Spanish Classes Deliver Holiday Cheer
Source/Author: Emili Jaime-Allwood, LS Spanish Teacher
December 16, 2016
Fourth graders in Señora Jaime-Allwood’s Spanish class closed out the week before Winter Break with a special trip to Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital. The students delivered stacks of handmade books and cards that they and third graders made - in both English and Spanish - for the patients at All Children’s.
Dr. Prem Fort, a Shorecrest parent, JHACH physician and native Spanish speaker, helped connect the classes with the hospital. Dr. Fort and staff from the All Children’s Hospital Foundation were there to greet the Shorecrest students and accept the gifts on behalf of the patients for the second year.
“When you emotionally feel better, your illness gets better. What you guys have brought will bring a lot of smiles to a lot of kids - and they're going to practice their Spanish too!” said Dr. Fort. “You’ve helped make their holidays happy while they are here in the hospital.”
“When you emotionally feel better, your illness gets better. What you guys have brought will bring a lot of smiles to a lot of kids - and they're going to practice their Spanish too!” said Dr. Fort. “You’ve helped make their holidays happy while they are here in the hospital.”
The visit was a culmination of a long-term project that involved Spanish vocabulary and writing, art, and community service.
Sra. Jaime-Allwood said, “For the first step of our community project I asked my classes, ‘How would you feel if you were sick in a hospital?’”
Brainstorming together, the third graders decided to create vocabulary books around topics like animals, holidays and food. Fourth graders made inspiring and beautifully decorated cards. Each step of the project added a bulk of new words to the students’ Spanish language vocabulary including words describing feelings and emotions, holidays and traditions, and more.
They put their speaking skills into practice when delivering the cards, as Dr. Fort chatted with them in Spanish.