Piece Comment

Review of "A Big Change in My Life"


Jennifer Addo’s story about learning English in a classroom full of Spanish speakers sheds new light on the ESL program for me. Growing up in a school district with many friends in ESL classes, it never occurred to me the camaraderie that could be built up between those who speak the same native language. It was so interesting to get Jennifer’s perspective coming into an area where most kids are from Spanish speaking countries. Although parts of the voicing were a little difficult to understand, she does a great job of weaving different scenes in and out of her voicing. I especially liked the montage where the students said where they were from and what language they spoke at home. The last few seconds felt a little off topic when she began talking about her mom; although it was captivating, it seemed like it belonged in a different story, which could be equally as important to tell. Overall though, a fascinating idea for a story. This would be great to air as kids start thinking about the academic year and head back to school this fall.