Grade 9, 10, 11 Students - If you have not added your elective and health/wellness requests and alternates for next year, please make an appointment with your counselor early this week.
Additional new course highlights for 2019-20
NEWLY ADDED THIS WEEK! **CE/VA 7450 Brookline Lens
This course is a project-based visual arts and business class that is a fully-functioning, student-run production company that provides photo and video production services to Brookline High School and the greater Brookline community. Students in the course learn photography, videography and how to run a fully functioning production company. Students who have taken the following courses are eligible to register for the course: Digital Video 1, TV production 1, Documentary Filmmaking 1,Photography 1. Interested students need to email or go to counselor office to request that this course replace one of their current requests or add as alternate.
Additional new course highlights for 2019-20
NEWLY ADDED THIS WEEK! **CE/VA 7450 Brookline Lens
This course is a project-based visual arts and business class that is a fully-functioning, student-run production company that provides photo and video production services to Brookline High School and the greater Brookline community. Students in the course learn photography, videography and how to run a fully functioning production company. Students who have taken the following courses are eligible to register for the course: Digital Video 1, TV production 1, Documentary Filmmaking 1,Photography 1. Interested students need to email or go to counselor office to request that this course replace one of their current requests or add as alternate.
Career Tech Ed
** CE4500 Autonomous Robotics
Autonomous Robotics I is a project-based course where students develop computing and mechanical design skills and apply them to design and build autonomous robots that use sensors and actuators to perform simple tasks in response to their environment.
Students also explore ethical and aesthetic questions in robotics and computing as they apply to designing, building, and deploying their robots to solve real-world problems.
Skills developed in Autonomous Robotics I include: block- and text-based computing for embedded and robotics systems, mechanical design, autonomous goal planning & execution, sensor data acquisition & analysis, actuator control, error detection & recovery, etc.. Projects in Autonomous Robotics I include: maze solving, odometry, object identification & categorization, prosthetic & assistive technologies, wearables, kinetic sculpture & lighting, etc.. Students interested in pursuing robotics throughout high school can elect Autonomous Robotics more than once, with skills developed in one semester applied to projects in subsequent semesters.
Level: N Grade: 9-12
Prerequisite: Exploring Computer Science or Introduction to Computer Science Credit: .5
Health/ Wellness
** Advanced Swimming and Lifeguard Training – will run 2Xwk for one semester
This course is divided into two focus areas: advanced swimming and lifeguard training certification. For students interested in advanced swimming, the course will focus on a personalized swimming fitness program designed to improve swimming technique and endurance. For students interested in the lifeguard training certification, the course, guided by the American Red Cross, will provide the knowledge and skills of water safety and how to quickly and effectively respond to water emergencies to prevent or reduce drowning and injuries.
Periods Per Week: 2 Credit: .25 Prerequisite: Yes Limited to 15 students
Advanced Swimming
Prerequisites for Advanced Swimming:
o demonstrate at least two different types of swimming strokes for one length of the pool
o swim at least three laps consecutively
Lifeguard Training - Prerequisites for Lifeguard Training:
The candidate must:
o be 15 years of age on or before the start session.
o swim 300 yards continuously for at least 100 yards using the front crawl and breaststroke
o starting in the water, swim 20 yards using front crawl or breaststroke, surface dive 7-10 feet, retrieve a 10 pound object, return to the surface, swim 20 yards back to the starting point with the object, and exit the water without using a ladder or steps, within 1 minute and 40 seconds.
