Teach Central America Expo at Bruce-Monroe @ Park View — D.C. Area Educators for Social Justice

For the last three years, Cesarina Pierre has helped coordinate a Teach Central America Expo at Bruce-Monroe ES @ Park View (DCPS). This year’s expo remained an intentional, collaborative, and joyous expression of the importance of teaching about Central America! Pierre teaches about Central America before, during, and beyond the annual Teach Central America Week, and has even facilitated workshops for D.C. area educators on how to establish and grow their practice of teaching about Central America.

At Bruce-Monroe, the whole school engages in long term, multidisciplinary study of the region’s culture and history. Many of the lower elementary grades, for example, read Linda Elovitz Marshall’s Rainbow Weaver, study traditional clothes making, and have even created tutorials about how to weave.

Another compelling reflection about this year’s expo is how fluidly their learning about Central America was integrated into other units of study. Third grade, for example, rather extensively studied monuments and memorials and identified which Central American figures they believe should have monuments and memorials dedicated to their work and legacy. In second grade, students drew connections to Indigenous peoples and African Americans who’ve received this type of recognition. In addition to inviting community members to see their learning about Central America during the expo in the morning, the school also hosts an evening celebration with food, music, and performance uplifting Central American culture.

Find more stories from Teach Central America Week 2022.