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We celebrated the end of Hispanic Heritage Month (October 14th) by conducting a global connection between Grady Elementary (Elmsford, New York, USA), Escuela Nicolas Sojos (Cuenca, Ecuador), and Centro Educativo Años Maravillosos (CEAM) (Guerrero, Mexico). Luis Yumbla, Port Chester community member, started us off by sharing about his journey and mission to make community connections between the Ecuadorian community of Westchester and the community of Cuenca, Ecuador.
5th- and 6th-grade students kicked off our student presentations by sharing about who they are and important cultures and traditions through our One World Lesson Series: Cultures and Traditions. Escuela Nicola Sojos students showed a dance that displayed the different regions, foods, music, and traditional dress of the different regions of Ecuador. Grady Elementary students discussed their different intersecting cultures and traditions, sharing both in English and Spanish.
3rd- and 4th-grade students of Grady Elementary and CEAM then moved us to a collective envisioning of One World in 2040. The presentations were beautiful and filled with answers to questions such as “What should we keep doing the same?”, “What should we abandon?”, and “What should we do differently, but better?”, as highlighted in UNESCO’s Futures of Education Report (2021). Some visions included the elimination of wars and disease, a world of green energy and mitigated effects of Climate Change, a world of flying cars and robots, and effectively a world of happiness and peace.
Finally, 2nd-grade students engaged in a read-aloud lead by One World’s very own Ana Naulaguari, Global Connection Program Coordinator. The book “Where are you from?” was the perfect ending for an event that celebrates and embraces our unique multicultural backgrounds. At the end of the reading students proudly shared about their family’s backgrounds. Their small arms raised high and proud as everyone wanted to share where they all come from.
