Bridging Cultures through Art and Education

Students in California and Mexico connect across countries--exchanging ideas, culture, and art through a program featuring the MoxieBox Art Lesson: Hojalata Hearts.

Hear from Dual Immersion Instructional Coach Jayro Alcantar Armenta about how the exchange has come to be and the impact on both the students and their greater community.

The Moxie Art in a Box Cultural Exchange brought together 5th graders from Vista Del Monte Elementary in Palm Springs, California, and 3rd and 4th graders from Newland School in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, for a week-long exploration of art, culture, and shared traditions. This program provided a unique opportunity for students to create meaningful pieces of art inspired by cultural elements from both their lives and the cities they represent, all through the medium of Hojalata (tin art).

The exchange consisted of four, 30-minute virtual classroom sessions conducted in both English and Spanish. Students shared their artistic progress, learned about one another, and deepened their understanding of each other’s cultures. The culmination of the project was a celebratory Zoom event on November 8, 2024, attended by notable figures such as Palm Springs Mayor Jeffrey Bernstein and San Miguel de Allende’s Director of Tourism, Tania Castillo. The event served to recognize the students’ achievements and highlight the importance of cultural connections across borders.

This initiative underscores the longstanding commitment of Palm Springs and its Sister City, San Miguel de Allende, to foster cultural exchanges that broaden young minds, strengthen international ties, and reinforce the special bond shared between the two cities.

Jayro's thoughts:

"The idea for this collaboration began at a Palm Springs Unified School District (PSUSD)

Leadership meeting in the fall of 2023. While sitting at a table with Ellen Goodman, a board member of the Sister Cities program and Director of the PSUSD Foundation, I recalled reading an article about the San Miguel de Allende-Palm Springs Sister Cities connection. I approached Ellen with the idea of creating an opportunity for students to practice their bilingual skills while gaining valuable cultural knowledge through an authentic cultural exchange.

My goal was to help strengthen the third pillar of Dual Language Education—Sociocultural Competencies—and I sought to collaborate with MoxieBox. After a series of meetings with Ellen Goodman and Jim Warner, CEO of MoxieBox, the project began to take shape. The collaboration became even more tangible when I was finally able to speak directly with the teachers from Newland School in San Miguel de Allende.

The students engaged with the historical and cultural significance of Hojalata artwork, using their creative process to explore reading, speaking, listening, and writing. Throughout the project, students created art pieces that represented their unique cultural identities. Their excitement was evident as they looked forward to sharing their experiences and connecting with their peers in San Miguel de Allende. These connections allowed the students to explore and express their linguistic and cultural identities in an interactive, meaningful way.

The exchange proved to be an invaluable experience, particularly for the students in Palm Springs. Interacting with peers from a Spanish-speaking country helped strengthen their cultural and language identities—an essential part of their bilingual educational journey. Art provided a channel for the students to express personal stories and interests, enabling meaningful connections between the two schools.

Given the success of the first exchange, MoxieBox and the Sister Cities program have already begun planning a second cultural exchange for April 2025. This exchange will introduce a Mid-Century Modern Box inspired by the iconic architecture of Palm Springs. Additionally, we are in the early stages of developing a cultural exchange for middle and high school students, which will involve creating videos that explore social, environmental, or educational issues affecting their communities. These videos will offer students a platform to share their findings, thoughts, and perspectives, further enriching the cultural exchange experience.

Through the Moxie Art in a Box program, we have seen firsthand the power of art and collaboration in fostering cultural understanding and building bridges between communities. This project continues to demonstrate the positive impact of Sister City relationships and the role that cultural exchange plays in shaping the next generation of global citizens."

We are so grateful for the integration of MoxieBox and creative problem solving from the mind of Jayro and all those involved in bringing this program to the lives of students across countries and cultures.