N3: Sylvia, Jerome, and their cousins start school at Hoover.
N1: Each morning, the school bus drops them off in front of Westminster School.
N2: Then Sylvia and the other Mexican-American kids walk many blocks to their school.
N3: They sit at wobbly desks in a crowded classroom.
Miss Wilson: Hi, class. Today the girls will learn to sew, and the boys will build shelves.
N1: Sylvia raises her hand.
Sylvia: Miss Wilson, will we ever read books or learn math?
Miss Wilson: No. You don’t need to know those things.
N2: At lunch, the children go outside.
N3: There is no playground.
N1: Sylvia sits eating an apple. Miguel stands over her.
Miguel: Your father is going to get everyone in trouble.
Sylvia: How?
Miguel: He wants my father to sign a petition to send us to school with white kids.
Sylvia: Everyone knows their school is better.
Miguel: My father could lose his job if he signs it.
Sylvia: Well, it’s not fair to send us to a separate school.
Miguel: You think you’re better than everyone else?
Sylvia: No! I just want to learn what white kids learn.