ARLINGTON — Sending 50 students to our nation’s capitol, plus their teachers and parents, is not cheap but the Haller and Post middle schools got a boost from the community Sept. 13.

Pioneer Elementary hosted the two middle schools’ garage and yard sale that Saturday, and organizers had already raised $500 from shoppers by noon, halfway into the event.

However, with the rough cost of sending the group to Washington, D.C., estimated to run $1,400 per student, depending on air fare, more will definitely be needed.

Melinda Skyles, a social studies teacher at Post, explained that the garage and yard sale will be followed by several other fundraisers, including candy sales, Christmas gift-wrapping, baby-sitting for parents who need to do holiday shopping, a bake sale and possibly another garage sale, this time in downtown Arlington.

“About 50 students, who are in eighth and ninth grade now, will be heading to D.C. for spring break in 2009, so it’s been planned for a while,” Skyles said. “It’ll be five to six days of fast and furious activity, seeing anything and everything that we can. These kids are going to be busy from sunup to sundown.”

Skyles explained that students would visit monuments and war memorials, the White House and the Capitol Building, the Smithsonian and Holocaust museums, and Historic Jamestown.

“It’ll be a fantastic opportunity for them to see and learn about our country, and to add to their knowledge of social studies and science from their classes,” Skyles said.

Greer Verrier-Davis, a block teacher at Haller, is the director of the trip, which will also include five teachers and eight to 10 parents, for a ratio of one adult for every three to five children.

Those who are interested in donating to the trip may contact the social studies clubs at either Haller or Post.