The "Book to Action" grant provides materials and programming funding with the purpose of moving communities into action around relevant themes in the region. The Lafayette Library proposes a Book to Action program that will engage Lafayette second and third graders in a letter writing campaign to equivalent grades in Mexico so that school children can experience cultures other than their own. Students will receive copies of "Dear Primo" and the book will be added to the Lafayette Library collection. Staff from the local school will teach children some basic conversational Spanish. Participants will gain greater cultural awareness and sense of the commonalities between life in the two countries. Lafayette area high school students will put their language skills to use by helping translate letters from Mexico. The experience will emphasize the benefit of real world application of learning a second language, and Spanish in particular. Elementary school children will be excited to make connections with children in Mexico and hear about their daily lives.   

Materials will not be acquired and programs will not be conducted.

The opportunities gained from the experience of the multicultural engagement support the outcome of Children Ready and Succeeding in School. The experience of obtaining diverse geographical information, meaningful opportunities to increase cultural awareness, and foreign language applications enhance knowledge, skills and confidence in the educational arena and daily life.