Week 1—Symbolic Characters Boarders... · Web view1-Like Water for Chocolate By: Laura Esquivel 2-Children of Immigration By: Carola and Marcelo Suarez-Orozco 3-The Latino Wave:

Week 1—Symbolic Characters

Bridging Boarders

A Study of Latino Culture in the the US and Latin America

A WCATY Course Designed for 5th- 6th Graders

Instructor: Amanda Mehl

This class, designed for grades 5 and 6, is a spicy blend of “spanglish” culture, literary studies, and current events. Students will explore the realities of Latino people in Latin America and the United States by reading novels, short stories, poems, and an autobiography written by Latin-American authors. Students will also be asked to research news broadcasts and articles delving into the issues related to immigration and the blending of Latino culture with day-to-day North American life. In addition, students will engage in some oral-history-writing of their own, with the intent of discovering more about their own family’s heritage as well as community members of Latino descent around them. Finally, the students will be exposed to such cultural richness as sharing recipes, watching a film, and dancing a salsa dance or two at face-to-face encounters!

Week 1—Family Histories

· Read: Begin to read Waiting for Snow in Havana: Confessions of a Cuban Boy By Carlos Eire.

· Task: One goal in this course is to provide some background on the realities that Latin America faces today by delving into some of its history. Please remember that throughout this course, we will be drawing upon some general themes and/or characteristics that describe Latin America when in fact each country is very unique and has distinct histories, subcultures, and current realities. The way in which countries deal with the challenges they are faced with, the way their individual governments make choices, and even the way they speak Spanish can vary greatly from country to country. Hopefully by drawing some general conclusions we can understand some of the similarities but also recognize the beauty of their differences.

· Thought Provoker: If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go? How long would you stay and what would be your travel itinerary? What sites would you want to see and what people would you like to meet where you are going? Explain your answer in a well-formed paragraph. Please see the following website for a resource on writing a good paragraph. http://www.headlesschicken.ca/writinghelp/paragraph-guide.html or http://custom-writing.org/blog/writing-tips/32.html

· Writing Assignment/ Goal: Interview several family members about your family’s history/heritage. Find out what country or countries your family emigrated from and how long ago? What were the circumstances of the immigration and where did your family settle first? If there was a special family trade or family business what was it? These are just some examples of questions you can ask so be creative! Interview parents, grandparents, great-grandparents etc…particularly the older members of your family and find out if they have any archives and/or documents on your family’s history/heritage. Include information on those findings if you like.

· Journal: Your journal is an opportunity to reflect on what you read about in the books for the class and what you discuss with the class at f2f meetings and with your group members online. This week, I would like you to write about yourself as if you were an immigrant coming to the United States for the first time. What might the US look, smell, feel, taste like when you first step off the boats/plane/footbridge etc…? Pick a specific time period whether 1885 or 2007 and talk about your first US experiences. Do you speak English? If not, what is it like to navigate yourself around and English-speaking country? Do you like the food? What was the first kind of food you tried? Are the people in the US friendly towards you? Do you feel comfortable around them? What does your first home in the US look like? Where did you move first? Describe the city/town/village etc…

· Project: Introduce yourself to your assigned group. Be sure to mention the usual details—hobbies, school, favorite movie, etc. Then tell the group a little bit about the family history/heritage you came up with when you talked with older family members. What country or countries did your dad’s side come from? Your mom’s side? How long has your family been in the United States (for how many generations)? Do you have any family members that still live in the countries of your origin?

· Extra: # 1 Many of these authors we will be reading mix in some Spanish phrases or words to illustrate certain ideas or concepts more common to Latina American or US Latino Culture. Other times they are simply added to remind us of the cultural context from which the author is writing. This mixture is often referred to as “spanglish”. Spanglish also plays and important role in the everyday speech patterns and conversations of second and third generation US-Latino families whose children have grown up speaking both languages and their street jargon often combines a mixture of their two languages. Please begin to keep a list of the “spanglish” words or phrases that you discover as you read. After copying down the word, use an English/Spanish dictionary to look up the word of phrases meaning. If the author you are reading provides the definition in their book for you, please look it up any ways and see if the exact translation matches the authors. Then write a few sentences about why you think the author chose to use Spanglish in that particular context. You can keep a list in the back of your journal or on a separate piece of paper if desired. Please make sure to bring that list to all f2f encounters so we can discuss the words further. If there is no hard copy Spanish/English Dictionary available to you, you can use the following we resources:

