We The Children
Memories and Dreams
"We the Children has been the most rewarding and enriching program offered to our students. What you do for these children is just beautiful. You are giving them a legacy."
— Norah Arroyo, Vice-Principal, Figueroa Elementary
Due to the success of the Screen Actors Guild Foundation's initial core volunteer literacy program BookPALS, featuring actors reading aloud to children, we expanded our commitment to early literacy through programs that combine interactive approaches to learning. We the Children was created to make reading and writing a first person experience by giving children an opportunity to write and illustrate their family histories. The objective of the program is to improve English literacy skills while encouraging a sense of pride in the student's heritage.
Over a ten-week period, youth participants conceive, design and write their autobiographies. Finished products are bound and include a photo and biography of the author. Two copies of each book are published: one for the student to take home, and one for the school library. Every project is a memorable experience for the child and parent, and concludes with a celebration in which each young author has the opportunity to share their story with classmates, family, friends and community members.
During our inaugural We the Children program in 1999, a child interviewed his father to learn about his family history. He discovered that his dad walked from Guatemala to the United States for a better life. The boy asked his father what he had brought on this trip and he replied, "Only my memories and dreams." Under the direction of dedicated classroom teachers, community supporters, professional literary and visual artists, children research and create a magnificent leather bound book filled with their memories and dreams.
There is a very personal experience that the children have in interviewing their parents and grandparents. This process offers them the opportunity to recognize the relationship between the past, present and future. However, there is the more public implication that this project undertakes, as well. We the Children promotes a mutual understanding between the disparate demographics that make-up schools and the surrounding neighborhood.
While enhancing reading and writing proficiency, every child who completes this project builds his/her self-confidence, pride, and a greater understanding of family, place and community.
This program happens because of the partnerships and sponsors who make this a reality. We thank the community organizations, schools, corporations, foundations and individual donors who have brought We the Children to hundreds of children across the country.
Sponsors and Partners
For more information about this program, please contact Nurit Siegel, SAG Foundation Director of Education
at (323) 549-6711 or nsiegel@sag.org.
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