Resources to Celebrate Mexico!

Contrary to popular belief, Cinco de Mayo is not Mexico's Independence Day. 

(That is celebrated on September 16th.) Cinco de Mayo does celebrate a Mexican battle. It dates back to May 5, 1862, and I imagine if I were Mexican, I'd know more about it. I've shown this video in the past. The content is a little above the heads of my second graders, but it gives the kids a taste of Mexican history with a cute sombrero-wearing chili character and a catchy tune.

Those of us who live in the USA think of Mexico as our "neighbors to the south." It's also a lovely place to visit when the winter is cold and bitter. (Winter sure gets nasty here in New Hampshire!)

Many of us like to think of Cinco de Mayo as a day to celebrate our Mexican neighbors.

Here's another Youtube video that gives the kids a taste of Mexico. It's filled with Mariachi music and pictures that are classically Mexican!

A couple more You Tube videos that give kids a "taste" of Mexico:

Or... it's not too late to order some of your own Mariachi music. Check out these CDs available on Amazon. (These are affiliate links, which means I get a few cents from a sale, but it doesn't change your cost at all!)

• Viva El Mariachi
• Mexico and Mariachis

I prefer to have loads of literature when I teach about anything, particularly another country. Here are some of my favorite informational books about Mexico!

• Mexico ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Mexico
• P is for Pinata: A Mexico Alphabet
• Look What Came from Mexico
• Off We Go to Mexico  

Of course, after learning about Mexico through books and videos, I'd have my kids write about the country. Here's some paper with a Mexico theme, and it's only $2! You can find it here: Mexico Themed Writing Paper

What good is a celebration of Mexico without a little Mexican food and a craft?  Tortilla chips with salsa are easy and popular, so I imagine they'll make an appearance. If you're daring, bring in some hot salsa!

Here are a couple more Mexico resources your students might enjoy:

Cinco de Mayo No Prep Printables

Mexico Suffixes Go Fish

Booking Across New Hampshire

Happy Booking Across the USA!  There are over 50 bloggers representing 50 states who are posting about their states today! What are we posting about? Books, of course!

Everyone has found a book that represents their state.

I'm so excited about the book I chose!

Click the image for an affiliate link to Amazon.

A River Ran Wild by Lynne Cherry is a piece of history and a lesson about respect for the environment.  Plus, it is a beautiful taste of the state of New Hampshire!

When I first picked up this book, I thought I had a nice picture book about a river that runs through Massachusetts and New Hampshire, but it turned out to be so much more!

This map from the end pages shows how the Nashua River runs through parts of Massachusetts and empties into the Merrimack River by Nashua, New Hampshire.

The story begins 7000 years ago when Native Americans first settled on the banks of what is now the Nashua River.  (They originally called it Nash-a-way, which meant "River with the Pebbled Bottom.")  When I read this story to my students, they had an unmistakable vision of the clear water and the shiny pebbles. For hundreds of years, the Native Americans lived by the banks of the river, taking only what they needed and respecting the river and the surrounding forests.

Then came the English settlers. The story explains in detail how the settlers cleared the land of the forests, building farms, villagers, then sawmills. 

Then came the industrial revolution.  The Nashua River became a dumping ground for factory waste and was no longer the beautiful clear water with the pebbles shining from the bottom.

The story continues to tell the story of the efforts to clean the Nashua River.  It is a true story that tells a valuable lesson.

As I read the story to my students, I was struck by their passion for what happened to the river, and how strongly they felt about the need for a clean-up! They commented on the beauty of the water and Lynne Cherry's beautiful illustrations that are so similar to what we see in many parts of New Hampshire. They loved the borders around the text, which told the story of that error of history. (First, the wildlife that lived undisturbed in the river valley, then the tools of the Native Americans, then the tools of the English traders, and onward until the clean-up efforts and clean waters of today.)  You could spend days learning about New England's history from this book without even reading the text!  (But please, read the text, too!)

This book would be a great book to read when learning about Native Americans or when learning about the environment. It's a great choice to read on Earth Day because of the environmental lesson.  It's also a great book for teaching history as well as the beauty of New England.  

I had many thoughts about activities connected to this book, but settled on one that celebrates the beauty of the clean waters of the Nashua River.

The above picture from the book reminded me of a technique of artwork called pointillism as done by some impressionist artists such as George Seurat and  Vincent Van Gogh. (See THIS LINK for examples.) It's simply artwork made by lots of tiny dots.

Although this little project hardly captures the complexity of Starry Night by Van Gogh or A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grand Jatte by George Seurat, the kids get a kick out of it.

For this activity, you'll need crayons, watercolor paints, and my favorite:  blue glitter glue!

First, start by drawing lots of little brown, black, and gray pebbles in a "river shape".

