In my class, all of my students come from multiple cultural backgrounds, and half of them are even multilingual. They all enjoyed the first book, which was "Mango, Abuela and Me", and some even said they could relate to the story. One of the girls even said she was a bit sad reading it because she was in a similar situation as her grandma only speaks Spanish while she only knows English and even though she loves her grandma, it's hard to communicate. She said she wishes she could learn Spanish just to talk with her grandma. They all did agree that their favorite part of the book was the parrot though. They thought it was pretty cool that Abuela and Mia both learned to talk each other's language while Mango was learning both at the same time. For the second book, "Sofia Valdez Future Prez", most of them said they admired her love for her grandpa. Some of the students had never met their grandparents, but the rest said they saw their grandparents as often as possible so they enjoyed hearing this book. Two of the students said they adore their grandma so much, that they liked hearing how Sofi had the strength to go to City Hall, and have a petition just to build a park. I asked if they would do something similar for their grandparents, and they said most likely but not for a park.

"The lesson plans from the Chavez Foundation are a wonderful educational resource for developing a greater connection to our community while celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month. The students of the after-school program enjoyed learning about culture through watching the read aloud videos and the interactive discussion questions. I love to inspire my students and teach them to not only embrace their own backgrounds, but to appreciate the diverse cultures and traditions that are unique and surround them every day. My students became engaged when sharing about their cultures, which helped them gain respect for each other’s differences. I believe these kinds of lessons teach children how to strengthen their identities and build meaningful friendships."

“I love teaching my students about different cultures and watching them realize that the world is so much bigger than they imagined. We had so much fun exploring, sharing, and comparing our experiences. My classroom includes students from Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, Texas, and New York, and it was amazing to see their curiosity about others while proudly celebrating their own roots. Some of them hadn’t visited their home countries in a long time, so when we read Island Born, they truly connected with the story and enjoyed reminiscing about their family traditions. Together, they concluded that even here in the U.S., as long as they have each other, they will never forget their traditions. The next day, one student even told me he had asked his parents more about his home country so he could finish his drawing—just like in the book. Moments like these remind me why I love what I do.”