TeachersFirst's National Hispanic Heritage Month Resources
Other TeachersFirst Special Topics Collections
This collection of reviewed resources from TeachersFirst is selected to help teachers and students celebrate National Hispanic Heritage month and the important contributions of those whose heritage traces to Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America through related projects and classroom activities.
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American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music - Smithsonian Institute
Grades
5 to 12
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See a comprehensive look at the music and cultural influences of the Latin American music community on contemporary U.S. music. With 24 separate music styles including salsa, merengue,...more
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See a comprehensive look at the music and cultural influences of the Latin American music community on contemporary U.S. music. With 24 separate music styles including salsa, merengue, boogaloo, East L.A. punk, and hip hop, this site offers a wide range of genres. This site includes explanations of the musical genres, interviews with leading musicians of each, biographies of musicians, chances to listen to musical examples using the online jukebox, and an opportunity to do mixing of musical types using the embedded radio. Other features include an up-to-date blog and a list of tour sites for the music around the country. Extensive classroom support includes lesson plans, handouts, maps, timelines, and activities/games at all K-12 levels.
tag(s): biographies (22), cross cultural understanding (32), cultures (56), hispanic (14), mexico (31), south america (19)
In the Classroom
When studying music or Latin America, introduce your units with a clip from a specific type of music. Assign other types of music for your students to research; allow them to choose by listening to a section of a song and seeing what they like. Have students create reports or reviews of the music and share them using a tool such as SchoolTube reviewed here.
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Daria -World Music for Children - World Music by Daria
Grades
K to 5
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World Music for Children, though a commercial site, shares some simple treasures of music: song lyrics, audio files, and music-related craft projects to engage children with music at...more
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World Music for Children, though a commercial site, shares some simple treasures of music: song lyrics, audio files, and music-related craft projects to engage children with music at school or at home. Steer clear of the items for sale, and you will find songs to play for Martin Luther King Day, Hispanic Heritage Month, Native American Heritage month, Cinco de Mayo and more. This review directs you to the Teacher section where you can also find directions and photos to make simple percussion instruments from all over the world. The site is simple, but the options for making music are many. PDF files of song lyrics are available.
This site includes advertising.
This site includes advertising.
tag(s): hispanic (14), martin luther king (27), musical instruments (13), native americans (32), sound (70)
In the Classroom
Turn up your speakers and try the limbo. Make simple instruments as part of your cultural heritage celebrations. Record your class singing one of the simple songs using a simple tool such as PodoMatic (reviewed here ) or your computer's own recording software; then share the link to the recording on your class web page for younger students to sing along at home. During units on sound in elementary science class, make some of the instruments to explore how sound is created and transmitted. PE teachers can teach lessons using the song/dance options, such as the limbo. World language classes and world cultures classes may even find some of the ethnic instruments from other parts of the world interesting, despite the more juvenile appearance of this site.
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Mapping America: Every City, Every Block - NY Times
Grades
4 to 12
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This interactive map shows racial distribution in every community in the U.S. The information is provided by the Census Bureau's American Community Surveys from 2005 to 2009. You can...more
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This interactive map shows racial distribution in every community in the U.S. The information is provided by the Census Bureau's American Community Surveys from 2005 to 2009. You can view the overall distribution; other maps allow you to select one specific racial distribution. Racial groups included are white, black, Hispanic, Asian, and other. The map is zoomable so you can view neighborhoods delineated by specific streets.
tag(s): african american (104), census (14), cross cultural understanding (32), hispanic (14), maps (159), racism (12)
In the Classroom
Introduce this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Then have students explore this site independently or in small groups. Encourage your students to use this tool for projects and organization including making assumptions about neighborhood breakdowns, relationship to poverty levels, and effects of industrialization. Compare known cities or towns, including those known as affluent or distressed. Have students select a map view from this site to kick off a project about a family member and the community where he/she lived. Have students use a mapping tool such as Mapskip (reviewed here) to create their own maps (with audio stories and pictures included)! It might be helpful to use screenshots from these maps as images in their projects. Mac users press Command+shift+4 to save the screenshot image on you computer. Windows users, press the PrntScrn key, then paste the "copied" image into a document or slide.
