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I am a Mexican American:
Cultural Identity Through Literature, Folk Art and Food 

Earl Vallejos 

Introduction

            I was born in Agua Caliente, Mexico.  It is a small town not too far from Chihuahua. We came to Albuquerque when I was only four years old.  My parents were very worried, but they knew it would be a better life.  We left behind my Abuelos and many family and friends.  I am happy to be here.  Sometimes I get embarrassed to talk, but I think my English is getting good.  We go back to Mexico a lot to visit.  I like living here in Albuquerque.  In some ways, it is a lot like Mexico, only better. 

Janitzel Rivas
Second Grader
Mary Ann Binford Elementary School 

          What I learned before I was a teacher came from books, lectures, and professors.  What I learn now that I am a teacher comes from my students.   Although I am Hispanic, my life experiences and ideas of Hispanic culture are very different from the Mexican American students that I teach.  Becoming more familiar with my students may help increase my understanding of how their expectations and learning styles might blend with the educational efforts that I make in the classroom.   Children flourish in an environment that is connected to their idea of belonging.  These connections can often take a teacher an entire school year to develop.  Reaching out to the students is an intrinsic part of what makes a conscientious teacher.  It is my belief the teacher and student share in the responsibility of creating a stress free, nurturing, educationally rich learning environment.  That is, a classroom that provides students with suitable activities in language arts, math, social studies, science, music, and art.  Class activities should have an emphasis on literacy integrated with exploration and social interaction that encourages students to become a family of learners.   For some students it can be difficult to make immediate connections or relationships with others.  In my experiences with ESL  (English as a second language) students, it is difficult for them to engage or participate in classroom activities; they often remain silent, intimidated, and sometimes even scared.  These ESL students are not only newcomers to our school but also to our country.  It is difficult for them to make these connections mainly because their own identity is in question.  Who am I?  Do I belong here?   Will I make friends?  Will I fit in?  These questions may have universal relevancy but it is here that these questions are most relevant to the Mexican American student that I teach.  

             People in general, especially children, need to be embraced by the community that surrounds them.  The importance of making and maintaining these connections is crucial to the child’s existence.  How they view themselves has a direct correlation to how they see the world. In Margaret Spencer’s essay “In the Canon’s Mouth,” she tells us, “ to see ourselves as others see us can be eye-opening. To see others as sharing a nature with us is the merest decency. But it is from the far more difficult achievement of seeing ourselves amongst others as a local example of the forms human life has locally taken, a case amongst cases, a world among worlds, that the largeness of mind, without objectivity is self-congratulation and tolerance a sham, comes (344).” Through the course of this unit, I will focus on the Mexican culture.   I will immerse my students into the literature, history, and traditions of Mexico.  We will also take a closer look at the contributions that Mexico has made in our home state, New Mexico.  This curriculum unit is designed for third and fourth grade students, and it will support the social studies, benchmark standards for teaching New Mexico history.  This unit will stretch across to other areas of the curriculum.  Our main focus will be on language arts and social studies, but it will also include art, mathematics, and life skills such as homeopathics and cooking.  The students will apply their prior knowledge to various activities that will bring a greater understanding of the history, culture, and contributions of Mexico.   

Academic Setting 

The demographics at Mary Ann Binford are unique to say the least.  Our current enrollment is 957 students, up from 670 in 1998-1999 school year.  So to begin with our elementary is filled to capacity and it is still growing.  Mary Ann Binford is located in Westgate, which is on the far southwest mesa of Albuquerque.  The community of Westgate is in some aspects a distinctly separate city.  It is a mix of new housing developments and old run down homes.  In some areas it is overrun with graffiti, dumpsites, and high crime.  Strangely, the environment is also flourishing with new growth. New homes are being built every day, and the possibility of a new elementary school is on the horizon. 

