New in this week's Dragon's Fire

Please join the CSCA on Tonight (Mon, Nov 9), 6:30–8:30 pm for a presentation from Dr. Jason Kilmer on stress management, student anxiety and depression, and ways parents can help. Dr. Kilmer is an associate professor in psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the University of Washington. He will give his presentation followed by a brief Q&A session. CSCA thanks Dr. Myra Parker for facilitating this presentation. You can learn more about Dr. Kilmer in his bio. Following Dr. Kilmer’s presentation, the final hour will be a Q&A session with Dr. Casey.

The Center School seeks to extend learning beyond the classroom by involving our students in the city and the world beyond. To help support that effort, the CSCA seeks additional funds from families twice a year. The Annual Fund in the fall and the auction in the spring are the primary ways the Center School Community Association raises money.

We are now one week into our fall Annual Fund campaign. We know these are challenging times for families, and we only ask you to give what you can.

There are multiple ways you can donate:

The TSC community is one of the things that drew us all to this school. While CSCA needs money to fund our mission, there are other ways you can support our community:

It is Washington State law that everyone must wear a face covering that covers their nose and mouth when they are outside of their home. Because some people may be infected with COVID-19 without showing any symptoms such as a cough or fever, wearing a face covering is key in slowing the spread of the virus. Some examples of face coverings include cloth masks, bandanas, scarves, surgical masks, and N95 masks. To effectively decrease the chance of infection, face coverings should be worn properly. A proper face covering has to cover both your entire nose and mouth, otherwise you increase the chance of being infected. We can all do our small part in containing the COVID-19 virus by wearing our face coverings properly!

As winter weather sets, SPS would like to remind families to continue with safety practices advised by King County and Washington State: wash your hands frequently or use hand sanitizer when you cannot wash, wear a cloth mask covering your nose and mouth, practice social distancing, and avoid gathering in groups. COVID-19 cases are on the rise in King County, so please do your part to stop the spread! See the King County COVID-19 resource page.

We all need adequate, quality sleep to function well. This is particularly true in stressful times, and it's even more true for teenagers. Studies show that teens need between 9 and 9 ½ hours of sleep each night. See this graphic from Nurse Amnah's nursing students on why teens need adequate sleep. And try these simple tips to help your student sleep better:

At this time, the expectation of the College Board is to have students test in person, and there is not an option for online exams. We do not know if SPS will be open for in-person learning when tests are administered in May. If we are not open and the College Board does not offer an online option, students may not be able to take the AP exams. SPS is currently working with the College Board on this issue. We will keep you posted as more information becomes available.

This year, each AP exam is $102. There is no fee for students receiving free and reduced price lunch. Fees will not be collected until second semester (the payment window is Feb 1– Mar 5).

All Students who wish to take AP exams must register by Nov 12. Read instructions for registering.

If you need the join code, please contact your AP Teacher or Mr. Rho at ewrho@seattleschools.org.

SPS will remain remote with limited in-person instruction through the end of the first semester. This means that through Jan 28, in-person instruction in our buildings is limited to a small number of students receiving special education services. A leadership team has been re-convened to inform next steps. Due to changing Covid conditions, there is no guarantee that buildings will reopen next semester. Read the full announcement about the building reopening plan.

Nov 8, 2 pm–10 pm EST. Explore over 600 colleges and universities. Find out what time they're having Zoom sessions, and set up an account to attend meetings! Start exploring now.

The bulletin shows scholarships with a due date in Nov or Dec. See Naviance for a comprehensive scholarship list with due dates beyond Dec 2020.

Does your family need a little extra help this Thanksgiving? Please see the attached list for food assistance resources around the Puget Sound.

Seattle Parks & Rec department is providing free community spaces for students grades 6–12 to engage in SPS remote learning. Students are required to bring their own laptops or tablets to access learning platforms. Lunch is provided daily. Registration is required. Find locations and register here.

The Seattle Public Library has launched Tutor.com! Tutor.com has over 3,000 vetted expert tutors to help youth with schoolwork via tutoring and academic coaching in a variety of subjects in a safe and secure online classroom. One-on-one help is available in math, writing, science, history, foreign languages, college essay writing, Advanced Placement (AP) courses, and more. The service is available 7 days a week, 2–10 p.m. in Spanish and English, and 4–7 p.m. in Vietnamese. Teens and adults can also use this service to get help filling out job applications and writing a cover letter and resume. Read more and connect.