Hispanic Heritage Month is a meaningful opportunity to honor the histories, cultures, and contributions of Hispanic and Latinx Americans. No matter what grade you teach, this month offers a chance to celebrate identity, cultivate inclusion, and spark curiosity about students’ cultures.
We’ve gathered our favorite ideas for Hispanic Heritage Month to help you create a classroom community that celebrates diversity. If you’re looking for how to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month at school, we’ve got you covered.
Why Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month in the Classroom?
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 14.4 million Hispanic students were enrolled in public elementary and secondary schools in fall 2022– that’s 29 percent of the public school student population and that number is projected to continue increasing.
Research has shown that representation matters. When students see themselves reflected in their classrooms, it boosts engagement, belonging, and identity. Regardless of your classroom demographics, exploring other cultures promotes students’ understanding, empathy, and global citizenship.
Hispanic Heritage Month Ideas for School
Hispanic Heritage Month classroom activities celebrate the rich cultures, traditions, and contributions of Hispanic and Latino communities.
We’ve gathered our favorite Hispanic Heritage Month lessons that span grade levels, so you can find the perfect fit for your students—whether you’re looking for quick, low-prep activities to teach culture in your daily lessons or more in-depth projects that allow students to dive deeper.
10 Low-Prep Ways to Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month
If you’re short on time, you don’t need to create an extensive unit to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month in the classroom. Small, intentional moments sprinkled throughout your lessons can have a big impact.
The following Hispanic Heritage Month ideas are quick, simple ways to celebrate:
1. Highlight Hispanic Authors
Showcase celebrated Hispanic authors for Hispanic Heritage Month, from picture books by Yuyi Morales to novels by Pam Muñoz Ryan. Read excerpts aloud, host student-led book talks, or create a mini display in your classroom library for students to learn more.
For Your Lesson:
- PBS’s 7 Must-Read Influential Latino Authors
- Literacious’s 15 Middle Grade Books by Hispanic Authors
2. Take Virtual Field Trips
Many museums and cultural sites offer free virtual tours. Take a field trip to the Frida Kahlo Museum in Mexico City or Machu Picchu in Peru—no permission slips required.
For Your Lesson:
3. Introduce Spanish Vocabulary
Consider adding a few Spanish words or phrases each day that relate to your lesson content. Younger students might learn colors, numbers, or greetings, while older students can explore content-specific terms like science or math vocabulary.
For Your Lesson:
- Colorín Colorado’s Common Classroom Phrases Guide: Spanish
- Continental’s English/Spanish Picture Dictionary
- Continental’s English/Spanish Vocabulary Picture Cards
4. Use Musical Brain Breaks
Play short clips of music from various Spanish-speaking countries as a transition or during a brain break. Include genres like salsa, mariachi, reggaetón, or flamenco to showcase the diversity of Latinx music.
For Your Lesson:
5. Identify Prominent Hispanic Figures Related to Your Content Area
Connect Hispanic Heritage Month to what you’re already teaching— introduce your students to important figures like scientist Ellen Ocho, author Julia Alvarez, or athletes like Roberto Clemente. This gives students the opportunity to see people who share their heritage in a variety of fields.
For Your Lesson:
- UNT Dallas Hispanic and Latin American Studies: List of Key Historical Figures
- National Museum of the American Latino: Famous Latinos and Latinas
6. Feature Quotes or Poems of the Week
Choose an inspiring quote or short poem by a Hispanic writer and use it as a quick discussion starter, writing prompt, or art project inspiration.
For Your Lesson:
- The Poetry Foundation’s U.S. Latinx Voices in Poetry List
- American Academy of Poets Hispanic Heritage Month Poems
7. Create a Hispanic Heritage Month Word Search
Give students a fun activity with a themed word search. You can use names, countries, foods, and cultural terms. This works well for morning work, an early-finisher activity, or a take-home challenge.
For Your Lesson:
Extension Lessons for Hispanic Heritage Month
Many of the low-prep activities listed above provide easy opportunities for extension lessons. See below for our favorite extension activities that can also double as creative classroom Hispanic Heritage Month decorations.
