16 Year Old Hopes to Inspire Latino Youth to Enjoy Math Through Origami
by Tony Diaz on 12/12/16
What: Free origami workshop, focusing on Latino youth, but open to all 10 to 16 year olds. Space is limited to 15 spaces.
When: Saturday December 16, 2016, 2p-3p.
Where: Nuestra Palabra Arts and Books, Home of Pancho Clause. 333. S. Jensen, Houston, TX 77003, inside Talento Bilingue de Houston.
Why: This is a great chance for students to learn how to make unique Christmas gifts and also begin fostering an appreciation for Math.
All participants must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.
Houston, TX. Monday, December 12, 2016. Last year, 16 year old Antonio
Diaz was a Sophomore taking a Calculus class, tutoring Seniors.
Of
course, his school is known for Science and Math; however, it is rare
for Sophomores to be helping older students, and it also turns out, it
might be rare for Latino students to be focused on pure Math.
When
Antonio attended one of his first Math Competitions, he was once asked
if he was really Latino. He answered, "Yes, "I'm Chicano and Chileno,
why?" The other student responded, "There just aren't that many Latinos
who come to this."
"I realized early in school that other
students didn't love Math the way I do," Antonio added. "I get a lot out of figuring out
complex Math. It's an intellectual adrenaline rush for me to figure
out a complicated problem."
Antonio's father, writer and activist, Tony Diaz, El Librotraficante, said, "It was a bit
of a heart-break finding out he loves numbers more than he loves
words. But it's great to see him find his passion, to excel
academically, and to want to inspire others."
Antonio traces
his love of Math to when he was 6 years old and taught himself origami
from a book his father bought for him. His father intended for them to
learn the ancient Japanese art of folding paper together, but his father
gave up.
"One day, I came home and found a swan made out of
paper on the kitchen table," the elder Diaz added. "I asked Antonio if he had made it at school.
He answered that, he had learned to make it from the book I gave him.
It was amazing to watch him concentrate and follow the steps. He has a gift for it. I am proud that he wants to share it."
Antonio is set to graduate in May of 2018, and he hopes
to attend MIT, Stanford, or Cal Tech to study Bio-Engineering. He plans to pursue
an advanced degree after that.
"When I found out my father was
starting Nuestra Palabra Arts and Books, I thought this would be a great way to do
complete community service hours for my school and also maybe inspire more Latinos to
think of Math differently. Origami taught me how patterns and
proportions function, which is a part of Math, but at the very least
it's a great exercise in concentration, and you can also make some gifts
that family members will love."
The class is focused on Latinos
because the instructor is Chicano/Chileno, the book store carries
Latino books and art, and it's held at the Hispanic Community
Center-Talento Bilinge de Houston.
However, this is open to
everyone. This is a class on diversity because a Chicano/Chileno youth
has a passion for a Japanese art form, and he also speaks English,
Spanish, and Turkish.
Space is limited to 15 spots for youth from 10 to 16 years of age.
Parents
and guardians are encouraged to rsvp to secure a participant's space.
Send the child's name and age, and the parent or guardian's name and cell
phone number to Tony@NuestraPalabra.org or call (713) 867-8943.
All participants must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.
Click here for NP Arts And Books Christmas Schedule.
This is a shortened link to this post: http://bit.ly/OrigamiAztec
