Hispanic Heritage Month

Use the following resources to bring Hispanic heritage and culture into your lessons. Educators should be mindful of cultural appropriation when teaching about other cultures and understand that Hispanic students in class may experience lessons differently than non-Hispanic students.

Lesson Plans

Tolerance: Comparing Cultural Holidays
Students in grades K-4 compare Halloween and El Día de los Muertos by looking at traditions, music, and visual art.

Mexican Culture and History through Its National Holidays
Students in grades 6-8 investigate Mexico's religious and political history through its major holidays.

Smithsonian Education - Hispanic Heritage Teaching Resources
Lessons for grades K-12.

EDSITEment – Hispanic and Latino Heritage and History in the United States
Lesson plans for K-12 classrooms and think pieces on events and experiences across Hispanic history and heritage.

EDSITEment and Smithsonian - National History Day: American Immigrant Experiences
These resources - including objects, documents, websites, and articles - reveal challenges and opportunities experienced by American immigrants in the 19th to mid-20th centuries. Grades 4-12

Latino Americans Share Their Experiences
Students examine the challenges that three Latino Americans faced and overcame as they achieved success in their careers. This interactive lesson features playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda, actor Judy Reyes, and astronaut José Hernández. Grades 6-12

Latino Americans Lesson Plans from PBS Media
28 Lesson plans for grades 6-12.

Latino Americans Share Their Experiences
Students examine the challenges that three Latino Americans faced and overcame as they achieved success in their careers. This interactive lesson features playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda, actor Judy Reyes, and astronaut José Hernández. Grades 6-12

EDSITEment - "Sí, se puede!": Chávez, Huerta, and the UFW
This lesson provides access to artifacts and primary sources, including our United Farm Workers Learning Lab collection, while also placing Chávez, Huerta, and the UFW within the context of the long civil rights movement. Grades 6-12

Five Artists of the Mexican Revolution
Students in grades 9-12 research the events and personalities of the Mexican Revolution, explore how these people and events influenced the artists and art of this time period, and create original art that demonstrates the style of one of the artists studied.

Common Visions, Common Voices
Students in grades 9-12 analyze similarities and differences between cultures by investigating themes and motifs found in literature or visual arts. Includes activities on the trickster stories of North and Central American Indigenous Peoples.

¡Baila! Latin Dance in the Spanish Classroom
What is the history and origin of traditional Latin dance? Lesson Plan. Grades 9-12

Activities

Bring Hispanic Heritage Month to Life: A Collection of Resources
Interactive timelines, scavenger hunts, and other learning fun all about Hispanic Americans. Grades K-8

Colorín Colorado - Hispanic Heritage Month
Information, puzzles, biographies for English language learners. In English and Spanish. Grades K-12

Celebrate Hispanic Heritage with Recipes full of flavor Grades K-12

Learn to play Cuban Dominoes with this printable pdf and instructions. Grades 3-8

Learn about and make your own lotería cards Grades 4-10

Fact Monster - Hispanic Heritage Month Activities
Crosswords, population statistics, and more. Grades 6-8

Explore Latin American music and dance Grades 6-12

Printables

Famous Hispanic Americans (K-5)
Coloring pages and hero cards for sports, science, politics, and the arts.

Learn to play Cuban Dominoes with this printable pdf and instructions (3-5)

Background Resources

Fact Monster - History of Hispanic Heritage Month

Day of the Dead - El Dia de los Muertos K-12 curriculum resources.

Smithsonian National Museum of the American Latino: Molina Family Latino Gallery
Includes exhibitions, virtual museum, Virtual Museum Bilingual Teacher Training Took Kit, and more.

National Hispanic Heritage Month Selected resources for teachers.

Articles Tagged as Latino American History from Smithsonian magazine.

Library of Congress - Hispanic Heritage Month
Images, exhibits, audio, and video.

Mexican American Migrations and Communities
Teacher Resources and ideas on how to use these these resources

Friends of the National Museum of the American Latino
The Friends of the National Museum of the American Latino strives to create a museum in our nation’s capital to educate, inspire and encourage respect and understanding of the richness and diversity of the American Latino experience within the U.S. and its territories. News and how to Take Action.

Pew Research Center: Who is Hispanic?
Analysis on statistics and identity.

Audio & Video

Hispanic History - Timeline, Resources, Stories, Videos

Spanish Movies for Kids: G- and PG-rated Titles
Each year we’re seeing more Spanish movies for kids hit the theaters and streaming services. This is a list of family-friendly Spanish movies for kids (these are great movies for Spanish class as well!)

Chicano! History of the Mexican-American Civil Rights Movement
This documentary series chronicles the struggle for equality and social justice of the Mexican American community in the United States from 1965 to 1975.

BackStory: After Hurricane Maria - The History of Puerto Rico and the United States (Listen to Audio)