René Has Two Last Names / René Tiene Dos Apellidos

"On the first day at my new school, my teacher, Miss Soria, gave me a sticker that said Ren#65533; Colato. The sticker was missing my second last name. Maybe Miss Soria's pen ran out of ink. I took my pencil and added it. Now it looked right: Ren#65533; Colato La#65533;nez." Young Ren#65533; is from El Salvador, and he doesn't understand why his name has to be different in the United States. When he writes Colato, he sees his paternal grandparents, Ren#65533; and Amelia....
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"On the first day at my new school, my teacher, Miss Soria, gave me a sticker that said Ren#65533; Colato. The sticker was missing my second last name. Maybe Miss Soria's pen ran out of ink. I took my pencil and added it. Now it looked right: Ren#65533; Colato La#65533;nez."

Young Ren#65533; is from El Salvador, and he doesn't understand why his name has to be different in the United States. When he writes Colato, he sees his paternal grandparents, Ren#65533; and Amelia. When he writes La#65533;nez, he sees his maternal grandparents, Angela and Julio. Without his second last name, Ren#65533; feels incomplete, "like a hamburger without the meat or a pizza without cheese or a hot dog without a wiener."

His new classmates giggle when Ren#65533; tells them his name. "That's a long dinosaur name," one says. "Your name is longer than an anaconda," another laughs. But Ren#65533; doesn't want to lose the part of him that comes from his mother's family. So when the students are given a project to create a family tree, Ren#65533; is determined to explain the importance of using both of his last names. On the day of his presentation, Ren#65533; explains that he is as hard working as Abuelo Ren#65533;, who is a farmer, and as creative as his Abuela Amelia, who is a potter. He can tell stories like his Abuelo Julio and enjoys music like his Abuela Angela.