Bobcat Stories

Spanish Department Lead Rafael Martínez de León took some time with the Buzz this month to share the exciting work he is doing in and out of the classroom with our Spanish language learners. It begins with building community with his teaching team, sharing his cultural perspectives, and emphasizing real-life communication over rote memorization. The department continues to respond to the virtual era, utilizing language learning apps, online resources, and multimedia tools.  All the Spanish teachers tailor their lessons to accommodate different learning styles, proficiency levels, and interests, ensuring all students can engage with the content effectively.  The Heritage in Spanish class – for those students who learned the language from home, students from international schools and those who studied in bilingual programs – continues to evolve and grow.   Profe Rafa is also the sponsor for the Hispanic/Latinx affinity group, motivating and promoting the members’ active participation to be the leaders and our voice in the school community. 

Throughout the department, teachers create opportunities for students to use Spanish in the community, such as volunteering, attending cultural events, participating in international exchanges where they can grow and develop personal skills and new world wide perspectives.  These activities provide a rich, engaging, and effective learning environment that prepares our students for real-world language use. 

Three years ago, after its COVID hiatus, the Bosque Intercultural Exchange Immersive Program was reinstated.  During the Immersive term in May, between 12 and 15 sophomores and juniors are invited, through an application process earlier in the year, to participate. Immersive 2025 will be the third year in partnership with Prepa UDEM, led by International Programs and incorporating the Supportive Actions (ASPE) program from the University of Monterrey, with a second-year community service project.

Exchanges, of course, go both ways, so nine students from Prepa UDEM with their teacher Mrs. Lucero Cavazos came to New Mexico in October.  Students were immersed in a language, cultural, and family experience. They attended classes with their sister/brother host, and went on field trips in Albuquerque, Santa Fe, the Chimayo Sanctuary, and White Sands National Park.  New this year was participation in a community service program with the Border Servant Corps in Las Cruces and El Paso, TX.   They have a similar program at Casa Monarca, a refuge for migrants in Monterrey, which our students experienced during the May 2024 Immersive Exchange.  The students were grateful for the opportunity to gain a complete vision of what our migrant community is suffering and how we can change their lives by supporting them.

Bosque School exchange students opened their homes and shared their warm family traditions with the students from prep UDEM. They were amazing ambassadors, and we are so proud they accepted the challenge to live this experience, which is a transformative, immersive program for all of us.

In addition to the May Immersive opportunities, Bosque students can also join an additional summer 2025 trip, from May 28 to June 5, to Portugal/Spain/Madrid that will take over 40 high school students and five faculty chaperones.  Planning has begun for a trip to Peru in Summer 2026, a new concept responding to the students’ desire to live new experiences and build memories, travel as a family, and develop both new personal skills traveling and deeper cultural understanding and perspectives. The world grows smaller the more we explore it; Bosque students are fortunate for the vision and tireless organization Profe Rafa brings to these programs.