Heritage Spanish Students Share Their Personal Stories

This fall, Morristown Beard School introduced a Heritage Spanish course that is designed to engage and promote a high level of speaking, thinking, and writing for students who have a personal, familial or community connection to a Spanish-speaking country and come to MBS with an existing foundation in the Spanish language. On Thursday, September 30, the students in Dr. Rita Moch Arias’ class gave detailed presentations in Spanish about their family, their interests and their personal journeys.

The students traced their life story, including places they have lived, schools they have attended, notable trips and accomplishments, their parents’ occupations and countries of origin, as well as their hobbies, interests, and pets. After each presentation, the students answered questions from their classmates and provided additional details.

Dr. Moch Arias said that she was very impressed by the students’ presentations and that these personal narratives will provide a good foundation for the year’s work.

“Teaching is about interacting with other people, learning from them, and understanding their stories,” said Dr. Moch Arias. “I’m so lucky to be able to do this… they are teaching me!”

The Heritage Spanish course will run yearly, with each year alternating between A and B years. A years will focus on authentic, non-fiction memoirs and historical documents highlighting the diverse voices encompassed in the Latin American identity. B years will focus on literary fiction from Latin America, and the dominant stylistic trends that represent novels, poetry, and short stories from this part of the world.