8 Spanish Project Ideas for Your High School Classroom
Spanish projects for high school are some of the most potent language-learning tools in your arsenal as a teacher!
Project-based learning is ideal for all levels of education and all subjects. There is nothing more engaging for students than a project to do, and self-motivation is crucial for effective learning.
Read this article to access eight Spanish projects for high school that are bound to improve your students’ language skills. They’ll create memories to cherish long after their graduation.
Benefits of Project-based Learning
First, let’s review why teaching through projects is so important.
Spanish projects for high school teach much more than the language and offer five primary benefits. They:
- Improve collaboration skills.
- Solve real problems with creative and critical thinking skills.
- Teach “how to learn” by working on projects, rather than merely memorizing facts.
- Promote researching skills and a deeper understanding of the topic.
- Boost organizational skills and perseverance, rewarding and empowering students upon finishing the project.
Fun Spanish Projects for High School
This list includes many types of projects such as Spanish cultural project ideas, Spanish art projects, and interdisciplinary suggestions. They are universal enough to adapt to most teaching environments.
As much as possible, encourage students to speak only in Spanish throughout these project-based lessons and activities.
1. Refugee Journey Board Game
Purpose: temporary language immersion, cultural competence
Goal: research and understand the forced migration of people from Central and South America. Design a game in Spanish that demonstrates the related challenges.
Materials: students choose materials that are suitable for their game
Helpful Resources:
- Video: Causes and consequences of immigration in Mexico and the world (Causas y consecuencias de la migración en México y el mundo)
- Novel: The Distance Between Us: A Memoir (La distancia entre nosostros: Memorias de una niña emigrante) by Reyna Grande
This Spanish project for high school prompts students to understand the nuances of immigration. After studying and debating Latin American immigration, the students create a board game in groups.
The game could focus on the dangers of the journey or on challenges the newcomers face after reaching their destination.
Students will ideally design the game in Spanish. Be sure to pre-teach gaming vocabulary and grammar structures. For example:
Avanza dos casillas.
Advance two squares.
Has estado buscando trabajo por dos semanas.
You have been looking for a job for two weeks.
2. Mexican Fiesta
Purpose: language immersion, cultural appreciation, and competence
Goal: research typical Mexican fiestas and organize one of their own.
Materials: typical food, fresh fruit water, colorful papel picado (tissue paper), music, games
Helpful Resources:
- Mexican games
- Mexican Fiesta Decoration & Ideas
- Mariachi music
- The Most Fascinating Facts About the Latin American Piñata
This is a super Spanish project for high school at the end of the school year. Who doesn’t love a Mexican fiesta?
Prompt your students to research what makes Mexican fiestas so great and fun.
Divide them into teams. Make one group responsible for the decorations and piñatas. Another group prepares typical Mexican party games. Another searches for music and makes playlists. The last group researches typical Mexican fiesta foods and assigns each participant a dish to bring.
During the party, everyone should speak Spanish exclusively.
3. Poetry Night (Noche de Poesía)
Purpose: language temporary immersion, cultural appreciation
Goal: Get students to research famous Spanish-speaking poets and choose their favorite poems. Get students listening and reciting only in Spanish for the duration of the activity
Materials: printed poems, cookies, tea, candles, fancy clothes
Helpful Resources:
- 10 Poems by Antonio Machado: the Poet of the People
- 10 Famous Spanish Poems by Hispanic Women
- 5 Exceptional Spanish Poems in Latin American Literature
- 8 Fun Spanish Poems for Kids Who Love Reading
- The Postman – a movie about Pablo Neruda
If you’re doing a poetry unit, a noche de poesía (poetry night) is a wonderful Spanish project for high school students.
Have students dress up as a certain poet, or simply ask them to put on fancy clothes. Have students bring cake, cookies, tea, and drinks to the poetry event, and make sure the ambiance is warm and cozy.
To add an extra challenge, have the students memorize their poems by heart.
4. Famous Spanish-speaking People Dinner
Purpose: language temporary immersion, cultural appreciation, and competence
Goal: Get students to research famous Spanish-speaking people and choose their favorite one.
Materials: food, fancy clothes, cards with a short bio (optional)
Helpful Resources:
- 8 Most Wicked, Foul and Famous Spanish People in History
- 10 Best Spanish Actors and Actresses
- The Life and History of Latino Star Diego Maradona
- 10 Glamorous and Alluring Spanish People in TV and Movies
- Top 10 Most Extraordinary Latin American Artists of the 21st Century
This Spanish project for high school is bound to be a success!
