The Digital Dragon




Student, Family & Community

BLACK HISTORY MONTH 2022

Black History Month is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in U.S. history. Black history is American history, Black culture is American culture, and Black stories are essential to the ongoing story of America — our faults, our struggles, our progress, and our aspirations. At BLA we acknowledge, recognize and commemorate the past and present contributions of Black history and look towards a brighter future.

COMMON ASSESSMENT UPDATE

  • reduced the weight of these assessments to one test grade, aligning it with a test score in any given class.

  • examinations over the course of two weeks, no more than one examination a day.

Below is our common assessment schedule. Common Assessments will take place from Wednesday, February 9th - Thursday February 17th and be given during 2nd and 3rd period which we’ve adjusted to be double periods. Work will still be administered during other class periods and homework while it may be assigned will not count against students during this time.

NHS Interest Meetings

Come find out how you can be a candidate for the National Honor Society. This meeting is primarily for juniors, but if you are a 9th or 10th grader interested in seeing what we are all about, you can come, too!

*If you are a junior who wants to be a candidate, you MUST come to ONE of the meetings!*

Tuesday 2/8 @2pm in 231

Wednesday 2/9 @2pm in 231

Monday 2/14 @2pm in 231

Thursday 2/17 @2pm in 231

Wednesday 2/23 @7pm on zoom

https://k12-bostonpublicschools.zoom.us/j/85954008310 for more info contact Mrs. MacIsaac at amacisaac@bostonpublicschools.org



Common Assessment Schedule (below)

BLA Operations

BPS DAILY HOME HEALTH CHECKLIST

Please use the BPS daily checklist everyday. The checklist is available in many languages and found HERE


MORNING SAFETY

Please follow the signs posted near the school and watch your speed during school arrival times. For the safety of our students, no U-turns.

HAPGOOD MONTHLY LIBRARY NEWSLETTER

Please check out this month's library newsletter

HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEAR 2022: Year of the Tiger

We would like to wish a Happy Lunar New Year to all BPS students, families, and staff who celebrate!

The BLA School Site Council will meet on February 1st from 5:00-6:30 pm. The agenda for the February 1st meeting is available here.

Please register no later than 4:00 pm on Tuesday, February 1st to receive the Zoom link for the meeting. The registration form is available here. If you do not receive the zoom link or register in time, please email parent co-chair Odette Williamson at odette662003@ yahoo.com.

The draft minutes of the SSC meetings in January 2022 are available here.

We hope to see you at the School Site Council meeting! If you need a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in this meeting please contact parent co-chair Odette Williamson (odette662003@ yahoo.com) in advance of the meeting. Automatic closed captioning will be available through Zoom.


STUDENT SUPPORTS

BLA Academic Supports Available to Students:

The second academic quarter ends on February 2nd. Please see below for a list of academic supports.

  • Support Block: Students can sign up for extra support during Support Block and receive support in any of their academic classes. Students change on a monthly basis and will be able to register for new supports beginning after February break. More information to come!

  • Math Center: Come join us at the Math Center! Sign up for the math center during Support Block to get help with your homework, tutoring on a math topic from teachers and/or students, or just to have a space to complete assignments. The Math Center is also open after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays in room 108 from 1:50-2:30.


External Academic Supports

  • Youth Virtual Learning Programs: Check out this spreadsheet which has over 200 programs available to students to support with academics in the virtual world.

  • Boston Public Library Homework Assistance Program: The Homework Assistance Program (HAP) is a free after-school service led by Harvard University trained teen mentors that offers homework help, mentorship, and activities for students in grades K–8. Join online for a space to work on homework with peers and extra guidance on assignments in any subject, from sciences to humanities. Bilingual help in English and various languages is available. There will not be any in-person HAP in the branches from January 4 until February 1, 2022. Join Virtual HAP online on Zoom at the following link: https://boston-public-library.zoom.us/my/bplhap - Sessions take place Monday-Thursday from 3:30-5:30. More information can be found here: https://www.bpl.org/homework-help-for-grades-k-8/

  • Pie R Squared: PieRSquared offers live math tutoring, which takes place after school. This is an incredible resource for students seeking extra help in math! Check out their website at https://www.piersquared.org/ for more information about tutoring.

  • 826 Boston: 826 Boston’s after-school tutoring program operates Monday through Thursday for students ages 6-18. We serve the highest-need students in our community and give priority enrollment to students from low-income families and English Language Learners. More information can be found at https://826boston.org/programs/after-school/


BLACK HISTORY MONTH EVENTS AT BLA


Please check out these BHM events that we will be hosting at BLA.

STUDENT OPPORTUNITIES


Youth Programs at Grub Street

We pay high school students $625 to be part of a three-week BIPOC instructor-led creative writing program. All of our instructors are wonderful Boston-based BIPOC writers and poets, and we aim to recruit majority BIPOC youths so their stories can be supported and uplifted.


Key Details

  • Mondays through Fridays, July 11th - July 29th, 2022.

  • In the spirit of writers' residencies for adults, all teens will receive a stipend of $625 for their time spent as working writers.

  • During three weeks at GrubStreet, teens work with published authors and meet with literary agents and editors, take field trips, and more.

  • All applications are due by Tuesday, February 22nd at 11:59pm.

  • Application link: https://grubstreet.org/programs/for-teens/summer-fellowship/

For more information contact: 267-632-1234.


Boys and Girls Club of Dorchester (Music Video Project)

Teens can still join us for our music video project, where they will dive into music video production - learning video styles, shot lists, video treatments, audio, VFX and more while using professional filmmaking equipment as they create their own music videos for up and coming music talent!

Who: Any teens ages 13-19

What: to learn film skills and technical skills from a real professional filmmaker! They'll dive into the world of shot lists, storyboards, cameras, lights, audio, editing (and much more!) as they create various film projects (full project calendar below)! Plus, have the opportunity to join our Pathways program for soft skills training, networking sessions and on-set apprenticeships and/or paid summer internships.

Where: In person at the Boys and Girls Club of Dorchester

Cost: Free! No previous film experience or special equipment required

when: every Thursday

Project Calendar:

January 6-February 3 | PROJECT 3: Create a Music Video - YOU CAN STILL JOIN US FOR THIS ONE!

Work with real recording artists to create videos for their music. Learn about working with a client and telling stories without using dialogue.

February 3-March 10 | PROJECT 4: Unscripted Production

Ever wondered how YouTube series are created? Learn in this project as you create your own unscripted short episode!

March 10-April 21 | PROJECT 5: Social Justice Short Doc

Highlight the issues that you care about as you learn about documentary production.

April 21-May 26 | PROJECT 6: Narrative Short Film

Bring your story to life, creating your own scripted short film. Get super creative in this capstone project.

Program details & Application at freshfilms.org/weeklyfilmmaking


Free COVID-19 Home Test Kits Available for City of Boston residents

Boston residents can now pick up free rapid at-home test kits at designated sites around the City, while supplies last. Each person will be able to pick up a kit for each member of their immediate household per visit. There are two tests in each kit. 


Please help us get the word out about these kits along with guidance on how to use them:

  • BPHC’s fact sheet provides guidance on how to use these home test kits, including what to do if you test positive. These are currently available in English and Spanish.

  • Mass DPH provides detailed instructions for using a home test kit, as well as graphic instructions available in several languages.

  • More detailed guidance on using the kits is available directly from the vendors, currently iHealth or QuickVue.


Back to School 2021: Parenting Through Grief and Loss

In response to a survey sent to BPS families in March 2020, parents and caregivers requested practical tips around social, emotional and behavioral development. In response, we have been sending these Wellbeing Digests! You can sign up here if you are seeking ways to support your child's behavioral, social and emotional development.


Invest in Girls

We love working with your students to help them learn the basics of personal money management in preparation for their eventual financial independence! We’ve noticed that many students express interest in a more imminent concern: How do they approach paying for college? We think that looking at college through a financial lens is tremendously important, and so we have organized a webinar in two parts with Julie Shields-Rutyna, the Director of College Planning, Education, and Training at MEFA (Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority), to provide her expertise. (yes, young men are allowed to attend this one!)

Spring Workshop: (Scheduled for March 24th at 7 pm EST via Zoom – Registration will open in late February.)

  • Comparing financial packages: Once you have your offers, how do you compare them?

  • Understanding Educational Loans: What types of loans exist? What are the requirements? What are the advantages/disadvantages of different kinds?

If you would like to be featured or would like to have a student, student group, teacher, or staff member featured in the next Digital Dragon, please email Ms. White (mwhite8@bostonpublicschools.org) by Thursday of the week.

If you would like to make any announcements on the Digital Dragon fill out this form