Genoveva T. Palmieri
My continued interest and development as an individual and an immigrant have always focused on the experience of the immigrant and language learning. This curriculum will refer in particular to the experience of Spanish speaking immigrants and in a broader sense to other individuals who migrated to the New World.
The word "Gringo" is well known in all Latin America. It refers to United States citizens, or as they would be called in this country Yankees. Immigrants who have lived in the United States for long periods of time are referred to as Gringos when they return to their native Latin American country. This unit aims at reviewing what is the experience of language learning and acculturation in the United States of America.
Because of my interest in writing, both poetry and essays, the ability to express your thoughts and ideas seems of great importance. Actually, it is a life long pursuit. Recognizing the importance that language and culture play in the development of every individual it is language as the first mode of communication that molds us.
At the present time I teach a high school course titled Latin America, Art and Culture. It is important that students recognize their heritage be it Latino or Hispanic, Afro-American or any other. These students are part of a high school for the arts, which is encouraging them to become the artists of the future. Thus developing their ability to communicate in many different mediums is of primary importance.
In this classroom curriculum I intend to help students understand the development of language. This will include learning language development as children, the language development of others, working towards recognizing how a "voice" is created in the process of becoming a writer. To develop artistic abilities in any form, it is important to encourage these young minds to get in touch with many aspects of their personalities.
Because of my own background, and because a good number of my students are Puerto Rican or Latinos, I will emphasize the development of language of three writers who had Spanish as their primary language. We will explore what are the authors' circumstances in learning English, and their development as writers in the American (U.S.) literary world. These artists their images and stories will communicate what they experienced, and how they used it as an artist in their writing. To recollect their past, their joys and sorrows, but most of all to know where they came from.
