In some Florida classrooms, like the second-grade class taught by Cynthia Chavez, a mix of English and Spanish can be heard as students grapple with the complexities of learning a new language while studying the building blocks of grades 1-12.
“The number of bilingual classes has increased,” Chavez said.
The number of English language learners (ELLs) has become one of the fastest-growing student groups in the United States, and the Sunshine State is the best example of this. Florida ranks third in the nation in the number of students entering elementary school while still learning English.
The cost of books and resources can be a burden for schools and teachers, but there is a program called Read Conmigo that aims to fill this gap for families and educators.
“Spanish raw materials tend to be more expensive than English ones,” said Chavez. “And they tend to come from other countries.”
Chavez told NBC6 in the past that she and many of her colleagues have had to dig deep into their pockets to purchase some of the classroom supplies to ensure their students have a wide range of materials to help them learn and keep them safe in class.
“I saved as much money as I could over the summer to spend in my classroom or use credit cards,” Chavez said.
Thanks to the Kemper Foundation’s Read Conmigo scholarship, Chavez now has a $3,000 grant to help him start the year off on a high note.
“I was shocked because at first I didn’t know that there was such a thing for teachers,” said Chavez. “Because I’ve been teaching for about four or five years and I’ve always paid out of my own pocket.”
The focus of the grant is to promote bilingual literacy in Latino communities by helping teachers in dual-enrollment classrooms create a more engaging and equitable environment to close learning gaps.
The Bilingual Literacy Grant is for K-5 teachers in Broward and Miami-Dade.
