Bilingual Web Site Salutes Hispanic Culture

Washington, D.C. — ColorinColorado.org, the first major Web site to help Spanish-speaking children learn to read in English, is saluting the rich history of Hispanic culture with a special section dedicated to Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15-October 15). The Hispanic Heritage Month section of the site includes an e-card illustrated by Caldecott Medal winner David Diaz, books about Hispanic cultures, and five print-out activity sheets available in English and Spanish to encourage kids to have fun with words and letters. It also includes a downloadable poster from the American Federation of Teachers that depicts contributions of Hispanic Americans and suggested classroom activities for celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month.

"We know that culture plays an important role in the learning process," said Layla Wright-Contreras, manager of ColorinColorado.org. "By exploring these resources with their students, educators can better connect with their English language learners and help them succeed in the classroom."

Hispanic Heritage Month begins on September 15 because five Hispanic countries — Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua — celebrate their independence on this day. Mexico's Independence Day is on September 16, and Chile's is on September 18.

Originally launched as a destination for parents, ColorinColorado.org has become an excellent resource for teachers, with free research-based information and tools for teaching English language learners (ELLs). Resources for educators include information about Hispanic cultures and values; strategies for assessing and placing ELLs; best instructional practices for teaching vocabulary, reading, and content areas; and the Colorín Colorado T.ELL.E-GRAM, an e-newsletter especially for educators. A Spanish-language newsletter, El Boletín Informativo Colorín Colorado, was developed for parents of ELLs.

ColorinColorado.org also features materials that are ready to download, including the Color�n Colorado - AFT Toolkit for Teachers: Reaching Out to Hispanic Parents of ELLs, produced in conjunction with the American Federation of Teachers. The toolkit contains workshop ideas, handouts, and bilingual video components to help involve parents in the classroom. There is also a teacher sampler pack with assessment and reading checklists, progress forms and bilingual book recommendations. Free professional development webcasts on teaching ELLs, author interviews, and videos on English language learners are available as well.

Launched in 2003, the award-winning Color�n Colorado project is part of an ongoing initiative from public television and radio broadcaster WETA called Reading Rockets, which looks at how young children learn to read, why so many kids struggle, and what can be done about it. The name Colorín Colorado refers to a popular ending to virtually all Spanish language fairy tales. It is equivalent to "� and they lived happily ever after!"

To find out more about ColorinColorado.org and Hispanic Heritage Month, visit ColorinColorado.org/celebrations/hhm.php. Or contact Renée Hockaday (rhockaday@weta.com, 703/998-2440) or Barbara Pape (bpape@weta.com, 703/998-2474).

Reading Rockets is a service of public broadcasting station WETA, Washington, D.C., and receives major funding from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs. WETA is the third-largest producing station of programming for the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) and the flagship public broadcaster in the nation's capital. Sharon Percy Rockefeller is president and CEO of WETA.

ColorinColorado.org is funded in part by the American Federation of Teachers and the National Institute for Literacy. Reading Rockets produced the PBS television documentary "Becoming Bilingual," hosted by acclaimed actress Rita Moreno, which looks at how different schools and programs are finding success in teaching English language learners to read. Color�n Colorado is also associated with LDOnLine.org, the world's leading Web site on learning disabilities. LDOnLine.org is made possible by generous support from Lindamood-Bell Learning Processes®.

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