C3

One activity I do that gives students of all backgrounds the opportunity to share and connect is prepare a cultural lesson, asking students to make a cultural comparison of holidays in Spanish speaking countries with their own traditions. Winter celebrations is an example. I begin with culture notes on three Spanish speaking countries and ask students to make their comparisons. It could be a discussion post or in zoom breakout rooms with students sharing what they do during the winter holidays. Celebrations from Spanish speaking countries are topics like Mexico with tamales and piñata parties on December 24, Spain and December 28 with children playing pranks similar to April fool’s day and January 6 with a bean hidden in a Three King’s Cake. This is always one of the students favorite activities in my class. I am meeting mastery in this indicator by giving students the opportunity to learn about people from Spanish speaking countries and share their backgrounds and perspectives when making cultural comparisons. Another activity I like to do with my Spanish classes is to introduce Cinco de mayo, giving cultural information like including the celebration not the Mexican Independence day but instead the day of independence from the French in a town in Mexico called Puebla. I also include information like the celebration is more known in the US and some of the foods, mainly the avocado with over 80 million sold for the celebration. There are a couple of activities I so with students. One is, ‘How do you like your guacamole’ with students experimenting with foods, learning the words in English and sharing with others. Another activity I like to do is to prompt students to compare an American holiday and foods to Cinco de mayo. All culture activities prompt students to consider similarities and lead to discussion.