This is a teacher’s guide to the All About Mexico journal. It aims to provide: ● Book titles ● Authors and Illustrators ● Lesson suggestions ● Online resource links ● Kindergarten journal entry samples Purpose: To represent learning through drawing and writing. Record experiences, activities, and interactions with texts and video. Compiled by Maria Blackburn All About Mexico Journal Teacher’s Guide POCC 2018 - The Trump Effect Vrs The Coco Affect This packet is a teacher’s guide accompanying the All About Mexico journal shared at the POCC 2018 session titled “The Trump Effect vrs The Coco Affect”. It is tool for disrupting negative stereotypes and misinformation against Mexico and Mexican culture in the classroom. Thank you for attending and sharing this material with others who wish to plant seeds of dignity and pride for children of Mexican descent, and seeds of understanding & harmony for all children. "Preservation of one's own culture does not require contempt or disrespect for other cultures." ~Cesar Chavez “They tried to bury us. They didn’t know we were seeds.” ~ Mexican Proverb Traditional Clothing Lesson Acknowledge traditional clothing and explore deeper narratives with stories and poetry. Acknowledge and journal common vocabulary rebozo, vestido, poncho, sombrero. Look for ways to research geographic origins and uses in various regions of Mexico. Author Carmen Tafolla Illustrator Amy Córdova Notes Sombreros and ponchos, donkeys and mustaches. This is typically where a study on Mexico begins and ends. In the All About Mexico journal, we begin with traditional dress, but our study is a long way from over. Guest speaker Senora Maria Elena Valdez is a soloist Mariachi singer. She shared about the rebozo as a part of her traditional charra attire. She also showed us the many varied ways a rebozo can be used. Personal stories of the rebozos and the strong women in her life brought our storybook and poetry to a deeper level of appreciation. Traditional Clothing Lesson Plot traditional dress on a map of Mexico. Show the regional variations, and discuss how the geography and history of each region plays a part in the clothing. Notes Plotting traditional clothing on a map of Mexico serves to recognize various histories and geographic roots. It acknowledges the diversity of Mexico and its people. An embroidered Puebla dress has a debatable story of origin and history. But with careful introduction we can build a sense of appreciation instead of appropriation. Children then see the beauty of the article, appreciate it for more than a “costume” as they are invited to explore it independently in a dramatic play center. Traditional Clothing Journal Page Notes Student drawn journal page. Four commonly recognizable traditional items often appropriated are examined from a new perspective. Traditional Music Click Image for Music Link Click Image for Music Link Lesson Acknowledge traditional music and explore deeper narratives with stories and songs. Give a context for commonly identifiable Mexican musical styles. Make connections to the lyrics, the messages, and the traditions. Authors Angela Dominguez, Patricia Greathouse, Matt De La Peña Illustrator Angela Dominguez, Ana Ramírez Notes Sing, Don’t Cry by Angela Dominguez is a lovely picture book which shares the meaning and feeling of the song Cielito Lindo. After I share the book, I love to play the song as sung by Marta Gomez. Click the image to hear the song via Youtube. It is calming, soothing and has a lullaby quality to it while still capturing the bittersweetness of the song. Miguel and the Grand Harmony by Matt de la Pena gives a sweet insight into where Miguel got his guitar in the Disney movie Coco. Ana Ramirez, the illustrator of this book, is also a Pixar artist who worked on the film. She created the papel picado opening sequence. If you ever get a chance to watch the special features to the film, she shares in her own words how much this film has impacted her after a childhood of being unseen or misrepresented in American media. Click the image to hear the song “Proud Corazon” that brings the Coco Affect full force to me everytime I hear it! Traditional Music Mariachi, Patricia Greathouse, 2009 Quote from the author’s preface... Notes The book Mariachi is not #OwnVoices. However, it is well researched by the author who grew up in Las Cruces, New Mexico. In the book’s preface, you can see the “single story” which we are often faced with. In her book she has gathered profiles, interviews, and photos of classic and contemporary mariachi artist. She is a mariachi of 9 years as well, playing the violin. The book gives a depth and heart to this musical form which I feel is often disrespected. We need to disrupt the narrative. Traditional Music Journal Page Notes Student drawn traditional music journal page. Often appropriated, here the Mariachi and Guitar are given their own stories and a new narrative