Tag: mexico

Comix Azteca Volume One: Mother Coatlicue

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Looking for an engaging way to teach mythology in your classroom?  Go beyond Greece and Rome, and introduce your students the folklore of ancient Mexico with Comix Azteca Volume One:

Old Mother Coatlicue gives birth to Huitzilopochtli, the iridescent god of war and sun – scandalizing her adult children and setting off a war that will change the world forever.

Adapted from the tradition Nahuatl folk tale and retold for modern audiences with glorious pop art from cartoonist Phil Skaggs and a script by historian and Openendedsocialstudies.org founder Thomas Kenning. This edition contains a supplemental essay and selected artwork from the original Mexica sources.

Electronic copies now on sale for the teacher-friendly price of just $1.99.  Physical copies available (in black and white) at discounted rates.  Inquire here.

Check out this preview:

 

Write a Poem in Ancient Mayan

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Here’s an idea to get your social studies students going — have them write a poem using the glyphic script of the ancient Maya. 

Background on the language can be found with this free Openendedsocialstudies lesson plan, The Written Language of the Ancient Maya.  Then, your students can use this dictionary to write a short poem in the Maya script, using at least a dozen glyphs. 

Have students share their poems with the class and reflect — does composing in Mayan effect the experience of writing and reading?

cocao
Chocolate beverages were popular among the ancient Mayas, who used special recipients to serve it. They often consumed it cold, hot, or spiced with chili, annatto, or vanilla. The inscription on this vessel records its function for drinking a specific type of cacao, and the name and place of residence of its owner, Tzakal u K’ahk’ Hutal Ek’, lord of Acanceh.

Find more free lessons on the Maya at Openendsocialstudies.org.  

There are also plenty of free lessons featuring other peoples from world history.

Documentary Short — The Maya: Collapse at Ek’ Balam

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What happened to the ancient Maya?  How did their great cities come to ruin?  Check out this new Openendedsocialstudies documentary short, shot on location in Ek’ Balam, a Maya ruin in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula.  This tour of the city is a great primer on the latest theories of Maya collapse and can be enjoyed by the casual viewer, or in the classroom, in conjunction with our brand new unit on the ancient Maya.

The Maya: Illuminated Offspring of the Makers

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The Three Sisters

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The Three Sisters is a traditional name for the three main agricultural crops of various Native American groups in North America. They are winter squash, maize (corn), and climbing beans.

This lesson was reported from:
Adapted in part from open sources.

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The Yucatan: An Upcoming Open Ended Social Studies Expedition

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In late November, Openendedsocialstudies.org founder Thomas Kenning will undertake a research expedition to Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula.  This trip will form the basis of a new set of lessons covering the Maya civilization, furthering our mission of presenting original and dynamic classroom materials focusing on parts of the world neglected by traditional world history textbooks in the United States.

Continue reading “The Yucatan: An Upcoming Open Ended Social Studies Expedition” →

Mesoamerica: Cradle of Civilization in the New World

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Teotihuacan: The Place Where The Gods Were Born

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Bartolomé de Las Casas and the Atrocities of the Spanish Conquistadors

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