Kids hang on to 'energy' at Oral Language Festival
Dec. 7—"Candy, Candy, Candy," Zoey Raguindin recited, as her voice grew louder with each word.
Her eyes widened and her face beamed with excitement as she described a child's obsession with trick-or-treating while performing "Halloween," a children's book by Jerry Seinfeld.
"Adults are so focused on being like adults and stuff," Raguindin, 13, said of her performance before competing. "My main thing about being a child is hanging onto that energy."
A few doors down, Gavin Arismendez, 13, adopted a grave face before judges when telling the story of "There's Something Wrong with Locker 307." In the auditorium a quintet retold the rowdy tale of "Cinder Edna," the polar opposite of Princess Cinderella.
The Bakersfield City School District office was filled with dozens of students participating in the Oral Language Festival, an event presented Tuesday that had been postponed since 2019.
Students memorize children's literature and act out the tales for judges to score during the festival. Tuesday's competition had entries from BCSD's junior high schools; the students had already won a competition at their school, said Michael Stone, the coordinator of the visual and performing arts department at BCSD.
"Some of the boys and girls will be quite dramatic ... to make literature come to life," Stone said.
Oral language makes learning fun and also teaches communication, public speaking and self-confidence. Students get to express creativity — and themselves, Stone noted.
Raguindin of Cato Middle School picked "Halloween" because it's from the perspective of a child. She likes the challenge of performing a story, memorizing a script and making people happy.
Indeed, her performance elicited laughter from the audience and she notched a first-place finish in the humorous solo category.
Arismendez said his performance allows him to express things he wouldn't as a normal person, such as exploding stuff when you're a villain. He wanted to try being serious because his storytelling typically involves humor.
"Cinder Edna" is a new take on the well-known Cinderella tale, explained Shyla Siddiah, 12, as her other Downtown Elementary School verse choir members crowded around her. They've been practicing about an hour every day for the last two months.
When all five members were asked if they had fun performing, a chorus of "yeses" and bobbing heads immediately followed, along with giggles and smiles.
And it was evident that's what Tuesday was all about.
You can reach Ishani Desai at 661-395-7417. You can also follow her at @_ishanidesai on Twitter.