www.spanishdict.com/

www.freedict.com/onldict/spa.html

www.wordreference.com/

***Important Reminder: It is ALWAYS ok to ask questions!! ((( If an assignment is not clear or if you have a questions about something in the reading please contact me online. My role as class teacher/facilitator is to help you get as much out of the course as you can, and in order to do that I encourage you to come forward with ideas/questions/concerns. Remember, there is no such thing as a stupid question!!!***

Week 2——A Country’s Political History-The History of a Revolution

· Continue reading Waiting for Snow in Havana: Confessions of a Cuban Boy By Carlos Eire.

· Task: Investigate one of the following countries’ political histories. Each group will be in charge of looking at one of the following countries:

1. Mexico

2. Cuba

3. Nicaragua

4. Chile

I would like each group to focus on the revolutions of each of these countries and the implications that those revolutions had on the countries economy, relations with other countries, and most importantly, the people living there. Use encyclopedias, online websites (must be approved by me in advance), and books from your school or local library to research your assigned revolution. While you are learning and reading about these histories, consider the following:

How did the people of the country you are researching feel about the revolution that was taking place? How did they feel afterwards? What sides did people choose and why? Were there political parties involved and if so, which ones were they?

· Thought Provoker: If you were a citizen of the country that your are researching during the time of the revolution, what would your experience have been like? How would the revolution have affected your family, your parents’ jobs, your school, and your life? What side would you have been on and why? Would you have had to flee the country as a refugee or immigrant to the US or another country and why? Please answer as many of the above questions in a well- formed paragraph.

· Writing Assignment/ Goal: Begin to work in your group to develop a timeline of events that occurred during your country’s revolution. Make these events into bullet points in order from past to most present, adding to your list as your read more about this history.

· Journal: Review the information you gathered from your informal interview(s) with family members. What did you learn about your family and its history from these conversations? What surprised you and what didn’t about what you learned? What further questions do you have about your family history that have not been answered?

· Project: In your groups, discuss the timeline you have been working on in your groups. Discuss the most important points of your timeline and how you want to summarize this history to the rest of the groups at our first f2f meeting.

· Extra: Please continue to keep a list of the “spanglish” words or phrases that you discover as you read. After copying down the word, use an English/Spanish dictionary to look up the word of phrases meaning. If the author you are reading provides the definition in their book for you, please look it up any ways and see if the exact translation matches the authors. Then write a few sentences about why you think the author chose to use Spanglish in that particular context. You can keep a list in the back of your journal or on a separate piece of paper if desired. Please make sure to bring that list to all f2f encounters so we can discuss the words further. If there is no hard copy Spanish/English Dictionary available to you, you can use the following we resources:




Week 3— Oral Histories

· Continue reading Waiting for Snow in Havana: Confessions of a Cuban Boy By Carlos Eire.

· Task: Make a list of the main characters in Waiting for Snow in Havana and write a few sentences describing each. Then read the excerpt from Children of Immigration provided for you at our first f2f and discuss with the other members of your group the experience of the main character as he leaves Cuba to that of the descriptions of 2nd generation immigrants in the US.

· Thought Provoker: Continuing our thoughts from the above task, what would it be like to immigrate to another country as a child as opposed to being born into a family of immigrants in the country they are now living it. What obstacles would you encounter in each case? How would it be easier or harder for each group to fit in or adjust to life in the new country or help their parents adjust to life in their country of origin?

· Writing Assignment/ Goal: Review the list of writing techniques explored in our 1st F2f and also in this link http://www.tnellen.com/cybereng/lit_terms/.

· Journal: What is the most interesting thing you have learned so far about the history of the country you have been studying? Why was it interesting to you and how did it help you to understand Latino Culture better? Please write a well-formed response paragraph.

