Bernalillo Schools’ new literacy program to assist honor Hispanic and indigenous communities’ dwelling languages, cultures

BERNALILLO — Bernalillo Public Schools seems to be to assist honor and protect the house language and tradition of its indigenous and Hispanic communities.

And the district’s new literacy program, which launched with a sequence of workshops Saturday at Bernalillo High School, is supposed to assist in that.

New Mexico Public Education Department secretary Kurt Steinhaus, one of many keynote audio system, talks to households about Bernalillo Public Schools’ new literacy program on Saturday, March 19, 2022, at Bernalillo High School. (Matt Hollinshead/Observer)

“You have to bridge between the cultures. So, this type of program will help us to better understand how we better bridge between the cultures,” BPS superintendent Matt Montaño mentioned. “We don’t believe literacy means losing language and culture. It means using language and culture, and becoming an additive component to gaining literacy.”

BPS serves 11 communities, together with seven Pueblo communities. By preserving one’s language and tradition, Montaño mentioned that helps empower households as their baby progresses by the varsity system.

Montaño mentioned storytelling’s a important a part of this system as a result of storytelling itself is culturally ingrained within the space’s Hispanic and indigenous communities.

The communities Bernalillo Public Schools serves is comprised of 47 p.c Native American and indigenous college students and 45 p.c Hispanic college students, he mentioned.

He additionally mentioned about 40 p.c of all Bernalillo Public Schools college students are thought of English learners, that means their affect of language at dwelling isn’t essentially English.

Declaring 2022 the Year of Literacy, New Mexico Public Education Department secretary Kurt Steinhaus, one of many keynote audio system, mentioned literacy ought to begin with whichever dwelling language a household makes use of.

“If we’re able to be supportive of families to help them learn and preserve their home languages and also learn English, then I think we’re moving in the right direction,” he mentioned. “It’s important academically to achieve in school. And it’s just as important for the child’s well being, how they feel about themselves as they come to a school, and their language and culture is part of what they see.”

In all, there have been 15 academic periods Saturday unfold out by two or three grades per session, starting from preschool all over highschool.

The periods for the elementary schoolers and their households included studying and foundational writing. For center schoolers and their households, periods included tips about having significant conversations past one-word solutions, plus vocabulary enlargement. For excessive schoolers and their households, periods included utilizing studying to assist older youngsters have interaction in open ended conversations, in addition to methods to flip arguments into productive debates.

Sessions open to all age teams included one geared towards giving college workers and group members an avenue for equitable academic practices and to empower households. Other notable periods included how studying and writing letters assist protect household connections.

Bernalillo Public Schools superintendent Matt Montaño speaks to households in regards to the district’s new literacy program on Saturday, March 19, 2022, at Bernalillo High School. (Matt Hollinshead/Observer)