Byron Center — On a blustery September afternoon, the smell of Cuban croquetas and the sound of Cuban music filled Brian Blok’s sixth-grade classroom.
Byron Center parent Rebecca Coleman visited her son Nathan’s classroom to share her Cuban culture and teach students about why the U.S. celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 every year.
“A lot of important days fall between the 30-day period,” Coleman said. “(Hispanic Heritage Month) celebrates Spanish language, Spanish music and Spanish culture in a bunch of different ways.”
She explained to the class why certain days in September are significant to Hispanic people because they honor independence for several Central and South American countries.
“Twenty countries worldwide are descended from Spain, and celebrate their independence from Spain during this time,” Coleman said. “Much like how England colonized the United States and we had to go through our revolution to gain our independence, it’s something we want to remember and celebrate during this month.”
Blok said this was the first time Coleman visited his classroom during Hispanic Heritage Month.
“It’s nice to see and learn about other cultures,” he said. “We’ve got a lot more kids of Hispanic descent in the district, so today we have the opportunity to get to know more about different backgrounds, and learning to recognize and respect differences is important.”
What is Hispanic Heritage Month?
In 1968, President Lyndon B. Johnson started Hispanic Heritage Week to observe the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. President Ronald Reagan expanded the celebration in 1988 to 30 days.
Source: Hispanic Heritage Month
Following her brief geography and history lesson, Coleman incorporated music and art into her presentation. Popular children’s books that students knew in English such as “The Cat in the Hat,” translated into Spanish, made their way around the classroom.
She played snippets of songs written and sung by Cuban artists, and students volunteered titles of Spanish songs and discussed how some Spanish-to-English lyric translations don’t always match word for word, but the same message usually gets conveyed.
Coleman wrapped up her lesson by passing out samples of croquetas — a classic Cuban party food — and her favorite childhood after-school snack, Maria cookies topped with cream cheese and a piece of guava.
Sixth-grader Deborah Emmitt said she learned that she did not like guava after trying the snack.
But her classmate Colin Mix said, “I like it. It’s really sweet. I could eat it all day.”
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