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Corridos sin Fronteras - Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service
Grades
5 to 12
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Corridos sin Fronteras (Ballads without Borders) is the companion site to the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition of the same name. This site teaches students about the history of how...more
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Corridos sin Fronteras (Ballads without Borders) is the companion site to the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition of the same name. This site teaches students about the history of how stories, history, and narratives of Mexico and parts of the US were preserved by ballads. The site uses text, video and music to teach students. The site is available both in English and Spanish. The site launches pop-ups, so be sure to tell your computer to allow the pop=ups from this site. The Teachers section includes lesson plans.
This site includes advertising.
This site includes advertising.
In the Classroom
This site will be a nice addition to your Hispanic Heritage month resources or units on multiculturalism. Introduce this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Then have students explore this site independently or in small groups. Be sure you have speakers attached to your computer and listen to the different ballads. The lyrics are even provided for you. Have the students listen to the songs and then have them work in pairs or groups to write their own ballads. Take a screen shot of the lyrics and give to students. Have them compare the lyrics and write what they have in common.
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New Mexico Kids - New Mexico Tourism Department
Grades
3 to 12
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Sing songs, learn about animal tracks, play games, watch movies, and trade historical character cards with your friends at this site that helps kids learn about New Mexico. The site...more
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Sing songs, learn about animal tracks, play games, watch movies, and trade historical character cards with your friends at this site that helps kids learn about New Mexico. The site is divided into four sections for easy navigation, choices include Learn, Play, Enjoy, and Share. Students will especially "enjoy" watching movies, singing songs, and reading (or hearing) stories from Old New Mexico. You can "learn" about state symbols, animals, and ghosts by exploring this section of the site. A unique feature of the site is the printable trading cards featuring famous New Mexicans that are available in PDF format for easy use.
tag(s): hispanic (14), native americans (32), states (144)
In the Classroom
Share this site with students on your interactive whiteboard, then let them explore on their own. Print out the trading cards and/or stories for students to read and share during Guided Reading time. Have students create their own trading cards featuring animals, state symbols, or other information included on the site. Have students or student groups create an online, interactive poster using Web Poster Wizard (reviewed here) featuring information found on the site.
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Resources for Cinco de Mayo - TeachersFirst
Grades
K to 12
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Find resources and activities appropriate for Cinco de Mayo in this collection from TeachersFirst. ...more
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Find resources and activities appropriate for Cinco de Mayo in this collection from TeachersFirst.
In the Classroom
Use these resources to connect Cinco de Mayo to your curriculum in almost any subject or select one or two ideas to highlight along with your regular lessons.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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REFORMA - UCLA
Grades
4 to 12
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This site is a resource for those interested in building Spanish resources in libraries and helping Hispanics discover and use libraries. Contains listings of Hispanic sources and information....more
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This site is a resource for those interested in building Spanish resources in libraries and helping Hispanics discover and use libraries. Contains listings of Hispanic sources and information. Developed at UCLA.
tag(s): spanish (73)
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Vistas - Dr. Dana Leibsohn and Dr. Barbara Mundy
Grades
6 to 12
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At this site you will find a wealth of material about the culture of Spanish America. This includes color images, essays, and a glossary. The Spanish American culture thrived from ...more
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At this site you will find a wealth of material about the culture of Spanish America. This includes color images, essays, and a glossary. The Spanish American culture thrived from the 16th century to the early 19th century, and ran from California to Chile. This site can be viewed in English or Spanish. There are DVDs offered with primary documents, more images, etc., but these are not free. This review is for the free internet site only.
tag(s): cross cultural understanding (32), cultures (56), hispanic (14)
In the Classroom
You could share this site with your students on your interactive whiteboard or projector and at the same time create a timeline for the Spanish Americas using a tool such as xtimeline (reviewed here.). What a wonderful resource for higher level students during Hispanic Heritage Month!There are several themes listed on the site. You might want to put small groups of students in charge of a theme, and have them explore the site for what their theme is all about. Have the small groups use a tool such as Mindmeister (reviewed here) to create and share concept maps of the important ideas about their theme. They may want to use the images from the site, too, so be sure to remind your students that they must cite their source, and give credit to the people who created this site when they create a project on line.
