In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, Hampton Bays Elementary School kicked off a Hispanic Heritage Spirit Week on Oct. 10.

Students participated in themed days throughout the week, including dressing as Hispanic leaders. In addition, each grade is participating in learning activities related to Hispanic culture. Kindergartners are learning about the coquí, a frog native to Puerto Rico, while reading Nomar Perez’s picture book “Coquí in the City” and making a coquí craft. First graders are learning about La Tomatina, an annual tomato-throwing fight in the town of Buñol, Spain, as they read “Food Fight Fiesta: A Tale About La Tomatina” by Tracey Kyle and design goggles that they would wear during such a fight. Second graders are taking a deep dive into Hispanic foods. They are engaged in a gallery walk to learn about different Spanish foods and the countries they come from. Meanwhile, third graders are learning about the many Spanish-speaking countries of the world and working on map skills as they label the countries. Fourth graders are learning about Hispanic leaders, including César Chávez, Roberto Clemente, Celia Cruz, Lionel Messi, Pablo Picasso, Selena Quintanilla and Sonia Sotomayor. They will complete a poster on one of the leaders studied.

Date Added: 10/17/2023