Literacy Events

AUTHOR SCHOOL VISIT: Music, Movement and Stories*

We will begin by singing songs in Spanish and playing select Afro-Latino rhythms to model how to engage children in a story actively. We will then explore key themes of the book selected and show how links can be made with the children’s home culture(s) and communities. There will be a picture walk and then an interactive reading of the story. The workshop will end with each child receiving a take-home activity and a signed copy of the book.

Audience: children (PreK – 3rd grade)

Length of session: 45 minutes per session 

Amount of Participants per Session: no limit

Language: English / Spanish / Bilingual

*Picture Book: Sofi and the Magic, Musical Mural (Arte Público Press, University of Houston, 2015), Sofi Paints her Dreams (APP, 2015), When Julia Danced Bomba (APP, 2019) or Broken Butterfly WIngs (APP, 2021)

AUTHOR VISIT WITH FAMILIES: Music, Movement and Stories*

We will begin by singing songs in Spanish and playing select Afro Latino rhythms to model how to actively engage children in a story. We will then explore key themes of the book selected and show how links can be made with the children’s home culture(s) and communities. There will be a picture walk then an interactive reading of the story. The workshop will end with a demonstration of how to create a puppet based on one of the main characters in one of my books. Each child will receive a take-home activity and a signed copy. Caregivers will receive information regarding pre and post reading activities that can be used to enhance reading comprehension.

Audience: children (PreK – 3rd grade) and caregivers

Length of session: 90 minutes

Amount of Participants per Session: no limit

Language: English / Spanish / Bilingual

*Picture Book: Sofi and the Magic, Musical Mural (Arte Público Press, University of Houston, 2015), Sofi Paints her Dreams (APP, 2015), When Julia Danced Bomba (APP, 2019) or  Broken Butterfly WIngs (APP, 2021)

PUPPET VIEWING: Sofi’s Magical Adventure

First we will view Sofi’s Magical Adventure, a 25-minute bilingual musical puppet performance based on Raquel M. Ortiz’s bilingual children’s picture book Sofi and the Magic, Musical Mural. Join Sofi exploring public art, imagination, and the Puerto Rican cultural tradition of Carnival as Sofi visits beautiful places on the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico and gets to know the carnival character, a vejigante. And, sing along, in Spanish and English, (and maybe even dance) to bouncy plena music created by four time Grammy nominated composer William Cepeda. https://drraquelmortiz.com/sofis-magical-adventure/

Then,join the author to make a vejigante puppet inspired by her bilingual children’s picture book Sofi and the Magic, Musical Mural and receiving a signed copy of the book. End the session grabbing a maraca and join Raquel singing some of the carnival songs from Sofi’s Magical Adventure, “Vejigante mío,” “La Plena nos deja contar,’ and “Vejigante quiere volar.”

Audience: PreK – 5th grade

Length of session: 60 minutes

Amount of Participants per Session: no limit

Language: English / Spanish / Bilingual

Materials: Vejigante template, Paper bag, scissors, Crayons, color pencils or paint

Professional Development

TEACHERS: Cucarachita Martina*

We will begin the session by reviewing the cultural history behind Cucarachita Martina as a folklore character popular in the Caribbean and throughout Latin America. We highlight the importance of New York City librarians in the New York Public Library, and how to connect ethnic studies to the elementary curriculum. We will also consider what research suggests about how best to work with fully bilingual texts in elementary classrooms, as well as reports on practice in the classroom. This presentation will feature a 4-minute excerpt from a free animated short that premiered in 2021 and educational materials created for the film. The 18-minute film, Cucarachita Martina’s Musical Adventure, was produced by the Center for Puerto Rican Studies, Puerto Rican Heritage Cultural Ambassadors Program (Jr.). It is appropriate for students of all grades, and will especially appeal to elementary students. The session will end with a review of all Puerto Rican Heritage Cultural Ambassadors materials free and available online to teachers, students, and caregivers.

