This Week at BMHS - October 16-23, 2017

Parent Teacher Conferences

This fall's parent teacher conference will be held on October 19 from 6-8 p.m. We have made the decision to move the conference earlier to provide, if necessary, an opportunity for parents to support their child in different ways prior to the end of the term1 marking period. This is a one year trial period to determine if an earlier conference can have an impact on student success in quarter 1. We will once again be using PTC Wizard. Information regarding PTC Wizard was emailed separately last week. PTC Wizard will be available until 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 19, if you need to make any changes to your appointments, or to look for some availability.

Two Heroes in Two Years

Mr. Burns has been teaching First Aid/CPR in his Introduction to Human Anatomy classes for the past three years. For the second time in two years, one of his students has been called upon to use these life-saving skills. Junior Erik Hood was confronted with a colleague choking while at work and immediately responded with the Heimlich manuever and dislodged the obstruction. 

BMHS Unified

BMHS' Unified Basketball Team will be participating in their first jamboree of the season this Thursday, October 19 from 4 - 6 p.m. at Tewksbury Memorial High School. They will be playing against other teams from the Merrimack Valley Conference. Everyone is welcome as we begin the new season with our newest team.

BMHS Marching Band Field Show

Start time is 4 p.m. Tickets $8 for students $10 Adults

BMHS Visits Lowell District Court

All four sections of American Legal I spent a day last week at Lowell District Court- this court serves Billerica and is one of the busiest in Massachusetts. Many students taking this elective are the future lawyers, judges, law enforcement officers, and psychologists of the Commonwealth, so this trip provided them a great real-life interaction with the justice system.

Our students on Wednesday got to see many of the following arraignments as the result of several Lowell drug sweeps the day before:

http://www.lowellsun.com/breakingnews/ci_31371892/lowell-police-arrest-21-drug-sweeps

The students observed first session where they got to see arraignments (various examples of charges included assault and battery, assault and battery with a deadly weapon, breaking and entering, malicious destruction of property, resisting arrest, larceny over $250, fraudulent checks, operating under the influence, narcotics-distribution), bail arguments, defaults, probation violations, restraining orders, motor vehicle appeals, section 35 hearings re: commitment of alcoholics or substance abusers, etc.

At the end of our time in court, the students had a question/answer session with the presiding judge and court officers. One of the judges was so impressed with our students, she volunteered to come to BMHS to hear them present motions to suppress on various search and seizure cases

Twitter Chats

The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education will be hosting a series of Twitter Chats about the revised Math, ELA, and STE standards. The hashtag is #SBLchatMA

The dates for the chat are as follows:

• ELA: 10/18 from 8-9pm EST
• STE: 11/11 from 8-9pm EST
• Math: 12/20 from 8-9pm EST

If you’re unfamiliar with Twitter Chats, here are a few basic steps/tips:

•  Use the #SBLchatMA hashtag in the twitter search bar to keep track of comments. If you’re using your phone, make sure you read the tweets under the “latest” column rather than “top.” (You can actually go do this right now and see every tweet that uses this hashtag.)
• A lot of people like using www.tweetdeck.com on their computers. If you’re more of a computer based person than a phone based person, this might be a better option. If you’re going this way, I’d recommend getting it set up in advance of the chat.
• We’ll share the questions out in advance of the chat. It all happens kind of fast and furious, so you may want to draft some responses in advance. (I find this is especially useful to do for the first couple of questions at least.)
• If you have questions or concerns about the content of your responses, I would recommend checking out previous twitter chats. A good regular one is #satchat (where educators connect on Saturday mornings); #txeduchat is another that I’ve enjoyed in the past. Last year, #MApactac members participated in #edchatma a few times, as well.
• A good rule of thumb for twitter (and life in general?) -- keep it positive, keep it light. If you’re looking to share deeper content, I’d recommend finding links, images, etc. It’s hard to express much in 140 characters!

Class of 2019 Fundraiser

The Class of 2019 is hosting a fundraiser at Chipotle in the Treble Cove Plaza on Monday, October 23 from 4:00 - 8:00 p.m. Chipotle will donate 50% of the funds from this evening to the Class in support of various activities.

Parents of Senior Students: The BMHS Guidance Department Invites You To Attend A College Connection Workshop

Join us for insights, tips, and helpful websites needed for the college application process.  Please sign up by clicking HERE and filling out the registration form.  You must register in order to attend, and the program is limited to 20 attendees per day. 

Date: October 18 OR October 20 (pick one day only)

Time:  7:30 AM-8:30 AM (please note that this event will be held in the morning)

Place:  BMHS Guidance Office

This Week's Upcoming College Visits

Please see Naviance for the full schedule of college tours and to sign up to attend a college visit at BMHS.  Students must sign up through Naviance to attend.  Click here to access the Naviance website.  You will want to check back often, as we update this list frequently.  If you've forgotten your password to Naviance, please contact your child's guidance counselor or call the Guidance office at 978-528-8760 and we will be happy to assist you. 

10/16 Bentley University
10/17 Fitchburg State University
10/18 Framingham State University
10/18 Fisher College
10/18 Becker College
10/18 Stony Brook University
10/19 Roger Williams University
10/19 Emmanuel College
10/19 University of Maine
10/20 Massachusetts College of Art and Design
10/20 Southern New Hampshire University

BMHSAA Membership Orientation Current, new, and prospective members are invited to the BMHSAA Membership Orientation on October 17, 2017 at 7:00 pm in the Lecture Hall at the high school. Officers and members will be on hand to answer your questions. You will learn about BMHSAA activities and our mission of supporting academic and athletic excellence.  This event qualifies for the one meeting requirement to be a member in good standing!!