            The student population of Mary Ann Binford is 88% Hispanic, 9% Anglo and remaining 3% Native American, African American, or Asian.  Of the 88% Hispanics, more than 24% are classified as Limited English Proficient (LEP).  With such a large population of Hispanics, Mary Ann Binford has implemented a number of programs that are designed to help maintain the home language while promoting English proficiency.  Some of these programs include Bilingual Education for student and parents, English as a Second Language (ESL) tutoring, Title I and IV Reading programs, Full Day Kindergarten and YDI pre-school.  Mary Ann Binford is also a multi-track year round school that offers child care programs throughout the year.  Our school year is from July 19 to June 28.  Our staff is over one hundred, including certified, resource, and administrative.  

            Of the 88% Hispanic students at Mary Ann Binford over half are first generation Mexican-Americans.  Many of the parents are monolingual Spanish.  In my experiences with students and parents I have found that the main problem for parents was their inability to help their children with homework and reading.  Parents also have a difficult time corresponding and communicating with teachers and administration.  To some extent it does affect the overall projection that the student may have on the institution of school.  None the less, Mexican-American students come to us eager to learn the English language and American culture.  

            It would be inaccurate to state that poverty, inadequate living situations, and child endangerment affect all Hispanic students.  Quite the contrary, the families that make up our community of learners are no different from that of a school in Northeast Albuquerque.  The only difference is language and cultural background.  In fact, the sense of community is very strong at Mary Ann Binford.  Our Fiestas have continued to draw some of the largest turnouts I’ve ever seen in a public school setting.  For whatever reason community involvement has a direct affect on the school climate.  As a result, the school climate is connected to the learning that takes place in the classroom.   

Rationale              

When I decided to develop this curriculum unit on Mexican Literature, I knew a “world” literature approach would best present the view that I wanted my students to experience.  According to Sarah Lawall in Reading World Literature, “world literature holds out many promises for the individual reader, it promises vicarious experiences and personal growth as well as the excitement of an aesthetic voyage among masterpieces.  For society and its educational institutions, world literature offers a pleasurable way to prepare broadly informed, self-confident, and adaptable citizens who are meanwhile educated in the cultural values of the home community.” (1) 

With these thoughts in mind, I decided to take a path that would enrich and enlighten young readers.  Through their exploration of Mexican culture they would learn about the early native people’s origin, their traditions, resistance to Spanish control, and how the blending of the two cultures has helped to shape the present day country of Mexico.  My hope is that children will understand the situations of the ancient Aztec people and the Spaniards that conquered them.  Students will be able to compare, contrast and gain insightful information about the contributions these people have made on their lives as well as present-day Mexico and the United States of America.   

This unit will provide students with a thematic approach that will include literature from different genres.  In order to generate an excitement for learning such a wide range of topics I have decided to focus on a general theme, the Mexican fiesta.  As I am sure the majority of students do have a large amount of prior knowledge about this topic, incorporating the language arts, geography, social studies, and art will maintain their excitement and interest on the entire curriculum unit.   

Before I consider all the important factors as to why teach world literature to better understand the Mexican culture, I want to reiterate my own philosophy on education.  Providing students with child-centered activities can promote reflection on the overall learning experience.  Through personal learning, growth and change in perspective can help students better understand their own cultural and the community that surrounds it. “Today’s functional literacy involves more that a narrowly defined set of basics. Myron Truman shows that in the 1860s ‘reading was taught as decoding and writing as encoding,’ with an emphasis on memorization (37), but modern survival literacy is more complex. The study of literacy - like the study of literature – has broadened its base, moving away from memorization and towards processes of understanding” (Lawall 30).  As the teacher it is most beneficial to have insight into the students background knowledge on the topic.  In regards to Mexican culture, most students do have prior knowledge concerning literature, whether it is oral or written.   

