my last day in the classroom and the students were writing thank you notes to a loved one for Thanksgiving. all of the students were coloring pictures and most of them wrote thank you to their parents or siblings and the teacher. one of the young girls in the class came up to me and showed me what she had written. i looked at the paper and could not read a single word, she had writing it to her aunt but it was in Spanish. she told me her aunt did not speak English and since it was for her s wrote t in Spanish. i thought it was simply amazing she could write such perfect Spanish, she was one of the best English readers in the class, i never knew she could write and speak Spanish. i asked her to read her letter to me, and she did. she was surprised that i did not know Spanish, i guess that she just assumed that everyone knew both Spanish and English. i was so happy that she had agreed to take the time and read me her beautiful letter, i felt like Johnson would have been so proud. i was thinking of him and the article we read in class. i felt like if teachers had the time to do what i just did with this young girl what a difference it would make. she had such a sense of pride after reading me her letter and explaining why she wrote it the way she had. i was so happy for her, i could see how special she felt. Jonson talks about race and white privilege. i knew this girl did not see me like that, obviously she saw me as white, but i was interested in her and her culture and i wanted to learn more about it. Johnson talks about the gap in our society between the races. i think taking the time and listening to a student, learning from them would help to make this gap smaller . getting the students involved in one and another cultures and having them talk would make things in society better. even though white privilege does exist, it didn't for those 10 minutes i was learning from this little girl. i am sure she will experience things in her life because of white privilege, but my hope is that she may think back to the day when she was able to teach me, even for 10 minutes about her culture, and it may make her feel a little bit better.
Amanda, That is really awesome how she is one of the best English readers in the classroom. As Goldenberg said that "Teaching students to read in their first language promotes higher levels of reading achievement in English." Your case is proving this theory. In order for your student to proceed in her English studies, it is more helpful for her to learn how to read and write in her native language. I am utterly impressed on this example you displayed. It also says a lot about the district you are teaching in, or it may as well could be her parents. They understand the importance of teaching her to be bilingual. Did the teachers modify the instruction in her native language? I understand that Spanish is one of the most dominant languages spoke in the United States. Now you have me wondering who came about teaching her to write in Spanish. That is a really intriguing experience, and really nice of you to share! Also, it is really awesome how children don't see you as a certain color, they see you more as a person. I mean they do see you as a color, but in their head you are not categorized yet. I am glad that you want to learn more about her culture, she seems like a very interesting and articulate girl, I would want to learn more too!
ReplyDeleteJodi Robert