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2008
Katherine Kannitha Lim
Ben Painer Elementary School
Once upon a time, I went to Cambodia with my mom and dad. One day I was going on the beach. Then I needed to go peepee. But there was no bathroom. Then I saw a hole next to the bush. I must go peepee so bad so I sat down on it. Then I heard a Cambodian lady calling at me. I did not know what she’s saying. My mom heard that. She ran to me and pulled my pants up and shouted, “CRAB! CRAB! CRAB! CRAB! CRAB! Katherine run!” That crab was tiny but it can bite till your skin comes off! My heart was beating like a drum! I was so scared!
Another time, I stayed in my grandma’s house. There were many people went over selling many good smelling foods. My grandma gave me some Cambodian moneys. I could not wait for my mom to come home. I opened the gate and saw something red, very tasty in her basket. The Cambodian lady said something I did not know but I was hungry so I nodded and ate it. It was TOO HOT! It burnt my mouth. It choked my throat. My grandma saved me by giving me a big cup of water. After that I wished I could learn Khmer. I asked my grandma to teach me some Khmer words. Then I could talk a bit with other Cambodian kids.
I am very proud that I could say English and Khmer. It is good to know your mom and dad’s sayings in other words. It helps a lot when you go to other places as your old home. And you can talk to other people. And you will not have silly things happen to you as I did!
2008
Gabriella Isaguirre
Language Academy of Sacramento
Yo soy,
el pelo negro que adorna mi cabeza,
piel caramelo que cubre mi esqueleto,
el cuerpo que envuelve mi alma.
Yo tengo
una familia que me ama,
amigos a mi lado,
maestros que me enseñan.
Yo hablo y escucho
diferentes idiomas,
español e inglés,
puedo hablar.
Tagalog y vietnamesa,
yo puedo escuchar.
Yo vengo de
flores de sampaguita,
adobo con pollo,
y halo-halo con nieve de coco.
Comida rica y cultura rica,
Personas lleno de hospitalidad y amor.
Yo soy
una niña.
Soy una hija.
Soy una amiga.
Yo vengo
de una generación
de I-pods, hip-hop
y rock.
Yo fuí
la niña Chiquita,
quien dibujada el cielo en un traje de baño amarillo
y viajaba con libros en un traje de ballet de color rosita.
En mi futuro yo veo
una cantante, ballerina,
actriz y poeta.
En mi futuro yo veo
una mujer fuerte y determinada
alguien lista para enfrentar a la vida.
Yo estoy aquí ahora
Respirando el aire del momento.
Aquí
Ahora
Siendo quien soy
y creando a mi identidad.
I am
the dark black hair that adorns my head,
the caramel-colored skin that covers my skeleton,
the body that wraps my soul.
I have
A family that loves me;
friends by my side;
and teachers that teach me.
I speak and hear
different languages.
Spanish and English are the ones that I speak.
Tagalog and Vietnamese are the ones that I hear.
I come from
Sampaguita flowers,
Chicken adobo,
And halo-halo with coconut ice cream.
Rich food and rich culture.
People, rich with hospitality and love.
I am
a girl.
I am a daughter
I am a friend.
I come from a generation
of I-pods, hip-hop,
and rock.
I was
the little girl,
who painted the sky in a yellow bathing suit,
and traveled with books in a big pink tutu.
In my future I see
a singer, a dancer,
an actress and a poet.
In my future I see
a strong and accomplished woman,
someone I always wanted to be.
Today,
I am here,
Now.
Breathing the air of the moment.
Here.
Now.
Being who I am,
Creating an identity
Evolving into what I will be.
2008
Magali Palma
Laguna Hills High School
Life has given us
The gift of speech,
Of travel,
Of thought,
Of communication.
Life has also given us
The gift of knowledge,
Of understanding,
Of completing,
Of being able.
We cannot limit ourselves
To one language,
To one landscape,
To one shelter,
To one probable.
Our future can not shine
Without discovering,
Without producing,
Without pursuing.
Our world could not reach peace
Without understanding,
Without regret,
Without feeling,
Without behavior.
And only by learning a different language Our world can change,
Can rest,
Can progress,
Can reach.
Its sublime what bilingual can do;
Make us understand,
We’re not different.