Second, make a green wash, with loads of green dots beside the pebble river.(This is the beginning of the forest by the river.)

That will need to dry before the next step: add yellow, orange, and red dots. (These dots will be the beautiful New Hampshire trees in the autumn.)

Here's my favorite part: cover the pebble river with the blue glitter glue. Can you see the pebbles sparkling from the bottom of the river?  

Reading this book, and knowing more of her work makes me want to read some of these other books by Lynne Cherry!  (Click the images for links to Amazon.com)

                          

Here are a few more books with a New Hampshire theme:

                                        

Please check out these other reviews as part of the Booking Across America celebration.  And if you like what you see, please pin them and tell your friends!

Alabama: Everyday Snapshots Alaska: Little Wonders’ Days Arizona: Simply Kinder and Think, Wonder, & Teach Arkansas: Homeschooling in Arkansas California: Juggling with Kids and The Outlaw Mom Colorado: Learners in Bloom and Living Montessori Now Connecticut: The Teacher Park Delaware: Mama Miss Florida: Teaching Stars Georgia: Fabulously First Hawaii: Teaching With Style Idaho: True Aim Education Illinois: Growing Book by Book Indiana: Teach Preschool Iowa: Surviving a Teacher's Salary Kansas: KCEdventures Kentucky: Chicken Babies Louisiana: New Orleans Moms Blog Maine: Maine Adventure Mom and Country Fun Child Care Maryland: Picture Books and Piourettes Massachusetts: Mama Smiles Michigan: Play DrMom Minnesota: The Wise Owl Factory Mississippi: Hey Mommy, Chocolate Milk Missouri- Ready. Set. Read! Montana: The Honey Bunch Nebraska: The Good Long Road Nevada: Boy Oh Boy Crafts New Hampshire: Elementary Matters New Jersey: The Pleasantest Thing New Mexico: Enchanted Homeschooling Mom New York: What Do We Do All Day North Carolina: Realistic Teacher Blog North Dakota: ND HealthWorks Ohio: Smart Chick Teacher’s Blog Oklahoma: Herding Kats in Kindergarten Oregon: Journey of a Substitute Teacher Pennsylvania: Land of Once Upon a Time Rhode Island: Smiling in Second Grade South Carolina: Cookies and Kiddos and JDaniel4’s Mom South Dakota: The Wise Owl Factory Tennessee: No Monkey Business Texas: Curls and a Smile and Kid World Citizen Utah: Teach Beside Me Vermont: Burlington Vt Moms Blog Virgina: Once Upon a Story, and The Freckled Homeschooler Washington: Home Learning Journey and Boy Mama Teacher Mama West Virginia: This Week @ Great Peace Academy and Mamas Like Me Wisconsin: Reading Confetti Wyoming: No Twiddle Twaddle USA: The Corner on Character

Learn About the World with Flat Stanley!

My students learned about Flat Stanley this year! 

It's a great project. We send tagboard copies of Flat Stanley home, and the families either take Stanley someplace, or they send him to someone somewhere in the world.

 

In case you've never heard the story, Flat Stanley had a bulletin board fall on him. He wasn't hurt at all, but ended up quite flat. Luckily for us, he was flat enough to put himself in an envelope and send himself anywhere he wants! 

Children can make their own Flat Stanley, and send him to various places around the globe. I've seen pictures of Flat Stanley near a variety of landmarks with a variety of famous people. In fact, I've even seen Flat Stanley with the President and on the Golden Gate Bridge!

So we made our Flat Stanleys and sent them out. Stanley was due back in town by June 1st, so we started sharing stories Friday during Social Studies.

It was a great project. Children came back with pictures and notes from Stanley from a variety of places. Flat Stanley has been fishing in the Adirondacks, playing in North Carolina, touring in Disney, even exploring forts in Puerto Rico! We haven't seen all the responses yet, as we just started sharing on Friday, but there are a few more to share on Monday, and I suspect there are a few more coming in. (Rumor has it Stanley was seen somewhere in Asia, and was running late for our June 1st deadline!)

 

Being the reflective person that I am, I've been wondering how I can make the project better for next year. I started by retyping the letter I used. I added more information and attached a website with samples, ideas, and activities for the kids. I made a point to mention that this was a geography project, which I neglected the first time, and it let to a couple of "mystery adventures." Luckily, we solved the mysteries. I've attached the letter with blanks for you to fill in as a freebie here or see the image below.

 Be sure to visit this website  (www.flatstanleybooks.com/) to learn more about what you can do with Flat Stanley. You can even download your own Flat Stanley from this website! Plus, there are plenty of great photos of Flat Stanley. All images of Flat Stanley books on this page are affiliate links to Amazon.

Enjoy!