** Advanced Wellness Course will run 2 days a week for the year
ALL STUDENTS/PARENTS
The recent college admissions scandal has shed some light on possible abuses and inequity in this often challenging process. BHS Guidance does its best to offer support and resources to all students in an ethical and caring way. Students have a responsibility to attend required seminars, reach out to BHS counselors and/or College Counselor Lenny Libenzon, and take responsibility for their post-high school planning process. If any student or parent has concerns about this process, please feel free to contact Darby Neff-Verre at [email protected]. Please read this article for an important perspective -
http://www.parenttoolkit.com/college-and-career/news/4-year-college/what-the-college-cheating-scandal-says-about-modern-overparenting
PTO Funding highlight...As part of the generosity of the PTO 2018-19 Guidance Fund, BHS College Counselor Lenny Libenzon and Darby Neff-Verre chaperoned 18 BHS juniors for a college visit to UMass Lowell on Wednesday March 6. This visit was an opportunity for these students to officially visit the campus and attend an information session, plus enjoy a hearty lunch in the campus dining hall. Many of these students had not visited a college campus officially before, so they were able to learn about this particular university and also begin to sort out what might be important to them as they consider college after BHS graduation. Thank you BHS PTO and parents who donate to the PTO Fund!
TRANSITIONING TO COLLEGE: EXPERT GUIDANCE AND ADVICE FOR PARENTS OF HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS WITH ADHD, LEARNING DISABILITIES, AND AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER (LEVEL 1) – see attached flyer for full day parent workshop in Newton, April 6, 2019, Sliding Scale Fee available. This workshop is NOT Public Schools of Brookline affiliated or endorsed.
Friday Lunch Lounge continues! AND NEW DAY ADDED FOR ALL LUNCHES THROUGH EARLY MAY! Thanks to the support of a few interns and our BHS nurses, we will be offering Lunch Lounge in Room 279 (College –Career Center) during all 3 lunches every Tuesday. BRING YOUR OWN LUNCH ON TUESDAYS!
Any student can join for one Tuesday or Friday lunch or become a regular. Pizza will continue at the Friday lunches only, plus time for fun conversation or space to have your own quiet lunch space. Please join us in Room 277!
A SURVIVAL GUIDE TO PARENTING TEENS The BHS PTO presents Joani Geltman: Talking to Your Kids About Sexting, Drinking, Drugs, and Other Things that FREAK YOU OUT. April 3, 2019 at 7 pm in the BHS Auditorium. Joani Geltman, MSW, an expert in child development and parent-teen relationships, returns to Brookline for “A Survival Guide to Parenting Teens.” Using humor and more than 30 years of experience, Geltman shares stories and advice that defuse some of the anxiety parents feel as their children move through tricky developmental milestones. Parents will learn about setting realistic expectations and appropriate limits, social media “do’s and don’t’s,” and how to identify and deal with teen experimentation with sex, vaping, marijuana, and alcohol. Parents will head home with a greater understanding of their teen’s behavior and needs, as well as very practical parenting tools they can begin to use immediately. Please register for this free event.
It's time to think about your summer plans!
Please go to the BHS Guidance website for a helpful info sheet for many ideas (updated 1/31/19). Note that programs listed here are not all inclusive and do not suggest that Brookline High specifically endorses any program. Remember to read the intro at the top of the info sheet. See your counselor for more feedback or questions!
Some suggested summer pre-college opportunities with financial aid available - http://blog.collegegreenlight.com/blog/summer-pre-college-programs-2019/
Please note that attending a pre-college program at any particular college does not usually offer any special consideration during future admissions at that school.
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JUNIORS AND SENIORS
As seniors make decisions about post grad plans and juniors continue research and attend this Thursday’s BHS College Fair, consider this -
https://www.mcmillaneducation.com/news-and-insights/wise-insights/why-rankings-are-rubbish-the-myth-of-prestige-2619
Post-Secondary Fair for Students who Learn Differently - March 28, Landmark School - info and great online resource - https://landmark360.org/2018/06/22/navigating-the-college-admissions-process-for-students-with-learning-disabilities/
Juniors/Seniors/and Parents-Caretakers - Mark your calendars for BHS Evening Panel Presentation on College Support for Students with Learning Differences – April 2, 2019, 7-8:30pm, MLK
SENIORS
College-Bound Support Group has started every Thursday, all three lunches in the College-Career Center, Room 279.
