Latinx Poetry to Read During Hispanic Heritage Month in September & October

Although Latinx literature should be celebrated throughout the school year, Hispanic Heritage Month in September and October is a special opportunity to focus on Latinx poetry with your middle and high school ELA students. In today's post, we're excited to share some resources for celebrating the rich collection of literature by Latinx writers. 

Tips for teaching Latinx poetry:

- Define the genre - For some students, the phrase "Latinx poetry" might be new. It can be helpful to share a simple definition and explain the roots of the genre to make sure all of your students have a similar understanding. 

- Pre-teach vocabulary from other languages (Quechua, Nahuatl, Spanish, Portuguese, etc.) Share that there are at least 600 indigenous languages spoken in South and Central America. 

- Build connections between students' personal lives and themes in the poems. Ask students to share about their family, culture, and other aspects of their identity. 

- Research Latinx authors and create biography projects to deepen students' understanding of Latinx literature. (We love using this template for biography projects.) 

- Incorporate the five senses into your lessons. Bring details from the poems to life by playing music, sharing food, projecting photos, passing around tactile objects, etc.  

Contemporary poems about Latinx experiences

- Small Shame Blues by Dan Vera - This poem explores the frustration the narrator feels about struggling to find the Spanish words to describe what he sees and feels. Students who are multilingual may relate to the grief and shame of forgetting words in one of the languages. 

- Maps by Yesenia Montilla - This poem explores the experience of an immigrant who wishes for a world without borders. 

- What Are You, Nicaragua by Gioconda Belli - The speaker of this poem highlights the beauty of her country, as well as the painful reality of its current geopolitical context. 

- Let Us Gather in a Flourishing Way - This bilingual Spanish-English poem is an opportunity for students to practice translation, using online apps or their own linguistic skills. The poem is about the intersection of human flourishing and agriculture. 

- We All Return to the Place Where We Were Born by Oscar Gonzalez - This poem shows the perspective of a child whose identity is shaped by elders and a place that feels most like home. This poem can be a powerful model for helping students generate their own poems, drawing from childhood memories. 

- Afro-Latina by Elizabeth Acevedo - This poem explores the speaker's cultural identity. 

- Oranges by Gary Soto - 

What literature do you enjoy teaching during Hispanic Heritage Month? Leave a comment below to share your recommendations!