Administration

Congratulations Murdock!!!

As of noon today Murdock Elementary was named as a 2007 Georgia School of Excellence!!! Way to go Murdock!!! The following is an excerpt from a press release that can be found on the Georgia Department of Education website:(http://gadoe.org) November 30, 2007 - State Superintendent of Schools Kathy Cox named 23 Georgia Schools of Excellence on Student Achievement this morning. Superintendent Cox announced the winning schools at a speech at the Georgia School Boards Association/Georgia School Superintendents Association Annual Conference. "These schools are the best of the best," said State Superintendent of Schools Kathy Cox. "The teachers, students, parents and staff at these 23 schools are focused and determined and they are getting the job done. Congratulations to everyone who works for and supports our Georgia Schools of Excellence." For more detailed information, click on the link to read all of the wonderful news associated with receving such a tremendous honor.

This is a tremendous accomplishment that could not have occurred without the hard work and dedication of ALL of our students, parents and staff. As 2007 comes to a close we want to thank each of you for your hard work and commitment to Murdock.  We are proud to be a part of such a wonderful community.

Looking ahead:

• We will again be offering our Holiday Reading Challenge over winter vacation.  This is a school-wide initiative to keep students reading in order to improve learning over a long break.  Each grade level will be setting a goal for their students and, of course, there will be a surprise for all at the end!!
• The Online CRCT Assessment is now available. Look for an orange flier to come home with your child's login information and test taking directions. Teachers are currently working together to develop grade specific tests and these should be available in the near future.

    One final thought: As busy and harried as some days may be, take time out to cherish the short time that your child is young.  They grow up so fast! 

10 Ways to let your Child Know How Much You LOVE them!

1. Spend a little time each day playing entirely at your child's direction.

2. Exchange nose-to-nose Eskimo kisses.

3. Run fingers through their hair.

4. Send an encouraging note with your child's lunch.

5. Talk in the car on the way to school instead of listening to the radio.

6. Take a long walk together, at your child's pace.

7. Read the funny pages together.

8. Use magnetic letters to put loving messages on the fridge.

9. Develop a secret gesture only the two of you know the meaning of.

10. Say it. Just say it!!!!!!!

Welcome back!

Dear Murdock Parents and Students,

After 2 years of construction, the 2007-2008 school year brings us… EXTREME MAKEOVER-Murdock Edition!  We are so proud of our 39,000 square foot addition.  If you haven’t seen our new kindergarten class rooms, fine arts suite, science lab and state of the art computer labs, come take a peek. Our school also received over 300 BRAND NEW desktops and laptops through a combined effort of Splost II and the ROWS project (Refresh Obsolete Work Stations). Our beautiful building, joyful learners and dedicated and talented teachers make Murdock the BEST SCHOOL in Cobb County (and probably around the globe!)

Our mission and promise to you is “to create lifelong learners by establishing a balanced foundation based on character, creativity and achievement”.  Our mission is shared by the leaders of the Cobb County School District in the values of safety, civility, maximum learning for all, and effective and efficient use of resources.  We are guided by these principles with every decision we make at Murdock Elementary.  We are clearly focused on our school goals of written communication, mathematics achievement and school collaboration.

We are always more successful with parental and community involvement. There are many volunteer opportunities through PTA and our Murdock Elementary School Foundation (MESF).  WE WANT YOU!  Research tells us “When families become involved in their children’s education, students, schools, and communities all benefit because strong home-school partnerships help all stakeholders focus on the real issue of high student achievement (Caplan, 2000). Please don’t hesitate to ask how you can help!

As always, we are looking forward to a school year filled with excitement and success!

Sincerely,

Natalie Richman, Principal
Vicki Stasiak, Assistant Principal

We

While many of our thoughts are far away to summer fun-filled activities, we would like to remind students that learning continues to go on for three more week here at Murdock! We (teachers, administration, and students) will be on our best behavior. Even though it's difficult with day light saving time, baseball, soccer, and dance recitals schedules, it's important to remember that regular bed times are important.

It is our wish that all Murdock family and friends have a wonderful, relaxing summer to recoup and regroup for the next school year. We look forward to seeing everyone on August 13, 2007.

P.S. Don' t forget how important it is to keep the kids reading and doing math during the summer. The summer Cobb library program, websites given by the teachers during the school year, and local bookstores are sources for reading programs and math ideas.

Updates here at Murdock:

May 9th is field day for grades K-2. 

May 9th our 5th grade goes to the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. It is also Spirit Day/ Skating Party/ Pizza Night.

May 10th field day for grades 3-5.

