Santa Maria High School’s Chicano/Latino Studies students recently took the celebration of promoting literacy and honoring Latino heritage off the pages of books and into the minds of young people at nearby Sanchez Elementary School.
The community outreach involved reading books that were written by or about Latinos. The goal was to highlight the rich legacy of Latino history and culture, encourage youth to be proud of their ancestry, and stress the importance of higher education, according Latino/Chicano Studies course teacher Ricardo Valencia.
“All Americans benefit from reading multicultural text and should have the chance to learn about their roots,” Valencia said in a press release. “Additionally, students are more engaged academically when they can relate to what they read and learned. Most of the books read were in English and Spanish.”
The Saints found the time they spent with the children inspiring and fun.
“Being there was awesome. Talking to the kids inspired me to be more involved in school because they see me as an example of a good student,” senior student Alfredo Santiago Velasco said in a press release.
“The kids at Sanchez are very nice and respectful. They are really sweet and have big dreams,” senior Enrique Balderas Juarez added.
“It was a pleasure getting to read to the kids and to answer any questions that they might have about high school. It was also really nice to talk to them about how important it is to get an education, and to not forget about where you come from. This is something I would definitely do again, and maybe I’ll consider becoming a teacher someday,” senior Lily Huerta said in the statement.
According to the Pew Hispanic Center, Latino students make up nearly a quarter of the nation’s public school enrollment and are the fastest-growing segment of the school population. However, a study featured in The New York Times demonstrates that less then 4 percent of 3,400 reviewed children’s books were written by or about Latinos.
This article appears in Nov 17-24, 2016.