Harriet J. Bauman
The United States is a country of many cultures which, through immigrants, had an influence on the unique fiber of American life today. Some of these immigrants who had a profound effect, were the Spanish and the Hispanics from Mexico, Cuba, Santo Domingo, and Puerto Rico. As all of these immigrant groups’ contributions were abundant, it was imperative to limit this unit to one group, the Mexican-Americans.
This unit’s focus is the contributions of the Mexican-Americans to American culture. It is designed for either eight or sixteen weeks. It can be used in a high school Spanish II, III, or IV class, alone, or in conjunction with a United States History class, an American Literature class, a Humanities class, or an art history or music history class.
A unit such as this is a necessary addition to the Foreign Language curriculum of the New Haven Public Schools. An important facet of the curriculum is the study of the foreign culture. Unfortunately, in our curriculum, all aspects of Spanish and Hispanic culture are studied, except their influence on the United States. Therefore, this unit begins to fill the gap.
An historical perspective is maintained throughout the unit. The events and people, which should be familiar to the students from their study of American History, are the basis for explaining the strong Hispanic influence in a major area of the United States: the Southwestern states.
