Feel Good Story: TCES Begins Building Bridges Club to Empower English Language Learners

September 20, 2024
TCES Begins Building Bridges Club to Empower English Language Learners

An incredible and enriching opportunity emerged at Timber Creek Elementary when the Building Bridges Club was established on campus to help empower and support the English Language Learners.

In an effort to encourage and support newcomers to Timber Creek Elementary who aren’t native English speakers, Emergent Bilingual Instructional Specialist Heather Ling created a collaborative community of students through the Building Bridges Club. 

With the number of newcomers growing every year, many have been qualified as ESL students. In fact, TCES now has over 32 different languages spoken on campus. To provide intentional support, Ling wanted to offer a way for these students to feel valued and that they belong while providing a bridge between their native culture and their newly acquired culture.

Ling’s 26 years in education and her passion for making connections and building relationships with students enabled her to jumpstart this campus club, providing an outlet for newcomers who may feel overwhelmed or homesick.

The Building Bridges Club opened up to 25 newcomers in September. The students will meet one Monday a month for 45 minutes prior to the first bell. The first meeting was a hit as 20 students each designed a quilt square that represented who they are and/or their culture. A TCES parent volunteer will then take the quit pieces and create a quilt to be displayed in the front of the school. 

Through this first project, Ling expressed her appreciation for the students’ creativity and ownership.

“I wanted each child to feel free to express himself/herself,” she said. “Art is a way that all students can speak to one another, even if they don’t speak the same language.”

The Building Bridges Club has outlined a fun and engaging schedule for the students for the rest of the school year. Activities planned range from fall art projects to food tastings to music and dance to sharing their story, arts and crafts around the world, sports, and building lasting friendships. Each month will focus on a new topic and project.

In addition to this club, TCES also hosts an International Family Night which saw nearly 250 students and adults attend last year. The night featured food, dancing, crafts, and family engagement.

“Timber Creek Elementary is constantly looking for ways to provide our students with diverse and engaging experiences that complement their academic learning, along with supporting one another and building new friendships,” Ling said in a letter home to parents.