8. Social Media Post
Have students create social media posts about important Hispanic figures or historical events. They can write a brief bio line for a profile or highlight a key achievement in the style of a social media post.
Download our free social media template to have students create a social media post for a famous event or Hispanic figure.
9. Museum Tags
After taking a virtual field trip, have students creatively summarize their learning. For example, they can create a timeline or design a “museum tag” for their favorite exhibit.
Use these editable museum labels from Twinkl to have students describe their chosen exhibit.
10. Illustrated Poems
Hispanic Heritage Month is a wonderful time to feature poetry by celebrated Hispanic and Latino poets like Pablo Neruda, Julia de Burgos, or Gabriela Mistral.
You can expand this Hispanic Heritage Month lesson to explore cultural influences, themes, and personal connections. Students can illustrate their favorite poems to design artwork featuring their favorite lines.
Have students use online tools like Canva to design digital posters for their favorite poems.
Teacher’s Corner: Ideas for Hispanic Heritage Month
We asked members of our Teacher Advisors Group to share how they bring Hispanic Heritage Month to life in their schools. Keep reading for Hispanic Heritage Month celebration ideas.
Natalie Lau-Chien, a K–12 ESL teacher in New Hampshire
In my classroom, I’ve had students complete two types of projects during Hispanic Heritage Month, both of which focus on developing academic language, cultural appreciation, and presentation skills.
Cultural Presentation Project
Students create a PowerPoint or Google Slides deck using a teacher-provided template. Each slide focuses on a different aspect of their family’s home country—special foods, dialects/languages, festivals, traditions, clothing, population, geography, flag, cities, famous people, and historical events.
This activity is great for building research, writing, and speaking skills, and students love the opportunity to share about their backgrounds.
Compare & Contrast Cultural Holidays
Students explore cultural traditions by comparing a Hispanic holiday (such as Día de Muertos) with a U.S. tradition (like Halloween).
This project focuses on academic vocabulary—specifically the language of compare and contrast—and helps students strengthen both their writing and oral presentation skills.
During peer presentations, students also practice active listening and note-taking. It becomes a truly cross-curricular activity that builds language and cultural understanding at the same time.
Benita Afonso, ENL/Building Point Person for grades 1 and 2 in Sleepy Hollow, New York
Schoolwide Displays & Activities
At our school, we celebrate Hispanic Heritage starting in late September and continue through October. Teachers contribute to a showcase in our main hallway, bringing in books, cultural clothing, and souvenirs from their travels. The entire school community gets involved!
Bulletin Board Inspiration
- “Shout Out To” Board: One of my former kindergarten students became a second-grade teacher and is now my colleague. We highlighted Hispanic stories like this to inspire current students.
- Book Cover Display: We used a collection of Hispanic picture book covers displayed on a board titled “Best Loved Books.”We also recommended one book per week to be read aloud in class.
- Famous Hispanic Americans Board: Students loved this because they recognized many of the people from TV.
Staff-Led Assembly
One of our teachers organized a culminating assembly where teachers and assistants dressed in traditional attire, spoke about their home countries, and shared personal photos. It was a beautiful way to celebrate our staff’s diverse heritage.
Author Visit Highlight: Eric Velasquez
Through a grant, we were able to invite Puerto Rican author and illustrator Eric Velasquez to speak to our students about his book Octopus Stew and his creative process. He even drew live student portraits on stage—it was unforgettable!
The students were captivated, asked thoughtful questions, and left feeling truly inspired by his visit.
Involving Families
In our Dual Language program and some mainstream classes, we invite families to read books by Hispanic authors and share traditional dishes from their country. Students have loved trying foods like empanadas and tostones!
A Final Tip
There are so many meaningful ways to celebrate Hispanic culture. My advice? Form a group of teachers and brainstorm together. Start with ideas that are easy to implement and build from there.
Hispanic Heritage Month offers opportunities to celebrate diversity, honor contributions, and inspire students through culture-rich activities. Whether you choose a quick class discussion or an in-depth research project, our ideas for Hispanic Heritage Month can help you create meaningful connections and lasting memories for your students.
