Ariana Bruno, Cristal Peña, Crystal Silva, and Jennifer Silva | Bilingual Home School Liaisons | School District of Beloit
October 2021 - Esperanza Night: Encouraging Family Engagement
Esperanza Encouraging Family Engagement
It's always great to come together to celebrate with our SDB families, but even more so
when celebrating our Hispanic heritage. During the month of October, National
Hispanic Heritage Month, we celebrated Esperanza at many of our schools. Bringing
families together adhering to COVID-19 protocols was a bit challenging: however, the
happiness in all our families’ eyes was well worth it (face coverings and all).
To have families come together and celebrate with music, games, dance, and food at a
time where gatherings are few and far between is a blessing. It gives us hope that we will
be able to celebration many more times with our families. In fact, the word Esperanza
means hope.
Hispanic Traditions are Sacred and Beautiful
Planning for our Esperanza celebration was at times difficult because there are many
amazing Hispanic traditions to highlight. Hispanic traditions are a sacred and beautiful
way to bring families together from different cultures. We wanted families to have a
sense of belonging, and their travel through our stations at this event would do just that.
Comida (food) makes the world a better place, and on our Esperanza night, there was an
endless supply thanks to all our families who donated food to honor different Hispanic
cultures. Families jumped at the opportunity to share a prepared dish of food.
Additionally, it was a warming experience to see families who could not attend still join
in with donations. This is what makes our District especial (special). Rice, Mole, Tacos,
Arroz con Gandules, Flautas, Arroz con Leche, Pozole, Cake, and Pan Dulce are just a
few dishes that highlighted our wonderful feast. It’s making us hungry just thinking back
to that evening.
Traveling Through Esperanza Stations
Families entered our Esperanza event greeted by music filling the air and the aroma of delicious food. During the evening, students traveled to different stations to complete their passports. These stations created learning opportunities for our students and families, while they made fun and wonderful memories. Everyone was busy with activities such as Loteria, dominos, balloons, maracas, piñatas, and Mexican mirrors; all honoring Hispanic traditions
The Fiesta that Keeps on Giving
Esperanza night was just a tiny introduction to the Hispanic culture. We want to thank
our schools, volunteers, and staff that made this such a wonderful event. We also want to
give a special thank you to all the families that came out and made our Esperanza
Celebration so memorable. We look forward to many more Fiestas (celebrations) to
come!
To enjoy photos from Esperanza, CLICK HERE.
