Congrats to this year's sophomore speech finalists: Henry Blanchette, Will Chasse, Imani Fonfield, Eero Helenius, Ellen Yang, and Maya Zeldin

How’s this for an outstanding group of sophomore speech finalist?

Congrats to Imani Fonfield, our 2019 sophomore speech champion!

Congratulations to the Class of 2019 valedictory speaker: Nayleth Lopez-Lopez!!!

Congratulations to our sophomore speech finalists: Mina Chae Natsuka Hayashida Akhil Ibrahim Esmé Kamadolli Victoria Rivard Sydra Shapiro The speech finals will be Friday, Feb. 28, during C4 in the field house.

Speech finalists warming up...

I know a lot of teachers might be looking for literature that's available online these days. Here's a list of great non-fiction, and most have hyperlinks: bit.ly/33VK3Sh #NCTE

Join aja monet tomorrow for Homemade: Poetic Remedies for the Times. During this moment in our lives, expressing yourself couldn’t be more vital. Use this opportunity to be free and connect with other poets on FB Live.

Summer reading alert!! Join us to watch e1 of Little Fires Everywhere tomorrow at 8 pm. Ms Fitzgerald and Dr. Lellock will also be talking about Kiley Reid’s Such A Fun Age at noon Thursday; email Mr. Baron for the links!

Hey Newton South: Join us tonight at 8 pm to watch and discuss the final episode of Celeste Ng's "Little Fires Everywhere" on Hulu!!!! Email Mr. Baron for the link if you don't have it.

We offered a 10-book challenge this summer for any student who wanted to read a book a week over the summer. Figured I should do it myself as well — here’s my thread of what I’m reading:

Book # 1: Just Like You by Nick Hornby. A romantic comedy of a novel from the writer who brought us Fever Pitch and High Fidelity. The relationship at the center here is cross generational and cross racial, and offers depth beyond the usual romantic fare.

Book #2 — The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline. A Dystopian YA novel in which native Canadians are being hunted for the medicinal properties of their bone marrow. Not my usual genre but a setup that allows for a nuanced and unsparing look at indigineity and related issues.

Book #3 — Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro. Not a huge sci-fi reader but Ishiguro transcends category. Told from the point of view of a sentient AI, he puts us in a position of figuring out the world of the novel as we go, while reflecting the ethical schisms of our own.

Book #7 - Lost City Radio by Daniel Alarcon. A winding look at how a bitter civil war in a fictional South American country has affected the lives of one couple and the people they know and love. The story focuses of the human costs of war and it’s inevitable brutality.

Congratulations to the student speaker for the Class of 2022: Neil Chavan!!

Your legacy lives on, Hattie Gawande

Congratulations to this year’s student graduation speaker, Wasan Rafat!!

In his first season as coach at Newton South, Corey Lowe points to the winning culture he learned at North as his compass trib.al/x6okXID

This year’s student graduation speaker will be Grace Sousa.