I love incorporating reading in my lesson plans, but it’s not always my students’ favorite thing. Because of that, I will often “sneak” in a quick reading activity here, or there, but not spend the entire class period reading a text, because that’s just not as engaging for them. Here’s 5 ideas for how you can “sneak” in reading on famous Hispanics all month long. Plus, I have an easy bell ringer you can use as a post and go start of class every day! Check out these reading activities for Hispanic Heritage Month!
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Reading Activities for Hispanic Heritage Month
Station Activities
I love stations and you’ve heard me talk about how to make them run smoothly before in my post on streamlining stations for Spanish class. Put a few of the readings at a station and use them to practice reading in a station or center rotation. You could even use the bell ringer activity I’m going to share in just a minute as the comprehension activity at your station!
Free Voluntary Reading
I have a much more in-depth post explaining Free Voluntary Reading (FVR), so if you’re new to the concept make sure you check that out here! These readings make a great option for another reading option to add to your classroom library. They include a “cover” and last page so you print, staple, then you have a mini book for your classes.
Translation
A simple option is to have students do a horizontal translation with a paragraph. They read the paragraph and then re-write it from another perspective. For example, “she” instead of “I”, or “we” instead of “they”! Horizontal translation is also a great way to practice shifting perspectives.
While we don’t ALWAYS want our students to translate to show comprehension, it’s fine to mix it up. You could always have them just translate a reading to show understanding!
Warm Up
Pull out one of the readings and use it for warm up. You can create comprehension questions, or have students translate – or just use the ones I’ve already made for you! Grab a free pdf in Spanish and English in the free resource library on my blog.
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Mentor Text
Especially after doing the bell ringer questions all month, use a reading as a mentor text. Students read it, then write their own version about themselves or their lives, or another person in history. The PDF in the free resource library has these instructions, too!
More Reading Activities for Hispanic Heritage Month
Grab 24 short, comprehensible readings to use with your students all month long here!
There are even more ways you can use these readings throughout the month, but I just wanted to share my favorites! There are also digital options included for Google Slides and Boom Cards, just in case you are 1:1 or have access to technology and would like to use those.
More for Hispanic Heritage Month
Looking for more lesson plans and tips to help your Hispanic Heritage Month in your Spanish classes instead of just your club? This post has tips, lessons, activities – everything you need to host a celebration!
If you’re looking for more ideas, check out these 7 simple ideas for how you can celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with your Spanish club!
Want to host a school wide celebration? Check out 10 ways to include your student body in Hispanic Heritage Month plans!
Want to do a research project to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month? Check out these 5 tips for a successful Hispanic Heritage Month research project in your classes!