Assign each student a famous Spanish-speaking person (an athlete, actor, singer, writer, or artist). Have them dress up as this person and play their role during the party. They need to do thorough research about the person in advance.
The students’ goal is to discover the identity of other guests without directly asking them who they are. Instead, they ask about each other’s country of origin, family, professional life, etc.
5. Classroom Mural
Purpose: cultural appreciation
Goal: Get students to research famous Mexican mural painters and make their own mural.
Materials: a wall, paint
Helpful Resources:
- 12 Contemporary Spanish Female Artists Who Will Empower You
- A-Z Guide on Spanish Art Words
- Art History – Mexican Muralist Movement
The Mexican Muralist Movement is an interesting topic for high school. Diego Rivera is the best-known muralist due to his marriage to Frida Kahlo.
Pre-teach the topic and introduce Spanish vocabulary related to art. Ask students to research famous Mexican mural artists and present their findings to the class.
The ending activity is the most exciting one— creating a mural in your classroom that represents all the students, teachers, and staff. They can paint the cleaning staff, people who work in the cafeteria, etc.
6. Alebrijes
Purpose: cultural appreciation
Goal: Get students to understand the meaning of alebrijes and create their own
Materials: papier-mache, wire, cardboard, cloth, paints
Helpful Resources:
- Coco
- Building Beautiful Monsters in Mexico
- The alebrijes. What are they? What are they for? Where do they come from? And where are they going?
- DIY Alebrije, how to make an Alebrije
Have you seen the movie Coco? Spanish teachers often use it to talk about El día de los muertos (The Day of the Dead). This film is also an inspiration for an art project on alebrijes.
Alebrijes are colorful, fantastical Mexican creatures with bodies made of at least two animals. Pedro Linares created them in 1936, and they’re now an important part of Mexican culture.
Nowadays, many artisans (mainly in Oaxaca) continue the tradition of making alebrijes with wire, cardboard, and papier-mâché.
Your students will love this project! Have them investigate the history and the meaning of these mythical creatures. Dedicate a few lessons to letting them make their own creations. The final step is an exhibition of their works.
7. My Dream Travel to a Spanish-speaking Country
Purpose: cultural appreciation
Goal: Understand the richness of the Spanish-speaking world
Materials: Internet
Helpful Resources:
- Spanish-speaking Countries in South America
- Learn About the 21 Countries That Speak Spanish
- The Ultimate Guide to Currency in Spanish-speaking Countries
Ask students to choose a Spanish-speaking country they would like to visit. They need to explain their choice and describe what they want to see in this country and why. Have them include a section on typical food with pictures and recipes.
Then, prompt the students to design the trip. They should select travel dates, flights, and hotels and create a budget for their trip in US dollars and local currency. They mark their route on a map and add local forms of transportation. They also research any tourist visa requirements specific to their destination.
Last but not least, they photoshop themselves into an iconic photo of their country of choice.
This is a great Spanish project for high school, both for regular and online classes. Ask your students to make it in the form of a booklet or as an online presentation. They’re sure to enjoy preparing it and reading their classmates’ projects.
8. Charity Shark Tank
Purpose: language temporary immersion, cultural competence, social work
Goal: Research non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Spanish-speaking countries and advocate for their cause.
Materials: Internet
Helpful Resource: 7 NGOs Making a Positive Impact in Spanish-speaking Countries
Making your students culturally competent and aware of other realities is as important as teaching them Spanish.
For this project, ask your students to investigate NGOs that operate in Spanish-speaking countries. They can work individually or in teams.
Ask them to prepare a persuasive presentation to convince their classmates to support their cause. The presentation should be in Spanish. Set the minimum time limit depending on your students’ language skills.
Every student votes for the NGO they want to support. It would be extra meaningful if the students organized a fundraising activity for the winning NGO.
Get Support for Your Spanish Classroom
Spanish projects for high school are an important element on the journey to language fluency and cultural competence. They enable your students to become successful, bilingual individuals. What’s more, students who know Spanish can more easily learn other Romance languages in the future.
Do you need support in your classroom? Homeschool Spanish Academy provides 1-on-1 and 2-on-1 online Spanish classes for K-12 students. We help ease the difficulty of having many students of varying skill levels. Sign up for a free class to give it a try today!
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