Kindergarten teacher Mercedes Pemberton-Negrete was searching for ways to engage her students and build the literacy skills many of her students were struggling with. Looking for support, she shared her project with CommunityShare and was connected to Navajo author, Daniel Vandever, who led a transformative learning experience for students.

“We introduced students to new picture books with Native American and Hispanic themes and characters, so students could see themselves in the stories we were using to teach story elements,” shared Ms. Pemberton-Negrete. “Daniel Vandever shared his new book, Herizon, and the students were captivated… Many of my Native American students could see themselves in him. I got calls from parents about the author and how to buy the book. I had parents that usually don’t go online and don’t have money to buy books who wanted to buy a copy of the book for their child because their kids went home so excited from the project. We provided many new take-home books and materials for students to share with their families at home to increase family engagement.”

Ms. Pemberton-Negrete used this excitement as a launchpad for learning, engaging students in reading, retelling stories, and writing their own stories. The students also worked with local Fox Theater’s Outreach Director, Jordan Wiley-Hill, a professional storyteller, exposing them to diverse forms of storytelling and storytellers.

The results were nothing short of extraordinary. At the start of the school year, only 12% of students were performing above grade level. By year’s end, she shared that the number had soared to an astounding 94% of students performing above grade level.

25 Students Impacted

5 months

• Content Areas: Writing, Literacy, Arts