        As an introduction to this unit I will facilitate a K-W-L chart for the students. During this activity students will be asked to participate in a whole group discussion regarding Mexican culture.  This discussion will incorporate what students know about their own background knowledge, their home language, and cultural experiences.  Considering my non- Hispanic students, this will provide them with enlightenment and exploration of the Mexican culture.  As Margaret Spencer writes in her essay “In Canon’s Mouth,” “The multicultural classroom challenges us to teach literature as in a workshop of cultural making, not as custodians of a museum.  Our lives are more than ever, socially knotted together in the networking of ideas and cultures; that is, the multicultural reality into which new readers comes” (335). 

Our family and the community that surrounds us help develop a better understanding of who we are and where we come from.  For many of the students that I teach, this is not all new information, but for some it is an area of uncertainty.  In order to help them figure out their place in the world I feel it is important to give them a close look at where they have come from, Mexico.  The expectation of this curriculum unit is to take students on a journey to old Mexico.   I hope that by the end of this unit my student will be able to answer some of these questions. 

§          What is my cultural identity?

§          Where did my language come from?

§          What is the origin of the fiesta?

§          Who are my ancestors and what were they like?

§          Am I Mexican, Spanish, or Indian?

§          What contributions can I bring to the world? 

            It is my hope that my Hispanic students can make new discoveries about themselves and the Mexican heritage that they come from. For my non-Hispanic students I would hope that this unit gives them a vast knowledge about a different culture, perhaps a lesson of tolerance, acceptance and appreciation.   

Context and Background 

The enchanting country of Mexico lies just south of the United States.  If you could fly from one end of Mexico to the other in a helicopter, you would understand why no one could describe it without using the word  “contrast.”  Overall, Mexico is about one-fifth the size of the United States.  The central plateau is the heart of Mexico.  Most of the big cities and many of the small farms towns are located here.  At the southern end of the Central Plateau lies Mexico City, the country’s largest capital.  The formal name for Mexico is Estados Unidos Mexicanos  (United Mexican States). 

         The culture of modern Mexico is basically a blend of the cultures of two very different peoples: the native people, the Indians, and the newcomers, the Spanish.  In order to understand the contributions these two cultures made to Mexico we must take a closer look at the past.   

         Long before the Europeans came to North America, a very different kind of metropolis stood on the spot where Mexico City is now. It was called Tenochtilan, and it was the capital city of the Aztec Empire. Five hundred years ago, Tenochtitlan was a city of 250,000 people.  It was built on an island in the middle of a sparkling blue lake.  When the first Europeans saw Tenochtitlan, they thought it must be enchanted. But one fateful day in 1519, an unusual group of visitors approached this remarkable city. At first, Montezuma welcomed the strangers as friends; after all, what could this mighty nation of warriors have to fear? 

When the siege of Tenochtitlan was over, nearly half a million lives had been lost. Almost all of the dead were native people. By the time the Aztecs surrendered to the Spanish, only 30,000 people remained in Tenchotitlan. The city that was once described as the most beautiful city in the world, lay in ruins. The Spaniards destroyed what they could of the Great Temple, then they built Christian churches on top of the rubble and transformed Tenochtitlan into the Spanish settlement that eventually became Mexico City.  

Implementation

In compliance with Albuquerque Public Schools core curriculum guidelines set by the New Mexico State Department of Education, each student is to be provided with a holistic program that integrates interdisciplinary activities.   In regards to language arts content standards, students will interact with a variety of texts, making connections to setting, characterizations, sequence, and purpose of literature.  Students will also read a variety of texts, including folklore, short stories, informational books, and poetry.  As we cross over to social studies, students will identify the customs, celebrations, and holidays of the Mexican culture that live in New Mexico.  Students will describe how the lives and contributions of people of Mexico have influenced New Mexico pre-history to present day.  Exploring the social aspects of Mexico will lead us into geography.  Students will identify our close neighbor, using the mapping tools of scale compass rose, grid, symbols, and mental mapping to locate and draw place on maps and globes.  Students will also develop an understanding of how patterns of culture can vary geographically.  As this unit on Mexican culture continues, we will explore the folk art and food that have had substantial influences around the world.  Providing students with rich literature that sparks a curiosity and eagerness to explore Mexican culture will be the primary goal.  This Unit’s literature will include historically enriched folklore from old Mexico. 