of appreciation. Our class makes paper bag sewn guitars to “play” our music as we learn the lyrics to songs in Spanish. Their imagination is an endearing sight to see as they strum their guitars and sing sweetly. Modern Music Lesson Acknowledge contributions to modern music and explore Click on Image for Link deeper narratives with stories and music. This picture book biography and middle grade chapter book include Mexican and Mexican-American voices. Authors Susan Wood, Celia C. Pérez Illustrator Duncan Tonatiuh Notes Add variety to musical contributions! These titles can spark an interest in learning more about a musician or style of music. Students may uncover unknown Mexican and Chicano contributions to music today through literature such as these titles (and others out there). I definitely had a mirror to my world while reading The First Rule of Punk, some of which was hilarious! This title won the Tomas Rivera Mexican-American Award for Middle Grade this year (2018). The potential to reach out to middle grade students with a text like this is enormous. Especially if paired with PBS video Chicano Rock! Traditional Dance Lesson Acknowledge traditional dance and explore deeper narratives with stories and video. Give context for traditional dances. Make connections to the stories the various dances portray and the traditions from which they stem. Author Illustrator Duncan Tonatiuh Notes Guest dancers from Latin Heritage Dance provide us with an opportunity to see the traditional dress up close. We looked at the details, and even the bottoms of their shoes! A key takeaway is that there are many dances, and each tells us a special story. Traditional Dance Journal Page I remember there are lots of dances. Notes Seeing 3 dances first hand, and several others online via YouTube, helped the students to remember each dance is different and special. We also talk about the talent and dedication of the performers to learn something so beautiful. Traditional Dance Journal Page I really like your dancing. Notes Student thank you note to the dancers who came to visit. Geography Lesson Mexico is a land of extremes. Explore the oceans, deserts, mountains, volcanoes, and rainforests of Mexico. Represent these regions through sculpture, drawing, writing. Share legends where possible, such as the story of volcanoes Iztaccíhutl and Popcatépetl. Author Illustrator Duncan Tonatiuh Notes This title is really very special. The ending is always a surprise to kindergarten students who are used to a certain type of fairy tale ending. I’ve had to repurchase this multiple times because the books get very read and loved. I would adore seeing more Mexican myths and legends made into picture books for young readers. Geography Journal Page Mexico has volcanoes. The volcanoes can erupt. Some volcanoes are famous. Notes The story of the two volcanos stick with the children long after our study ends. Geography Journal Page Mexico has oceans. Whales live in the Mexico has mountains. The mountains are ocean. Oceans have salty water. tall and have lots of trees. Mountains have Oceans have waves. animals and monarch butterflies fly to the mountains. Notes We also explore the oceans, deserts, and mountains through nonfiction books. In addition, try showing the regions and cities of Mexico via Youtube. A search for Mexico States, or Mexico’s Cities will bring up videos which offer panoramics views. It is important to negate any misconceptions about Mexico being filled with puebla style homes, dirt roads, and cacti. The children are always impressed by the skyscrapers and busy metropolis cities of Mexico. Animals Journal Page Ocelots live in the Sonoran Desert. They have sharp claws. They are big wild cats. They have spots. Thay hunt at night. Notes Geography and animal books can be used from the nonfiction part of the library. I find “Animals of Mexico” books sometimes problematic, and have more success just checking out books about the animals and their geographic habitats. Animals Journal Page Iguanas live in the rainforest. They are Monarch butterflies fly from Canada to great swimmers. And they are very fast. Mexico. They are born in Canada. They And they are very long too. lay their eggs (where it is warm in Mexico). Student drawn journal pages. The student’s wrote about one animal they found interesting. They especially appreciate the Monarch butterfly's journey as they can make links to our study about Canada earlier in the year. There are many books on this amazing migration. Wonders Lesson Explore texts that reach far beyond Pre-Columbian Mexico. Give voice to the indigenous peoples who survive today with roots deep and entangled. Middle grade texts and poetry can be read independently or aloud in excerpts to a younger audience. Author David Bowleses Notes “Feathered Serpent, Dark Heart of Sky is both a mythical creation story, as well as a history of the Mesoamerican peoples.