Voices of TA-DA!: Gardner Bullis Elementary in Los Altos, Ca
By Elsabete Kebede, TA-DA! Intern
When the time came around to record native English speakers for TA-DA!’s books, the team decided to reach out to Gardner Bullis Elementary School, a wonderful school located in Los Altos Hills (San Francisco Bay Area), CA.
It was only because of TA-DA!’s CEO Michelle’s firsthand knowledge of how community-oriented Gardner Bullis is that she extended an invitation for their students to be a part of the pioneering work that TA-DA! is undertaking. (Fun fact: it’s where Michelle’s son attends Kindergarten!)
Principal Nadia Oskolkoff was immediately on board. As someone who grew up in Alaska, Principal Oskolkoff values the importance of children learning languages because for her, the threat of a dying language hits close to home. And she thinks that TA-DA! “has found the perfect way to put books in the hands of children while teaching them language and each corresponding culture.”
After going through the proper channels and receiving the green light from the superintendent, TA-DA! was one step closer to creating language learning magic for young English learners globally. Principal Oskolkoff assembled 10 upbeat, native English-speaking students to participate in the recording sessions; once parental approval and waivers were signed, we were ready to start having some fun!
This recording was one of several TA-DA! accomplished within a whirlwind 48-hour span while our sound engineer and producer extraordinaire Jesse was in California to do just this: gather as many voices as possible for our books. We’re so thankful it was able to happen!
When the day came to record, the energy in the recording room was buzzing with excitement. With big smiles on their faces, the students wholly immersed themselves into the experience. To be quite honest, their engagement and bubbly personalities could practically leap off the pages––they were just that great! And if you don’t believe us, take a peek at some of the photos we captured of our voice actors during the session.
Making language learning accessible and enjoyable for kids is no easy feat but it’s something that TA-DA! is committed to achieving, so having the support of our community means a great deal to us. Thank you, Principal Oskolkoff and everyone at Gardner Bullis who offered their time, voices, and enthusiasm to make these books come to life. The work we do wouldn’t be possible if it weren’t for all of you.
We were honored to have our time at Gardner Bullis featured in the Los Altos Town Crier newspaper. Read more about our magical day together - and the driving forces behind TA-DA!
