p ☆ ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆ ☆☆☆☆☆ CHILDREN OF THE OTHER AMERICAS ☆ ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆ T3.8- OFFl0 PlT©*„^iio- •**'Vi" ^ __..^iffEUlOA-N • j n co V- jt 11-5TES V , •* nt Oj.' r\Tv4 i-i OFFICE of 0OOi^-:''ME.3 , _ Jddifor.^ ■■FoxH , W1 *-’ F" '\ >v-iwifcy *ceao7 Federal--" _ p> q, *0U» * wx :wx£x<<<<&,xvx,vx<*x<c0>xp>x*ssx‘xxx<*x,x*x-x«£x*x<*>&w!&*x<<c*xcvx£’xvx,x,x<,!yx,x>x*x*x XvX wwivxvi-x-x'xvx'xwiwxw^'iyx'x'x'^^^ ☆ ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆ CHILDREN OF THE OTHER AMERICAS A guide to materials in English on the Other Americas suitable for the elemen¬ tary and junior high school grades. Prepared by M. Elizabeth Barry and Delia Goetz with the assistance of Dorothy Conzelman under the supervision of the Division of Intellectual Cooperation of the Pan American Union February 1942 OFFICE OF THE COORDINATOR OF INTER-AMERICAN AFFAIRS Washington, D. C. ★ UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE WASHINGTON : 1942 ☆ ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆ CHILDREN OF THE OTHER AMERICAS TABLE OF CONTENTS General References and Teaching Aids . 1 Homes, Schools, and Community Life . 35 Dances, Songs, and Festivals . 59 Arts and Handicrafts . 79 Food, Plants, and Minerals .:. 99 Their Animal World . 119 Ancient Civilizations and Modern Republics . 135 Transportation »909oe9ee«s9e3«c««et*ee»**** 161 { Children of the Other Americas } GENERAL REFERENCES AND TEACHING AIDS (in) i Table of Contents Page Introduction_ vn Part I. General References for Pupil and Teacher: For the children_ 1 Books_ 1 Periodicals and pamphlets_ 1 For the teacher_ 3 Books_ 3 Periodicals and pamphlets_ 6 Part II. Aids for Teachers: Audio-visual teaching aids_ 11 Costumes_ 12 Exhibits_ 16 Flags_ 16 Maps_ 17 Museums_ 18 Organizations having information and materials_ 20 Periodicals devoted to Latin America_ 23 Periodicals cited in this guide_ 25 School correspondence_ 29 Units for teachers_ 29 Key to abbreviations_ 32 (V) I . ; 'w . ' • INTRODUCTION “We study about your country in our school books but we want to know more about you, the games you play, the songs you sing, the food you like. We want to know about your parties, your lessons and your pets,” wrote a little girl in the Argentine to a small cor¬ respondent in the United States. Children need no longer depend only on letters for the knowledge they wish to have about each other. New and interesting textbooks, picture books, magazines, motion pictures, and radio have found their way into the classroom of many schools. There are stories for children which make the countries they study more real. Geography in the elementary school now answers many eager questions. It has become the study of the earth as the home of people. It shows how parents and children and larger social groups respond to their natural environment. Today children study geogra¬ phy as the stage upon which the action of life takes place. They discover that action in a given period becomes its history. They learn that people rearrange this stage. They cut tunnels through mountains. They change the course of rivers. They transplant animals and trees and plants from their indigenous homes into new environments. They create radio highways in the sky. Their successes and failures make their history. Music, literature, the arts of the people are intimate expression of these struggles. But geography, history, music, literature, art treated as separate subjects for mature students, for specialization and convenience, are not in separate compartments to the child. His mind cuts across such divisions and he sees life as it relates to him as an individual. His school now arranges his program of studies to help him interpret life as he sees it around him and to meet the demands that it places upon him. This new concept has been kept in mind constantly in compiling this guide for teachers and pupils in the elementary grades and junior high school and therefore the material has been grouped not according to the subject matter of the curriculum but around the children’s natural interests. The young child learns from stories about typical communities: how a child like himself fits into his home, and the home into a very slightly larger world. His questions when he is introduced to the children of Latin America are the same he asks about playmates at home: What kind of a house do they live in? What are their brothers and sisters like? What games do they play? What do they do in school? Do they help their parents in house and field? What are their pets, and what do they eat? What do they make with their hands? What are the stories they are told? And, as the child (VII) VIII grows older: what are the adventures they have when they go outside the home? How do these communities and countries fit into the larger world? To supply as many answers as possible to these questions is the purpose of this guide. The aim was to keep it simple