Story by Ainsley Hall
MARTINSBURG — When Eagle School Intermediate’s ESL students wanted to find a special way to share their language with other students, their teacher, Brooke Styer, wanted to come up with an idea to make this happen.
After talking with Jessica Keller, the county’s technology integration specialist, they came up with the idea of making videos translating words into Spanish.
“Probably the best thing about this project is that it was the students who really made it happen,” Keller said. “They really took ownership of it.”
“I think that having them take this project on has been one of the greatest ways for them to learn,” Styer added. “It’s also been amazing to see the students grow closer and create a strong bond. We’re really like a family here.”
Each video is linked to a QR code, which they plan to print and place all around the school. Students will get bingo cards to encourage them to go around and find all the videos and learn different words. So far, the ESL students have completed 22 videos, but they are still making more as students find other words they think they should include.
The students participating include fourth-graders Rosina Serrano, Leyla Zepeda, Nathaniel Zheng, Camila Elizarraraz, Caleb Barahona and Derrick Piece and fifth-graders Fernanda Lopez and Oscar Hernandez.
Each of the students recorded two to three videos, where they pronounce different words in English and Spanish.
Styer, Keller and Samantha DeJarnett, Eagle School’s TIS, all hope to make this a countywide project, allowing all the schools to encourage kids to learn another language. One way they plan on doing that is by sharing the project on social media and letting the community know about how these students are helping others through these videos.
“Many students come to the school without knowing any English,” Styer said. “We want to make them feel welcomed and make them feel like they are a part of the school. This is one way we can do that.”
“It embraces diversity throughout the county,” Keller added.
Not only does it bring students together, but it can also prepare students for the future. Once students enter high school, many of them are required to take a Spanish class. English-speaking students can get a head start by learning different Spanish words, while Spanish speaking students feel recognized.
All the students are excited to help their peers learn Spanish and are proud that they made this idea come to life. Though this year, they plan on focusing on Spanish, they hope to start incorporating other languages in the future.