Temas para los Proyectos

Project Topics ~ Temas para los Proyectos

You may choose one of these topics for your final project, or consult with me if you have an idea that is not present. Whatever topic you pick, you need to do any necessary research and produce a creative product to represent what you’ve studied. Possible ways you may choose to represent your research include: a Power Point presentation; a display/poster; a research paper; or other pertinent product such as a piñata, a mobile, a float, a video, etc, accompanied with a short explanatory paper. Your topic will help you decide what direction you want to take your project, and after choosing a topic, I will meet with you to provide you with direction and focus. Any written papers that you do should be typed and double-spaced, with 12-point font. After completing your project or paper, you will give a class presentation to share your project and topical knowledge with your classmates. These projects may be completed individually, or in groups of two.

Spanish:

§ A key Spanish topic/custom: bullfighting, dancing, flamenco dancing, holidays (Christmas, Día de los Muertos, Día de San Fermín, Easter, quincinera, etc), sports, piñatas, music, etc. Your project should convey what the custom/topic is; what country the custom/topic is part of; the custom/topic’s significance; where and when the custom/topic originated; if the custom/topic is still a crucial part of its country’s traditions; if the custom/topic is fading out of practice and why; how the custom/topic has evolved over time; if the topic/custom has spread to other areas, where; how the custom/topic compares to our customs in the U.S.; and any other pertinent information.

§ A famous person of Spanish decent/background: Christopher Columbus (explorer); Pablo Picasso, Juan Miró, Francisco Goya, Salvador Dalí, El Greco, Velasquez, Frita Kalo, Diego Rivera (artists); Antonio Gaudí (Architect); Julio Iglesias, Selena, Rici Martin (musicians); Antonio Banderas (actor); etc. Through your project you should let your audience know what your person is famous for; where your person is from; crucial background about your person; significant events in your person’s life; significant or major works that your person is known for; awards/honors your person has received; and any other pertinent information.

§ Food. Your project should have a series of pictures, or a videotape, showing you making your dish and cleaning up afterwards. In addition to this, you should make sure to include the recipe for your dish; explain the significance of your dish; tell where it would traditionally be served and for what purpose; talk about what it was like to make your dish; give your commentary about your dish, and that of anyone who sampled it; mention how it compares with cuisine in the U.S., or our ideas about cuisine from the region where it originates; and discuss any other pertinent information that you find.

§ Spain or Mexico (or another Spanish speaking country). Your project should address the country’s geography, customs, food, education, religion, population, main industries, imports/exports, a brief history of main events, and other information you feel is interesting and pertinent.

§ A specific Spanish-speaking city. Your project should address the country that it’s located in, its geography, its importance, its population, the customs of the people who live there, the main foods eaten there, its key landmarks, how the people there sustain themselves, and any other information that you see fit.

French:

§ A key French topic or custom: the Eiffel Tower, Le Tour de France, holidays (Bastille Day, Assumption Day, Armistice Day, All Saints Day), sports, music, etc. Your project should convey what the custom/topic is; what country the custom/topic is part of; the custom/topic’s significance; where and when the custom/topic originated; if the custom/topic is still a crucial part of its country’s traditions; if the custom/topic is fading out of practice and why; how the custom/topic has evolved over time; if the topic/custom has spread to other areas, where; how the custom/topic compares to our customs in the U.S.; and any other pertinent information.

§ A famous person of French decent/background: Marie Curie, Perrier Curie (scientists); Claude Monet, Pierre Auguste Renoir, Henri Rousseau, Edgar Duchamp (artists); Camille Pissarro, Celine Dion, Maurice Ravel, Igor Stravinsky, Jean-Philippe Rameau, Georges Bizet (Musicians); Victor Hugo (writer); Charles Garnier (architect); etc. Through your project you should let your audience know what your person is famous for; where your person is from; crucial background about your person; significant events in your person’s life; significant or major works that your person is known for; awards/honors your person has received; and any other pertinent information.

§ France (or another French speaking country). Your project should address the country’s geography, customs, food, education, religion, population, main industries, imports/exports, a brief history of main events, and other information you feel is interesting and pertinent.

§ A specific French-speaking city. Your project should address the country its located in, its geography, its importance, its population, the customs of the people who live there, the main foods eaten there, its key landmarks, how the people there sustain themselves, and any other information that you see fit.

Note: You should always give a brief personal response, either in a write up or in your presentation, indicating your feelings and ideas about what you have researched.