The following story is written by Soledad Villagomez, Lower School Spanish Teacher.
In Spanish class in Beasley, the Hispanic culture is integrated into meaningful, comprehensible, and simple content. Students learn about greetings, idioms, gestures, expressions, geography, weather, the calendar (the day comes first, followed by the month), games, songs, music, traditions, and unique celebrations that they can easily internalize and connect to their own lives.
During the month of February, Beasley students learned about Carnival. We learned how some Hispanic countries celebrate this particular festivity and compared it to how Mardi Gras is celebrated in Saint Louis. Children discovered that there are many similarities in how people celebrate Carnival around the world. For example, there are wonderful parades, colorful costumes, vibrant masks, music, dances, and parties.
We also learned about the meaning of the colors of the King Cake which people eat as a treat during Mardi Gras in St. Louis. The colors of the King Cake are purple representing “justice,” green representing “faith,” and gold representing “power.” The King Cake is also similar to “La Rosca de Reyes” or “Three Kings Bread” which many Hispanic and Hispanic-Americans eat during another celebration called “Three Kings Day.” This celebration is held on January 6 and represents the arrival of the Three Wise Men who visited baby Jesus. The King Cake and the King Bread are oval-shaped signifying “unity of faith and love.” Traditionally, people hide a plastic baby in both the bread and the cake, and whoever finds the baby is considered to be lucky and has the honor of hosting a party the following year.
By learning about the different cultures and traditions, Lower Schoolers can compare and better appreciate how people live in our diverse world.