Thanks to Cranston High School East World Language Department Chair Amy Ricci-Tum and Cranston High School West World Language Department Chair Lauren King, a thick braid of kindness has been woven across the district.

Each school is enjoying the spoils of spreading kindness and positivity through a collaboration between each’s AP Spanish Language and Culture class via project-based learning.

The groups were brought together in the late fall to brainstorm projects that could bridge the gap between the two schools while sharing valuable bilingual messages.

AP Spanish students worked together and decided to create a series of in-school campaigns that shared sentiments of kindness and positivity. As part of this project, the students created and co-manage an Instagram account, @PBLCranston, that helps amplify their messages to the school community and beyond in both English and Spanish.

“If the students can use social media to promote that positive message, and obviously communicate in Spanish and English, they’re doing both to appeal to a greater audience,” Lauren King said.

“It’s just promoting positivity,” she continued, “which is our ultimate goal of this project in our two schools, where kids realize that positive messaging can bring about positive change.”

Both teachers explained they were thrilled to hear students in both classes, before the groups joined together, had decided on similar themes.

“Amy and I really embraced the collaborative piece when we noticed that we both agreed on this theme at our separate schools,” King said.

Ricci-Tum explained the push to encourage all of the students to take the themes they’ve shared out into their communities. Students created short, meaningful directives like ‘If you see someone without a smile, give them yours’ and placed them around the school.

King and Ricci-Tum explained that students fully harnessed their creativity while making the signs that were hung at both schools, using pens, colored pencils, pastels, paint, and markers to create memorable imagery for all students.

Both teachers agreed that the learning experience for both groups was elevated by the collaboration. Sometimes the students met together at Cranston East, other times at Cranston West, and the students noted how they have made friends that, without participating in this project, they may have otherwise never made.

Caden Holtzman, Cranston High School East senior, explained that his AP Spanish project-based collaboration was one of the most memorable activities of his high school career.

“Our big thing this year,” Caden explained, “was spreading kindness, promoting friendship, and sharing anti-bullying messages.”

He also said the project was being used in his school to connect better with Spanish-speaking students. One of the tasks of his group was to create and distribute brochures about the school’s clubs and activities to Spanish-speaking students.

Holtzman said he is looking forward to meeting up with his cohorts at Cranston West again before the end of the year.

Cranston High School West senior Belen-Sarahi Castro is co-managing the group’s Instagram account. She said she recently posted pictures of all the posters they hung around the school.

Belen also enjoyed the collaborative aspect and the opportunity to make friends she may have otherwise never met.

“I think the fact that the teachers wanted to bring us together really filled the gap. I think it’s just really nice,” Castro said.

“It was just so enjoyable to have the kids collaborate because to us, it became richer,” King said.

The group has plans to partner with the special education department to teach basic Spanish-language skills to those students before the school year ends. Both groups also continue to promote their theme of kindness and the Instagram page inside the school.

Both groups, as well as the teachers, say they are looking forward to meeting one more time as a group before the school year is over.