Lat. Amer. Col. Lesson 3 Lesson Plan

Lat. Amer. Col. Lesson 3 Lesson Plan

Pre-European Contact/First Contact

This lesson plan encourages students to think critically about the accounts and events that occurred when Cortés and the Spaniards reached the Americas. In this lesson, students will learn about the important historical events that led to Cortés’ glorification and to his reputation as a “heroic” figure based on his power as the author of Cartas Relaciones (Letters from Hernan Cortés). Students will understand how Cortés’ agenda influenced the content and style of his letters to the Spanish Crown. In addition, students will be able to contextualize the setting in which Cortés operated and how this context shaped his letters. Cortés’ justification to the Crown was essential to prove himself worthy of his trip to the Americas due to his previous conflicts with the Governor of Cuba. Students will understand the important role that figures such as the “Malinche” had during this contact. “La Malinche” (Indigenous name) or “Doña Maria” (Spanish name) served as the translator for the Spanish and the Indigenous groups during the conquest period. In addition, students will begin to understand essential aspects of the Aztec empire and the role Montezuma played, as the Aztec emperor, during the Spanish-Aztec contact.

Yesenia Ayala, Valerie Benoist, Deborah Michaels

English

Spanish

Lesson Plan

Caribbean

Cuba

Mexico

1400s

1500s

Low High School, Upper High School

2018