Lesson Plans

Week One: The unit will begin with the KWL chart to explore the students’ prior knowledge and goals to obtain new knowledge. Students will focus on the geography of Mexico, utilizing informational texts and the Internet. 

Lesson Plan 1
Subject: History and Geography
Activity: K-L-W Chart
Time: 40 Minutes
Materials: large tag board (36” by 72”) or a blackboard and chalk
Objective: To brainstorm, organize and share students’ prior knowledge of Mexico and Mexican culture.
Procedure:   The teacher will make three columns with the headings; KNOW, WANT, and LEARNED. The first step is to ask students what they already know about the topic. The teacher should ask questions to prompt the students’ participation in this activity. All information pertaining to Mexico will be recorded by the teacher under the heading KNOW. Next, the students will be asked what they want to learn about Mexico. Again, questions and prompts from the teacher are necessary in order to motivate student participation. Finally, the tag board will be posted in a conspicuous place in the classroom. The K-W-L chart will be completed at the end of the curriculum unit. 

Lesson Plan 2
Subject: Reading and listening
Activity: Read aloud story, “Tommy’s Trip to Mexico”
Time: 35 minutes
Material: The book, Kids Around the World, which contains the story, “Tommy’s Trip to Mexico.”
Objectives: Students will actively listen and participate in discussion
Procedures: The student’s will listen to the story, “Tommy’s Trip to Mexico” followed by a discussion about Tommy’s experiences.  Students will share their own experiences of Mexico. The discussion will be followed by a mini-lesson on the geography of Mexico. The teacher will show students a map focusing on the various geographical points of interest. 

Lesson Plan 3
Subject: Geography
Activity: Students will work in small groups using a map of North America
Time:  45 minutes
Material: Several maps of North America and blank maps of Mexico (one for each student)
Objectives: Students will learn the geography of Mexico and the surrounding area.
Procedure: Students will work in small groups using a large travel map of North America. They will be given a list of places to locate on the map.

1.      Mexico

2.      Borders of Mexico

3.      Mexico City

4.      Merida, the capital of Yacatan

5.      Areas of water that surround Mexico,  Pacific and The Gulf of Mexico

6.      Major Mountains of Mexico, Sierra Nevada

Students will then work independently labeling these points on their blank map of Mexico. 

Week Two: The second week of the unit will focus on the cultures of Mexico before the Spaniards, which is 1519. We will learn about the Aztec and Mayan Indians using a variety of children’s literature and activities.  

Lesson Plan 4
Subject: Language Arts, Reading Skills and Comprehension
Activity: Students will read “People of the Corn,” a Mayan short story.
Time: 40 minutes
Materials: 22 copies of  “People of the Corn” by Mary Joan Gerson (see bibliography)
Objective: Student will actively participate in small reading groups, then respond to discussion on the elements of the story.
Procedure:   Students will read unknown text at their reading level in small groups, four or five students per group. The teacher will provide appropriate guidance and support. After the students have had ample time to read the story the entire class will participate in a discussion to informally evaluate comprehension. A word study mini-lesson will follow the discussion. The words will be extracted from the story. Students will be asked to define ten to fifteen unfamiliar words.

Lesson Plan 5
Subject: Art and History
Activity: Mayan clay Pinch Pots
Time: 50 minutes
Materials: old newspaper, clay and water
Objectives: Students will listen to a brief lecture on the history of clay artifacts from the Mayan Indians. Students will create their own clay Pinch Pot. 
Procedure: Begin activity with brief lecture on the history of clay artifacts (Hands on Latin America by YvonneY. Merrill).

