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| Students in SCC’s English Language Acquisition (ELA) program and Spanish Club constructed a float for the Sylva Christmas Parade, which won first place. |
Students in Southwestern Community College’s English Learning Acquisition (ELA) (Formerly known as English as a Second Language) program and Spanish Club collaborated to construct a float for the Sylva Christmas Parade held last Saturday, which won first place in the float contest.
The theme of this year’s parade was “A Cinema Christmas.” Students chose “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfit Toys” movie as the theme for their float.
“I am so proud of the students and all of the hard work they have put into constructing the float,” said Dr. Patricia Graham, SCC’s linguist/ELA instructor and reading specialist. “This is a diverse class, the students come from many different cultures and this is a great way for them to work together, gain new skills and also learn about each other.”
Through this float constructing process, students have practiced vital workforce skills that include understanding verbal and written instructions, collaborating with others and problem solving from start to finish.
“I have learned many different things through this project,” said ELA student Azucena Alvaredo. “I know how to do paper mache now and how to do a project step by step.”
Part of the project involved using recycled materials such as newspapers, plastic jugs and bottles to make the film characters and other parts of the float.
The Sylva Herald donated 60 pounds of newspapers for the students to use in their project.
“This has been a great experience,” added Manolo Hernandez-Cortes, an ELA student. “We all come from different backgrounds, and this has been fun sharing our different cultures.”
For more information about the ELA program, call 828.339.4262 or visit www.southwesterncc.edu.
