This morning we had a special (rescheduled) visit from storyteller Felix Pitre.  He came to WOS with his wife and lots of special instruments and stories to share.  Everyone was really excited to see him.

He was born in Puerto Rico.  He speaks Spanish and taught us a lot of words through his stories and songs.

The first song that he sang was called La Bamba.  It is about marriage and cooperation.  We learned the word for dance: baila.  Felix told us the story of Juan Bobo and the Pig.  It is about a boy who wasn't so smart.  He was in charge of taking care of the family pig while his mom went to church.  Felix was telling the story pretending to be two people at the same time.  It was silly and funny!  Felix told us to practice telling stories so that we can remember them…and even to find ways to change or add things to make them our own.  He showed us a book that he wrote based on the popular Puerto Rican folk tale about Juan Bobo and the pig.

One song taught us spanish words AND sign language together. We learned how to say and sign all of the words: pollito-chicken; gallina-hen; lapiz-pencil; pluma-pen; ventana-window; puerta-door; maestra-teacher, and piso-floor.

Towards the end of the assembly, Felix brought out a special guest: a type of frog that cannot live anywhere else in the world except for Puerto Rico called a coqui.  The frog was so funny!  He pretended to catch a fly to eat, he wanted to kiss a girl from Mrs. Schaefer's class (hoping to become a prince), and said he learned how to speak english by watching cable tv in the jungle!

The last song that we learned was called Guantanamera.  Lots of kids from different first grade classes were picked to go up on stage, including Olivia from our class!  Each person was given a different instrument to play.  Felix explained what they were called and where they came from.

The performance was really interesting and fun.  We came back to the classroom and went on Google Earth to see where Puerto Rico is. 

What where does the coqui get its name from?  What else can you find out about it?