1.      Students will cover their work area with old newspaper.

2.      Distribute clay to students, eight to ten ounces of clay per student and cups of water.

3.      Students will roll clay into a ball using water to make the clay more manageable

4.      Students will mold and manipulate clay using the thumb and index finger forming a bowl.

5.      The students will etch patterns or designs with the point of a pencil. Hands-on Latin America, contains the detailed procedure and illustrations of the clay pinch pots.                

Lesson Plan 6
Subject: Language Arts/Reading Analysis, History
Activity: Read Aloud, “What the Aztecs Told Me” by Krystyna Libura
Time: 35 minutes
Material: Book, “What the Aztecs Told Me” by Krystyna Libura
Objective: The students will listen, respond, examine and critique historically and culturally significant issues and events portrayed in literature that both illustrate and affect people, society and individuals.
Procedure: The teacher will read aloud “What the Aztecs Told Me,” followed by a whole group discussion. Since this story’s main theme is based on historical facts about the Aztec Indians, as told to Bernardino de Sahagun, a Spanish friar, the discussion will focus on the marvelous aspects of the Aztecs. The students will then be asked to independently write five to ten facts about the Aztec Indians.

Homework: The students will choose one fact about the Aztecs Indians and write a one page synopsis of their findings. Students will be asked to use some type of informational text such as an encyclopedia or research software.   

Week Three: Every day, somewhere in Mexico, people are sure to be enjoying a fiesta. Week Three will focus on the traditions and importance of the Mexican fiestas.  

Lesson Plan 7
Subject: Reading and Listening
Activity: Read aloud, “Fiesta” by Beatriz McConnie Zapata. The story is about young Chucho who experiences his first Mexican fiesta, Fiesta de Santiago.
Time: 35 minutes
Material:  Book, “Fiesta” by Beatriz McConnie Zapata
Objective: The student will listen and discuss the story, sharing their experiences of past fiestas. 
Procedure: The teacher will read the story to the students. The students will participate in a discussion focused on the different types of fiestas that the children have experienced. The teacher will record the main terms associated with the different types of fiestas on the blackboard. Students will then be asked to write a short story utilizing the Six Traits writing method (see Internet bibliography for Six Traits).  

Lesson Plan 8
Subject: Social Studies, Life Skills (Cooking)
Activity: Lecture on Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead. Cooking Pan de Los Muertos.
Time: 50 minutes
Material: Book, “Days of the Dead” by Kathryn Lasky
Objective: Students will learn about the Mexican fiesta, Day of the Dead, celebrated on October 31. Students will make Pan de Los Muertos, a special round cake that is a featured food for this special celebration that honors the dead.
Procedure: To begin the activity the teacher will give a brief lecture about Dia de Los Muertos, Day of the Dead (refer to “Day of the Dead” by Christopher Knight).  To bake Pan de Muerto, Bread of the Dead, refer to “Look What We’ve Brought You From Mexico” by Phyllis Shalant, pages 16-19. 

Lesson Plan 9
Subject: Language Arts- Shared Reading and Comprehension
Activity: Small (4-5 students) Reading Groups, Whole Group book sharing
Time: 50 minutes
Materials: Copies of four different stories, “Nine Days to Christmas” by Marie Hall Ets, “The Miracle of Our Lady of Guadalupe” by Lulu Delacre in Golden Tales page 41, “Pancho’s Pinata” by Stefan Czernecki, and “A Birthday Basket for Tia” by Pat Mora
Objective: Students will work in small groups reading their stories. Each group will discuss their story followed by an oral presentation to the entire class.
Procedure: Students will be placed in their reading group based on their individual ability. Each small group will be given one of the books listed. In their small reading groups students will participate in a shared reading experience. After reading their stories each group will conduct their own small group discussion about the elements of the story. Students will prepare a summary of the story that they read and present it to the entire class. Students may be encouraged to use a visual outline or story web. 

Week Four: The people of Mexico have made many contributions that have influenced cultures around the globe, especially here in New Mexico. During week four the curriculum unit will focus on the many contributions and connections Mexico has made on New Mexican culture.