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Dream in Color - Scholastic
Grades
K to 12
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Dream in Color celebrates diversity by embracing nationalities and cultures around the world, with a focus on African American, Hispanic, and Asian Pacific ethnic backgrounds....more
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Dream in Color celebrates diversity by embracing nationalities and cultures around the world, with a focus on African American, Hispanic, and Asian Pacific ethnic backgrounds. Activities are included for grades K-12. There are lesson plans, teacher resources, and videos that will enable students to hear voices of people like Maya Angelo that inspire and explain what it means to "Dream in Color" and foster an inclusive culture.
tag(s): africa (168), african american (104), asia (54), black history (31), cultures (56), diversity (39), hispanic (14), tolerance (12)
In the Classroom
Help your students uncover the roots of rich and diverse cultures through the concept of what "community" means to each of us. Perhaps start by interviewing parents and grandparents about family backgrounds and discuss culture and traditions. Expand to explore the host of information from this Web site about different heritages and cultures, much of which can be shared on your classroom whiteboard. Elementary and middle school students may want to create an online bulletin board using a tool such as Wall Wishers, (reviewed here), to represent the different aspects of their community: focusing on characteristics, benefits, responsibilities, and the impact of diverse cultures blending and working together to create a better society. High School students could consider a multi-dimensional project, perhaps by exploring heritage and culture through a study of historical figures, artists, or writers. Their research could be presented in a rich, interactive slide show that includes text, photos, and even videos, with the use of the Collage tool from VUVOX, (reviewed here).Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Celebrate Hispanic Heritage - Scholastic
Grades
2 to 8
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This site highlights the historical contributions of Spanish speaking people, focusing on Hispanic America. Language learning opportunities, research projects, cultural analysis, and...more
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This site highlights the historical contributions of Spanish speaking people, focusing on Hispanic America. Language learning opportunities, research projects, cultural analysis, and biography writing are just some of the offerings available at three levels. The teacher's guide provides all the materials for each lesson, but the lesson is certainly adaptable to including the Latina students in your classroom who might have contributions to make. Additional site activities include music, recipes, crafts, games and other writing suggestions. In the Pinata concentration games, students learn a few Spanish words as they play! This site requires Flash. Get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.
tag(s): cinco de mayo (12), explorers (38), hispanic (14), spanish (73)
In the Classroom
Use the activities on this site as part of cultural heritage or explorer study in social studies or in conjunction with Latino literature selections in your reading classes. As you study communities and cultures with younger students, this site will give you a way to focus on an example. Use this site as part of your Cinco de Mayo celebration, as well. Many of the activities would work well as either whole class lessons on a projector or small group "scavenger hunt" activities for upper grades on lab or laptop computers (make sure reading levels are appropriate if students must read on their own).
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Salsa - Georgia Public Broadcasting
Grades
K to 12
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This Spanish language program features TV segments of popular children's stories in Spanish. The forty-two TV episodes include puppets, animation, live action and music characteristic...more
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This Spanish language program features TV segments of popular children's stories in Spanish. The forty-two TV episodes include puppets, animation, live action and music characteristic of Hispanic culture. Besides transcripts, the website includes activity guides, educational games, review activities, etc. In some episodes, the action is translated into sign language for the hearing impaired, as well! Complete transcripts in Spanish and English allow the instructor to pre-teach vocabulary and set up the situation before showing the video. One of the main advantages of using this program in a mixed language class is that the Spanish speaking students suddenly become the authorities in the classroom; they can assist the instructor with the episodes and activities.
Although the site contains the option to buy the TV segments and booklets, the materials are available for free on the website. The site also includes a complete broadcast schedule from Georgia Public Broadcasting. This site requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.. Remember that videos make take time to download into your "cache" the first time you play them.
