One Book One School Activities Coming Up

In the next couple of weeks, Bigelow students will have the opportunity to participate in activities related to Refugee (the book they read over the summer) in three different occasions, on the 23, 28 and 30.

The goal of Bigelow’s One School, One Book Program is to create a more inclusive community through participation in a common reading experience as a whole school. Through discussion and advisory activities, staff and students share a common experience of reading and learning together. This program is supported by the Bigelow PTO, thanks to your donations.

Bigelow has prepared a series of great activities for our students. If parents would like more resources to talk to their children about this issue that touches some Bigelow families more closely then others, here are two suggestions:

From the UN Refugee Agency: Teaching about refugees
From the Harvard Graduate School of Education: Migration, Separation, and Trauma
(Note: the resources suggested above are for the adult community)

Bigelow Activities

Wednesday 10/23 Extended Advisory
The students will watch a portion of a video documenting the story of a young Vietnamese boy’s childhood escape from war-torn Vietnam, and his eventual resettlement in Australia.The film won the Audience Award and the 2015 Human Rights and Film Festival in Melbourne, Australia. They will have a discussion afterwards with their advisor and fellow advisory members.

Monday 10/28 Advisory
Students will view a video that explains the difference between a migrant and refugee as defined by the United Nations.  Advisory members will work together to create a working definition of these two words.

Wednesday 10/30 School-Wide Events
The day begins with students participating in an interactive experience in advisory designed to help students gain more insight into the refugee experience. Following this activity, each grade will listen to a guest speaker who will share their experience about moving to America as a refugee or helping newcomers resettle in our community.

  • 6th grade speaker: Howard Sholkin. Mr. Sholkin is a trustee of Temple Shalom in Newton and supports the temple’s work assisting families who need to resettle in America due to political unrest in their countries.
  • 7th grade speaker:  Adnan Almalky. Mr. Almalky lives in Lowell, MA with his family where he resettled in the United States needing to leave Iraq.
  • 8th grade speaker: Joseph Singer. Mr. Singer is the grandfather of one of our former Bigelow graduates who survived the Holocaust and resettled in the United States.