Lesson Plan 10
Subject: Reading Comprehension
Activity: Reading and discussion of the main food of Mexico, corn.
Time: 40 minutes
Materials: The book, Kids Around the World, which has the story, “Corn” by Jean Wolf
Objective: Students will learn about the main food of Mexico, corn, and the many ways it is used for food in Mexico. We will also discuss the influence this staple food has had on the American diet.
Procedure: The lesson will begin with a pre-reading activity. Students will tell the teacher things they know that are made from corn. The teacher will record the information on chart paper. The teacher will then read the story “Corn,” which can be found in Kids around the World, followed by a discussion. Students will be asked again what foods can be made from corn, referring to the new information from the story. The teacher will record the new information. In a whole class discussion we will compare the two lists to see if any items match.

Lesson Plan 11
Subject: Language Arts and Life Skills (Cooking)
Activity: Read aloud, “Too Many Tamales” followed by a cooking demonstration
Time: 55 minutes plus cooking time
Materials: The book, “Too Many Tamales” by Gary Soto, utensils and ingredients for Tamale demonstration.
Objective: Students will listen to story and actively participate in cooking demonstration.
Procedure: The teacher will read “Too Many Tamales” and discuss the elements of the story. A tamale cooking demonstration will follow the story, for directions see Coyote Café by Mark Miller in bibliography. 

Lesson Plan 12
Subject: History and Art
Activity: Create a wall mural that reflects Mexico’s Independence Day, Cinco de Mayo
Time: Two, 50-minute sessions
Materials: 5 or more feet of large brown craft paper, Tempura paint, paint brushes, bowls and water, masking tape, pencils, erasers.
Objective: To learn of the history behind the great wall murals of Mexico and world-renowned artist Diego Rivera
Procedure: To begin the lesson, review the information on ancient hieroglyphs of Mexico and on Mexican Independence Day (see, “Look What I Brought You from Mexico” by Phyllis Shalant)

1.      Before you begin, cover the floor with newspaper and the students with smocks. To eliminate drips, it is best to lay out the paper on the floor for painting and hang it on the wall later when it is dry.

2.      Divide class into four groups, each group will decide on which part of Mexican history that they will want to illustrate. If the mural will be telling a story, make sure its sequence is in proper order; for example, the ancient Indians should come before the Spaniards.

3.      Students will sketch the scene in pencil first, covering as much of the paper as possible.

4.      Paint in your sketches.

5.      When paint is dry, hang the finished mural on a wall with masking tape; be sure to display in the correct timeline of events.  

Week Five: This is the last week of the curriculum unit. We will review the K-W-L Chart that we started on the first day. Students will be given a writing assignment on what new information they discovered during the last four weeks. As a whole group activity we will share, record, and examine all the information from the K-W-L Chart. During week five we will also go on the two fieldtrips listed below.   

Fieldtrip:
National Hispanic Cultural Center of New Mexico
1791 Fourth Street Northwest
Albuquerque, New Mexico
505.246.2261 

Fieldtrip:
El Rancho de Las Golondrinas- A Spanish Colonial Living History
334 Pinos Road
Santa Fe, New Mexico
505.471.2261

Web site: http://www.golondrinas.org/ 

Conclusion 

Hopefully this curriculum unit will give educators the tools necessary to teach all students, not just Hispanics or Mexican-Americans, in Kindergarten through fifth grades, about the Mexican culture. For my students, I hope this unit will empower them to become life-long learners who will continue to learn about their own culture and explore new cultures. Through their discoveries I hope that they may create a more positive image of their cultural heritage and a better understanding of their own self-identity. I hope that my students will make connections to those that came before us, and realize how their strength and perseverance paved the way for Mexico’s independence.   

Bibliography 

Brenner, Anita and Charlot, Jean.  The Boy Who Could Do Anything & Other Mexican Folktales. 1989. 

