Any opportunity to learn about a new culture is great for students. As Cinco de Mayo approaches, students may be curious about what this holiday really is about. Learning about this holiday and centering some activities around it can bring some engagement into the classroom. Here are a few Cinco de Mayo activities you can incorporate into your ELA classroom.
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1. Cinco de Mayo Read Alouds: Informational and Fictional
Sharing Cinco de Mayo read alouds can be beneficial for kids in several ways. It can provide cultural awareness and historical understanding. While there are a few books written on the topic, I found that Celebrate – Celebramos Cinco de Mayo is perfect for upper elementary. It discusses the history of the holiday and expands to explain the customs and traditions surrounding the holiday. A plus is that it is a bilingual book. It presents information in English and in Spanish.
After reading this book, you can give students an opportunity to reflect on what they’ve learned by completing a Cinco de Mayo worksheet.
Click on the image to download this Cinco de Mayo worksheet.
If you’re looking for a fun fictional read aloud, Cinco de Mouse-O is great option for upper elementary. It has a plot while also educating the reader about the holiday. It’s a fun way to introduce the holiday while also being able to teach or review some literature standards.
2. Cinco de Mayo Story Map
Whether you’ve shared a Cinco de Mayo fictional read aloud or any other read aloud during the week of Cinco de Mayo, having students create an interactive story map is an engaging activity. Being able to write a summary is a standard students are expected to master in 4th and 5th grade. Story maps are great way to accomplish this.
3. Cinco de Mayo Idioms
During this time of the year, most upper elementary students are getting ready for or are wrapping up state testing. It’s a tricky time of the year because students start to check out. I love reintroducing idiom activities because thankfully children naturally love idioms, and teaching idioms has many benefits.
Teaching idioms improves comprehension, enhances communication skills, and enriches vocabulary. For students who English is a second language, it can be a tricky concept, so exposing them to idioms is extremely beneficial for them.
Introducing students to idioms related to the numbers 1-5 is fun way to incorporate Cinco de Mayo in the classroom. You can use this Cinco de Mayo idioms resource to teach students five new idioms and use the elements to decorate your classroom.
4. Cinco de Mayo Puzzles Activities
Puzzles are a fun activity for indoor recess, brain breaks, early finishers, and even sub plans. I love having themed puzzles available for my students.
Puzzles are beneficial because they help students develop critical thinking skills as well as exposing them to new vocabulary words.
These Cinco de Mayo puzzles provide all the benefits in a fun and engaging way for upper elementary students. They are also great as an after statewide testing activity if your students are still testing.
5. How to Make…
Crafts are usually saved for primary grades, but this time of the year is the perfect time to unwind with a few fun hands on activities. With just a few materials, you can bring some engagement into the classroom.
I recently found the cutest and simplest activity by Chelsea McDonough. It is the making of maracas using plastic easter eggs, plastic spoons, beans and washi tape.
In order to connect this to writing, I created a worksheet that students could complete after making the maracas. Another option is to provide them with different materials such as paper plates, toilet rolls, beads, tissue paper, rubber bands, and such. Have them invent their own maracas and then fill out the worksheet.
I also created a how to build a taco worksheet if you are planning to bring in taco ingredients into your classroom. Students can first fill out the worksheet, then follow their own instructions, or a classmates to build their taco.
Click on the image to download these FREE Cinco de Mayo worksheets.
I hope these Cinco de Mayo activities help bring some content and engagement into your classroom as you start to wrap up the school year.
