K-12: Resources
Indiana Project for Latin American Cultural Competency (IPLACC)
This project is funded by CLACS and was created to assist Indiana teachers with locating adequate resources in order to infuse their curricula with Latin American and Latino topics. One of the important aspects of the project includes the effort to make available curriculum materials, lesson plans, and research guides that meet Indiana's educational standards. It is CLACS' intent to work collaboratively with educators in order to enrich the learning experience of all K-12 students as well as meet the state's cultural competency requirement. Please visit the IPLACC Website for more information.
Download IPLACC brochure here
Support our efforts
Please join CLACS in expanding our database. Email us your successful lesson plans. Be sure to include your name, grade you teach, and school. clacs@indiana.edu
Download a brochure compiling K-12 Resources and Book Lists HERE.
IPLACC Fellow Initiative
In 2009, IPLACC granted five Indiana teachers from throughout the state with financial and research support to carry out independent inquiry projects. Teacher fellows were selected based on the quality of their research design, the relevance to their local contexts, and on how their project would evolve their Latin American Cultural Competency. These materials are free and available to the public.
Podcast: An Oral History of Latin American Cultural Competency in Marshall County, IN, by Rebecca Ippel
Rebecca Ippel, a public school teacher based in Plymouth, created this audio podcast is an oral history of how Latin American cultural competency has evolved (or not) among public school educators in Marshall County, IN since the 1990's, when the area began to experience a significant influx of individuals of Latin American descent. Ms. Ippel's project foregrounds a story from rural Indiana that surprises for its ultimately positive assessment of how levels of cultural competency have evolved over the past two decades.
Myths, Misconceptions, and Facts in Initial Screening of Latino ELL Highly Able Students
. . . and the Implications, a presentation by Susan Stewart
Susan Stewart, a public school teacher in Clarksville, developed this multimedia presentation that reports on a study of how teachers' and administrators' levels of Latin American cultural competency exert an impact on student classification for "Gifted and Talented" academic programs. The presentation also surveys relevant academic literatures on the topic, and is intended for use with classroom teachers and administrators throughout Indiana.
Resources Available through CLACS
Indiana University's Global Speakers Service (GSS) is designed to enhance international topics and activities in Indiana's schools and civic organizations – K-12, college, and adult education classes, government organizations, churches, businesses, social clubs, libraries, museums, service clubs, and retirement communities. Within 50 miles of Bloomington, IU faculty, advanced graduate students, and international students are available to make presentations, free-of-charge, on a wide range of international topics to add a global component to any curriculum or program.
International Studies for Indiana Schools (ISIS) is an innovative distance learning program which uses interactive video technology to connect K-12 schools and community groups in Indiana and other states with Indiana University international students, scholars, and specialists.
Other K-12 Resources
Literature and Research Guides
Chicano/Latino Studies Quick Guides-Standford University
Barahona Center for Study of Books in Spanish for Children & Adolescents – This comprehensive website has many reviews of children’s books either written in Spanish or written in English about Latinos. Isabel Schon, the director of the center, has a search engine that allows users to explore a database of Recommended Books in English About Latinos, as well as recommended Spanish titles. Users can even limit the search to locate only books set in a specific country.
Kay Vandergrift’s children’s literature website – This comprehensive website includes a plethora of information about many aspects of children’s literature including a page devoted to quality books about Latinos. The page is entitled Powerful Hispanic and Latin-American Images Revealed in Picture Books.
The Association of Library Service to Children (ALSC) has compiled a list of children’s books about “Growing Up Latino in the U.S.A.”
Jean Sutherland provides information on how to use Latino children’s books in the classroom and lists several suggested children’s books about the Latino people and subcultures.
Lesson Plans & Curriculum Resources
Latin American School & Educational Resources (LASER), Michigan State University – This web site is for middle and high school teachers and students who are learning about Latin America in social sciences and humanities classes.
World View: An International Program for Educators, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill– Latin American reources for educators, general area resources, and links to information on cultual traditions and history.
California Language Teachers Association (CLTA) – This site has many examples of excellent internet activities for foreign language classes.
National Latino Children's Institute – Activity ideas and suggestions for Latino literacy and cutlure. .
Dígame un cuento/Tell Me A Story: Bilingual Library Programs for Children and Families – Created by the Texas State Library and Archives Commission, this useful online manual suggests bilingual story hour programs for Latino children and their familes.
El dia de los Niños/El dia de los libros (Day of the Child/Day of the Book) Toolkit – A 100 page online document describing booktalks, author visits, storytelling, and other programming ideas that can be used to celebrate El dia de los Niños/El dia de los libros on April 30th.
What Works For Latino Youth (2000) – A 62 page document published by the U.S. Department of Education which details over 60 successful programs for Latinos youth across the nation, noting the effectiveness of each one.
According to Connections and Commitments: A Latino-based Framework for Early Childhood Educators (2002) – There are four values in the Latino culture: familia (family), pertenencia (belonging), educación (education), and compromiso (commitment). This framework, which can be modified for libraries, discusses each of these values and how it relates to an early childcare program..
El dia de los Niños/El dia de los libros – Program information and planning guides.
PBS Independent Lens Series Presents 'Latinos in America' – The United States is the hub for a large Latino community, with an increasing number of Latino immigrants arriving each year. A closer look at immigration rates and data that reflect Latino immigrant status in America gives broader perspective on this growing population. Visit this site for prepared lesson plan on 'Latinos in America.'
PBS Teacher Source – Use keywords Latino, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Central America, for a variey of lesson plants int he areas of art & literature, social studies, etc. Sample Lesson Plan: Soldados: Soldiers' Stories. Conduct an oral history interview to gain insight into what it is like to be a soldier, to gain knowledge about the Vietnam War and to understand the Chicano experience in the United States.
Zona Latina – Latin American Newpapers organized by region found here.
Resource Centers
Smithsonian Center for Latino Initiatives
Inter-University Program for Latino Research-Notre Dame
Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection
The Nettie Lee Benson Latin American Collection
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