Escribir para Resistir Incorporating cultural knowledge, sacred texts and anti-colonial visions gained from a month of study in Oaxaca, Mexico, towards a middle school Narrative Writing unit. Week Origins of Writing Mesoamerican Historical context Cradle of writing Glyphs, stelae, codices used to express ideas (to write = to paint) Mexicos language diversity Burning codices as a way to erase/destroy historical memory of communities. What power does writing-painting still hold for us today? Ricardo Flores Magn Writing Prompts/Artistic Activities Why is it important for cultures to write as a way to express the realities of what they see, feel, and live? What value exists for future generations to leave behind our stories? What lessons did our ancestors leave with us, whether from stone carvings or codices? *** Glyph worksheet group activity. Students will try to decipher two-element glyphs. Students will then create their own glyph that names a thought/object that is representative of something important in their culture. Example: ^) O)* means: unity Week Cosmologa Mesoamricana Calendar-counting systems Divinatory & solar calendars Time & space relationships Spiritual relationship with the cosmos Visions of dualities: male/female, life/death, human/nature, four directions, celestial/underworld, etc. Environmental coexistence: maz. Day signs from Codex Magliabechiano Writing Prompts Group Activities What role did Mesoamerican spirituality play in the relationships established between men-women, humans- nature? Give an example of an idea within the overall cosmic vision that ancestors had that gave them clarity about death. How did Mesoamerican civilizations see themselves in relation(ships) to other living beings? Did they view themselves as superior, inferior, equal? Provide examples. How does their understanding of gender duality contrast with some of the values that we practice today? How does this quote by Ricardo Flores Magn (the man who our school is named after) reflect a sentiment expressed by the societies that existed in Mesoamerica. Quiero que todo sea bello, en armona con la naturaleza. What was the relationship our ancestors had with maz? Was this relationship for survival purposes, spiritual, or other? Why do you believe that our ancestors used animals/elements as representations of the days of the calendar? Provide examples from what we explored regarding cosmology to support your opinion. How do you think the use of these signs demonstrates their belief that we are all part of the natural balance and movement of the earth-galaxy-universe? Were these signs used simply for their aesthetic quality or did they represent something more profound and spiritual? Provide details to support your opinion. * Nahuatl language activity Ahuacatl* Chili* Comalli* Chocolatl* Itzcuintli* Metzli* Coyotl* Molli* Chapolin* (Ahuacate, Chile, Comal, Chocolate, Perro, Luna, Coyote, Mole, Chapuln) * Ma z in my diet activity Week Movement and Migration Historical movement of humans Movement for resources & survival vs. colonization Migration -- Immigration Boundaries -- borders The power of words used to label human movement Criminalization of migration Migration as a human right Writing prompts: Teatro (Theatre of the Oppressed) Why was migration important for the establishment of Mesoamerican civilization? What role did corn play in the migration of these civilization? Would [humans] have evolved into the species we are today if migration had been restricted? Has migration-movement always been a fundamental part of the human survival experience? Provide details for support. Is migration a human right? Provide reasons and details to support your opinion? Should governments have a role in determining why and how people should navigate earth in search of resources-work? Spanish conquest (Forum Theatre) Setting Tenochtitlan Cuba Actors Moctezuma II Hernando Corts Mexicas Spaniards Audience Week Narratives Personal Stories Migration odysseys Self-expression Cultural Legacy Escribir para Resistir Writing is a struggle against silence. -Carlos Fuentes Final Narrative Write a migration narrative. It can be your own or that of someone in your circle/family. Transcribe the oral story. Who is/are the protagonist(s) in this migration story? Where did they migrate from? Provide sensory details to describe their place of origin (landscape, culture, lifestyle, surroundings) Where did this person migrate to? Provide descriptions about their place of arrival and experience (first impressions, reactions, treatment/support of others, discrimination) How was the process of acculturation/assimilation? Example: work, housing, transportation, schooling, etc. Provide examples to describe this process, although continuous. Did the protagonist migrate because of lack of resources/opportunities or for other reasons? Does this person have the opportunity to return to their place of origin? If so, would they return if these resources/opportunities were available back home? Reflection: How has you idea of migration/movement evolved through the study of Mesoamerican civilization and cultural traditions? Is migration a human right? Should migration be penalized with incarceration? Final Assessment: Narrative completion + 2 revisions (1 peer-edited draft) Oral transcript Activity: Read aloud to your group (same grouping from calendrical symbols activity) Optional: Read your narrative to the whole class.