Spanish ideas, zookeeper game, and el dia de los muertos

Hola padres! I have had fun with the scholars this week with a new game called zookeepers. They pretended they were different animals that had escaped from their cages. I had five zookeepers whose job it was to tag the escaped animals and get them back in their cages. This was a great activity for them now that they have mastered their warm up and they love running around. It is fun to see them enjoying themselves so much.

In terms of Spanish for first grade, we began our study of the Day of the Dead or el dia de los muertos. I read to them a short article and a book on the holiday and then we completed a Venn diagram that compared el dia de los muertos and Halloween and it was interesting to see how they compared the two celebrations. More than anything, I wanted them to see how the holidays differed and that even though they happen around the same time, they aren't celebrating the same things or in the same way. We will continue learning about this holiday into next week.

I have not been very good so far in giving you ways to incorporate Spanish into your own lives. So, today I have two very accessible ways to encourage your scholars in their learning of Spanish. One way is through an app called duolingo. Like so many things in life, there is no magic pill that will have you speaking Spanish in a week. However, this app is intuitive, fun, and such an easy way for anyone, child or adult to take a few minutes each day to study not only Spanish, but any other language. You can even compete with friends! My husband has been using it and I am so amazed at how much he has learned and been able to apply in just a short couple of weeks. Give it a try (its free!) and let me know what you think.

I also wanted to let you know about the movie, The Book of Life. This movie is based on the celebration of el dia de los muertos or Day of the Dead. There's a little bit of Spanish in it, but mostly is is colorful, fun and full of great music. It is a great story that incorporates so many great elements of the holiday and is not scary at all. If you would like to give your scholars something out of school that will supplement what we have been doing, this is a great way to do it. I'm sure they will enjoy it and be eager to share with me the connections this movie will help them make with what we have learned in class. Have a great weekend!

Sra. Hamilton