Hello families, this month we have been working on Hispanic Heritage Month. The fourth and fifth graders have been learning about hispanic countries symbols and artists and their impact on hispanic culture. Additionally we are practicing our Spanish reading with a book that the students are familiar with and enjoying very much.

I am very proud of the work that students have done with Latin America flags as symbols of the countries they belong to. In groups of four students chose a flag to work on. To become familiar with the flag characteristics we played a game that they love very much – cuatro-esquinas (four-corners). With the students more familiar with the flags they chose, they drew it, colored it, and shared with the class. To reinforce the learning, I added a game from Bamboozle where the children get to identify the flag that they see and associate it with its country.

Continuing our celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, the students learned about important people in hispanic culture. One artist we learned about was Magdalena Carmen Frida Khalo. We read the book titled “Viva Frida” which talks about her birthplace, challenges, and motivation to become an artist. We also discussed the inspiration and empowerment to hispanic culture with her artwork, style, and perseverance.

Another person we learned about was Selena Quintanilla. While Selena was not born in a Latin American or Hispanic country her work is inspirational, celebrated, and transcends cultures. We discussed her life, tejano music, and iconic Houston Dome performance that brought the hispanic community closer together. Students enjoyed reading and singing the lyrics to her famous song “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom.” We also watched a video of her iconic performance and Coca-Cola commercial that featured her.