Bloomfield Hills Schools Explore Hispanic Heritage

Hispanic Heritage month spans from September 15 to October 15 each year, making it one of the first cultural topics discussed during the school year in Bloomfield Hills Schools classrooms. Students throughout our schools are exploring Hispanic heritage in different ways. 

Shelby Ettinger, who teaches second grade at Eastover, focuses on a different country each week during social studies lessons. Ettinger said, “In second grade a lot of our social studies content revolves around community so we discuss similarities and differences we see in our community and the different communities we learn about. I feature videos, books, and morning activities to help students engage with the content and build an appreciation for our community, as well as communities around the world.” Last week they focused on Mexico, learning about the capital, Mexico City, the great monarch butterfly migration, and how to make tamales.  

At North Hills Middle School, Spanish teacher Señora Janelle Wolak teaches 6th graders about famous Hispanic people and their contributions to U.S. culture, sports, music, cuisine, and politics. 7th graders explore Hispanic Heritage Month through music, learning about different nationalities, traditions, and languages. 8th graders play a Jeopardy-style game to review their knowledge, and also learn about the geography and colonization of the Spanish-speaking countries of North and South America.   

At Bloomfield Hills High School, Señora Dayana Schemel is focusing on Argentina with her Spanish 500 students. They are reading a book about the Dirty War, which took place in Argentina, as well as learning about Argentinian food, traditions, history, and the way Argentinians pronounce words. Students experienced Argentinian empanadas and maté tea (their most famous tea) to eat while watching a video about street foods. Señora exclaimed, “Every day is Hispanic Heritage Month in Spanish class!” 

Thank you, teachers, for continuing to provide our students worldly experiences!