La vida nos ha regalado
La habilidad de hablar,
De viajar,
De pensar,
De comunicar.
La vida tambien nos dio
El regalo de aprender,
De entender,
De hacer,
De poder.
No nos podemos limitar a
Un solo lenguaje,
A un solo hospedaje,
A un solo paisaje,
A un solo probable.
Nuestro futuro no puede
Rendir sin el don de descubrir,
El don de conseguir,
El don de producer.
Nuestro mundo no podrá lograr su paz,
Sin endendimiento,
Sin arrepentimiento,
Sin sentimiento,
Sin comportamiento.
Sólo por aprender otro lenguaje
Nuestro mundo puede cambiar,
Puede descansar,
Puede progresar,
Puede alcansar.
Lo que logra la lengua y
Su significado.
Es sublimino lo que siendo bilingüe
Nos hace entender.
No somos diferentes.
2007
Anahí Gasca
Edmonson Elementary
La importancia de tener dos idiomas
Para mi es muy bueno tener dos idiomas porque asi puedo tener mas amigos en todos lugares que pueda estar. Cuando vamos a fiestas yo puedo jugar con todos sin importarsi hablan en Ingles o Espanol. En la escuela puedo tener mas amigos y si alguien llega nuevo a mi clase y no entiende el idioma, yo podre ayudarlo a entender lo que maestra quiere decir. Tambien para mi es importante porque en Mexico todos hablan en Español yo me puedo comunicar con todos muy facil. Cuando sea grande quisiera poder ayudar a muchos ninos como lo hace mi maestra, pero tambien ayudar a la gente grande que no entienda Ingles o Español. Por ejemplo con un doctor puedo ayudar a las personas a comunicarse asi como le ayudan a mi mamá cuando no entiende lo que el doctor le dice. Es muy importante hablar en dos idiomas!
The importance of having two languages
For me it is very good to have two languages because I make more friends in all the places that I go to. When we go to parties I can play with everyone without thinking if they speak in English or Spanish. In school I can make more friends and if someone new comes to class and does not understand the language, I will be able to help him/her to understand what the teacher wants to tell him/her. Also for me it is important because in Mexico I have a lot of family and I love to go on vacations to visit them. In Mexico everyone speaks Spanish and I can communicate with everyone very easily. When I grow up I would like to help many children just as my teacher does, but I would also like to help the grown ups that do not understand English or Spanish. For example at the doctor I could help to communicate just as my mother gets help when she doesn’t understand what the doctor is saying. It is important to speak two languages.
*Translated by 1st grade teacher
2007
Jennifer A. Sánchez
Bradley Elementary School
Bilingue hoy, manana y siempre
Ser bilingue es como una estampa
que tengo pegada en mi Corazon.
Una estampa que es el símbolo
de mi pasado y mi futuro.
Ser bilngue es como una semilla
que cada dia crece mas y mas.
Soy la flor que cada dia mis raices
crecen en mi aula bilingüe.
Aprender dos idiomas significa
ayudar siempre a mis padres con
paciensia y amor..
Representa el esfuerzo de hoy,
manana y siempre
sembrado en mi Corazón.
Bilingual Today, Tomorrow and Always
To be bilingual is like having
a stamp glued to my heart.
A stamp that represents a symbol
of my history and my future.
To be bilingual is like a seed
that grows with each day more and more.
I am the flower that with each day my
roots grow in my bilingual classroom.
To learn two languages signifies
always helping my parents with
patience and love.
Represents the effort of today,
tomorrow and always
embedded in my heart.
2007
Alex Carr
Valley Center Middle School
Educating Every Student: Investing in Tomorrow Today: My Bilingual Rewards
My parents both grew up only speaking English. There was no bilingual program when they went to school. I started bilingual when I was in kindergarten. It is important to them that my sister (who’s also in the bilingual program) and I are able to communicate with as many people as possible in our community. And now we are part of two different worlds. Now that I’m in seventh grade, reading, writing and speaking Spanish they know that my future career choices will include a wider range of opportunities.
