 |
|
Students are encouraged to approach this writing contest in an imaginative and meaningful manner, expressing themselves in either their primary language or English. Teachers can assist students in focusing on the theme by exploring how being bilingual and using their creative bilingual voices will enhance their opportunities for learning, career, leadership, self-esteem, as well as the development of their cultural legacy in their future. The use of the writing process is encouraged (prewriting, sharing, revising, editing, and publishing) to develop a meaningful and expressive literary piece. Each literary piece should focus on the theme and demonstrate final editing quality. All students who enter the writing contest will be acknowledged for their efforts. Winners will be selected by a committee in four grade level categories, K-2nd, 3rd-5th, 6th-8th and 9th-12th.
|
|
|
|
|
2011
Eduardo Rizo
Valley Center Middle School, Valley Center-Pauma Unified School District
Language, Culture and Leadership: Co-Creating Community
By: Eduardo Rizo
Being bilingual
Is tough
As if one language isn’t enough,
Yet, we try and we strive
To have a sense of pride.
For the many
Cultures we share,
Because several halves,
Make perfect pairs.
We believe in change,
We believe in hard work,
We believe in learning,
But we don’t take it as a burden,
We consider it a great achievement.
We are multilingual,
Everyday, for what we do, what we talk, and in the way
That we walk,
For we keep our heads high,
Full of pride.
2011
Hong Ngo
Sierra Vista High School, Baldwin Park Unified School District
“Come my little girl, you can do it!” That’s what my family in Vietnam always told me. I believed them too, until I arrived in the United States. I went to school and it was a strange place for me. I didn’t speak a word of English and didn’t have any friends. I was shy and always alone. I always felt as if people were making fun of me and laughing at me. I felt very sad and upset.
My head felt like a bomb ready to explode at any minute. I wanted to cry and scream. I wanted the bomb to explode. I wanted it to explode so powerfully that it would send me all
the way back to Vietnam. I wanted to go back to my native country. I wanted to tell my parents all this, but I could not. “Come my little girl, you can do it!”
My parents wanted me to come to the United States to expand my knowledge and learn everything I could. They
wanted me to have a beautiful future. This became my problem and I had to solve it myself. I had to fulfill their dream for me. I kept trying and working harder. I ignored those who
were talking about me and laughing at me. I decided not to waste time on this; instead, I would focus on my studies. This was a small test, after all. I would face many more difficult
problems in the future.
It started with my first ELD teacher. I thought she didn’t like me but she did. She liked me a lot. She told me I had to start talking and expressing myself. I had to speak so others could know me and help me too. This was the starting point for me. I started acquiring English and, day by day, it improved. Now, two years later, I speak English very well. I have made friends.
People don’t make fun of me. The bomb that was inside my head has stopped pounding. It has been replaced with hope. My teachers empower me academically. My family gives me the courage to stand up and keep going. I carry myself forward, step by step.
Now, I am happy. My parents are proud of me. I am bilingual. I speak English and Vietnamese. I can translate for my parents and also help other Vietnamese people who don’t know English. I can help new students who just come to my school from Vietnam. I will be the force behind their success. I know how they feel and how hard it is to live here and feel alone. In my ELD class, we represent Mexico, Guatemala, China, Burma
and Vietnam. I help everyone. Now we are all people who live in the same country.
“Come my little girl, you can do it!” That’s what my family in Vietnam always told me. Now, I believe them. I thank my family for giving me the courage to stand up and never give
up. I thank my teachers for encouraging me to take risks with
both language and ideas.
That bomb inside my head is quiet now and I am thankful for that, too. I encourage all newcomers to never give up, keep trying and work hard. I encourage them to work hard to learn English and never give up the language that gave them life. I encourage them to become multilingual to create the thread that will connect all people. “Come my little girl, you can do it!” I know I can. I am doing it.
2011
Alexander Martinez
Thomas Jefferson Elementary School, Compton Unified School District
Por: ALEXANDER MARTINEZ
Yo hablo español e inglés para hacer amigos y para hablar a mi abuelita que vive en Nicaragua.
También quiero aprender frances para ir a Francia.
Yo voy a ser un doctor de huesos y necesito hablar inglés y español a las mamas y los papas.
By: Alexander Martinez
I speak Spanish and English to make friends and to talk with my granny that lives in Nicaragua.
I also want to learn French to go to France.
I am going to be a doctor of bones and I need to speak English and Spanish to the Moms and Dads.
2011
Zakaria N. Doueiri
Norton Space & Aeronautics Academy (NSAA)
Why Will Multilingualism Help You In The Future
By: Zakaria Doueiri
Multilingualism is important to me now and in my future to understand people’s needs, language, food and games. In speaking more than one language, I can help other people and
they can help me, too, in my future career as a detective.
I live in California, right by Mexico, so I am learning Spanish to be more respectful of the language and culture and to share in what people eat, the celebrations they do and the sports they find fun. This way I can participate in these cultural activities.
If you speak more than one language, you can discover more friendships. When you understand another person’s language, you can help others in need and make a difference in their lives.
Next summer I am planning to go to a camp for blind children from around the world. I am going to help the blind people speak and read Spanish. Multilingualism is also going to help me in my future career as a detective. If there is a crime and witnesses are telling me information, then I can know their language and figure out
what they are saying to solve the crime. Right now I am bilingual. I communicate, read and write in
Spanish and English. I am also learning Arabic at home. In sixth grade, I will learn Mandarin Chinese at my school.
My hobby is collecting rocks and minerals. I plan to travel
around the world, including to Latin American countries, speaking different languages. I would speak with the local people who know about rocks.
Clearly, it is very good to learn more that one language, not just in California, but in the whole world so people can understand one another and their cultures.
|
|
|
|
