¡Feliz Mes de la Herencia Hispana!
Today marks the first day of Hispanic Heritage Month. Starting on September 15th and
running through October 15th, Hispanic Heritage Month acknowledges the profound 
accomplishments Hispanic and Latino Americans have made in the United States. It is also a time for Hispanics to celebrate our rich cultural heritage. From politics to business, from sports to education and all things in between, Hispanics have made and continue to make meaningful contributions to society.
In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, I thought I’d share just a few examples that come to mind…
Sonia Sotomayor is the nation’s first-ever Hispanic Supreme Court justice and the third female justice in U.S. History! She’s also spent time serving on the board of directors of the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund.
Best known for her role as Maria on the beloved show Sesame Street, Sonia Manzano is a 15-time Emmy Award-winning actress and writer who has made significant contributions to the Hispanic community and children’s education. (Check out this Scholastic Reads podcast “Shaping a Life Story” with Sonia herself!)
Jorge Ramos is a Mexican-American Univision anchor and an award winning journalist and author. He is one of the most influential Hispanics in the country and is a master at his craft. Ramos has won awards that include eight Emmy Awards and the Maria Moors Cabot Prize for excellence in journalism.
Dominican-Americana novelist and Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Junot Diaz uses the immigrant experience as the central to his work; he is best known as the author of the critically acclaimed The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao.
Ellen Ochoa, Rita Moreno, Cesar Chavez, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Jaime Escalante and just so many more give reason to why we take the time to honor Hispanic and Latino Americans and celebrate their achievements.
So, how will you be celebrating this month?
Scholastic has some amazing Spanish/bilingual book titles as well as titles by Hispanic/Latino authors which you should read all year round – but especially now! Check
out:
- Ser María: Amor y caos en el Bronx by Sonia Manzano | Young Adult
- Shadow Shaper by Daniel Jose Older | Young Adult
- Estrella en el bosque by Laura Resau | Middle Grade
- Return Fire (Moving Target, Book 2) by Christina Diaz Gonzalez | Middle Grade
- Eva ve un fantasma: A Branches Book (Diario de una lechuza #2) by Rebecca Elliott | Ages 5-7
- Caperucita Roja (Princesa Rosada Y El Reino De Mentirita #2) (Branches) by Noah Z. Jones | Ages 5-7
- Peppa Pig: La primera fiesta de pijamas de Peppa by eOne | Ages 3-5
- José el Chévere: Helado y dinosaurios(José el Chévere #1) (Spanish version of Groovy Joe) by Eric Litwin, Tom Lichtenheld (Illustrated by) | Picture Book
- Un pato en tractor (Spanish version of Duck on a Tractor) by David Shannon | Picture Book
Plus, Scholastic.com has a host of resources for teachers on how to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month in the classroom.
