Sneak peek: Bulletin board decoration ideas for heritage Spanish class. 

It’s no secret that creating an environment that invites and encourages learning has a direct impact on student motivation and performance. A learning environment done well will usually consist of many carefully considered elements. Components such as lighting, desk configuration, and decorated walls all come together to form an educational space in which students love to be. 

Bulletin boards are a great way to decorate your classroom in order to make students feel welcomed. There’s an undeniable whimsy to a curated bulletin board. The reason that they’ve been a part of the classroom for so long, is that bulletin boards are an incredibly functional way to present information and display student work. 

Personally, I gravitate towards bulletin board designs that incorporate student work! Students love to see their own work showcased and it makes for a great conversation piece at parent-teacher conferences. Seeing their work displayed adds a personal element to the classroom, and converts it from a simple room, towards being more of an additional place for each student.

In life, it’s been said that we have only a handful of places. Typical “places” are spaces that feel like home, and also a space in which a considerable amount of time is spent. Home, school, and work end up being the most common places. We should think about the spaces we spend so much of our life in, and when possible do things that ensure effort is directed towards making these spaces in places where we feel in tune with ourselves and a sense of belonging. What better way to create a homey environment, than by including your students’ work and culture in the curating of the classroom?!

In this post, I am sharing my favorite bulletin board designs for heritage Spanish class.

*This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you click through to one of the product links, I’ll earn a small percentage, at no extra cost to you. 

Monarch Butterflies & Frida Kahlo Quote

I love the pairing of this Frida Kahlo quote “Pies para qué los quiero si tengo alas para volar” with Monarch butterflies. SO much culture all in one fell swoop. This bulletin board lesson includes a reading about Monarch Butterflies, a reading about Frida Kahlo, and an icebreaker activity with mariposas.

Students will:

• read about the symbolism of mariposas monarcas and why they represent the Latinx community.
• read about Frida Kahlo’s history with polio and how she overcame her challenges with a positive mindset.
• use the butterfly cutouts to write about themselves according to four different prompts.
• share their butterflies with their peers and their teacher.

Magazine Hands & Quote

This bulletin board pairs an icebreaker activity for students with the quote “Compartimos nuestras similitudes, celebramos nuestras diferencias.” In the end, you finish with a very colorful product that adds a considerable amount of depth and student buy-in to the classroom.

Supplies:

• Old magazines
• 11 x 13 paper
• Scissors
• glue
• Sticker letters or stencils to cut out letters
• Bulletin board border and paper for the background

Students will trace their hand and forearm on the 11 x 13 paper and then use scissors to cut it out to form a sort of canvas for the project. They then cut out photos and words from old magazines that represent who they are. Finally, they paste these images onto the cut-out of their hand and forearm.

The next day, students share in small groups about why they chose to put certain images onto their project. This is a great way to foster meaningful student connections. 

César Chávez Timeline Grapes Project & Quote

This is a bulletin board I created in our César Chávez y Dolores Huerta unit. I displayed the timeline projects in which students created their timeline using the grape-template printout and paired it with a quote by César Chávez “La lucha no tiene que ver con uvas o lechuga, tiene que ver con las personas.” 

For the timeline projects, students will reference their note packet to write an excerpt of something that happened during a series of significant years in César’s life below each date on the grape template. When students cut out the grapes and finish the project, you get a colorful grape cluster that is fun to display!

Hexagon Connect

This hexagon connect icebreaker resource uses hexagonal thinking and doesn’t require a lot of language output from students. Depending on where a student is at in their journey of Spanish self expression, students can opt for only drawing images, instead of adding any text. This activity goes great at the beginning of the year to kick off the class and encourage students to get to know each other!

Students will color and cut out their hexagon according to the instructions on the worksheet. When they are finished they should share with their table-mates or elbow partner about what they included on their hexagon. Next, students connect their hexagons in small groups by finding something they have in common with someone else in the group and matching those sides together.

Collect the hexagons and you’ll be armed with a fantastic set of colorful art that not only represents the students taking your class, but also creates a vivid bulletin board. Display your favorite hexagons by connecting similar sides and pairing it with the quote “Todos estamos interconectados de alguna manera.”

Wings Motivational Bulletin Board Kit for Back to School

This one isn’t one of my creations but I thought it was really neat. I wonder what Spanish quote would pair well with this? Comment ideas below! 

FVR Book Reviews

Create a bulletin board with book reviews from students. If FVR is a part of your classroom routine, you can chip away at this bulletin board during the first month of school. Print and cut out the cover of the book they read to pair with their review and add it to the bulletin board. 

Get your bulletin board background and border up and then whenever a student finishes a book, ask them to write a review on a speech bubble. I’ve found that some books in my FVR library got more love once certain students read the book and recommended it!

Los dos lados de mi vida

This free worksheet is a great one for displaying, whether in your class or in the hall! I added these in the hallway near my classroom, but you could also add them onto a bulletin board. Perhaps you could pair it with a quote that goes something like “Somos de aquí y de allá.” 

Poema Acróstico

This lesson is another great one for displaying. These student-name acrostic poems could be displayed in the hallway or on a bulletin board. I would probably pair it with big letters that say “SOY YO” if you put them on a bulletin board.

Spanish Bulletin Board – Frida Kahlo art and culture lesson

This is not one of my creations but I thought it was absolutely beautiful and I know my students would love making the flowers! A perfect bulletin board for Hispanic Heritage Month!

What other bulletin board ideas do you have for heritage Spanish class? Comment below!

Find more icebreakers for heritage Spanish here. 

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