Although the site contains the option to buy the TV segments and booklets, the materials are available for free on the website. The site also includes a complete broadcast schedule from Georgia Public Broadcasting. This site requires Flash. You can get it from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.. Remember that videos make take time to download into your "cache" the first time you play them.
tag(s): spanish (73)
In the Classroom
Use these episodes as a supplement to regular Spanish language classes or as enrichment for elementary classes wishing to learn a language. Encourage your Spanish speaking class members to assist with pronunciation, episode summaries, songs, etc. Provide this link on your class website for students to use both in and out of the classroom (both the activities and stories help with Spanish language comprehension).br> Share the stories on you interactive whiteboard or projector. Have foreign language students create their own stories (on video, of course). Share the videos on a site such as TeacherTube TeacherTube (explained here).
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Colorin Colorado - WETA
Grades
1 to 10
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This totally bilingual website (a collaboration between Reading Rockets and the American Federation of Teachers) is packed with information for both ELL and regular classroom instructors...more
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This totally bilingual website (a collaboration between Reading Rockets and the American Federation of Teachers) is packed with information for both ELL and regular classroom instructors about how to encourage reading. Although the focus is on Spanish speaking students, the information is specific and easily adaptable for all reading learners. Lots of information is available on the site concerning not only reading instructional techniques, but how to deal with families of Hispanic students, placement and assessment, and important authors. Webcast information programs include accompanying reading and discussion questions. This site is a good resource to help meet the needs of increasing numbers of students born speaking other languages.
This site requires Flash and Windows Media Player. Get them from the TeachersFirst Toolbox page.. You must use Internet Explorer to view the webcasts. You can download podcasts using Google Video, iTunes, OMN,etc. Podcasts and video selections add to the multimedia attractiveness of the site.
In the Classroom
All classroom teachers who have ELL students should consider this a primary source of information about how to teach and deal with second language learners. Share this link on your teacher web page and/or in a parent newsletter for those who are dealing with the challenges of the increasing number of ELL students.
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Americas Award for Children and Young Adult Literature - University of Wisconsin
Grades
3 to 12
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Here's a collection of outstanding books for children and young people by Hispanic authors and/or about Hispanic themes. Teachers and librarians may find this list useful in selecting...more
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Here's a collection of outstanding books for children and young people by Hispanic authors and/or about Hispanic themes. Teachers and librarians may find this list useful in selecting appropriate or attractive titles for their students. The "commended list" links provide title, description, and ISBN information for the various titles, ordered by year.
tag(s): book lists (48), hispanic (14), reading lists (55), spanish (73)
In the Classroom
Take advantage of the free lesson plans and classroom activities within the "resources" section of the page. Explore through these resources to find one to add a multicultural perspective to your history or language arts class. Be sure to save the site as a favorite to allow for easy reference later on.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Hispanic Historic Places - National Park Service
Grades
4 to 12
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This site from the National Park Service shows several historic sites associated with Hispanic culture in the U.S. It also leads to an appropriate selection of lessons from the NPS...more
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This site from the National Park Service shows several historic sites associated with Hispanic culture in the U.S. It also leads to an appropriate selection of lessons from the NPS Teaching with Historic Places series. These lessons are a nice way to integrate Hispanic themes and contemporary accounts into an American history unit.
In the Classroom
Take advantage of the free lesson plans listed on this site! A great resource for a history or geography classroom, just be sure to save it as a favorite to allow for easy retrieval later on.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Understanding Hispanic/Latino Culture and History Through the Use of Children - Yale University
Grades
3 to 5
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Examine folk tales, use role-play, learn about holidays and food, and study culture in this integrated unit. ...more
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Examine folk tales, use role-play, learn about holidays and food, and study culture in this integrated unit.
In the Classroom
Take advantage of the free lesson plans on this site! This would be a great resource for a social studies or Language arts classroom.Add your comments below (available only to members) | Become a Member
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Women of Color as Artists - Yale University
Grades
6 to 8
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An introduction to Black and Hispanic female artists, past and present. After analyzing paintings, murals, and sculptures, students create their own works of art using the styles and...more
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An introduction to Black and Hispanic female artists, past and present. After analyzing paintings, murals, and sculptures, students create their own works of art using the styles and techniques presented throughout the unit.
tag(s): women (79)
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