Que Bueno! Altamont Students "Go Live" on Spanish Radio, Social Media, and More

Earlier this spring, Altamont's Spanish 6 class took a field trip to the La Jefa radio station and Mi Pueblo Supermarket, both in Pelham, Alabama.

When we arrived at La Jefa, Cinthia Saenz, the chief coordinator of the station, divided us into three groups. My group was assigned to make a social media video about a Hispanic artist. Victoria Rizo, La Jefa's social media manager, showed us how to make a short film similar to the ones you might see on their TikTok or Instagram. We had to stand in front of a green screen and enthusiastically read a pre-written script in Spanish about the artist. Afterwards, she edited the video and showed us the final product. It looked exactly like the videos you see on their social media pages, except our pronunciation wasn't quite as good as theirs.

In retrospect, the social media job seems like an easy warm-up: After that, we were assigned to speak Spanish on live radio with hundreds of people listening in. All of us were nervous before going on air, but broadcasters Francisco Quintanilla and Andres Zambrano calmed us down and prepared us well for being interviewed. Then it was time to go live! We were asked our names, ages, favorite Hispanic foods, and our favorite artists. We were even quizzed on some random objects lying around.

After that, we wrote then read a script about a new radio station program and what we would talk about on the show. Then we read the script in our new "radio voices" that we learned at La Jefa. After all three of the groups completed their tasks, everyone took a picture together in front of the La Jefa van (see above) and said our goodbyes. 

Next, the bus headed right across the street to the Mi Pueblo Supermarket. We were greeted by the sights and smells of various Spanish-speaking countries from Mexico down through Central and south America. We browsed around the store before the friendly manager came over to our group and offered a tour. She kindly showed us each section of the store and explained them in Spanish. There was a produce section that had fresh fruits and vegetables unique to certain Hispanic countries. There was a bakery pumping out fresh bread, cakes, and other delicious pastries. There was a seafood section with fish, shrimp, and other types, and a meat section.

In the back of the supermarket was a restaurant that served authentic Hispanic dishes. We could choose whether we wanted to eat from the buffet order a quesadilla, which was the Tuesday special. We thought the food was incredible and much more authentic than at the Hispanic restaurants where we typically dined in town. After lunch, we browsed the store one last time for snacks and candies before getting back on the bus to head back to school, a sweet end to a challenging, enlightening trip.

To share your thoughts on this or on anything you've seen in The Acta Diurna, to suggest story ideas, or to become a contributor, email  MediaJournalismSpring2023@AltamontSchool.org.