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May 5th Writing Prompt
In this daily writing prompt worksheet, students learn that May 5th is Cinco de Mayo. Students use resources in the classroom to learn 5 facts about Mexico and its culture and summarize them in their own words.
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The Mayan Empire
Students study vocabulary associated with the Mayan Empire; its art, daily life, inventions, and religious beliefs. They examine why the Mayan culture is considered to be one of the most advanced of the ancient civilizations by...
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Cut Paper Masks
Learners examine different types of masks from various cultures. Using the masks, they identify the use of design elements in them. They create their own paper mask using the elements and share them with the class. After viewing a...
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A Taste of the Caribbean
Pupils are introduced to the foods and traditions of the Caribbean. In groups, they brainstorm their own definition of culture and review the physical and political geography of the Caribbean. They spend time sampling different foods...
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Murals With a Message
Students recognize historical and cultural influences in art and appreciate art as a vehicle for public expression of ideas. They develop group skills, working together to produce a single mural or several related murals.
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Parrot in the Oven: Anticipation Guide
Get readers thinking about the major themes in Victor Martinez's award-winning novel, Parrot in the Oven: Mi Vida by asking them to agree or disagree with the prompts on an anticipation guide and to discuss their responses with class...
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Make A Pinata
Learners work cooperatively to create pinatas using balloons, old newspapers, flour, water, tempera paints, string, scissors, and candy in this excellent lesson for the Elementary classroom. This can be ties into a unit of study on...
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Social Studies: Manifest Destiny or Bust
Fifth graders explore the westward movement between 1800 and 1861 in the United States. They write narratives from the standpoint of those cultures that were repressed during this period, such as Native Americans, slaves, or Mexicans. ...
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Folk Art In Response to Folk Music
Young scholars respond to the song, "This Land is Your Land" in writing and create an original painting in the style of folk art. They identify the characteristics of folk art and identify how the works of folk artists reflect the...
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Magnificent Mexico
Students complete a variety of activities in a unit about the art, culture, and traditions of Mexico. They read books about the Day of the Dead, create a skeleton puppet, and create a traditional Mexican tissue paper cutting. Students...
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Island of the Blue Dolphins Jigsaw
Fourth graders research three topics from the book, either Village Life, Sea Life, or San Nicholas Island. They research independently and meet in a jigsaw format to share what they learned. As group they create a poster for class...
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Hispanic Artists
Students use the internet to research the life and works of various Spanish artists. In groups, they recognize the name of the artist and pick two works that are of interest to them. They create a brochure highlighting this artist's work...
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Creating a Paper Mache' Sculpture
Sixth graders sketch themselves in an active pose. They build an armature of wire 10-12 inches tall and attach it with nails to a base of wood. Students cover the armature with paper mache' and paint it when finished. This work is...
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Who am I? Bookmaking
Learners explore the process of bookmaking that has its origins from many different international cultures. The multicultural symbolism represented by the medium is utilized by students to expres their identity.
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Exploring Mexico
Sixth graders describe images of a characteristic of a cultural group from 4 different time periods of Mexico's history analyzing how it has changed and why the student thinks it changed. They describe maps on 4 different time periods in...
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Day of the Dead
Students study the Mexican celebration of Day of the Dead. They view a video and research questions on the Internet. They synthesize the information from the websites and the topic for their RAFT writing assignment. They write their...
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"The Circuit" and the Civil Rights Movement
Young scholars compare and contrast concepts of the civil rights movement to the concepts presented in the short story, "The Circuit." In groups, they sort a series of ideas written on index cards into two categories - rights and...
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Human Abstraction
Students explore and compare abstraction of human forms in various ancient cultures and by creating self-portraits using geometric shapes. They identify which geometric shapes form the following features: face, nose, arms, torso, legs,...
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Artifacts: Bringing the Past Back to Life -- the Mexican Case
Young scholars examine and discuss the meanings of the various symbols in Tenochtitlan. In groups, they complete a part of the model of the city and discuss the importance of finding artifacts. Individually, they choose an a...
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The Kanaka Village at Fort Vancouver: Crossroads of the Columbia River
Students study the interaction between Native American and European cultures in the Pacific Northwest in the 1800s. They focus their study on the Hudson's Bay Company and Fort Vancouver.
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That's Exercise?
Students examine a variety of ways to exercise and keep their bodies strong. They make letters of the alphabet with their bodies and listen to the book Baseball Brothers. Students watch a video clip from the PBS show Teletubbies, and...
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St. Michael, Prince of the Celestial Armies
Students describe this work of art as reflecting the beliefs of Mexicans in the viceregal period. They create their own sculptures in a lightweight material that shows themselves in an active pose.
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Carmen Lomas Garza
Students are introduced to the life and works of Carmen Lomas Garza. In groups, they research the causes and effects of the Chicano movement and view examples of her self-portraits. They identify other artists who were well known for...
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Playing the Part of the Potter
Students identify and define horror vacui (fear of empty spaces) and create their own pinch pot vessels with no empty spaces.