Mexico Resource Unit
By
Emily Marshall & Emily Cowell
ED 417
Introduction
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With the United States becoming more
culturally diverse, teachers need to explore
new cultures with their students. Because
of the growing diversity of our second grade
classroom in Dayton, Ohio we feel the
students would benefit from an eight day
long study of our neighboring country
Mexico.
Concepts
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Cinco de Mayo
Democratic process
Quincera
Pinata
Maracas
Tamales
Tortillas
Mariachi
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Madre
Padre
Hermano
Hermona
Uno, dos, tres……..
Rojo, azul, amarillo….
Mayan temples
Aztecs and Incas
Objectives
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1.
2.
3.
4.
Given the correct materials and time,
students will be able to:
Write history of Cinco de Mayo.
Make tamales and tortillas for class
celebration.
Name president of Mexico.
Describe two events that the president of
Mexico has participated in here in the U.S.
Objectives cont….
5. Describe orally what a Quincera entails.
6. Create a play about celebrating
Quincera.
7. Construct a pinata for classroom
celebration.
8. Construct and demonstrate maracas.
9. Listen to Mariachi music and compare it
to your favorite kind of music.
Objectives cont…..
10. Review Spanish words and create a
story or poem using at least 5 Spanish
words.
11. Construct a Mayan temple.
12. Make a Venn Diagram to compare and
contrast Aztecs and Mayans.
Day 1 - Cinco de Mayo
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Introduction - The teacher will introduce the
holiday Cinco de Mayo to the class. The class will
be given a verbal outline of the activities occurring
over the next five days.
Outcome- The students will become familiar with
the holiday Cinco de Mayo. Students will develop
comprehension skills by reading and writing about
the history of the holiday.
Day 1 - continued
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Development - Students will create a class KWL
chart to keep track of what they know, what they
want to learn, and what they have learned.
Students will read the story Fiesta! And visit
various web sites to learn the history of Cinco de
Mayo. They will then write a paragraph
explaining the history of the holiday, citing at least
three facts.
Day 2 - Cinco de Mayo
continued
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Introduction - Students will compare and contrast the
holidays of Mexico and the U.S.
Outcome - Students will have a greater appreciation for the
Mexican culture.
Development - Students will take a field trip to a Mexican
restaurant to learn how to make authentic Mexican food,
such as tamales and tortillas. Back in the classroom,
students will listen to Mariachi music and construct their
own maracas to play along with the music. Students will
start a journal, with the first entry comparing and
contrasting Cinco de Mayo to American Fourth of July
holiday.
Day 3 - Spanish Words
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Introduction - Students will be introduced to
Spanish words by singing songs in Spanish
and using the internet to translate their
writing.
Outcome- Students will be able to count
from one to ten in Spanish and be able to
use at least five Spanish words in their
writing.
Day 3 - Spanish Words Cont.
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Development - The teacher will lead the students
in the singing of three Spanish songs, teaching
them common words such as, hermana, familia,
madre, padre, buenos dias, etc. They will also
learn colors and the numbers one through ten.
Students will be lead to a translation site on the
internet where they will type in one sentence and
have it translated to Spanish. Students will also
write a story or poem including at least five
Spanish words.
Day 4 - Mexican Government
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Introduction - Students will learn the basic
form of government in Mexico.
Outcome - Students will know the President
of Mexico, as well as his participation in
U.S. government.
Day 4 - Government Cont.
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Development - The teacher will lead in a
discussion of the government of Mexico.
She will tell the students that the President
of Mexico is Vincent Fox and his roles and
responsibilities. The students will then use
the internet to go to newspaper and
magazine websites where they will find
three articles about the Mexican President.
Day 5 - Quincera
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Introduction - The teacher will discuss
growing up in Mexico and important rites of
passage in Mexican children’s lives.
Outcome - Students will create and produce
a play on the importance of Quincera.
Day 5 - Quincera Cont.
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Development - The teacher will explain the
significance of the Qincera in a Mexican
child’s life. The students will then
brainstorm about how their birthdays are the
same and different to those celebrated in
Mexico. The students will then, in small
groups, create a play about Quincera that
they will then perform for the class.
Day 6 - Mayan Temple
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Introduction - Teacher will introduce the
history of the Mayan people and their ruins
that still stand today.
Outcome - Students will construct Mayan
Temples based on pictures from web sites
and books.
Day 6 - Mayan Temples Cont.
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Development - Small groups of students
will be given a wire frame replica of a
Mayan Temple. They will also be given
paper mache materials to cover the wire
frame and create a Mayan temple. Students
will have access to books and internet
pictures to use as guides. On later days the
students will be given the opportunity to
paint their temples once they have dried.
Day 7 - Aztecs
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Introduction - Teacher will introduce the Aztecs by
reading and discussing the book Aztec News.
Outcome - Students will construct a class Venn
diagram comparing and contrasting the Aztecs and
Mayans.
