As part of the Spanish shopping unit, seventh-grade students have been studying vocabulary and grammar about food and shopping these first weeks back from winter break.
The seventh graders were excited to practice scenarios asking for help in finding things in a market, which prepared them for the short bus ride over the Lehigh River to C-Town Supermarket in South Bethlehem. Students were paired up to do a scavenger hunt and purchase some items. In the following classes, those items purchased will be used in tasting and making fresh corn tortillas, a green salad with chayote and green apples, guacamole, cachapas venezulanas (sweet corn pancakes), tostones (fried plantains), papaya and Mexican chocolate caliente.
The guiding question for this unit and field trip was—What can we learn about the local Latinx culture by shopping and exploring at a Latinx market? In order to gain greater context for this market experience, the seventh graders and their chaperones walked around the block to learn a bit more about the neighborhood. They found the SteelStacks mural, the Greenway, and learned about this transition from the railway to walk-bikeway. They also discovered cherry blossom trees gifted from Japan and the Peace Pavilion Pagoda, as well as artwork from St. Luke’s Art Therapy program. Students were also encouraged to look for evidence of other cultures in this small block, through storefronts and signs for nonprofits, like the Puerto Rican Beneficial Society.
The seventh graders delighted in the freedom to explore C-Town market. Each group was tasked with purchasing a few items for the foods to be sampled next week, as well as going on a scavenger hunt to find numerous items, which required their recalling how to politely ask for assistance from the store employees or even shoppers in the store. They reflected before this field trip on ways to be culturally sensitive and competent in this new environment.
The interpersonal tasks on this field trip help students in their proficiency goals aligning with the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) “Can-Do Statements.” Our group of students are currently the novice range ("I can communicate in spontaneous spoken, written, or signed conversations on both very familiar and everyday topics, using a variety of practiced or memorized words, phrases, simple sentences, and questions"). They also fulfill the Teaching Tolerance Social Justice Standards (Identity and Diversity): "I know there are similarities and differences between my home culture and the other environments and cultures I encounter, and I can be myself in a diversity of settings,” as well as “I interact with people who are similar to and different from me, and I show respect to all people.”
Upon returning to class and reflecting, the students noted:
“I learned that it is kind of hard to go into an environment where they do not speak only English or mainly English and it’s like you kind of have to flip a switch in your head and realize that you have to speak Spanish.”
“I think I’m a little braver about it than I thought I was going to be.”
“I liked buying items I wouldn’t normally find at my regular store.”
“There are many different cultures in south Bethlehem.”
“It is full of art, it so also home to the Bethlehem Greenway.”
“(There are) a lot of cultures everywhere and we should be culturally sensitive.”