Social Studies
Explore World Geography
Get out the globe and take a look at the countries mentioned in this Minute - Spain, Great Britain, France, Mexico. Where are they in relation to one another? What would the travel route have been to get from the European countries to Mexico? Why might that have been problematic is going to war? Who would have the advantage and why? Look at the impact location has on settling disagreements between countries.
Explore Napoleon
Author Whiting mentions that Napoleon III was the French emperor looking to expand his country’s colonial reach. This is NOT, however, the Napoleon we think about when we imagine the short man with his hand in his waistcoat being banished to the isle of Elba. Use this Minute to clarify the succession of French emperors named Napoleon and distinguish the accomplishments and failures of each.
Explore North American history - independence
Your students are quite familiar with the stories of the American colony settled by freedom seeking Europeans, as well as the story of independence following the Fourth of July Declaration and the Revolutionary War. Use this Minute to get students to think beyond their borders. What happened to our South? Who settled in Mexico, and how did they gain their independence? What about to our North in Canada? Learn the stories of our neighbors.
Explore alternate history - the game of "what if"
Author Whiting tells us that this holiday is far more popular in the US than it is in Mexico, and that may be appropriate as a different outcome may have meant a very different history for the United States. Have students play a game of action and consequence with exploring the question “what if…” What if Mexico lost those battles and the French settled in what is now known as Los Angeles? Would North America now consist of more than three countries? What are the long term outlooks if one piece of the story has a different winner and loser?
Music
Explore musical genres - mariachi
Use this Minute to explore the musical genre known as mariachi. What instruments make up the sounds? What kind of rhythms do you hear? What variations are out there? Is this style exclusive to Mexico? Can you find evidence of the origins in other genres? Can find other music that has evidence of mariachi influence?
Research Skills
Explore CIA World Factbook
One of the most reliable free websites to explore other countries is the CIA World Factbook. Use this Minute as an opportunity to introduce your students to this rich online resource. Have students click around and then take notes on the organizational structure of the site. What kinds of statistics are collected? Look for the buttons on the right that provide a rank for each piece of data collected. Why is that useful? Look at what kind of data is collected and ask students to think about what they can infer about a country based on selected statistics.
Explore World Geography
Get out the globe and take a look at the countries mentioned in this Minute - Spain, Great Britain, France, Mexico. Where are they in relation to one another? What would the travel route have been to get from the European countries to Mexico? Why might that have been problematic is going to war? Who would have the advantage and why? Look at the impact location has on settling disagreements between countries.
Explore Napoleon
Author Whiting mentions that Napoleon III was the French emperor looking to expand his country’s colonial reach. This is NOT, however, the Napoleon we think about when we imagine the short man with his hand in his waistcoat being banished to the isle of Elba. Use this Minute to clarify the succession of French emperors named Napoleon and distinguish the accomplishments and failures of each.
Explore North American history - independence
Your students are quite familiar with the stories of the American colony settled by freedom seeking Europeans, as well as the story of independence following the Fourth of July Declaration and the Revolutionary War. Use this Minute to get students to think beyond their borders. What happened to our South? Who settled in Mexico, and how did they gain their independence? What about to our North in Canada? Learn the stories of our neighbors.
Explore alternate history - the game of "what if"
Author Whiting tells us that this holiday is far more popular in the US than it is in Mexico, and that may be appropriate as a different outcome may have meant a very different history for the United States. Have students play a game of action and consequence with exploring the question “what if…” What if Mexico lost those battles and the French settled in what is now known as Los Angeles? Would North America now consist of more than three countries? What are the long term outlooks if one piece of the story has a different winner and loser?
Music
Explore musical genres - mariachi
Use this Minute to explore the musical genre known as mariachi. What instruments make up the sounds? What kind of rhythms do you hear? What variations are out there? Is this style exclusive to Mexico? Can you find evidence of the origins in other genres? Can find other music that has evidence of mariachi influence?
Research Skills
Explore CIA World Factbook
One of the most reliable free websites to explore other countries is the CIA World Factbook. Use this Minute as an opportunity to introduce your students to this rich online resource. Have students click around and then take notes on the organizational structure of the site. What kinds of statistics are collected? Look for the buttons on the right that provide a rank for each piece of data collected. Why is that useful? Look at what kind of data is collected and ask students to think about what they can infer about a country based on selected statistics.
© Karen Sterling, 2018 - May be used for educational purposes without written permission