· Project: Base on the timeline that you presented to the other groups at the 1st f2f, as a group pleased write up the story of the revolution you studied in your own words. You may use quotes from the sources you used to make the timeline but be sure to cite them properly (see handout on source citing given to you you at 1st f2f). This write-up should be a welll written 2-4 page document and every group member must contribute.





Week 4—Culture

· Begin Reading Caramelo By: Sandra Cisneros

· Thought Provoker: How does hope influence the choices that people make? Explain your answer in a well-formed paragraph, which uses real life examples or quotes as support.

· Task: Read an excerpt provided online from the book Like Water for Chocolate By: Laura Esquivel. In a well-formed paragraph, described the role that you believe food plays within Latino Culture? Why would Laura Esquivel choose to frame her chapters around a recipe and place her main character’s destiny in the kitchen?

· Writing Assignment/ Goal: Since we have been talking about Latino culture, and especially how food plays a role in Latino Culture, let’s explore more about what that means in writing. Your goal is to select two characters from Either Waiting for Snow in Havana or Caramelo and assign them each a food that you think describes their character. Tell us why you chose that food, how it describes their character, and how it fits within what you have already learned about Latino culture in 100 words or less.

· Journal: If you were a food what food would you be? How would the food that you chose for yourself reflect you own family life, community or culture? What are some other food in general that help describe the cultural background you have of the community you came from. What foods might you assign to members of your family or friends and why? Write a well-formed paragraph discussing this idea.

· Project: Share the characters and the food you chose for them to your group this week. Post the argument you wrote online and allow each member of each group to make comments on whether they agree with your choices or chose differently from you. Can they tell why you picked the foods you picked? Did anyone pick the same foods for the same character or were any foods use twice but for two different characters. Please comment on the work of each of your other group members online.





Week 5-Culture

Reading Assignment: Continue reading Caramelo By: Sandra Cisneros and a short story from Sandra Cisneros Woman Hollering Creek or Judith Hellman’s Mexican Lives (These will be provided online).

· Thought Provoker: What are the cultural differences between Latinos who live in Latin America and Latinos who live in the United States? Think about examples we have seen from the readings so far.

· Task: Make a list of the characteristics you think are prevalent in Latino Culture based on the readings you are doing for this week. Have one column for US Latinos and the other for Latinos living in Latin America. Remember these are broad generalizations made based on some limited reading and discussions not stereotypes. Discuss online with your groups for more ideas.

· Writing Techniques/ Goals: Write you own short story about Latino Culture. Your story should be no longer than one page and should have several well-formed paragraphs. You can set the scene of your story in either a country in Latin American or in a Latino Community in the US. Please see the following resources provided for you on how to write a short story. Make sure to pick a character or two and describe them and their surrounds and the conflict/issue they are dealing with. Remember to develop the plot and the characters and have an appropriate end that wraps up the story you are telling.

· Journal: What do you think it is like to live in the US as a Latino person who was born elsewhere and immigrated to the US? Is it hard or easy? Is living in a different culture with a different central language easy or a challenge? Do you think that a Latino person could experience racism just like other domestic minorities in this country? How might that racism be similar or different from other minority group’s experiences with racism?

· Project: Your group will pick or be assigned (if you need help finding a community member) an influential Latino Community Member in the Northern Illinois Southern Wisconsin area that you can do an oral history project on. Please discuss with you group things such as what types of questions you want to ask, when and where you want to meet to interview this person, and who in the group will be in charge of each section of the oral history. Please go to the following website on information on how to write an Oral History.

http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/oral_history.html

http://dohistory.org/on_your_own/toolkit/oralHistory.html





Good Samaritan by Josué Sanchez Cerron, from mission Aachen, Art Calendar, 1984 Peru

Week 6— Culture

· Reading Assignments: Finish Caramelo By: Sandra Cisneros and read the first half of The House on Mango Street By: Sandra Cisneros

· Thought Provoker: Compare the two novels that you are reading by Sandra Cisneros. How are they similar and how are they different? Can you tell it is the same author writing the two books? What characteristics of her writing stand out at you. What have you learned about Latino Culture by reading two of her books. Write 2-3 response paragraphs.