May 11th is the Volunteer Tea. Please plan to attend 9-11 a.m. It is Murdock's time to honor and thank each and every parent who has volunteered and helped to make Murdock the awesome school it is today.

May 11th is also the day to return all library books are due.

May 18th is our school-wide Celebration Day on the track. Grades 1, 2, and 3 at 12:45-1:15 p.m. and Grades K, 4, and 5 1:20-1:50 p.m. Students are to bring bubbles, wear class T-shirt and have fun!

March Math Madness!

Gosh! Where has the time gone? It's already March and April will be coming upon us very soon.

If you didn't get to attend the Gala on March 3rd, let me tell you what a wonderful time everyone had. The atmosphere was elegant and the company of all the parents and staff was heartfelt. The committee chairpersons and committee members did an outstanding job in raising money for our students. I heard that we will be able to purchase 9 more Smartboards and a number of other items for our classrooms next year. Thank you for all who were able to attend and support it and we all hope more of the parents can come next year because we missed you!

Murphy the Mustang has been very busy supplying math exemplars to the classrooms. The classrooms with the most solved problems will will a prize. Natalie, Lori, and I love this approach to encouraging our school to get excited about math and learn that it's okay to be challenged.

The PTA helped celebrated Staff Appreciation week with student activities to honor their classroom teacher. This was such a nice way to honor our hard working and dedicated staff. Thank you on behalf of all of our teachers.

Spring break (April 2-8) is fast approaching. Natalie, Lori, and I wish you a safe and happy break. Our students and teachers really deserve this respite!

Please keep on practicing the CRCT on-line tests. The more familiar the students are of the procedures and routines the more comfortable they will be when taking the test. We want to eliminate test anxiety!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

We can't believe it! How did the month of February come so soon?  We've all been so busy with Technology Night and the Art Show. If you didn't get the opportunity to come, please set a date for next year. It really was a lot of fun learning about what's taking place in our classrooms. A special thanks to all the presenters and grade level teachers for planning the presentations.

The Art Show was a success! It remarkable what our students are creating. A special thanks to Mrs. Reed for hosting this event and aiding the students in making their art piece. We were fortunate to be able to purchase some of the student art work for our school. Be sure to look for it in the foyer and other spaces within our school.

Smile!! Our Spring Picture Day is February 13th. Individual and classroom pictures will be taken. The nice thing about having school pictures taken are the memories that linger and make us laugh later on in life.

Our 4th and 5th grade students will be fortunate enough to hear a NASA presentation on February 14th. Lori Beck, our ALT, invited a scientist who creates the astronauts space suits to show and tell our students about them. It should be an exciting time.

Murdock is hosting the viewing of the final two Math Adoption series. Come in and see them!

Don't forget that the school will be closed Monday the 19th for President's Day. Students also have that Tuesday off as well. We hope you have a great weekend.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

                                                                     

It's hard to believe that in less than two weeks we will be celebrating Thanksgiving! What an exciting time to be with friends and family. Murdock's holiday feast takes place on Wednesday, November 15th. We would love to have you attend, but please send a note into your child's classroom teacher to let them know how many are coming. We need to let Ms. Paulette know ahead so she can plan for enough servings.

It's important to remember that as life gets busy our students still have to remain focused. You can help them to do this by continuing to encourage them with their school work and making sure they get enough rest. Meanwhile, our teachers will continue to emphasize the importance and 'fun' of learning by way of our annual Holiday Reading Challenge.  Each grade level will be challenging their classes to read over the Winter Holiday Break, and all those participating will receive a special reward for their efforts.  Last year we had approximately 50% of the students who participated.  Let's work together to challenge ourselves to get 100% participation this year!!

Educating our children takes dedication on the part of both school and home. We are very lucky at Murdock to have such a supportive group of individuals in both places!!! Thank you for all that you do to support your child's education and enthusiasm for learning.  We could not do it without you.

Important Dates

Conference Week - October 16- 20, 2006

Book Fair - Family Night Tuesday, Oct. 17th 4:00 - 7:00

Early Release all week of October 16-20th!

Wednesday, Oct. 18th Spirit Day/Skating Party/Pizza Night - who is the lucky family to see Murphy or Mrs. Richman?

Study Skills to Rock Your World! a presentation and workshop by Brian Wilson.A free event sponsored by Dodgen & Murdock's PTSA Exceptional Children's Committees.

Also, don't forget to read Food 4 Thought, a monthly newletter containing great information promoting student achievement. Pulblished by Stephanie Hicks and Deborah Kauffman, our own Murdock Mom's!!

Monday, Oct. 23rd Red Ribbon Week

Important

Big News!

Make a date to attend the Fall Festival on Friday, October 6th!

Everyone is encouraged to come and share in the festivities!