The document provides an overview of lessons and activities for integrating Spanish culture into the classroom. It includes schedules and descriptions for lessons on Día de los Muertos, Día de la Independencia, Milagros, Día de Tres Reyes Magos, Cinco de Mayo and incorporating food and culture. Activities involve making crafts, watching videos, discussions and recipes. Suggestions are also given for incorporating culture into grammar lessons through songs and recipes using targeted grammar points.

1. Integrating Culture into the
Classroom
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2. Today’s Schedule
• 9:00-9:10 – Introduction
• 9:10-9:20 – Scavenger Hunt
• 9:20-10:30 – Día de los Muertos
• 10:30-10:40 – Break
• 10:40-11:00 – Día de los Muertos continued
• 11:00-11:30– Día de la Independencia
• 11:30- 1:00 – Lunch
• 1:00 – 1:30 – Milagros
• 1:30-2:00 – Día de Tres Reyes Magos
• 2:00-2:30 – Cinco de Mayo
• 2:30-3:00 – Food and Culture
• 3:00-3:30 – Other Cultural Activities (Molas and
Incorporating Culture into Grammar Lessons)

4. Spanish Scavenger Hunt
• This scavenger hunt makes for a great level 1 project at
the beginning of the year but really would be great for
ANY level where you want students to see that Spanish
is everywhere around them.
• It is assigned to be done completely outside of class.
• They try a Spanish beverage and food, talk with
someone who uses Spanish in their job, buy a Spanish
magazine and newspaper, discover Spanish
restaurants, businesses, streets and cities and mucho
más!
• I assigned this project within the 2nd week of Spanish 1
and gave them a month to complete. I reminded them
weekly to work on it a little at a time.

5. Scavenger Hunt Highlights

6. Scavenger Hunt Highlights

7. Scavenger Hunt Highlights

8. Scavenger Hunt Highlights

9. Scavenger Hunt Reflections from
Students

10. Scavenger Hunt Reflections from
Students

11. Scavenger Hunt Reflections from
Students

12. Día de los Muertos
• There are great hands on activities that can
be done on this holiday and it is an extremely
interesting holiday for students to
understand and compare with Halloween.
• Today you will make calaveras and a simple
ofrenda, learn about an activity that allows
the students to share their Spanish cultural
knowledge to the community and a way to
bring a taste of this holiday to the classroom
(pan de muerto).

13. Calaveras

14. Ofrenda

15. Showcasing in the Hallway

16. Pan de Muerto

17. Hoy es lunes, el 24 de octubre
 Calentamiento: Agarra dos papeles de la mesa
– contesta las preguntas en oraciones
completas de Capítulo 1
Turn in $1 for Pan de Muerto by
viernes
 TAREA:  Hoy:
 Termina (Finish)  Pan de Muerto
Hoja de capítulo donation request
2y3  Lee capítulo 2 y 3

18. Día de la Independencia
• With this holiday you can not only discuss
Mexican Independence Day, but also
Independence of several other countries
that occur around the same time.
• We will discuss celebration of various
countries, watch a YouTube video of El
Grito, act out a story of the history of
Mexican Independence Day, and make
papel picado

19. El Grito
• Watch El Grito on YouTube

20. Converting Videos using Real Player
• YouTube is blocked at school but you found a great video clip you would
like to show your students in class.
• Real Player has one click video download that allows you to download
the video to your computer. www.real.com/realplayer. You can also
convert the videos to other file types (MP3, WMA, WMV etc.)

21. Vocabulario para El Cuento
• TPR Story – students act out
• sacerdote – priest • juntar – unite
• españoles – Spaniards • lucha – fight
• mexicanos – Mexicans • contra – against
• quiere – want • independencia –
• suena – sounds/rings indepencence
• la campana – bell • gana – win
• iglesia – church • muere – die

22. Communities
• Once students have drawn the story, have
them take their stories to the community
and share with other students (not in
Spanish class), teachers and family.
• Students get signatures on Community
worksheet

23. Papel Picado
• You could incorporate papel picado for
any holiday – Independence Day, Día de
los Muertos, Semana Santa, etc.

24. Milagros
• Students learn about milagros and watch a
short 1 minute video.
• Students will create a milagro to symbolize
their desire for either how they want their
future job to be, how they want their future
love to be or what they want their
family, friends and themselves to do this
summer.
• They write 3 sentences using the
subjunctive and 3 different indicators.

25. Día de Tres Reyes Magos
• For this holiday you can explain all of the
celebrations that occur in December and
January.
• You will be watching a YouTube
clip, talking about Rosca de Reyes and
making shoes and letters for the Reyes; all
activities that are great to do with your
students

26. Rosca de Reyes

27. Shoes and Letters

28. Cinco de Mayo
• This is a good holiday to discuss with your
students so they don’t make the common
mistake of thinking it is Mexican
Independence Day
• It is a good holiday to celebrate as you focus
on celebrating the traditions and heritage of
Mexican Americans
• We will be making cascarones, but these of
course can be done for Semana Santa or any
other fiesta.