Hey Seniors! Are you...
Anxious about hearing back from colleges?
Nervous about the transition from high school?
Stressed about making decisions?
Concerned about cost and finances?
Not exactly feeling any of these things but just want to talk?
Come to the College-Bound Support Group! Happening Thursday lunch blocks starting March 14th in the College & Career Center (Room 279). Bring your lunch and share your concerns and questions about all things college!
The next edition of the BHS Scholarship letter can be found on the BHS Guidance website – link at top of this email. Feel free to review for additional scholarship opportunities.
Mark your calendars for MA Educational Financing Authority’s Paying the Bill presentation – Wed April 10, 7pm, BHS Auditorium - Parents and students are invited to attend a free seminar on understanding financial aid award letters and making a plan to pay the college bill. This seminar is offered through MEFA, the Commonwealth’s authority on planning, saving, and paying for college. An experienced MEFA representative will provide an overview of the college payment process, including the details of financial aid award letters, using payment plans, different financing options, and how to minimize debt. Before the seminar, be sure to visit MEFA’s website — mefa.org — to download a copy of the seminar presentation in English or Spanish and explore other tools and resources to assist you in the college planning process. And make sure to bring your financial aid award letters to the seminar to get all of your questions answered after the presentation.
Interesting opportunity for students heading to college next year….. Brookline American Legion Post 11 Multi-Media Scholarship Hackathon on April 7 from 10am-6pm, 386 Washington St Brookline. During the hackathon, you'll be challenged to make a short multi-media project that supports or highlights the local community. It should be related to the assigned theme, which will be announced at 10:00 AM on the day of the event.
Use any medium you want. A short video, a website, interviews, maps, a local guidebook - it's all good!
You can work alone or in teams of up to three. You can form your team ahead of time or seek teammates at the event. You don't have to stay at the event all day - you may come and go to work on your projects. You may win college scholarships for high school seniors and other prizes.
At 6:00 PM you'll present to our panel of judges. Your presentation should be 3 minutes max. After everyone has presented winners will be announced!
Sign up at this link - https://go.brooklinepost11.com/2019
If your grade 12 student would like to apply for the BHS Scholarships but has not done so already, please have them submit their scholarship application ASAP. The application is easy to complete and can be found on the home page of the Brookline High School website. After completing the scholarship app, your student's CSS Profile (found on the College Board website) needs to submitted to the Brookline High School Scholarship Program - code 0424. Once students decide which college they will attend next year, they need to either email or bring a copy of their financial aid letter from that college to Ms. Whelan.
Questions? Please contact Ms. Whelan at her email - [email protected] or drop off documents to her office is in room 317.
Please note: The Scholarship Committee would like parents/guardians to know that three criteria are used for choosing award recipients: academics, contributions and activities at BHS, and most importantly, unmet financial need. There are no merit scholarships per se given out through this program. To make fair decisions, the Committee requires that families fill out the CSS Profile financial aid form, available at CollegeBoard.com. Please use code #0424
College admissions decisions are now happening! Congratulations to students who are receiving good news! If you are still waiting or have concerns about your admissions decisions so far, please contact your counselor or Lenny Libenzon so we can work with you moving forward. Although waitlist numbers can change dramatically at the same school from year to year, see how many students were on the 2017-18 school year waitlist in this article - https://www.collegetransitions.com/waitlist-statistics
Thinking about an alternative plan to 4 year college? You are not alone! Almost 10% of last year’s BHS graduates planned to attend a 2 year technical or community college, work full time, or considered the military. Please see Kate Cordner, the BHS Career Counselor, on Tues- Friday in Room 279 or 280 for more info.
JUNIORS
ALL JUNIORS ARE REQUIRED TO ATTEND THEIR 3RD AND FINAL SEMINAR DURING EITHER THIS TUESDAY OR WEDNESDAY MORNING…See below for your advisory’s seminar and location. JUNIOR MENTORS CAN ATTEND THEIR COUNSELOR’S SEMINAR OR GO TO THE MAKEUP SEMINAR DURING X BLOCK THIS WEEK.
