WeAreCaliber #1: Dragon Day @Beta Upper School!

Learn more about Dragon Day @ Beta Upper School. 

All about Dragon Day @Caliber: Beta Academy
Beta Upper took part in the first annual Dragon Day. Eighth grade students participated in Challenge Day, a program designed to break down barriers, confront bullying, and intentionally design the peer community that will carry students through their final year at Beta before high school. In planning for the 8th graders experience, Coach Kisha was hit with a great idea - we should replicate a similar experience for 6th and 7th grade too! So, students in those grades will rotate through their normal class schedule, but each teacher will conduct a lesson on a different SEL competency such as conflict resolution, positive peer relationships, and self regulation. It is sure to be a HEARTfelt day.

- Ashlee Gutierrez- School Leader @ Beta Upper School 


A recent interview with Daniel Lopez (8th grade student): 
What is your favorite thing about Caliber: Beta Academy? 
"The uniform policy gets to me, but I like that they have a great support system and will support you with whatever obstacles you are facing. They guide you and they don’t give up on you even when you want to give up on yourself." 


Tell me more about Challenge Day at Beta Upper School? 
​"Dragon Day was a different experience. It was unexpected, but some people cried because they learned about the people around them and what they were facing. You got to hear all about everyones differences. It gave me different perspective about my life. Everyone is facing something, and we don’t talk about it. Everyone is the same, maybe we go through different things, but we all feel the same emotions. I learned to not judge people, to understand others around you and be the best person you can be." 

 
Tell me about your favorite part of the day? 
"I liked the whole day, but I especially liked how we got to express ourselves without anyone judging you. We learned that everyone should have someone to talk to and listen to you. We all started with a circle, then we closed our eyes to think about who we are and how we see things in life. After this, we went around talking about our thoughts and I was able to share and listen to others as well. I learned about a lot of things we don't talk about with my friend group." 


Why do you think it’s important for students to engage in these discussions? 
"It's important because it allows us to make space where we can share our feelings and thoughts. A lot of students don’t have a way to express these and we learned how we can do this .We learned how I can better support my friends when they are going through something." 


What is a fun fact that nobody knows about you? 
“I like to watch National Geographic and learn about animals!”