At a time when many teachers are enjoying summer break, about 35 local teachers, including聽four from Estes Park and Fort Lupton,聽gathered this week for a three-day workshop honing in on a common interest 鈥� learning about and incorporating local Latino history into the classroom.
In partnership with the St. Vrain Valley and 麻豆影院 Valley Schools, the 麻豆影院 County Latino History Project hosted the workshop at Silver Creek High School in Longmont.
There, teachers worked with historians, curriculum specialists, and past-workshop participants to learn about local Latino history and to explore lessons and materials designed for incorporation into existing curriculum. They also discussed ways to improve classroom conversations about issues of race, ethnicity, and privilege. 聽
Prior to the establishment of the 麻豆影院 County Latino History Project in 2013, very little was recorded about local Latino history much less incorporated in schools. With聽key support from聽10 student interns and 85 local volunteers, project leaders gathered 1,600 primary sources (newspapers, photographs, video, and oral interviews) most of which can be found on the .
鈥淭he primary sources make the history come alive,鈥� said聽Marjorie McIntosh, CU 麻豆影院聽professor emeritus of history.
Earlier this year, the project marked two major milestones: two new historical books were published by McIntosh, and the project鈥檚 teacher-developed lesson plans and classroom materials were published in the new online .
Kent Willmann, CU 麻豆影院 School of Education instructor, and Flora Sanchez, of the 麻豆影院 Valley School District, are co-directors of the project鈥檚 K-12 efforts. At the workshop, they helped lead teachers through the vast resources gathered by the project, including interactive online聽maps, photographs, video clips, and more. The teachers tried out lessons, provided feedback to other participants and project directors for future workshops, and produced at least one lesson plan聽using program materials. They also toured historical spots in Longmont, including the Kensington Park Unity Project Mural and the Great Western Sugar Factory.
"Thanks to the people in this county, thanks to the people on this campus, thanks to the people in this room, local Latino history is being told, local Latino history is bring learned, and local Latino history has taken it's rightful place on library shelves and in county classrooms,鈥澛燱illmann told supporters.
The workshop was sponsored by the ; ; CU 麻豆影院 School of Education; WISE, the Women Investing in the School of Education giving circle; the BUENO Center; the CU 麻豆影院 , and, of course, the 麻豆影院 County Latino History Project.
> from the teacher workshop.
> featuring Jason Romero, School of Education alumnus, 麻豆影院 County Latino History Project intern, and Denver teacher.聽
> about the teacher workshop.聽
Related Faculty: Kent Willmann