Summer themes for your Spanish lessons

Some students thrive on a school routine, they feel loved, safe and nurtured at school. For some students, their school is their safe place.

Also, not every student might be able to enjoy a vacation for many reasons. So “¿Dónde te vas de vacaciones?” themed units might not be so enjoyable for some of your students.

In this blog post I am sharing 3 alternative ideas you can use in your classroom.

Paletas y camion de helados

You can plan a whole unit about paletas or plan a unit around the story “Paletero Man” by Lucky Diaz. Paletas are staple in our Latinx community, especially during summer. Here are some ideas for your lessons:

• Create/draw your own paletas.
• Read “Paletero Man” by Lucky Diaz.
• Create a menu for a camion de helados.
• Create a dramatic play corner for camion de helados or paletas.
• Role play buying and selling paletas or helados to review numbers and shopping/selling vocabulary.

Need digital resources? Check this Ice Cream Truck digital resource for your lessons.

Un puesto de limonada

A lot of students create lemonade stands during the summer. You will find students who do it just for fun (and just ask for tips) or students who are saving for a major purchase, take it all serious and mean business. Either way, a unit about “Un puesto de limonada” can always be a win during summer time. Here are some ideas:

• Review ingredients and utensils to make lemonade.
• Create a lemonade stand poster contest in your class.
• Make a real lemonade stand in your school or classroom (use the funds for snacks or treats for the class?).
• Make a “La mejor limonada” contest in your class. Bring judges to test them (another teacher, former parent or admin).

Elementos de la playa

Some of your students will be able to travel to the beach, some of them might not. Instead of asking about summer plans, you can plan your unit about “Elementos de la playa”. This is a good chance to review colors, numbers, plurals and other high frequency words. Here are some ideas

• Bring real beach elements (a towel, a bag, sandals etc..) and ask student to identify them.
• Play a guessing game, take out an item and ask students to guess which item is missing.
• Introduce plurals and adjective agreement.
• Review colors and ask questions about the items.
• Place items in a beach bag, ask student to close their eyes, grab an item and guess the item.

If you are looking for a resource for your unit of “Elementos de la playa” check this La playa themed Activity Pack

Profe, remember that your classroom is a student’s safe space. There might be more than one student who thrives and feels nurtured, safe and comfortable in the structure and environment that a school provides. I hope these ideas can help you take into consideration every child in your classroom.

Nos vemos pronto,