Everyday aCulture Day!

[Part Deux]

Bill HellerSUNY GeneseoSpanish Teacher - Perry High School (retired)heller@geneseo.edu

Every Day a Culture Day! The challenge:To identify and examine cultural products and cultural practices to present as a basis for creating opportunities for communication.

Products:• Authentic documents• Art work• Advertisements• Handicrafts• “Realia”• Literature and

sayings• Games• Video and film clips

Practices:• Celebrations• Rituals• Traditions• Superstitions• Gestures

Ch Every Day a Culture Day!

Follow-upPoints

• How do I provide a cultural context in proficiency-based thematic units?

• How do I help students discover their own culture?

• What “cultural perspectives” can be explored with novices?

• How can content-based units provide rich cultural content at the intermediate level?

Ch Every Day a Culture Day!

Providing a Cultural Context

1. Brainstorming cultural connections and comparisons.2. Use authentic documents for interpretive activities and follow up with interpersonal and presentational – using the IPA model

3. Make culture count in assessments – content and context

Every Day a Culture Day!

Personal Identification Every Day

a Culture Day!

•surnames•Spanish speaking countries (origin)•self-portraits of artists•visiting and calling cards•metric height and weight•saint’s days•non-verbal communication,

gestures•describing portraits by TL artists•greetings, farewells, politeness•register (formal and familiar)

Education Every Day

a Culture Day!

•compare/contrast schedules•uniforms•courses and textbooks•student life - tunas•advantages of learning languages•classroom commands•grading practices•national and college entrance

examinations

Shopping Every Day

a Culture Day!

•compare/contrast store hours/business days

•bargaining•handicrafts/ artesanía•currency exchange•flags (colors)•metric sizes•traditional clothing•gifting practices

Family Every Day

a Culture Day!

•artwork of families - Goya, Botero, Lomas Garza

•esquelas - outline family tree from death notices

•Royal Family of Spain•importance of family•holidays and celebrations•greeting cards

Every Day a Culture Day!

Examine Text Types

What is United States Culture?

3. Stereotypes of USA Americans from TL perspective

1. LeLoup’s Coffee Cup Activity

4. The “ugly American” stereotype

2. The Pledge.

5. Symbols – La lotería mexicana; la lotería estadounidense

6. Currency and cultural values

Every Day a Culture Day!

Cultural Perspectives for Novices

3. Build a foundation of “cultural literacy” - symbols

1. Venn Diagrams: An easy place to start

4. Develop an appreciation for difference and diversity

2. Cultural Assimilators – Barbara Snyder - Whistling

5. Point out similarities as well!

6. Use images from target cultures regularly – Paula Heusinkveld -Clemson - Pathways to Culture (1997)

Every Day a Culture Day!

Levels of Cultural Understanding

(Anthony Papalia)Position A: Preconventional Level

“We and They”

Position B: Conventional Level “I with others in the World”

Position C: Principled Level “I with others in a

contextual relativism”

Ch Every Day a Culture Day!

Ch Every Day a Culture Day!

Cultural Literacy (Hirsch, 1987) - necessary to comprehend communication.

Content-based units

3. Games and Pastimes

1. Barrueta’s “El Tren de la Vida”

4. Wise sayings, jokes, riddles, puns and humor/comics

2. Fine Arts Unit

5. Communication – history of language, gestures, language academies

Every Day a Culture Day!

The Thematic Year: El Tren de la Vida

Unit 1: El tren de la vida Unit 4: La juventud Unit 2: El parto y la niñez Unit 5: El amor y la amistad Unit 3: La familia Unit 6: La vida es sueño

Every Day a Culture Day!

Level IV – Culture Every Day

a Culture Day!

Activities1. Brainstorm list of American icons and symbols. 2. Examine American dollar bill.3. Examine currency from other countries. (symbols,

words, colors, numbers, people)4. Talk about stereotypes. Vision of “typical American”

toward Spanish speaking world.5. Article on Stereotypes of Americans. Comprehension

chart.6. Inventory of “typical” American characteristics.7. La Lotería Mexicana – Reading on symbols and calling

rhymes. Examine symbols. Play game.8. Prepare and present “Lotería estadounidense”9. Cultural misunderstanding skits.10. Develop definition of culture.

Level IV – Games Every Day

a Culture Day!

Activities1. Introduce vocabulary – game pieces, coins (cara o

cruz), 2. The Spanish deck of cards – Los cuatro seises3. Dominó4. El Juego de la Oca5. Serpientes y Escaleras6. Pirinola7. Invent a game with a cultural theme.8. Explore the significance of play. Grammar1. Direct and Indirect Object Pronouns

Level V – Niñez Every Day

a Culture Day!

Activities1. Entrevista con mis padres2. Preguntas personales3. de Como agua para chocolate [El Nacimiento de Tita]4. de Me llamo Rigoberta Menchú [El nahual]5. «Meciendo» Gabriela Mistral6. «Botoncito» Gabriela Mistral7. de Infancia Enrique Cortázar8. “Una partida de ajedrez”9. Canción: Hijo de la luna – Mecano10. Child Development Reading 11. La crianza de un niño – Conversar sin parar,

Problema XIX12. Skits – La Superniñera13. Retahílas

Level V – Niñez Every Day

a Culture Day!

Activities14. “Baby HP” Juan José Arreola15. Mafalda – Tecla 22 de abril de 200516. Art – Carmen Lomas Garza – Cuadros en familia17. Los derechos de los niños18. Writing: Una anécdota de la niñez19. Summary: Four views of Childhood

Grammar1. Review of Imperfect2. Review of Preterite/Imperfect

Level V – El Amor y la amistad

Every Day a Culture Day!

Activities1. Dinner with 10 famous people past and present2. Exploring definitions of friendship and love; types of love.3. “La amistad en Norteamérica” – essay by Julián Marías 4. “La naranja” Poem by Gary Soto.5. Piropos6. Rimas – poems by Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer7. “Los amantes” – Develop a dialog based on a Picasso painting.8. ¿Cuánto sabe del amor? – A test by Dr. Joyce9. El Ixtaccíhuatl y el Popocatépetl – Legend from Mexico10. El Abanico – You Tube “silent movie” – students narrate the story.