· Task: Write a 5-paragraph essay—see format— http://essayinfo.com/essays/5-paragraph_essay.php on the coming of age aspects of The House on Mango Street. Describe the main characters struggles as she grows up in an Inner-city Chicago neighborhood. What are some of the obstacles she faces and how does she deal with them?

· Writing Techniques/ Goals: Review the oral history resources that were passed out and further discussed during out 2nd f2f encounter. What are some of the characteristics of the writing style of an oral history. Make yourself a list of important guidelines you plan to follow while writing your section and also things to look out for while you proofread your group members sections.

· Journal: Selecting one of the scene’s depicting the main character’s neighborhood in The House on Mango Street, describe the scene as if you lived down the street from Esmeralda. What does it look like, smell like, taste like, feel like to live on her bock. Describe a typical afternoon on Mango Street. Who walks past you, who is across the street and what are they doing. Write a minimum of three paragraphs.

· Project: Please continue to work on your oral history project in groups. Each group member should have assigned a section of the interview and should have come up with at least 10 questions to ask.





Week 7— Current Events

· Reading Assignments: Finish The House on Mango Street By: Sandra Cisneros and begin reading Coyotes By: Ted Connover.

· Thought Provoker: Describe the author’s role within Coyotes. How do you feel about the work he was doing as a journalist? Why do you think that the Mexican immigrants her traveled with accepting him into their traveling groups so easily? Was it worth it to get the stories that he did? What were three things you learned about the immigration process from the reading you have done so far in this book? Write 2-3 paragraphs.

· Task: Look at some online resources for Latin American recipes. Here are some websites to get you started:

Recipes

http://info.lanic.utexas.edu/la/region/food/

http://www.lasculturas.com/lib/libFood.htm

http://www.ma.iup.edu/Pueblo/latino_cultures/recipes.html

http://www.melissas.com/recipes/

Begin to plan with your group online as to which recipe you would like to prepare and what ingredients/supplies you will need etc… Make a slits of these supplies. Decide where you will be able to meet to prepare the food and who might be able to help you (i.e. parents, other familymembers, etc…)

· Journal: Reflect on your interview experience by answering some of the following questions in a well-written journal entry:

-How did you feel while conducting the interview?

-What surprised you about the answers that your community member shared with you?

-What did you learn about Latino Culture by interviewing this person?

-Did any of the answers that your community member provided you with make you

think of any of the characters and their experience from the books.=/literature that we

have read? Why of why not?

· Project: Begin the write-up of your Oral History using these resources as a guide: http://www.smallschoolsproject.org/PDFS/PTP/PBL/Codman/PDF-OralHistoryWriteUp.pdf

http://www.ohs.org.uk/





Week 8- Current Events

· Reading Assignment: Continue reading Coyotes by Ted Connover and read 5 selections of your choice from It’s All in the Frijoles by Yolanda Nava.

· Task: Read articles/watch audio news clips about the debate regarding immigration in the United States. Please go to websites such as the New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, and Fox News. Here are some links to get you started:http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/i/immigration_and_refugees/index.html?8qa

http://www.nytimes.com/ref/us/three_sisters.html (movie)

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/11/business/yourmoney/11migrate.html?ex=1170478800&en=975b856df1fbad37&ei=5070

http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/i/immigration_and_refugees/index.html

(see special video reports on right hand side of webpage)

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/specials/chi-borders-intro,0,348636.story

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/specials/chi-borders-7-story,0,6102009.story

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/specials/broadband/chi-borders-htmlstory,0,990501.htmlstory

(movie)

http://www.foxnews.com/specialsections/immigration/index.html?CMP=KNC-YahooPI

Within your groups please discuss online and make a list of at least five points in support of and five points against allowing immigrants to continue to cross boarders into the US. Please exclude any arguments or points with inappropriate language towards or racists comments against immigrant populations.