Audience: educators, preK – 8th grade

Length of session: 90 minutes

Amount of Participants per Session: 50

Language: English / Spanish / Bilingual

*I can also offer the workshop on my books:Sofi and the Magic, Musical Mural (Arte Público Press, University of Houston, 2015), Sofi Paints her Dreams (APP, 2015), When Julia Danced Bomba (APP, 2019) or  Broken Butterfly WIngs (APP, 2021); the session can be given virtual or in person

Week-Long Workshops

READER’S THEATER: Playing with Puppets & Bringing Books to Life

In this week-long residency students will help produce a puppet play based on one of my picture books. First, they’ll explore key themes and take a picture walk of the book selected. Then, students will create a hand puppet to use during a choral reading of the book selected. For the remainder of the week students will create a hand puppet and practice the script. At the end of the week students will perform the puppet play for other students in their school.

Audience: students, 3rd – 5th grade

Length of session: 60 minutes, 10 sessions minimum (1 week)

Amount of Participants per Session: 25 students, 3rd – 5th grade

Language: English / Spanish / Bilingual

Summer Residencies

MUSICAL PUPPET PRODUCTION: Dancing with the Talking Drums

Create and produce a puppet theater adaptation of my children’s books, When Julia Danced Bomba*, which will be performed by students, who will act, sing, dance and operate tabletop or Bunraku-style puppets based on the characters in the book. The 30-minute interactive musical puppet production, Dancing with the Talking Drums, will celebrate literacy, bilingualism, song, dance, community and Afro Puerto Rican culture.

I will create the script and lyrics to the songs for the production and collaborate with William Cepeda to create music for the production. We will collaborate with local dance instructors, art teachers and students to create dance routines, scenery and props. Students will learn how to stage and perform Dancing with the Talking Drums.

We plan to celebrate the students and their work during the following events:

• one family literacy event to share with literacy techniques with students and their families
• a performance of Dancing with the Talking Drums
• create and share educational materials related to  Dancing with the Talking Drums

Audience: students, 2nd – 5th grade

Length of session: 60 minutes, 15 sessions minimum

Amount of Participants per Session: 50 – 100 students

Language: Bilingual

Time frame: June-August

*This project can also be done with the following picture book: Sofi Paints her Dreams (APP, 2015), Broken Butterfly WIngs (APP, 2021), or the script for Cucarachita Martina’s Musical Adventure (Centro, 2020)

VIDEO PUPPET PRODUCTION: Dancing with the Talking Drums Film

Create, produce, and film a 30-minute bilingual musical puppet performance based on Raquel M. Ortiz’s bilingual children’s picture book When Julia Danced Bomba. Join Julia in exploring the Afro-Puerto Rican cultural tradition of bomba. Learn about the bomba instruments of the barril, cuas and maracas. Get to play the basic bomba rhythms of basi sicbá, yubá, holandé, cuembé, seis corrido, corbé, guembé, cunyá, leró and belén. And, sing along, in Spanish and English, (and maybe even dance) to beautiful bomba music created by four time Grammy nominated composer William Cepeda.

The production will be performed by children, who will act, sing, dance, and operate tabletop or Bunraku-style puppets based on the characters in the book. The interactive musical puppet production, Dancing with the Talking Drums will share and celebrate Afro-Puerto Rican folkloric singing, dance and culture.

Audience: students, 2nd – 5th grade

Length of session: 60 minutes, 15 sessions minimum

Amount of Participants per Session: 50 – 100 students (production) view – unlimited

Language: Bilingual

Time frame: June-August

*This project can also be done with the following picture book: Sofi Paints her Dreams (APP, 2015), Broken Butterfly WIngs (APP, 2021) or the script for Cucarachita Martina’s Musical Adventure (Centro, 2020)

[3 production days, 8-hour work days: total 8 hours of recorded footage.

Editing 40-50 hours]