ERIC Number: EJ816650
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2008-Nov
Pages: 12
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0360-9170
EISSN: N/A
Autobiographical Snapshots: Constructing Self in Letras y Arte
Armon, Joan; Ortega, Tony
Language Arts, v86 n2 p108-119 Nov 2008
Letras y Arte: Literacy and Art, is a summer course that pairs college students and children from a Latino neighborhood for literacy and art learning. Started five years ago, Letras y Arte provides opportunities in four areas: (1) literacy opportunities that foster distinctive identities and voice; (2) immersion in a broad view of literacy that includes visual arts; and (3) reciprocal mentoring in which college students teach and learn from the children. Children and college students hear bilingual read-alouds of autobiographies and then create their own. Working side-by-side, they share oral stories to highlight distinctive aspects of themselves. Children and college students list identities, select one, and map out ideas for autobiographical snapshots that reveal distinctive identities and funds of knowledge. In pairs, they begin drawing and writing and, as ideas develop, create monotype prints and typed text. After hearing suggestions from peers and teachers in Walkabout Critiques, the pairs polish and present finished books at a culminating celebration for families. Applications for K-12 classrooms and university-community partnerships. (Contains 7 figures.)
Descriptors: Literacy Education, Art Education, College Students, Visual Arts, Reading Aloud to Others, Autobiographies, Writing (Composition), Hispanic Americans, Children, School Community Relationship, Summer Programs, Mentors, Childrens Art, Bilingualism
National Council of Teachers of English. 1111 West Kenyon Road, Urbana, IL 61801-1096. Tel: 877-369-6283; Tel: 217-328-3870; Web site: http://www.ncte.org/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education; Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A