Yo Contigo, Tú Conmigo: Our First Hora de Amistad

On Monday morning, the whole school fit into one gym.

The youngest students sat cross legged on the floor. Teachers knelt beside them. Along the wall, our 4th and 5th graders lined up in their red Amistad shirts, each holding one handwritten word.

Then the music started.

One song, two directions

Our 4th and 5th graders performed "Yo Contigo, Tú Conmigo (The Gong Gong Song)," the Spanish language theme Morat and Álvaro Soler recorded for Despicable Me 3. The title translates to "me with you, you with me." Friendship as a promise that travels both ways.

It also holds a small language lesson. In Spanish, con (with) joins the pronoun to become conmigo and contigo. Two words our students now sing without thinking about it.

The words they held

Each sign named something a friend actually does.

When the oldest students in the building stand in front of the youngest and name these out loud, the little ones take notes. Watching a fifth grader hold up paciencia lands differently than hearing it from an adult.

Why we gather on Mondays

Hora de Amistad brings the entire school into one room to celebrate culture, community, and learning before the week begins. Kindergartners next to fifth graders. Teachers, families, and friends. Two languages, one space.

Monday was the first of many. Yo contigo, tú conmigo.