in form, selective in content and flexible. In the preparation of the guide a vast amount of material has been examined carefully. In the choice of references an effort was made to select articles, books, and pamphlets that are accurate, readable, easily available and not likely to be outdated soon. A few items now out of print but still available in libraries were included either because of their excellence or because no similar references were found. In listing the books for children, no textbooks were included, and only a limited number of such books were suggested among those selected for teachers. Neither adult fiction nor highly technical refer¬ ences are given. Programs of study and teaching materials vary as the communities differ from Alaska to Patagonia. Chronological age no longer can be accepted as a yardstick for measuring grade placements and child’s interests. His ability depends on many factors—health, home life, environment, talent, travel, and experience. The problem of adapting subject matter to the age level of the child is an individual one for each teacher. Therefore only general directions or suggestions for the use of the material are indicated in the annotations. Special attention has been given to references adaptable for assem¬ bly and special programs and projects. The first section of the guide contains references which set the stage and provide a general background for the study of Latin America. Although it was not possible to list a separate book on every one of the 20 countries, excellent detailed sections on each of the American Republics are found in several of the general books listed. Examination of the bibliography, particularly the sections devoted to material for children, will reveal to what extent authors have con¬ centrated on a few countries in Latin America, and how much more information in English is still needed if children are to gain a well- rounded picture of the American nations. But nevertheless, the ref¬ erences contained in the various sections comprising this guide, will suggest to the resourceful teacher many an adventure in discovery. 4; vL» %4* «i> *T* Teachers who travel bring back pictures, handicraft articles, post cards, motion pictures, and a glow of excitement when they speak about the places they have been and the people they met there. Neither the materials nor the glow are out of reach for the teacher who must stay at home. A list follows of key sources for teaching aids, including motion pictures, film-strips, slides, stereopticon material, poster and postage stamps, recordings, maps, histographs, cartograms, museums particu¬ larly rich in Latin American material, loan exhibits of art or handi¬ crafts, flags, and centers for arranging correspondence with the children of countries to the south. IX The teacher, of course, will explore local botanical gardens, and if there are none, green-houses and flower-shops, for tropical plants and flowers, the zoos and pet shops for animals and birds of Latin America; markets where exotic fruits and vegetables occasionally appear, restaurants where typical dishes are served, tinned foods, labels on medicines which list ingredients. She may place in the classroom a small aquarium or vivarium so that children may observe fish and plants they read about, or take them to see articles of handicraft sold in the shops. Occasionally department stores bring exhibitions of textiles or other collections of interesting objects. In many cities, schools or streets are named for Latin American heroes, or their statues stand in the park. Hobbyists sometimes collect historical material, or postage stamps. Some towns in the United States have been named for places in Latin America. It would be interesting to trace the history of such memorials and to learn the Latin American pronunciation of the names. Many cities trade with Latin America and the Chamber of Commerce would know the articles involved. Local travel agents often have pictorial materials. One of the best ways to learn about the people of Latin America is to become acquainted with the people of similar ancestry who live closer home. In the southwest, which was settled by people of Spanish blood, traditions have been carefully preserved, and it is possible to witness religious celebrations of great beauty which are similar to those described in stories of Latin America. In industrial centers such as Kansas City, Milwaukee, St. Louis, there are groups of people who have brought their traditional customs from Mexico; and here the national holidays are occasions for fiestas tipicas. Con¬ sulates, International Houses, Pan American centers or clubs; univer¬ sities; Spanish language groups, and religious organizations are points of contact. These students often enjoy speaking, performing their national dances or singing before school assemblies. Teachers probably will find it desirable to cut expenses by pooling materials and circulating films and aids among the various classes.