Teaching about Mexico:
Resources and Lesson Plans for Teachers

The lesson ideas below were developed following a 2006 Fulbright-Hays Summer Seminar to Mexico funded through the U.S. Department of Education and administered by COMEXUS. Humanities teachers (and media specialists) in grades K-university levels with at least three years of teaching experience may apply for this or other seminars. Consult the links above for details. Information becomes available in August or September, and applications are due in September or October.

Each lesson idea below links to a set of photographs that will help students to better understand the ideas presented. Teachers are encouraged to copy these photos for educational, non-commercial use and to share them with colleagues. The photos can easily be copied into slide show presentations. Although I am a Spanish teacher, many of the lesson ideas apply to art, social studies, and government classes. If you use this resource in your classroom or have an idea for improving it, please send feedback to [email protected].

Lessons

Homes and Household Chores

Transportation and Energy Use

Public Transportation What modes of transportation do people use in Mexico? What factors influence transportation choices? Why does the price of gas never go down in Mexico?
Spanish 1 -- Students learn modes of transportation
Spanish 2 -- Students make logical conclusions about transportation options
Spanish 3 -- Students discuss environmental issues related to transportation and make recommendations
Upper Level Spanish -- Students debate policies related to transportation and better understand international exports

Photos for teaching about recycling and energy use -- includes pictures of a solar roaster being developed at Universidad de la Tierra

Photos of signs in parks for teaching formal and informal commands -- the final picture is from Teotihuacan near the pyramids -- ask students to express the final picture in words for a quick mini-lesson

Artistic Traditions: Zapotec Weaving

The process of Zapotec weaving -- for art or Spanish 3 and above

Mexican Schools and Student Life

CBTIS 94 -- A Mexican Technical High School -- Power Point about a Mexican technical high school -- lesson for Spanish 2

Mexican Food

Photos part 1
Photos part 2
Spanish 1 - vocabulary (chicharrones, frutas, etc.); concept of markets and supermarkets; prices
Spanish 2 - Mexican Food (mole, chocolate, tomates, etc.); use with Chiles y Chocolates reading from Ventanas book
Food mini-lessons

Human Rights

Comisión Estatal de Derechos Humanos Jalisco
Derechos y obligaciones de los estudiantes (.doc) -- Rights and Obligations of students -- a good reading to begin the school year in upper level Spanish classes
Derechos de los jóvenes (.doc) -- Rights of young people, appropriate for 3rd year Spanish or above; could be adapted for Spanish 2
Homophobia poster

Maps and Photos

San Antonio Photos -- may be particularly useful for teachers using Ven Conmigo 2
San Antonio Visitor's Bureau -- tourist information with excellent maps of the city and region
Mexico City Subway Map (resolution optimized for printing)
Mexico City Subway and Light Rail Map (resolution optimized for printing)
Chapultepec Park Photos -- includes the Dance of the Voladores performed outside the Archaelogical Museum
Mexico City - Coyoacán Map (Mexico City) (resolution optimized for printing)
Querétaro map (resolution optimized for printing)

Artistic Traditions: Huichol Art

Huichol Art PowerPoint file -- see examples of Huichol yarn paintings and god's eyes -- pictures from San Luis Potosi in northern Mexico and from the National Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City
Background information about the Huichol from mexconnect.com

Mexican Elections of 2006

A Brief History of Elections in Mexico with a Summary of the 2006 Elections (.pdf)

Coming Soon:

Artistic Traditions: Muralism

Artistic Traditions: Engraving and the Art of Jose Guadalupe Posada

Homes and Household Chores

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