SINT MAARTEN (GREAT BAY) - The St. Martin Unity Flag – Activity Guide (K to Grade 2), edited by Aishira Cicilia and Shanice Theodule-Felix, is heading into the classroom for a hands-on presentation to Group 3 students at Sister Borgia Elementary School on November 4.
The presentation is part of “Stories of St. Maarten: A Year of Reading & Discovery,” an author-led literacy program scheduled to run through May 2027. Project manager Kenty A. Lichtenberg is coordinating the program with Philipsburg Cultural and Community Center.
“Stories of St. Maarten” aims to “introduce students to culturally relevant literature by St. Maarten writers while strengthening literacy, cultural identity, creativity and their connection to our island’s heritage,” said Lichtenberg.
With St. Martin Day just around the corner on November 11, the timing could hardly be better, said Jacqueline Sample, president of House of Nehesi Publishers (HNP). The St. Martin Unity Flag – Activity Guide for “K to Grade 2” and for “Grades 3–6” were both published by the indie press last June and launched together at the St. Martin Book Fair.
The St. Martin Unity Flag was unveiled in 1990 and adopted in 2022 by the governments on both sides of the island as a cultural symbol “affirming the unity and identity” of the people of St. Martin.
“It’s exciting when educational projects can collaborate around St. Martin books, writers, literacy programs, and learning activities for our children,” said Sample. “Many of us above certain ages and who are seniors today never had such an opportunity or certain types of original resources, or even authors of our own, when we were school children.”
“Ms. Lichtenberg’s ideas and helpfulness have been very encouraging. HNP is also happy for our editors, Aishira and Shanice, as their original, child-centered guides are used in the classroom. The guides are dear to their hearts and available for download online,”
Sample added. Lichtenberg contacted HNP in August about the Activity Guide, inviting the publisher to participate in the “Stories of St. Maarten” program. She pointed out that along with her team, “We believe this publication would be especially valuable during our ‘Heritage, Identity & Community’ focus, where students will learn about the St. Martin Unity Flag, its colors and meaning, as well as important aspects of the island’s history, environment and culture.”
