During the month of December, we tend to take a break from curriculum and try to incorporate holidays and traditions into our Spanish lessons. This year, for your Christmas lessons, try teaching about the poinsettia in Spanish class. Your students will love the unique take on Christmas activities, and they will most likely learn a lot about the poinsettia or flor de nochebuena… a flower that they see every year, but do not know what it represents.
One of the most beautiful sights at Christmastime is seeing the church altar adorned with bright red and white poinsettias. Until recently, I did not know how much of an impact the poinsettia industry has on Mexico and florists there. For some florists in Mexico, the sale of poinsettias during the months of November and December account for a majority of their yearly income. Plus, the flower has such a rich cultural history and relevance, dating all the way back to the Aztec empire. So, by teaching about the poinsettia in Spanish, we are incorporating culture, history, business, and language all into one unique lesson!
Check out these 7 activities for teaching about the poinsettia in Spanish class.
History of Poinsettia
The poinsettia dates all the way back to the Aztec empire, which used the flower for a variety of purposes, including purple and red dyes and as medicine. In the native Aztec language, Nahuatl, the flower is called “cuetlaxochitl.” Then, beginning in the 17th century, the poinsettia began to appear in Christian holiday celebrations. In 1828, Joel Roberts Poinsett, the United States ambassador in Mexico brought the poinsettia from Mexico to the United States. He cultivated the plant in South Carolina, and began growing this festive plant, which now bears its name in honor of him.
Share the rich history of the poinsettia with your students with differentiated readings in Spanish and English.
Poinsettia Crafts
As I mentioned earlier, one of the prettiest sights at this time of year is a room filled with poinsettias. Decorate your classroom with poinsettia crafts. All you need is red, green, and white paper. YouTube is filled with different tutorials for making paper poinsettias, but I found this video to be the easiest. Just a few folds and you have a beautiful paper poinsettia to display.
I’m a big fan of Astrobrights paper. It is great quality and the colors are vivid. Here is a perfect pack of Christmas colored paper that can be used when making a variety of colored poinsettia crafts or just grab a red pack here.
Use this fun poinsettia craft as a “fast finishers” task after students complete the readings about the history of the poinsettia or the legend of the flor de nochebuena. Some students read much quicker than others, so they end up with nothing to do while they wait 10 minutes for everybody else to finish. Share the video link with them and keep a pile of red paper handy. Display the completed poinsettia crafts around your classroom door, on a bulletin board, or even in the hallway.
The Legend of the Poinsettia
There is a Mexican legend about a young girl from a poor family. It is tradition in Mexico to bring offerings to baby Jesus on Christmas Eve. Families enter the church before Mass and place their offerings at the Nativity scene. However, when this young girl could not afford a gift for Jesus’ birthday this year, she was devastated. She noticed weeds growing on the side of the road and gathered a handful. Upon placing this humble offering at Jesus’ feet, they miraculously transformed into poinsettias. From this day on, priests have used poinsettias as the Christmas flower, giving them the name in Spanish: flor de Nochebuena.
You can get readings and activities for the legend for Spanish students here (novice and intermediate levels) or an English version for cultural lessons or ESL. Tomie daPaolo wrote a children’s book about the legend in English and Spanish, as well if you’re looking for a longer version of the legend in picture book form.
Virtual Field Trip to Poinsettia Nurseries in Mexico
I grew up in central Pennsylvania, near many Amish farms. So, I was used to seeing nurseries and greenhouses with tons of plants all year long. Mums filled the greenhouses in fall, and brightly colored flowers in spring. However, I never saw poinsettias in this setting before.
I explored Google Maps and found various nurseries in Mexico. I thought this would be a great experience for students. Going on a virtual field trip to the nurseries is an authentic task that will engage your students. In Spanish, nurseries or garden centers are called “viveros,” and if you search for these on Google Maps, you’ll notice a lot of them are concentrated in the same areas. Students can jump into the map’s street view and continue walking down the street to see a variety of greenhouses.
You can even have students do a webquest where they search for viveros in Mexico and have to purchase poinsettias for their family’s Christmas celebrations. Your students should tell you where they plan to buy the flowers and how much they cost. Learn more about online scavenger hunts and webquests here.
Check out this virtual field trip that will take students to viveros, teach about the production of poinsettias, and learn how to appropriately care for the flowers. You can grab a Spanish or English version.
Bake Poinsettia Cookies
For this baking activity, you can partner with the home economics teacher. Take a classic sugar cookie recipe, or buy the rolls of cookie dough at the store. Students will use a poinsettia cookie cutter, like this one from Amazon. Then decorate the cookies with red sugar or red icing. If you can’t use the ovens in your school’s cooking classroom, you could bake the cookies ahead of time. Just have the students decorate them. I know many of us have large class sizes or hundreds of students, so this may not be feasible. If you are the advisor of the Spanish Club, though, this is the perfect holiday activity to do after school with your club members. Check out these other 25 Spanish Club activities here.
Local Florist Fundraiser
Partner with a local florist that sells poinsettias. You can organize a fundraiser for an organization or charity of your students’ choosing. Give them options for causes that support Hispanic culture, disaster relief in countries like Puerto Rico after a hurricane, or entrepreneurs in Central America for example. Students will sell poinsettias to their families and friends leading up to the holiday season. All proceeds will benefit the non-profit organization or cause that your classes are supporting. Your partnership with the local florist helps bridge the school community and greater community while bringing awareness to the world language department.
Create Infographics
After students learn about poinsettias by reading and watching videos, they will have heard how to properly care for poinsettias. How often the flower should be watered, how much light it needs, where to keep it, etc. are all important details when caring for a plant. Students can create infographics using Canva or PowerPoint highlighting the facts about poinsettia care. They could even add details about the history, production, and sales of this holiday plant. I have used Canva for many other projects with my students, and you can get other ideas here.
Now, you have 7 fun activities for teaching about the poinsettia in Spanish Class. If you’re looking for additional Christmas activities, check out this ultimate list of festive activities for Christmas time with your Spanish students. You’ll find tons of great resources like task cards, an Escape Room to help Santa save Christmas, choice boards, and much much more!
