Photograph by Robert Scheer
Ana Araya (right) and Paola Madriga, exchange students from
Costa Rica, teach the merengue at Prospect High School.
Students from Prospect High School and from Costa Rica shared their cultures and languages and saw California's sights as part of a three-week exchange program that ended Feb. 13.
In late June, the Prospect students will travel to Costa Rica to live with their exchange partners' families.
Prospect Spanish teachers Mari Houssni-Adler and Carol Crane arranged the exchange with Maricela Murillo of Alajuela, Costa Rica.
"I wanted students to learn about culture and language in a fun way--through firsthand experience," Crane said.
The Costa Rican students visited San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Marine World and the redwoods, and planned to tour Universal Studios and Disneyland before they headed home. As part of the exchange, the Costa Rican students spoke to high-school Spanish classes and exposed American students to Latin dance lessons.
In Costa Rica, the American students will visit rural and metropolitan areas of the country and will tour the schools. They will also travel to natural sites to observe flora and fauna, the ocean and the mountains.
Participants in the program are: Prospect students Kathy Gragg, Ryan Crane, Carrie Geraci, Brad King, Bethany Hall, Alison Smith, Monica Crane, Erin Steffensen; and Costa Rican students Cristina Araya, Paul Paniagua, Beatriz Hernandez, Harend Gonzalez, Paola Madrigal and Mariela Montero.
This article appeared in the Saratoga News, February 14, 1996.
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