The Pampanga Provincial Library, in cooperation with the committee on Kwentung Kapampangan, held a story-telling activity for nearly a hundred children within the library premises as part of the activities lined up for the 439th celebration of Pampanga Day.
Bessie D. Makabali, provincial librarian, said that while they conduct regular story-telling sessions among the youth, this Kwentung Kapampangan session was arranged in connection with Aldo ning Kapampangan and focused on Kapampangan tales.
“Governor Pineda has always had a soft spot for children so we arranged this special day of story-telling for them.”
Children in the audience came from the San Juan West Integrated School in the City of San Fernando and the Sta. Ursula Elementary School in Guagua.
“It is a commendable effort on the part of Kagawad Boyet Sarmiento of Sta. Ursula to bring over the children to the library and participate in the session,” Makabali disclosed.
According to a provincial library employee, Sarmiento had earlier come to the library inquiring about the activities for Pampanga Day. The story-telling session for children readily caught his interest and made arrangements for him to bring some of the schoolchildren in his barangay to join the activity.
Board Member Salvador B. Dimson, Jr., addressed the audience composed of nearly a hundred children, teachers from the University of the Assumption, members of the Philippine National Police (PNP), and high school students from the San Juan National High School in Mexico who assumed the roles of story tellers and actors.
He emphasized the importance of making children learn and appreciate their native language by means of such enjoyable activities as the story-telling session. “I call on the parents and teachers to find creative ways of instilling in children a love for their own language and culture.”
The San Juan High School students who were a talented bunch told the stories in an engaging manner appreciated by the children. They were able to establish an immediate rapport with the children by way of a question and answer technique and a gift of a candy bag for those who gave the right answers. Everyone was later treated to snacks and lunch courtesy of the Provincial Library and the committee on Kwentung Kapampangan.
Jun Cunanan, an English teacher of San Juan High School and Most Outstanding Teacher in Central Luzon, was particularly adept at interacting with the children, eliciting smart answers from them.
Among the stories told were Ot Makabitin ya ing Opu?,Obat Pangu la reng Pilipinu?,Ing Prinsipeng Tugak, Ing Kwentu ning Pinya, Y Juan Tamad ampo reng Alimasag, Ing Balat ning Tau at Ing Pasaheru. These stories all had moral lessons in the end which the children correctly identified.
Rey Arciga, head of the Arts, Culture and Tourism Office of Pampanga (ACTOP), emceed the program and commended the story-telling session as “meaningful and appropriate” not only on Pampanga Day but as a regular activity.
The teacher-guests agreed with Arciga’s statement and expressed their own observation on how the activity successfully brought out the best in the children who participated in the session. (Pampanga PIO)
