Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with UCI MAT Program
Introduction
Hispanic Heritage month runs from September 15 through October 15. It is a celebration of the culture, traditions, and people of Hispanic and Latin America.
Hispanic refers to a person who is from, or a descendant of someone who is from, a Spanish-speaking country, including European countries.
Latino/a or Latinx refers to a person who is from, or a descendant of someone who is from, a country in Latin America, this excludes Spaniards or anyone else in a European country.
Consider integrating a lesson honoring Hispanic and Latinx people through Hispanic Heritage month. Here are some quick and easy activities that you can integrate throughout your classroom instructions. By acknowledging and honoring students' history, we can move toward an inclusive classroom community.
Language Arts
The Mendez v. Westminster case has had such an impact on education and history. With the case of Mendez v. Westminster taking place in Orange County, it is important that our students connect to this case and understand that discrimination is happening everywhere, even here. Here are some lesson outlines for upper grades that integrate the Mendez vs. Westminster case.
The Anti-Defamation League has also created language arts lessons for Hispanic History Month 8 Ideas for Teaching National Hispanic Heritage Month.
Social Studies
The National Museum of the American Latinos has created a virtual museum. For this lesson, teachers can assign students to explore the virtual museum. In groups or individually, students can create a Powerpoint based on what they learned or they can write individual reflections. This activity can be modified for any grade level.
Art
In this multidisciplinary activity, students can learn about the Chicano movement of 1960. The Chicano movement was "a radicalized Mexican-American movement began pushing for a new identification. The Chicano Movement, aka El Movimiento, advocated social and political empowerment through a chicanismo or cultural nationalism."
Consider a Chicano Art lesson that not only looks at art from the movement but also the history.
This activity can be modified for any grade level.
Science
Consider this science lesson. 10 Hispanic Scientists, this lesson will highlight 10 different Hispanic scientists and their contributions to the science world. For upper grades, teachers can assign students to do a research report on one of these scientists highlighting their contributions.
For younger grades (and older grades) consider highlighting Katya Echazarreta's story as part of your morning meeting. Katya Echazarreta, the First Mexican-Born Woman To Go to Space in the year 2022. Her story has become a beacon of hope for young Latnix who are interested in pursuing a career in the STEM field.
The link to her story can be found here Meet the first Mexican-born woman to go to space