4 Read Alouds and STEM Challenges for Hispanic Heritage Month
September is Hispanic Heritage Month, and it’s the perfect time to integrate STEM and literacy to help teach students about diversity in STEM and professional careers.
It's vital to teach about leaders and STEM professionals from all different backgrounds so that our students may understand our diverse culture. We are committed to developing resources for you to use in your classroom that help students see themselves and others making a difference in our communities, regardless of race or gender.
Here are 4 of our favorite STEM Read Aloud activities and challenges for kids to use in your classroom during Hispanic Heritage Month!
Frida and her Animalitos
Frida and Her Animalitos by Monica Brown is a true story based on the life of an amazing artist, Frida Kahlo, who loved to paint and also loved her animals. Frida was met with many challenges due to illness, but your students can find out how she overcame those challenges.
Teach your students about the famous Hispanic painter, Frida Kahlo, while challenging them to design and build 3 paintbrushes to create a self-portrait!
Pelé: King of Soccer
Pelé: King of Soccer by Monica Brown is the biography of a world-famous, Brazilian soccer player who overcame the odds to fulfill a promise to his father. Pelé was the first man in the history of soccer to score a thousand goals. He led his team to win the World Cup many times.
In this STEM challenge, your students will design, build, and create their own soccer game to play.
Roberto Clemente: Pride of the Pittsburgh Pirates
Roberto Clemente: Pride of the Pittsburgh Pirates by Jonah Winter is the story of a Puerto Rican boy who was determined from a young age to play baseball. Your students can journey along with Roberto as he leaves everything familiar in Puerto Rico to play baseball in America. Roberto became the greatest all-around baseball player of his time, but it didn’t happen without many challenges.
In this unplugged coding lesson, students will learn about baseball legend, Roberto Clemente, and code their own baseball game.
Turning Pages
Turning Pages: My Life Story by Sonia Sotomayor is the story of a supreme court justice who struggled to find her place within the Bronx as a young, Puerto Rican, Spanish-speaking girl. Sonia faced struggles with learning the English language, being diagnosed with childhood diabetes, and losing her father. Books were her escape. In this STEM lesson, students learn about Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor and how books influenced her life and her career.
Challenge your students to design, build, and test their own tower of knowledge made from index cards and books!
Get these Hispanic Heritage lessons individually from the Shopify links above, or access all of them with STEM Teachers Club Membership.
For more information about incorporating Read Aloud STEM challenges in your classroom, check out these blog posts:
7 Benefits of Adding a Read Aloud to Your STEM Challenge
Real-World STEM Challenges for Elementary Students
5 Read Alouds and STEM Challenges to Teach Self-Awareness to Kids
Spend Less Time Planning and More Time Teaching!
Hands-on STEM learning starts here.
Find ready-to-use STEM Activities and Science Curriculum, Practical Professional Development, and a Community of Educators to help you teach STEM with confidence.
You can get all 1000+ STEM Challenges by Carly and Adam as part of the STEM Teachers Club. Save 30% on your first month/year using coupon Code: CarlyAndAdamBlog.