750 Benchmark, Irvine, CA 92618
Additional COVID-19 Resources
As part of the Irvine Unified School District’s ongoing effort to prevent and limit the spread of COVID-19 in our schools and facilities, the District, in partnership with LivingFit Nation Corporate Wellness, is offering no cost COVID-19 testing for students, IUSD employees and employee dependents. The clinics run from January 25 through February 22, rotating locations each week between IUSD's six high schools.
This partnership is in addition to IUSD’s free testing for staff, which began prior to the start of in-person instruction in September 2020. Staff may continue to use the testing program established through Sand Canyon Urgent Care for employees only or they may use these clinics for themselves and their dependents.
Dates for future clinics are as follows:
Please note that locations are subject to change and appointments for future clinics will not be available until at least three days prior to each Monday.
Monday, February 15, 2021 (7 a.m. – 4 p.m.)
Woodbridge High School
Monday, February 22, 2021 (7 a.m. – 4 p.m.)
University High School
Black History Month
In February we observe Black History Month, where we honor and celebrate the achievements and important contributions made by black Americans throughout our nation’s history.
To mark the occasion, we have some Topical Resources to share with your class
Teaching Resources
Lesson Plan
MLK Day and Black History Month - Lesson Plan Curation and Annotation - Google Docs
LAUSD’s Hidden Figures Math Lesson Plan
https://achieve.lausd.net/Page/12252
Classroom Activities
https://www.prodigygame.com/main-en/blog/black-history-month/
https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/collections/teaching-content/black-history-month/
https://www.education.com/worksheet/article/a-z-african-american-visionaries/
Virtual Events/Festivals
Smithsonian
https://www.si.edu/events/heritagemonth
Virtual Museum Exhibitions
Rosa Parks
National Portrait Gallery
James Baldwin
https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/exhibitions/chez-baldwin
A Changing America
https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/exhibitions/changing-america
Performing Arts
Chicago Children’s Choir
https://ccchoir.org/event/black-history-month-virtual-concert-2021/
Stepping
https://www.stepafrika.org/about/
Poetry
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/collections/101640/celebrating-black-history-month
Documentaries
What is Black History Month
What to Watch: Black History Month Edition
https://www.pbs.org/articles/2020/02/what-to-watch-black-history-month-edition/
Additional Book Recommendations from Cadence Park School Library
Social Justice, Racial Equity and the Arts
National PTA has been listening and seeking input from our students and school communities on how to best take action in support of social justice and racial equity. We believe that the arts are a great platform for our children and youth to elevate their voice.
Our 2020-2021 Reflections theme, I Matter Because… has taken on a new meaning and allows us to connect with what so many of our Black and Brown children may be feeling today. And so, we invite Reflections artists of color and their allies to share artwork that expresses and affirms their beliefs and identities—as well as the importance of Black lives. Select works will be used to help us celebrate diversity in the arts.
Artwork should be uploaded via the following form by March 1, 2021.
** If you submit your artwork, please share them with us at so we can share our artists on our social media as well as the yearbook as this is not a program run through the school but the National PTA.
Happy Lunar new year
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
What does Lunar New Year mean?
It's called the Lunar New Year because it marks the first new moon of the lunisolar calendars traditional to many east Asian countries including China, South Korea, and Vietnam, which are regulated by the cycles of the moon and sun.
As the New York Times explains, "A solar year—the time it takes Earth to orbit the sun—lasts around 365 days, while a lunar year, or 12 full cycles of the Moon, is roughly 354 days." As with the Jewish lunisolar calendar, "a month is still defined by the moon, but an extra month is added periodically to stay close to the solar year." This is why the new year falls on a different day within that month-long window each year.
For those that are celebrating, we wish you a Happy Lunar New Year and wishing you happiness & prosperity