Junior Seminar #3 info - Tues 3/26 and Wed 3/27:
Ms. Bent Room 130, Mr. Gorman Room 131, Mr. Jones Room 133, Ms. Young Room 129
Tues 3/26-
Juniors: Guidance Seminars 9:30 to 11:00 AM
Advisories: JR 01, 02, 06, 07, 11, 12, 13, 16, 17
Wed 3/27 -
Juniors: Guidance Seminars 9:30 to 11:00 AM
Advisories: JR 03, 04, 05, 08, 09, 10, 14, 15, 18, 20
Lenny will do a makeup junior seminar #3 for any juniors or jr mentors next Thurs 3/28 during X block, College- Career Center Room 279.
BHS College/Program Fair was a great success! If you missed it or would like another College Fair option - NACAC College Fair – Thurs 4/4 – 9-12, 6-8:30pm or Fri 4/5- 9-12 , Boston Seaport World Trade Center
https://hub.nacacnet.org/viewtemplate?render=pdf&tid=a2K1a000000LuLU&id=a0k1a00000j344iAAA
Free/ less expensive ways to prepare for College Admissions Tests -
College Board offers eight official SAT practice tests available for free, both online and on paper - https://collegereadiness.collegeboard.org/sat/practice/full-length-practice-testsSFMC_cid=EM122966-&rid=46930439
Brookline Adult and Community Ed spring term begins Monday, March 25th and is offering 2 SAT classes. One is a class focused on test prep planning for both SAT and ACT and the other is a class that focuses on the actual test-questions, test-taking techniques, etc.
See these links:
https://www.campusce.net/brookline/Course/Course.aspx?c=3456
https://www.campusce.net/brookline/Course/Course.aspx?c=2841
Missed the rescheduled Junior Night for juniors and their parents/caretakers on Tuesday March 12?
BHS guidance presented information about post high school planning with a focus on the college search and application process. Go to the BHS Guidance website for this year’s power point and video from last year’s presentation.
Juniors- Starting to research colleges? Wondering whether to take the SAT, ACT, or go test-optional? Thinking about when you should take these tests? Make an appointment with your counselor (email or leave a note, if needed) OR see Mr Libenzon, BHS College Counselor, in College-Career Center 279 or office 280
College Applications and SAT/ACT essay – to take or not to take?
SAT essay info:
https://blog.prepscholar.com/schools-that-require-the-sat-essay
ACT essay info:
https://blog.prepscholar.com/complete-list-which-colleges-require-act-writing-all-schools
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SOPHOMORES
PreACT score reports/ test booklets are now available for pick up at your counselor’s office. Please do not miss any classes to pick up your materials. Thanks!
GR 9 STUDENTS
Important Message for BHS 9th graders – SBIRT
The Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) program is planned for this Tuesday 3/26 and Wednesday 3/27 mornings. This state mandated screening provides the chance for students to meet and check in with members of our student support staff. See below for dates and further information about the SBIRT Screening for all our ninth grade BHS students. Fortunately, we have scheduled the SBIRT Screening so it coincides with our administration of the tenth grade MCAS; as such, students will not miss class to participate. Screening will be conducted on Wednesday, March 26th and Thursday, March 27th from 8:30-11:00 am. Students in Freshman Advisory Classes 01-12 will be screened on Tuesday, March 26th . Students in Freshman Advisory 13-24 will be screened on Wednesday, March 27th . Students must report to the auditorium by 8:15 am on their assigned date. BHS Health teachers have chosen pertinent health education videos to share with students before and after their individual screenings.
Dean/ PTO Gr 9 Parent Course Selection Meeting notes (January 24, 2019) - http://www.bhs-pto.org/uploads/1/0/9/0/10904053/bhs_sophomore_year_course_selection_meeting_notes.pdf