Bayamon, Puerto Rico
Alianey Arana, 13, normally doesn鈥檛 attend Maria Vasquez de Umpierre School here. But a great deal is abnormal about her life since Hurricane Maria, and when the school got word out that it was hosting an event called 鈥淔rom Reading to Hope鈥� earlier this week, she wanted to attend.
鈥淚t feels different,鈥� said Arana, who doesn鈥檛 have any friends at the school, but is still upbeat. 鈥淚 feel happy because I can see everybody鈥檚 OK.鈥�
The event on Monday featured a read-aloud activity for about 75 school-age children and their parents, as well as other physical and artistic activities structured 鈥渋n order to create a growth mindset鈥� after the disaster, said Jessica Hernandez, the K-8 school鈥檚 principal. Teachers trained for the event, including in some crisis-intervention techniques.
鈥淭he school is the essence of what is the school community, and the extended community,鈥� Hernandez said. 鈥淎nd it should be ... where the community can come together and deal with these issues.鈥�
Puerto Rican actress Mariana Quiles read The Day the Dog Said 鈥溌uiquiriqui!鈥� (the last word is the Spanish version of a rooster鈥檚 crow) to children of various ages at Maria Vasquez de Umpierre. In the story, other animals pulled switcheroos: After a big storm, a cow, for example, starts quacking like a duck.
Carefully Chosen
The organizers didn鈥檛 choose this story haphazardly.
鈥淭he story is very elementary,鈥� said Marisa Gonzalez, an English coach at the school who also works for Scholastic, Inc., which helped to organize the event. 鈥淏ut when you look at the essence of the story, the animals go through something like a hurricane.鈥�
Hernandez said the children bring different experiences concerning the storm to school with them. Still, she hopes events like this prepare students a little bit for when Maria Vasquez de Umpierre reopens, ideally on Oct. 23.
But the 鈥淔rom Reading to Hope鈥� activities won鈥檛 erase the memories of the storm for Alianey, who recalled that the hurricane 鈥渨as scary because of the rain. ... It was terrifying.鈥� One structure attached to her house blew away, but otherwise her home remained intact, and she has the basic supplies she needs for living.
And when it comes to what Alianey misses most about school, the list she ticks off seems prosaic until you factor in Hurricane Maria: 鈥淭alking with my friends, seeing my teachers, going to class.鈥�
