The Wise Men Day—---El Dia de los Reyes Magos

Students leaned how many Hispanic kids celebrated the Day of th Wise Men (El Dia Los Reyes Magos). Instead of exchanging presents on Christmas Day, in the Hispanic tradition, presents are exchanged the same day that the Wise Men (Los Reyes Magos) presented gifts to baby Jesus. The Day of the Wise Men is on January 6. St. James students learned that Hispanic children write letters not to Santa Claus but to the Three Wise Men. They then leave the letter inside their shoes. On the morning of January 6, the children wake up early to see what gifts the Wise Men have brought for them. While the children are having fun with ther new toys, the parents are preparing the Kings’ Wreath. The Kings’ Wreath is a wreath of sweet bread, called La  Rosca. Usually, everyone also drinks a cup of hot chocolate to go along with a piece of the La Rosca. St. James students learned how to make and decorate the crowns of the Wise Men (coronas de los Reyes Magos). After decorating their crowns, they also had fun wearing them.   

PIÑATAS’ PRESENTATION

The students’ presentation of their piñatas was a success! After the students presented their pinatas, I gave them some questions to answer. The first question was what was the most challenging thing about making a piñata? The second question was what was your favorite part about your piñata? The last was if you were making a piñata again, what would you change or do differently? The questions made the students reflect on the activity and bring it to a close–that is until they make their next piñata!

DIVIRTIENDOSE (HAVING FUN)

TOWNES CON SU AJOLOTE (AXOLOTL).

ANNA CON SU MORA (BLACKBERRY).

MABYN CON SU GIRASOL ( SUNFLOWER).

NOAH CON SU RANA (FROG).

STATTON CON SU NOPAL (CACTUS).

SANDER CON SU DRAGON DE FUEGO (FIRE DRAGON).

JONAH CON SU FANTASMA (GHOST).

REAGAN CON SU CEREZA (CHERRY).

EMMA CON SU STITCH.

AMELIA CON SU PATITA (A LITTLE DUCK)

THANKSGIVING DAY IS A WONDERFUL PART OF AMERICAN CULTURE. THE STUDENTS ARE LEARNING TO READ AND WRITE SOME NEW VOCABULARY THAT DESCRIBE TO WHOM AND FOR WHAT THEY ARE THANKFUL.  

ESTAMOS DIBUJANDO UN PAVO PARA EL DIA DE ACCION DE GRACIAS. --------DRAWING A TURKEY FOR THANKSGIVING DAY.

ESCRIBIENDO UN VOCABULARIO NUEVO EN ESPAÑOL.————WE ARE WRITING NEW VOCABULARY IN SPANISH.

DIVIRTIÉNDOSE MUCHO.------------ HAVING FUN

YO SE COMO ESCRIBIR PAPÁ EN INGLÉS.-----I KNOW HOW TO WRITE DAD IN ENGLISH.

COLOREANDO MI PAVO.———-COLORING MY TURKEY

PUEDO ESCRIBIR TURKEY EN ESPAÑOL.---- I CAN WRITE TURKEY IN SPANISH.

THESE STUDENTS ARE WORKING HARD MAKING THEIR PIÑATAS.

HAVING FUN MAKING THEIR PIÑATAS!

HELPING EACH OTHER. LOVE IT!!

QUE TENGAN UN FELIZ DÍA DE ACCIÓN DE GRACIAS. HAVE A HAPPY THANKSGIVING DAY

QUE TENGAN UN FELIZ DÍA DE ACCIÓN DE GRACIAS. HAVE A HAPPY THANKSGIVING DAY

STUDENTS ARE HAVING FUN LEARNING ABOUT THE NAMES OF SOME COSTUMES FOR HALLOWEEN SUCH AS THE WITCH (LA BRUJA), THE GHOST (EL FANTASMA), AND PUMPKIN (LA CALABAZA).

TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT THE FOURTH GRADE IS DOING!

The fourth graders have been making piñatas this month. Students were supposed first do research about how to make a piñata. Then they chose their favorite fruit, animal, or any other item that they liked to make a piñata. They were required to explain how they were going to make the piñata. In the writing, they needed to list the materials they used, including items such as candy to make the piñata. The students are still in the process of completing this assignment. I will keep you inform of when they will present the final project to the class.   

One way of learning is by using music. Students are having fun practicing and listening to a song about colors. 

Some students are busy practicing writing down words, and others are practicing the numbers. 

Students are happily learning in groups and engaging in the material in Spanish. 

DE REGRESO A LA ESCUELA-

BACK TO SCHOOL

VEN A CONOCER A MIS ESTUDIANTES– COME TO MEET MY STUDENTS

I want to congratulate the 4th-grade students for working hard and succeeding in learning some Spanish. I will miss them!!  I hope you enjoy viewing some of the things that we did while having fun in class learning Spanish. 

HAVE A WONDERFUL SUMMER!

Students had fun writing and learning about the five senses in Spanish. Students learned the Spanish words for the five senses and then wrote sentences using the words they learned. 

I can see with my eyes - Yo veo con mis ojos.

I can hear with my ears-  Yo escucho con mis oídos.

I can smell with my nose- Yo huelo con mi nariz.

I can feel with my hands-  Yo siento con mis manos.

I can taste with my tongue- Yo pruebo con mi lengua.

I’m proud of my fourth grade students. We are learning how to conjugate some infinitive verbs in Spanish. Students learned Spanish pronouns, and then, using these pronouns, learned to conjugate the infinitive verbs into present tense.

These students are learning the Spanish alphabet with some new vocabulary. Students are learning how to pronounce the words, and then coloring and gluing cutouts of the words in their notebook. Students were making fun of some of the words such as enojado, which means angry in Spanish. 

The students wanted to pay tribute to their grandparents. They prepared special sight words that meant a lot to them. They also learned some new songs in Spanish for their grandparents.

 La canción de los colores

De colores:

De colores se visten los campos en la primavera

De colores: 

de colores son los pajaritos que vienen de fuera

De colores:

de colores es el arco iris que vemos lucir

Y por eso los grandes amores de muchos colores me gustan a mi

Y por eso los grandes amores de muchos colores me gustan a mi

Canta el gallo: canta el gallo con el quiri quiri quiri quiri quiri quiri quiri quiri 

La gallina: la gallina con el cara cara cara cara cara cara cara

Los pollitos: los pollitos con el pio pio pio pio pio pio pio pio pi

Y por eso los grandes amores de muchos colores me gustan a mi

Y por eso los grandes amores de muchos colores me gustan a mi.

The Song,  Colorful

Colorful, colorful the country dresses  in the Spring time

Colorful, colorful are the birds that come from far away

Colorful, colorful is the rainbow that we see shining

And that’s why great loves of many colors I like

The rooster sings, the rooster sings with the hen, the hen, the hen with the 

The chicks, the chicks with the and that’s why the great loves  

SALUDOS-GREETINGS 

¡Hola!  ¿Cómo estás?

Hello! How are you?

Muy bien, gracias 

Very well, thank you

Mucho gusto, bienvenido

Nice to meet you, welcome

Hasta mañana 

See you tomorrow

¡Adiós! ¡Adiós!

Goodbye! 

Some students are learning a new vocabulary about family.  The vocabulary that students are learning are the names of their family, including father, mother, brother, sister, grandpa, grandma, cousin, uncle, and aunt. 

Other students are having fun learning the vowels. They can sing, dance, and write the vowels through music and dancing 

Students learned yet another tradition that many countries, including Mexico, celebrate on January 6. On this day some Latin American countries celebrate Los Tres Reyes Magos like we celebrate Santa Claus on Christmas Day. My students and I watched a video about what happens on the day when the three Kings came to visit baby Jesus on January the 6th. The Three Kings (Los Tres Reyes Magos) bring gifts to children in many parts of the world. Children get up early in the morning on January 6th looking for gifts under their beds, inside their shoes, and or under their Christmas tree. In addition to receiving presents, children in some cultures decorate paper crowns and wear them along with a purple costume to parade as kings. The adults also have a tradition for the day around La Rosca. La Rosca is sweet bread in the shape of a wreath.  Inside the bread is a little figurine of baby Jesus.  Everyone watches as the adults cut a piece of bread for themselves.  If their piece of bread contains the baby Jesus figurine, then they are responsible for having a party the next month. I hope you can imagine how these traditions can generate a lot of fun.

On January 6, I wanted my students to experience this tradition that many people still practice today. Some of my students were able to decorate of the crown, the cut the Rosca, and, of course, eat the sweet Rosca bread. They had fun learning about the Three Kings.

During the month of December, the students cut, colored, and learned some new vocabulary in Spanish. The new vocabulary that students learned to say were words such as frosty, mittens, left, right, nose, mouth, and eyes. During the month of December students also learned the lyrics of some Christmas songs such as Feliz Navidad. Also, some students learned what posadas and aguinaldo navideño are. Posadas are the reenactments of Mary and Joseph in Bethlehem searching for shelter for Mary to give birth. After the reenactment, children are given bags of candy and small toys. These bags with candy inside are called aguinaldos navideños.

To learn something about about Mexican culture, St. James students made piñatas.   Last Friday, November 19, students presented their piñatas to their classmates. Each one of the students worked hard on making their piñata. As students were making their piñatas, they also learned a new vocabulary in Spanish. Students were able to mention the names of the materials they used in Spanish during their presentation. After the students were done with their presentation, they enjoyed some Mexican food. 

The following are some of the piñatas that the students made.

A watermelon (una sandía)

A pumpkin (una calabaza)

A  banana (un plátano)

An apple (una manzana)

An avocado (un aguacate)

A  cat (un gato)

A bone (un hueso)

A basketball (un baloncesto)

A soccer ball (un balón de fútbol)

A pig (un cerdo)

A falcon (un halcón)

The following are some of the materials that students used to make their piñatas.

Balloons (globos)

Newspaper (periódico)

Glue (pegamento)

Mache paper (papel maché)

Cardboard (cartulina/cartón)

Tissue paper (papel de seda)

Rope (soga/mecate)

Tape (cinta adhesiva) 

A pair of scissors ( tijeras)

Please take a look at the amazing pictures and see how the students are doing an incredible job making their piñatas. It may look messy and disorganized, but the students know what they are doing. When my other students came into the classroom, I heard them giggling as they were trying to guess what the piñatas were going to be when the students finish them.  

 Students are continuing to learn colors and numbers in Spanish. They are learning how to pronounce and write in Spanish. Also, students are learning how to tell time in Spanish, and how to ask what time it is. 

What time is it?  ¿Qué hora es? 

It is ten o’clock. Son las diez de la mañana.

It is one o’clock. Es la una de la tarde. 

It is eight o’clock. Son las ocho de la noche.

Students are learning some facts about the month of September, such as why the month of September is considered to be the Hispanic Heritage Month. September 16 is Mexican Independence Day.  The Mexican people celebrate this day with friends and family as they remember Father Hidalgo’s famous “Shout from Dolores” that led to Mexican independence.  The countries of Central America (Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica) also celebrate their independence on September 16.  

Students are learning the names of the countries that celebrate their independence day on September 16.  They are also having fun drawing and coloring in the flags of these countries and learning a little about their history.  How fun!