29. Cascarones Video
• Show a short clip from YouTube showing
tradition of Casacrones

30. Cascarones

31. Cascarones

32. Cascarones

33. Food and Culture
• Students love food! Why not tie in cultural
understanding of Spanish speaking
countries and food at the same time?
• Ideas:
– Country Fair
– Holidays and Food Project
– Animoto Country Commercial

34. Country Fair
• In this project students take the
roles of travel agents for a particular country
and set up a booth with an informative
posterboard, brochure and offer samples of a
traditional food
• You can invite other classes to visit the
booths or if that isn’t possible you could split
groups in half. Having half of the groups
presenting while the other half are the
visitors. Half way through class the groups
switch roles.

35. Country Fair

36. Country Fair

37. Holidays and Food
Project
Ponche Navideño Torrijas
• This is great if you are doing a unit on holidays in
general.
• Groups are assigned to a holiday in a Spanish
speaking country in which they need to find a
popular food prepared for the holiday.
• Students prepare the food and everyone brings in
their dish on a specified day along with table tent
describing food.
• Prior to everyone eating, the groups share important
information about their holiday and discuss the dish
that is eaten on the holiday.
Pan de Pascua

38. Animoto Countries Commercials
• Students research about an assigned country and
answer 10 questions in Spanish
• Students create commercials using Animoto
highlighting important things about their country
and include pictures
• Students prepare a traditional dish for the country
and prepare samples and bring supplies to serve
(plates, napkins, etc.)
• On commercial day, students tell class what they
brought. Then at same time everyone distributes
their samples to desks. Then students sit and enjoy
their samples while watching the commercials.

39. Animoto Setting Up How To
• Create a free Educator Animoto account and they will send you a
promo code. This allows students to create videos longer than 30
seconds.
• To be sure you can monitor all activity, create a gmail account
(example: emailaddress@gmail.com) .
• Assign the students the email address but with a + and then number. For
example: emailaddress+1@gmail.com, emailaddress+2@gmail.com, etc.
• You can have the students register the accounts on Animoto website by
entering the email address you assigned and using the promo code.
• All activity at Animoto under these accounts will be sent to your
original, derivative e-mail (i.e.emailaddress@gmail.com). This
way, you'll be able to give each student a unique Animoto
account, while also being able to monitor their account's activity

40. Getting Commercial to You
• Once students complete their commercial they publish it. Then
they email you the link.
• I created a word document prior listing all pairs. As soon as I
got a link, I copied and pasted it into my word document under
the correct names.
• Prior to the period beginning, I click on all links from word
document opening in new tabs and pushed play on all to get
them buffered (make sure your mute button is on!)
• By the time students shared about food and distributed
samples, all the commercials are buffered and ready to play
one right after the other with no interruptions!

41. Student Examples

42. Molas

43. Molas on Display

44. Kuna Yala Montage
• Show this YouTube video while students
are creating their Molas. They hear
traditional music and see authentic video.

45. Incorporating a Little Cutlure in a Grammar
Lesson
• Find a song that uses the grammar construction you are teaching and use
this to introduce the grammar point.
• Introduction: Talk about artist, type of music, etc.
• Listening: Do a fill in blank activity as students listen a few times, could then
show the music video if appropriate.
• Pre Construct: Could use the song as an introduction to a grammar point –
have students look for the pattern they see and explain it.
• Extension: Get students writing and talking or get the students moving! If
using a song that has a traditional dance (salsa, merengue, cha
cha, etc.), take some time to have students move desks to edges of class and
teach students the dance moves – you can find simple instructional videos
on YouTube to teach the basic steps so you can teach your students or you
could just hit play and have the video teach!
• http://estudiafeliz.com/category/canciones/ has GREAT worksheets focusing
on various grammar points. The music videos are already imbedded for you
AND answer key provided! Awesome! Great idea for assigning listening
homework. Students watch video at home and completes worksheet.

46. Another Idea for Incorporating
Cutlure into Grammar Practice
Tapas Project with Usted Commands
• Students are assigned to be in groups of 2-3
• They choose a traditional tapa to make at home
• They document their group making the tapas step
by step and create a PowerPoint or Snapguide of
the pictures
• In class, they show presentation while verbally
stating the commands for making recipe
• Afterward, they distribute samples of their tapa

47. Another Idea for Incorporating
Cutlure into Grammar Practice
Commands with Simple Recipe
• Perhaps you want to do something more simple with
commands.
• Choose a traditional simple recipe like guacamole, Cuban
sandwich, Salvadorian street food that can be made in class
• Have students break into groups of 2-3 and assign who will
bring what ingredients
• Either give recipe in English prior and assign for homework to
translate or give recipe day of in Spanish – on food
day, students bring their ingredients and following the
instructions (with Spanish commands) and then enjoy

48. Another Idea for Incorporating
Cutlure into Grammar Practice
Fiesta de San Fermín
• This is such an exciting holiday that you can
do a lot with it while focusing on grammar.
• Lower levels you can teach the Uno de enero
song to practice saying dates, focus on
simple descriptions using various adjectives
• Upper levels you can focus on
preterite, imperfect, future and commands

49. Gracias por venir
Thank you and I hope you
enjoy integrating even more
culture into your class!