Development - After reading the above referenced
book and studying the Mayans on a previous day,
students will construct a Venn diagram recalling
information learned. Students will note the
similarities of these ancient people.
Day 8 - Evaluation
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Students will demonstrate the knowledge
learned by completing the following
evaluation. Students will also receive
evaluations on their participation in the
previous activities.
Unit Test - Mexico
Multiple Choice (2 points each)
1.
What is the meaning of Cinco de Mayo?
a)Happy May
b) Fifth of May
c) Mexico’s Birthday
d) 15th Birthday
2.
Who is the President of Mexico?
a) George W. Bush
b) Bill Clinton
c) Vincent Fox
d) Jaci Valesquez
Unit Test - Mexico
3.
4.
A pinata is filled with
a) rocks
b) candy and toys
c) water
d) salsa
The Mayans lived on the shore of what ocean?
a) Pacific
b) Panama Canal
c) Atlantic
d) Dead Sea
Unit Test - Mexico
5.
6.
7.
With the numbers one through four in numerical
order, which answer would be last?
a) dos
b) quatro
c)uno
d) tres
The Tulum is an ancient Mayan site. T/F
A quincera is your 21st birthday. T/F
Unit Test - Mexico
Short Essay
1.
When and where did Cortez lead the
Aztecs.
2.
Write a brief (at least five sentences)
history of Cinco de Mayo.
Teacher Resources
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Mexican Americans Multicultural Studies. Turman, 1994.
Reproducable creative writing activities expressing their
opinion, introducing them to traditions and histories.
Mexico Culture Kit. Scher & Johnson, 1995
Teachers books with clip art, maps, and posters.
Photo Fun Picture Packs. Edupress, 2000.
Photo packs that show places, objects, people, and
activities to amplify key topics.
Hands-on Heritage. Edupress, 1996.
Book full of hands-on projects about Mexico.
Outline Maps. Edupress, 1995.
Outline map of Mexico.
Student Resources
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Our Global Village. Milliken, 1996.
Books exposing them to cultural diversity.
Count Your way Through Mexico. Haskins, 1996.
Count to ten in Spanish
Countries and Cultures for Young Explores. Instructional
Fair, 2000
Puzzles and language activities from Mexico.
Look What Came From Mexico. Harvey, 1999
A look at what came from Mexico that we could not live
without, like chocolate from the Aztecs.
Student Resources
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Lands, People, and Cultures of Mexico. Crabtree, 2000.
Photographs and simple text introduce students to the
history and geography of Mexico.
Aztec News. Candlewick, 1999.
History of the Aztecs in the form of a newspaper.
www.babelfish.altavista.com
Website that allows students to put in a word and it will
translate it into Spanish or English.
www.maya-art-books.org
A website about Mayan art, ruins, and history.
Student Resources
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www.newsday.com
Has articles and news about Mexico.
www.mexonline.com
Tells the entire history of Cinco De Mayo.
Media References
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Video- Mexican American Heritage. Schlessinger, 1997.
Has segments on geography , history, crafts, songs, and
foods, of the Mexican American.
Video- Families of the Mexico. Arden Media, 2000.
Takes students through typical days in the lives of families
with small children.
Video-Multicultural Peoples of North America. Library
Video, 1993.
The heritage of yesterday, today, and tomorrow of the
Mexican Americans.
Video- Two Mexican Boys. Inside Mexico.
Two boys growing up in Mexico.
Media References
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CD-Rom- Aztecs: How would you survive? 1995.
First person look at the life of an Aztec Indian. Includes interactive
maps, timelines, and sound effects.
CD-Rom- My First Amazing World Explorer. Dorling & Kinderlsley,
1998
A great way for younger students to explore the geography of Mexico.
CD-ROM- A Simulation on Cultural Diversity. Interact, 1995
Divides students into different cultural families to learn about their
cultures.
CD-ROM- Maya the Blood of Kings. Time Life Books, 1998.
Commentaries by historians, maps, and location footage of the Ancient
Mayan temples.
Media References
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CD- Mariachi from Mexico. Mexican Mariachi Band.
Actual Mariachi Music to be used in the classroom.
Poster- Diverse Environments. Documentary Photo Aides.
Posters of many Mexican traditions, foods, games, and people.
Maps- Central and South America. National Geographic
Charts- Mexican American Ethnic Chart. Good Apple, 1997.
The celebrations and contributions of Mexican Americans.
Globes- GeoSafari
Play geography games, find out about the currency, climate, and time.
Media References
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Workbook- Hispanic Plays for Young People.
Teacher Ideas, 1996.
Plays about many Mexican traditions, Cinco De
Mayo, and Quiencera.
Websites- www.thenewsmexico.com
Websites- www.cyberatlas.internet.com
Websites- www.nationalgeographic.com/mexico
Websites- mexicanfood.about.com
Websites- www.web-holidays.com/demayo
Websites- www.pinatadesign.com