· Thought Provoker: In 30-50 years (or sometime in the future) a group of students has approached you, a contributing adult community member about writing an oral history on you. How do you feel about this opportunity. What stories would you like to share with this group. What do you want them to learn about your childhood, professional life, and the contributions you have made to your community over the years. Please respond in a well written paragragh

· Project: Finish and post the rough draft or you section of the oral history. Edit each member’s section. Take the edits to your section and create your final product. Someone in the group should make a title page, table of content, and another should write a short introduction about the groups experience doing this oral history project. Each member should be prepared to highlight his/her section during the last f2f encounter.





Week 9- Current Events

· Reading Assignment: Finish Reading Coyotes By: Ted Connover and read selected portions of The Latino Wave By: Jorge Ramos and Children of Immigration By: Carola and Marcelo Suarez-Orozco.

· Task: Continue reading articles/watch audio news clips about the debate regarding immigration in the United States. Please go to websites such as the New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, and Fox News. Here are some links to get you started:http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/i/immigration_and_refugees/index.html?8qa

http://www.nytimes.com/ref/us/three_sisters.html (movie)

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/11/business/yourmoney/11migrate.html?ex=1170478800&en=975b856df1fbad37&ei=5070

http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/i/immigration_and_refugees/index.html

(see special video reports on right hand side of webpage)

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/specials/chi-borders-intro,0,348636.story

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/specials/chi-borders-7-story,0,6102009.story

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/specials/broadband/chi-borders-htmlstory,0,990501.htmlstory

(movie)

http://www.foxnews.com/specialsections/immigration/index.html?CMP=KNC-YahooPI

· Project: Finish polishing your project and plan your presentation.





http://www.stopcafta.org/

http://www.wola.org/economic/cafta.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_Free_Trade_Agreement

http://www.fas.usda.gov/itp/Policy/NAFTA/nafta.asp

http://www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca/nafta-alena/menu-en.asp

http://www.ustr.gov/Trade_Agreements/Section_Index.html

http://www.globalissues.org/TradeRelated/FreeTrade.asp

Focus Skill Sets:

1. Develop a general understanding of Latino Culture both in Latin American and the US

2. Analyze and discuss the realities that immigrants in the US face through literature and current events readings

3. Explore the rich history of Latin American Countries and the historical and political events leading up to the current realities of specific Latin American Countries

4. Delve into Latin American and US Latino Culture by sampling foods, dancing styles, and poetry from Latina American at f2f meetings

5. Research their own family heritage and history back the immigrants that brought their family to the US

Learn to write an oral history by interviewing a prominent Latino adult living in the US about their family history and heritage

Learn to appreciate other cultures

Literature

1-The House on Mango Street By: Sandra Cisneros

2-Waiting for Snow in Havana By: Carlos Eire

3-Coyotes By: Ted Connover

4-Caramelo By: Sandra Cisneros

We will read portions of the following:

1-Like Water for Chocolate By: Laura Esquivel

2-Children of Immigration By: Carola and Marcelo Suarez-Orozco

3-The Latino Wave: How Hispanics Are Transforming Politics in America

4-It’s All the Frijoles By: Yolanda Nava

5-A Place Where the Sea Remembers By: Sandra Benitez

6-Mexican Lives By: Judith Alder Hellman

7-Woman Hollering Creek By: Sandra Cisneros

Face-2-Face

We will:

Prepare your group’s timeline in poster format

Present your group’s timeline to the rest of the groups

Review writing techniques

Practice free writing

Learn basic Salsa dance moves

Review paragraph format

Face-2-Face #2

We will:

Read short stories from It’s All in the Frijoles and Woman Hollering Creek in small groups

Discuss important aspects of Latino culture based on examples in the short stories read

An introduction to the Hispanic Oral Historiy Project

Spend time working in groups on the end project

Learn some more salsa dance moves

Face-to-Face #3

We will present final projects and evaluate our learning experience. We will also share our Latino Dishes, dance some more Salsa, and even split up into two teams and debates the immigration issue further.

Documents

Week 1—Symbolic Characters Boarders... · Web view1-Like Water for Chocolate By: Laura Esquivel 2-Children of Immigration By: Carola and Marcelo Suarez-Orozco 3-The Latino Wave: