Bulldog Bulletin - Eclipse Edition!

 Students will all be receiving a pair of solar eclipse glasses at the end of the day, thanks to your South PTO. We will share information about the solar eclipse with students, as well as safety information. See more information below, and feel free to watch this introductory video to better understand what's going on!

From the K-12 Director of Science:

A solar eclipse will occur today, Monday, April 8th, and Massachusetts is in the path of the eclipse. Although Braintree will not view 100% coverage to see totality, it will have about 92% coverage at peak. The eclipse will begin to be visible around 2:15pm, peak around 3:30pm, and end around 4:40pm. This is exciting but it is also important to make sure everyone is safely viewing the eclipse if they choose to do so. Specific solar eclipse glasses must be worn to protect one’s vision throughout the duration of the eclipse. Thanks to additional funding from several school PTOs, the science department purchased solar eclipse glasses for elementary and middle school students and staff. These levels will have regularly scheduled dismissals during the eclipse & students will leave the building with a pair of solar eclipse glasses. Everyone should wear these when viewing the eclipse from start to finish. The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education compiled resources for educators and families and we encourage you to become familiar with the resources, including the safety recommendations. 

Youth Art Month

Congratulations to the following students who have work on display in a virtual Massachusetts Art Education Association Statewide K-12 Youth Art Month Exhibit. This art exhibit is a nationally-celebrated event held each year during the month of March. It is designed to call attention to the importance of quality art education as it celebrates the talents of our youth. This is quite an honor for our students & a testament to the hard work of our incredibly talented Art teachers, who bring out the best in their young artists! Congratulations to Audrey Gao, Jeff Shen, Khianna Hill, Sarah Kilpatrick, Hailey Hamm, Layla Gonsalves, Ava Murphy, and Sara Connor, whose work was selected for the statewide Youth Art Exhibit. The South Middle School exhibit is available here, but you should check out the talents across the state at the Youth Art Month site.

March Mammal Madness

8th Grade Science teachers coordinated a curriculum-related March Madness bracket competition, pitting animals against each other in imagined battles in a variety of habitats. The winner was the Great White Shark! Students had to select winners through a bracket-style runoff based on their research and understanding of factors like traits and biomes. Finishing in 3rd place was Brandon Nguyen; 2nd place went to Sadie Riley; and, 1st place was a tie between Dan Lin and Ziad Lajiri, with Ms. Achin winning the staff trophy!

Challenger Baseball
The Braintree American Challenger League is looking for volunteers/buddies for the kids. This is a great way to make a huge, positive impact in people's lives & have fun in the process! See the attached flier for more information.

South PTO

• Dine Out TOMORROW at Jake N Joe's Braintree!
• Reminder: PTO's April meeting will be held this Thursday, 4/11, at 7:00 PM in the Media Center! 
• 
  The April Calendar Raffle is going strong, but we're only 1/3 of the way through the prizes! You can still sell tickets and send them to the Main Office to be entered into the daily prize drawing.
  
• Teacher Appreciation Week is May 6-10. PTO is collecting gift card donations for staff raffles throughout the week. (More cards in smaller denominations will mean more drawings that week, so we encourage folks to send in one $5 or $10 card, or to divide a larger donation over a few cards!)

Supplies
We're entering allergy season while still going through flu season, so donations of facial tissues & antiseptic wipes would be greatly appreciated. Teachers are also looking for donations of #2 pencils and Expo markers to finish out the year well-stocked. Pencils are a precious commodity around here these days!
Use this Amazon list to have items shipped directly to South, or send items through your preferred vendors. Please note which teacher(s) it's for and/or who's sending items so we can direct your donations to the right people! Donations for the Nurses or Guidance are also welcome.

Screenagers film - TOMORROW
The Braintree Community Partnership and BASHY are co-hosting a series of evening presentations at Braintree High School. The 'Next Chapter' is being held on Tuesday, April 9th at 6:30pm in the Braintree High School Auditorium.  We welcome everyone to view SCREENAGERS  - Addressing Youth Mental Health in the Digital Age. This short film is aimed at families of Middle School aged students.

UPCOMING & RECENT EVENTS:

• Braintree School Committee - Public Budget Hearing

This evening there is a Public Hearing of the Braintree School Committee on the School District Budget for next school year, to be held at Town Hall at 6:30 pm. All are welcome to attend in person or to watch live at this link. To attend the meeting remotely, please see the Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89731136727 Or One tap mobile: +13126266799,,89731136727# US Or Telephone: +1 312 626 6799 US, +1 646 558 8656 US.

• Last Wednesday was Paraprofessional Appreciation Day. Our paras are a dedicated & highly professional group. They show up for our kids every day in countless ways. If your child has come home with a heartwarming or hysterical story about a para in their classrooms, I encourage you to send a note or an email their way to let them know the impact they're having. (The main office or classroom teacher can help direct messages to the right person!)
• Last Friday was Assistant Principal Appreciation Day. One day is nowhere near sufficient to contain the multitudes of our Ms. Pags! Send a card or an email her way with your note of appreciation or to share whatever stories your kids tell about her outside of school!
• Grade 8 students have finally recovered from the Washington, D.C. trip. Enjoy the shenanigans of our students--and a few staff chaperones--while we explored the nation's capital in the video Ms. Evans compiled to capture the memories: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOia2vOxALI.

The building is vibrant with PINK today! It is truly, deeply heartwarming to have this outpouring of appreciation & support for the teachers & staff. 

With gratitude,