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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Welcome Message

I. Background

  1. Country and State Fact Sheet
    Blank Fact Sheet
    Completed Fact Sheet
  2. Big Maps
  3. The Mexican Flag
    Flag Terminology Handout
  4. Mexico's National Anthem
  5. History of Mexico and Veracruz

II. Music

  1. Los Utrera, Son Jarocho, El Fandango & Versada
  2. Instrument Making for
    Students and Adults
  3. World Music Links
  4. World Culture Links

III. Mexican Culture

  1. What is Culture?
    What is Culture? handout
  2. Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead)
  3. Folklore
    Folklore Values Survey
  4. Culinary Culture
  5. Religions of Mexico—Architecture
    Religions of Mexico—Origin Myths

IV. Here and Now

  1. Migration and Immigration
  2. Borders
  3. Human Rights and Indigenous Peoples
  4. Stereotypes

V. Community Connections

  1. Before and After Questions
  2. Intercultural Connections
  3. The Heritage and Oral History Projects
  4. Student Curator Project
  5. Class Newspaper or Web site
  6. Culture on Parade
  7. Student Participation in Events

This curriculum was written by Jeanne Paliatka and Olaf Nelson for Arts Midwest.

Flag of MexicoMexico

Bienvenidos!

In many ways, beginning an exploration of Mexican culture is like breaking open a piñata. In an instant, one is showered with a multitude of diverse and fascinating avenues to explore, each more beautiful and colorful than the last. Mexican culture offers something that is bound to excite and delight students and teachers alike. From topical issues such as immigration, to the annual festival of remembrance, Dia de los Muertos, to the migration of Monarch butterflies, Mexico's richness and diversity begs further analysis and investigation.

This curriculum is by no means a comprehensive look at Mexico or Mexican culture, but an introduction suitable for the music, literature, science, math, geography, industrial arts, consumer arts, social sciences, world cultures, art, or religion classroom. We have provided lessons that are ready to use in the classroom in many subject areas, and which can be adapted to any grade or ability level using the extensions provided. The areas we have chosen to explore include: background information on Mexico and its history, background on the group Chuchumbe and son jarocho music, Mexican culture, contemporary issues facing Mexico and its citizens, and a Community Connections section that offers ideas to engage the school and local community in the study of culture and the residencies of the artists. In addition to lessons in these areas, the curriculum includes extensive links to teaching resources on Mexico and Mexican culture that will enable teachers to create their own lessons or draw from the rich resources, including many lesson and unit plans that the Internet provides. We have also provided many links for both teachers and students that will supplement a study of Mexico. The lessons and resources contained in this curriculum will be beneficial whether your time is limited or more flexible, and with minor alterations, many lessons can be adapted to a study of other cultures as well.

We hope that you and your students will find this curriculum useful and that your knowledge of Mexican culture will expand and spread throughout your community. Most importantly, we hope that studying other cultures will spark a lasting curiosity in both teachers and students that will result in further exploration of the diverse and fascinating cultures of the world.