Welcome to this edition of The Westminster Weekly, where you will learn about what's been happening recently at Westminster School! We welcome story suggestions from parents, students, teachers, and alumni. Please email your news to
Mrs. Nancy Schuler
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Mark Your Calendars
Upcoming Events
December 22-January 6
Winter Break
Camp Griffin!
December 26-28 & 31
January 2-4
(See details and Register below)
January 7
School Resumes
January 9
Staff Meeting
No After-School Activities
(except Enrichment)
January 11
FUN LUNCH
Headmaster's Talent Show
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Builders Club Spreads Holiday Spirit and Cheer
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The “Meals for Young Minds Program” was started by the Fairfax Kiwanis Club when it was brought to their attention that children in the Fairfax County Public School System did not have adequate food to eat at home over the weekends. The idea was very simple. The members of the club would provide bags of food for children to take home over the weekend. The food would be put in a 2.5 gallon ziplock bag (two breakfast foods, two lunches, two dinners, and various snacks), then taken to schools with large populations of children being served with free- and reduced-lunch programs. The meals are distributed to classroom teachers who then put the bags into the children’s book bags when the students are not in the classroom.
Some Westminster students continue to donate to this program even after they graduate from Westminster School. In a given month, Westminster averages a donation of over 120 meals to this worthwhile cause.
Dr. Jerry Rich and his wife Shirley are our partners at Fairfax Kiwanis for this program. They pick up the meals and deliver them to the schools. With the money raised from the White House Ornament sales, our club has also donated $1,000 for each of the last three years so that children are provided with meals during the winter break. This program allows our students to help other children, which is what makes it particularly special.
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The Builders Club also recently made their annual visit to Leewood Nursing Home to carol for the residents. This year, they made an additional visit to a new facility located right down the road, Brightview Woodburn. One of our 7th graders, Trevor Klein, has a grandfather living there. Mr. Sheller is a wonderful supporter of all things Westminster, and it was so nice for the children to visit with him there. Thank you to Builders Club Sponsor, Mr. Miller, and to all of the members for the gift of cheer and holiday spirit.
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Kindergarten Celebrates the Seasons of Light
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In social studies, the kindergartners have been learning about various winter solstice holidays, including Christmas, Hanukkah, Diwali, Lunar New Year, and Kwanzaa. As a culmination of these studies, the kindergartners recently attended the Discovery Theater's
Seasons of Light
, a play which explores these world holidays. Some Westminster students were invited on stage to participate in the performance! Kindergartners Abigail, Kathleen, Raymond, and Ruth, helped enact scenes depicting many of the holidays the children have been learning about in class, along with some new holidays they learned about during the show. Students and teachers alike enjoyed delving into the reason for the season. Thank you to Miss Dalby for arranging this special experience for the children.
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8th Grade Sees
Antony and Cleopatra
at Mosaic
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The eighth-graders recently attended a National Theatre Live production of Shakespeare's
Antony and Cleopatra
. The play was broadcast directly to the Angelika Film Center at the Mosaic, where the students were able to watch it live.
The students were impressed by the live snake, symbolic costume design, and soulful acting, along with the historical importance and intricate plot of Shakespeare's play. Several proclaimed Cleopatra "the greatest character" and loved her dramatic personality. Overall, it was a fabulous trip, and the movie theater employees commented on how very stylish and well-dressed our students were! Thank you to Mrs. Le Moigne for arranging this trip for the students!
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7th Grade Visits the National Gallery
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In history class, the seventh-graders have been immersed in learning about the Renaissance period, and this trip
National Gallery of the Art
added visual components to their studies.
Enthroned Madonna and Child, The Annunciation, Lorenzo de’ Medici, Ginevra
and other artworks were covered during the tour, and the docents were very complimentary of the students' knowledge and behavior.
The group also enjoyed a relaxing lunch break in the NGA cafeteria. Afterwards, the class went straight to the East wing to view modern/contemporary art. One of the students' favorite pieces was
Lick and Lather
by the Bahamian artist Janine Antoni. Many students voiced observations about the artwork, such as "Her self-portraits reflect our own insecurities" and "Licking her face with her tongue, then washing it again with a soap she created, is contradictory." Many more interesting comments were made by the students, which pleasantly surprised the docents. Thank you to Mrs. Ahn and Mrs. Jacobson for arranging this meaningful trip for the students!
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Performance at VA Hospital Center
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Members of the Westminster Orchestra, and the Gryphon Chorale, performed at the Virginia Hospital Center staff holiday luncheon last Friday afternoon. Westminster has partnered with VHC in many ways over the last few years and this is a very enjoyable example. The students were treated to lunch and dessert and had fun with the photo booth during their break. Thank you to Mr. Locke and Ms. Crespo for preparing the students and accompanying Mrs. Schuler on this trip, and thanks to the students who gave up class time for this performance.
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Members of the Class of 1993 Catch Up
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Daniel Ferreira stopped by recently to visit the school and show his daughter around. Daniel was "quite a rascal" when he was a boy and was a regular recipient of detentions (now called redirections). He was and is, however, a dear, kind person and he's always held a special place in his heart for Mrs. Goll, Mr. Glover, and Westminster School.
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After visiting the school, Daniel got together with some of his buddies from the Class of 1993. How wonderful to see that these friends are still connected after so many years. And look at all those little ones! Let's get them all enrolled at Westminster! From left to right: Jeffrey Sarmiento, Daniel, Aaron Borkenhagen, and Gabriel Frey.
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Give Your Child the Gift of Camp
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It's not too late to sign up for Winter Camp at Camp Griffin!
Sign up for
one day or all seven!
December 26--Color Me Crazy!
December 27--Extraterrestrial Explorers
December 28--Pajama Party
December 31--S'More Camping
January 2--Baking with Chef
January 3--Griffin Games
January 4--Splash!
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ef·fer·ves·cent
/ˌefərˈves(ə)nt/
adjective
adjective:
effervescent
- (of a liquid) giving off bubbles; fizzy.
- vivacious and enthusiastic."effervescent young people"
synonyms: fizzy, sparkling, carbonated, aerated, gassy, bubbly, "an effervescent drink"
antonyms: flat, still
Origin
:
late 17th century: from Latin
effervescent-
"boiling up," from the verb
effervescere
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Food for Thought
This week, we share a post from NPR. Their educational team surveyed teachers asking them to share stories of their most memorable gifts from students. They received over 800 responses.
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Westminster School | 703-256-3620
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