Spanish teacher Robin Danzak went on a fact-finding mission Saturday. After hearing from her colleagues at Maximo Elementary that World Languages Field Day was worth checking out, the first-year instructor showed up at Osceola High School at 8 a.m. to see if they were right.

With a few of her students in tow, Danzak, 27, roamed the hallways, stopping at a Mexican flowermaking demonstration and then testing her athletic prowess in a game of Spanish jump rope. She tasted food from Egypt and Puerto Rico and danced off the calories in the gymnasium at a salsa demonstration.

Before the day was over, Danzak found out what other world languages teachers have known for 16 years: The annual celebration of diversity is more than a great learning experience. It's also a lot of fun.

More than 500 students from 25 elementary, middle and high schools attended World Languages Field Day March 2. The annual event was sponsored by Pinellas County Schools' office of world languages and the Pinellas County Foreign Language Teachers' Association. Billed as a miniature folk festival for foreign language students, the field day also attracted students in the district's English for Speakers of Other Languages, or ESOL, programs.

The first stop on the worldwide tour was a multicultural assembly in the auditorium, which featured vocal performances by Osceola High and Bay Point Elementary Spanish Club members. Then, with pretend passports in hand, students headed for workshops, crafts demonstrations, food-sampling opportunities and academic challenges.

Daniel Spencer, 14, tried his skill at making a quetzal, an exotic bird from the rain forests of Central America. The Tyrone Middle School eighth-grader wound crepe paper streamers of royal blue, lime green and bright yellow around a coat hanger, occasionally holding it at arm's length to admire his handiwork.

A few doors down, Nermina Boskovac, an ESOL student at Meadowlawn Middle School, led a Japanese origami session. The Bosnia-born eighth-grader patiently showed a group of East Lake High Spanish students how to fashion tulip-like flowers from bright squares of paper.

In another classroom, John Hopkins teacher's assistant Ivelisse Fiki served up kafta, an Arabic delicacy made with ground beef and spices. Blanton Elementary ESOL student Andres Lopez, 9, tried a small bite. Unable to find the English words to describe it, the fourth-grader said it reminded him of a dish from his native Colombia. He politely declined Fiki's offer of halawa, a sweet mixture of ground pistachios and sesame seeds.

Along with the fun and food-tasting, students participated in a little friendly competition. They recited poetry and performed extemporaneously before a panel of native-speaking judges, winning gold, silver or bronze ribbons. They also competed in an academic bowl, answering questions in at least two languages.

Valerie Cannon, 13, earned a gold ribbon for reciting a 12-line poem in German. The Bay Point Middle School eighth-grader said the competition was good practice for a statewide competition she will attend next month.

Bay Point Elementary fifth-grader Cari Morales also won a gold ribbon. Her mother, Eunice, watched as the 10-year-old, who has been studying Spanish since kindergarten, conversed easily with one of the judges.

Giving students an opportunity to use languages outside the classroom was one reason why World Languages Field Day was created, said world languages supervisor Jan Kucerik. The event also shows students there is more to studying a language than what they can learn in a textbook.

"One of the best ways to encourage children to learn a language is to show them it's connected to real life so that they see it not as a grammar exercise, but as a communicative act, something that's alive and meaningful," she said. "Opening them up to the culture of other countries helps that process."

Preparation for World Languages Field Day begins each year in October, Kucerik said. A committee of about 15 world languages teachers plans the workshops and locates community members willing to judge the academic competition. The $2,000 price for the event, which includes workshop supplies, ribbons and lunch, is covered by $5 student registration fee.

Jeannine Pursley, a world languages teacher at East Lake High since 1987, praised the event as one of the best activities of the year. Standing on the sidelines at the salsa demonstration Saturday afternoon, she soaked in the sights and sounds of her 16th World Languages Field Day. She swayed her shoulders to the music and raised her voice to be heard over the pounding Latin rhythm.

"This is a fun, interesting way for students to learn the value of other languages," she said. "It appeals to the gifts each one brings. They might not remember in 10 years what a direct object is, but they'll remember this day."

* * *

Teams of high school students competed Saturday in an academic bowl at World Languages Field Day. Here are the winners.

First place: St. Petersburg High

Second place:East Lake High

Third place: Osceola High

Middle school and high school students also competed in a banner contest depicting this year's theme, "Languages Uniting the World." Here are the winning schools.

Middle schools: Tyrone Middle, first place; Seminole Middle, second place; Tarpon Springs Middle, third place.

High schools: Dunedin High, first place; St. Petersburg High, second place; Boca Ciega High, third place.

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