Please know that my decision to leave Murch was a very difficult one and not without regrets. I can assure you that wherever I go and whatever I do, I will always remember my time at Murch with satisfaction and an appreciation for the power of community spirit. As a community, we accomplished many things in a very short time. Teachers have worked hard to implement Writers Workshop and Responsive Classroom. The HSA raised a record amount of money to support academic programs and to provide instructional services. Together, we can be proud of these accomplishments and of the foundation that has been laid for the future. I want to thank you for your sustaining help and support, individually and as a community. You and your children will always be in my thoughts.

Message from our librarian – Mr. Webber.The last day for checking out books in the library will be Friday, May 25. The following week I will give each teacher a list of students with books still out. Hopefully, we will not go into the last few days of school with lots of books still out. I’d love to see all the new books we received this year on the shelf when school begins next year! Parents will be asked to pay for or replace any book not returned.
I will –
1) do a thorough shelf check for books any student claims has been returned
2) be flexible regarding replacements (i.e. They won’t have to be brand new, and don’t necessarily need to be the exact same book).  

Join DC Public Library's Summer Reading Quest Program. Registration begins Friday, June 1. All ages can join and will be given a reading log passport. Children keep a list of books they read or have read to them and report the title to the librarians. There are 3 Trip Coupons to be turned in for prizes. Come to the Chevy Chase Library at 5625 Connecticut Avenue, NW or the Tenley Interim Library at 4200 Wisconsin Avenue, NW to register.

AP Link by Marcia Jackson

As this fantastic school year comes to a close and we begin planning for an exciting new school year, many of you took the time to provide us with valuable information regarding your child’s academic and social needs. We want to thank each of you who submitted details about your child that will assist us in making decisions about your child’s class placement for the 2007-08 school year.

The administrative team is currently meeting with each grade level team of teachers before teachers leave for the summer to gather data and to discuss the most appropriate class placement for each student. We will also consider the descriptive social and academic information that individual parents submitted for their students. The class placement process requires that we consider several additional factors when placing students. As stated in the previous letter sent home to parents, we consider the following:

1. –an even gender and racial balance
2. –a full range of aptitudes within each class
3. –an even proportion of abilities and learning styles across classes at each grade   level
4. –an equal number of students in each class on a grade level

There are a variety of things that can occur over the summer that can have an effect on class placements (i.e., new students can enroll in our school or students can withdraw from our school.) Therefore, we will notify parents of their child’s class placement by letter before the first week of school. At that time, we will have a more accurate enrollment count. 

Please remember that official DCPS enrollment begins July 16, 2006. Each parent must come in over the summer and enroll their student(s), and each parent must bring in the proper documentation verifying DC residency. We would like to encourage parents to come sooner rather than later, as this will help us expedite the enrollment process and give us adequate time to consider all factors when determining class placements. Let’s have a wonderful end of the year and a perfect and delightful summer!

Third graders continue to work hard and enjoy learning. We loved writing and sharing our realistic fiction stories and will culminate the Writers Workshop year with memoir writing. We’re also reading and writing poetry, and studying folktales and fables. In Math we continue to practice our multiplication and division facts and are excited about learning partial products and lattice multiplication. In Science we will be classifying plants and animals according to physical characteristics and in Social Studies we end the year with a study of the DC Government. It’s been a great and productive year!

Georgia Stockdale Art Lessons for Adults! How about trying some ART this summer? Indulge yourself in the basics of landscape painting. Learn to work from photographs and on-site locations to interpret the shapes and forms you see into wonderful landscape compositions. We will work in pastel, oil pastel, charcoal and conte crayon. Fri., Sat. and Sun., July 13, 14 and 15....9 –12 pm. Beginners welcome....adults only. Contact Georgia at georgiastockdale@yahoo.com

Piano teacher available. Summer is a great time to take on a new venture without all the usual pressures hanging around! Want to learn keyboard/ piano and have fun at the same time? In your home? Yes, it is possible! All styles (classical, pop, jazz, etc.) and to all ages (yes, adults too). References available. Call Georgia Hughes @ 545.9080.

The Uptown Babysitting Co-op is a neighborhood institution established in 2002. We are now accepting applications for new members. Member families socialize frequently, get to know each other, and watch each others’ kids in exchange for points. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Cheryl Fox at cher333@rcn.com.

Need summer babysitting? My name is Giang Nguyen and I’m 16 years old. I have experience babysitting my nine-year-old brother, who has attended Murch since he was four. I am currently available in the summer to babysit all days from June 15 to July 4. If you need help, please contact me at gianguyen90@gmail.com.

LOST BACKPACK. Our son left his backpack on the playground last Wednesday. It is black with a grey panel on the front. It contains his soccer gear – cleats, goalie gloves, and shin guards. Most importantly, it had his brand new and very expensive prescription sports goggles in it. If found, please contact Ken Thomas at 363.9373 or anniemacosta@msn.com.

House/dog/cat/garden sitter wanted. June 14 – July 3. Lovely home just off 16th Street, 4 miles from downtown (near Carter Baron amphitheater), air-conditioned, cook’s kitchen, Front porch and back deck with gas BBQ grill, 2 great dogs who need two walks per day, 2 great cats, need little but love. Front garden will need watering every 2 days (sprinkler is set up). Back porch pots and garden veggies will need water 2-3 times a week, with lots of tomatoes just off the vine should be ready for picking (and eating!). High-speed internet access. Full use of car (Subaru Forrester). Fully stocked refrigerator and freezer. Fully stocked wine supply :) and a nice welcome and parting gift...:) Please let me know if you might be interested or know anyone who is. Janet Riessman at jriessman@yahoo.com or 726.7969
Chincoteague Is. beach house available for rent. Charming 3BR, spacious house with cable TV, DVD player, fully equipped kitchen, AC, Weber grill, highchair and crib. Enjoy the famous wild ponies of Assateague, beaching, biking, crabbing, fishing, kayaking, and exploring the cute shops, restaurants, and art deco movie theatre of Chincoteague. Call Debra at 363.5210.
Camp  Fire and Baseball. The Murch Camp Fire USA Club would like to invite members and friends of the Murch Community to CAMP FIRE DAY at the baseball park with the Bowie Baysox on Sunday, August 26, in Bowie, MD. The  BaySox are a AA team affiliated with the Baltimore Orioles and the park has a  carousel, moon bounce and plenty of fun for all ages. We’ll even meet  Louie the mascot! Flag Ceremony is 1:15 pm and the game begins at 2:05 pm against the Erie (PA) Seawolves. Carefirst plans to distribute hats. This is a great way to end your summer since school starts the next day! Tickets are for General Admission and cost $9 for adults and $6  for kids ages 6-12. Kids under 5 are free, but need a ticket if they are  ages 2-5. Meal vouchers for hot dog and hamburger meals are available. Come join us for a fun afternoon! Contact Eileen Kane at  Ekane98@aol.com or 686.4152 for an order form.  Forms on the HSA  table too.

 Si usted llegara o necesita alguna ayuda para traducir algo al espanol contacteme. Sara Villeda: telefono 202.244.7493/email savll@aol.com