Our essay sketches resistant, transnational, and translanguaging traditions of the Rio Grande Valley (RGV), Aztlán and conjugates them with our critical curricular-pedagogical praxis. After an introductory section, we frame our essay between transnational intellectual traditions and critical place-based pedagogies. Following our framings, we…

In the nearly two decades since the 1990 Music Educators National Conference (MENC) preconference symposium on Multicultural Approaches to Music Education in Washington, D.C., music educators have come to recognize the need to include a variety of world musics in music curricula at all levels, from elementary classrooms to advanced performing…

Son Jarocho (specifically from Veracruz) is a song-and-dance form originating in Spain and implanted in Mexico during 17th- and 18th-century colonization. The jarocho style of music today is one of Latin America's most unique forms, using one to four instruments and characterized by its distinctive rhythm. (LC)

Self-contained activities that will help social studies or Spanish foreign language students in grades 6-8 learn about the history and culture of Latin America are provided. Following an introductory unit, the activities, ranging from easy to complex, are organized by the following countries and areas: Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean,…

This curriculum project, using research and literary and historical perspectives, seeks to help students develop an awareness of the rich cultural diversity of Mexico through studying the mythology of the Aztec people. Through literature and storytelling, students see how mythology is often about real people and events and woven into the fabric of…

Describes the central concept of Mayan culture, the possession of the soul, or ch'ulel, in the process of forming a knowledgeable person. Soul acquisition is important to becoming the ideal person, and to the educational formation of future generations. Looks at the role language plays in culture as memory, thought formation, and learning process.…

Folk dances from three regions of Mexico (Yucatan, Veracruz, and Jalisco) are examined. Emphasis is placed on the ways in which these folk dances reflect the history and cultural attitudes of the Mexican people and, particularly, on the influence of Spanish culture and history on Mexican folk dances. For the dances of each of these areas,…

The colonial period in Mexican history, from 1519 to the Revolution of 1910, is the subject of the second in a series of three bilingual (Spanish-English) books designed to aid teachers in presenting the historical and cultural background of the Mexican people. The series, which lends itself to the Inquiry Method of teaching, includes illustrated…

The first in a series of three books designed to aid teachers of grades 4-12 in the presentation of key aspects of the culture and history of Mexico addresses Mexico's Indian period, from the beginning of human life in Mexico to the final conquest of Mexico by the Spanish in 1521. The bilingual English and Spanish book, which lends itself to the…

This resource guide, designed for elementary level students, presents activities focusing on the language and customs of Mexico. The material is organized in 12 chapters that correspond with the curriculum calendar. Whenever possible, the thematic topic presented in each chapter refers to calendar appropriate festivals or events. Following an…

This unit provides relevant material for teaching Rudolfo Anaya's "Bless Me, Ultima." This material gives the classroom teacher the opportunity to focus more deeply on the teaching of Anaya's work, especially in the areas of Mexican history and folklore on which the book is based. Objectives for "Bless Me, Ultima" include: (1)…

This paper discusses the influence of Indian culture on the creation of Mexican folklore to the end that the inclusion of such knowledge in classes where students are studying Spanish as a second language will make those classes less formal, more interesting, and more meaningful. The author provides many examples of Indian cultural traditions…