Casagrande, Louis B. and Johnson, Sylvia. Focus on Mexico. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications, 1986. 

Delacre, Lulu.  Golden Tales-Myths, Legends, and Folktales from Latin America.   New York, NY:  Scholastic Press, 1996. 

Forest, Heather.  Wisdom Tales from Around the World.  Littlerock, Arkansas:  August House Publishers, 1996. 

Hancock, Ralph.  Mexico.  New York:  MacMillan, 1964. 

Hayes, Joe and Jelinke, Lucy.  Everyone knows Gato Pinto:  Tale from Spanish New Mexico. 1972. 

Lasky, Kathryn.  Days of the Dead.   New York:  Hyerion Books For Children, 1994. 

Lawall, Sarah.  Reading World Literature: Theory, History, Practice.    Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, 1994. 

Marcus, Rebecca B.  Fiesta Time in Mexico.  Champaign, IL:  Garrard Publishing, 1974. 

Meyer, Carolyn.    Rio Grande Stories.   Gulliver Books/Harcort Brace & Company, 1986. 

Merrill, Yvonne. Y.   Hands-on Latin America: Art Activities for all Ages.  Salt Lake City, Utah:  Kits Publishing, 1997. 

Miller, Mark.  Coyoto Café.   Sante Fe, New Mexico:  Ten Speed Press,   1989. 

Moran, Tom.  A Family in Mexico.  Minneapolis:  Lerner Publications, 1987. 

Rohmer, Harriet and Anchondo, Mary.  How We Came to the Fifth World.  Los Angeles, CA:   Children’s Book Press, 1987. 

Shalant, Phyllis. Look What We Brought You From Mexico: Crafts, Games, Recipes, Stories and other Cultural Activites.  Parsippany, New Jersey:  Simon & Schuster Publishing Company,  1992. 

Sierra, Judy.  Multicultural Folktales for the Feltboard and Readers Theater.   Phoenix, Arizona:  Oryx Press, 1984. 

Silverthorne, Elizabeth.  Fiesta!  Mexico’s Great Celebrations.  Brookfield, CT:  Millbrooke Press, 1992. 

Soto, Gary and Diaz, David.  Neighborhood Odes, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1992. 

Spencer, Margaret.  Reading World Literature: Theory, History, Practice. Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, 1994.

Wolf, Jean.  Kids Around the World. Grand Rapids, MI: Instructional Fair, Inc., 1993.

Student’s Book List 

Anaya, Rudolfo A.  The Favolitos of Christmas-A New Mexico Christmas Story.   New Mexico Magazine, 1987. 

Behrens, June.  !Fiesta!  Cinco de Mayo.   USA:  Children’s Press, 1978. 

Brightfield, Richard.  Mexican Adventure.  New York:  Macmillan McGraw-Hill, 1997. 

Czernecki, Stefan and  Rhodes, Timothy.   Pancho’s Pinata.  New York:  Hyerion Books, 1992. 

Delacre, Lulu.   Golden Tales: Myths, Legends, and Folk Tales from Latin America. New York: Scholastic Press, 1996. 

Gerson, Joan Mary and Golembe, Carla.   People of Corn- A Mayan Story.  Canada:  Little, Brown & Company, 1985. 

Ets Hall, Marie and Aurora Labastida.  Nueve Dias Para Navidad-Un Cuento de Mexico. USA: Penguin Books, 1991. 

Meyer, Carolyn.  Rio Grande Stories.  Gulliver Books/Harcourt Brace & Company, 1994. 

Mora, Pat and Cecily Lang.  A Birthday Basket for Tia.  Macmillan, 1994. 

Soto, Gary and Martinez, Ed.  Too Many Tamales.   New York, Scholastic, 1993. 

Zapata, Beatriz McConnie.  Fiesta.  New York, Simon & Schuster, 1992.

Internet Web Sites 

For more information on Six Traits writing program contact  Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory at culamr@nwrel.org