I’ve learned so much about Mexican cultures and academics in the bilingual program. The program makes me a more accepting person of other cultures and ideas. In my fourth grade classes we wrote and performed songs in both Spanish and English. It was interesting comparing the ways words work in both languages. I’ve also learned about Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), a Mexican tradition celebrated in October when dead relatives are honored in a joyful way. In fact, my class and I recently celebrated it. We had a party and read up on the meaning and origin of the celebration.
Speaking and participating in the language of the culture we’re studying really enriches my life. For example, celebrating actual Mexican traditions, like Cinco de Mayo, in Spanish gives me a more intuitive sense of what we’re learning. Because I’m learning in two languages, it allows me to think in different ways.
Every time I’ve gotten an academic award in school, I knew that I had to work twice as hard as most other kids because I was learning all of my subjects in two languages. I had to learn verb conjugations in English and Spanish, regular and irregular. Every time after I got an award, my self-esteem skyrocketed and I knew that I was doing the right thing. I believe I will have many more and better job opportunities than single-language kids.
Of course, I can’t say for certain how my being fluent in Spanish will manifest itself in my future, but I believe many more of life’s doors will be open for me. Because of my skills in Spanish, the people I meet and work with along the way will enrich my life. It’s opened my eyes to learn how other cultures live in America. The world is increasingly becoming closer with things like the internet and global economies. I’ll be more prepared to work in whatever career I choose. The more we all know and can contribute will help make the world better for the future. I’m investing in tomorrow today, so that I may reap my bilingual rewards.
2007
Fei Wang
Sierra Vista School
Bilingual Education:
Educating Every Student: Investing in Tomorrow, Today
Do you know what kind of investing can get the highest profit? It’s not stocks or real estate; it’s education. We must educate every student, and especially the poor students. I believe life is unfair. There are many people living in the United States who have limited job choices because they do not speak English or because they have limited education. They live on the margins of the culture. We can’t give them money. We can’t even change their lives. The only people who can change their lives are themselves. Each person can change his or her own life. The only true way to change a life is to give that person the gift of an education. Bilingual education’s goal is to educate every student. What children learn in school will form the base for their future aspirations.
I came from Shanghai, China. In my city, every student has to study English; we have to pass the English test to go on to college. Our teachers teach us to pass the test; in fact we don’t really learn a lot because we are so busy learning to pass the test. When I came to the United States, I thought everything would be easy because I had studied so much English. To my surprise, I could not understand anything anyone was saying to me. I could not talk to anyone. I felt lost.
Then, I started school one month before the state of California was giving the CAHSEE exam. I reviewed with my class for one month, took the test, and passed it! I guess my country prepared me well for tests. Good for me; I passes the test, but I still could not communicate with the people around me.
It is now a year later and thanks to bilingual education, I can communicate in English. I don’t have to worry about the test anymore, and I am free to learn English. I am learning how to use English in my life. I can talk to my teachers and my friends in English; I can make my parents proud of me. I am also learning about the culture and values the people support in this country. I am learning how they think and feel. I am learning to communicate with them in their language, on their level, but I am still respected for being me.
In a math class, the teacher complained to the ELD teacher that when she put the students in groups, they would speak too much Chinese. When the teacher asked them how they performed in math, she said they did excellently. So, did speaking in Chinese to discuss math hurt them? This is what bilingual education is all about. It is about educating every student by investing tomorrow, today, and by accepting the languages the students take with them to school as a way to empower them rather than make them feel bad about who they are.
I must thank bilingual education; it changes the lives of millions of people who come to the United States from other countries to become part of this country. Bilingual education empowers these valuable resources by providing them with the tools to become bilingual. When they speak two languages, it will make them more marketable. They will have more to contribute to their communities. They will become better parents.
Just look at me. I learned enough English in China to pass an exam, but could not talk to anyone when I came here. I did not learn enough English to permit me to live here and make friends, go to college, or even find a good job. Now, I have learned a lot of English, have made a lot of friends, am preparing for college, and am honored and recognized for who I am, a young immigrant from China. I think I’ve done well, thanks to bilingual education.
I hope bilingual education can help more students learn English, discover who they are, ad help empower them to find ways to give back to their communities. Everyone must have a right to a quality education, especially poor children; education is the only way they can really change their lives. Bilingual education is a great way for a country to develop, as well as the world. We must all invest in tomorrow, today, through bilingual education.
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