7 Fun and Inclusive Hispanic Heritage Month Activities for 3rd, 4th, and 5th Grade

Are you looking for Hispanic Heritage Month activities for 3rd grade, 4th grade, or 5th grade?

Hispanic Heritage Month is a meaningful time to help your students learn about the history, cultures, traditions, and contributions of Hispanic and Latino communities. Whether you teach 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade, you can use this month to build reading comprehension, encourage discussion, and help your students make real-world connections to the people and cultures they are learning about.

The challenge is finding Hispanic Heritage Month activities that are age-appropriate, meaningful, and easy to fit into your already busy schedule. You want activities that go beyond coloring pages, but you also need options that do not require hours of prep.

These Hispanic Heritage Month activities for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade can help your students read, research, create, discuss, and celebrate throughout the month.

Hispanic Heritage Month Activities for 3rd, 4th, and 5th Grade

Here are 7 Hispanic Heritage Month activities you can use with your upper elementary students.

1. Learn about Hispanic and Latino leaders

One of the easiest ways to bring Hispanic Heritage Month into your classroom is by teaching your students about influential Hispanic and Latino leaders, artists, athletes, activists, scientists, and historical figures.

This is a great fit for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade because students are old enough to read short biographies, identify important details, and explain how one person made an impact. You can have your students read about a different person each day, work in small groups, or choose one person to study more deeply.

You can also connect this activity to reading comprehension by having students identify the main idea, find text evidence, answer questions, and summarize what they learned.

A Hispanic Heritage Month activity showing student reading passages

If you want a low-prep option, my Hispanic Heritage Month reading passages include biographies of famous Latinos in both English and Spanish. You can use the English version, the Spanish version, or the bilingual bundle depending on what works best for your classroom.

2. Complete a Hispanic Heritage Month project

If you want a more creative Hispanic Heritage Month activity for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade, a project can help your students take what they learned and turn it into something they can share.

One option is to have students read about a famous Latino and then complete a 3D ball biography project. This gives students a hands-on way to show what they learned while still practicing reading comprehension, summarizing, and identifying important details.

With my Hispanic Heritage Month project, students first read a biography passage about a Latino figure. Then they use the information from the passage to create a 3D ball project that highlights the person’s life, accomplishments, and impact.

This works well because students are not just reading and answering questions. They are using the passage to create something meaningful. The finished projects can also be displayed in the classroom or hallway during Hispanic Heritage Month.

A Hispanic Heritage Month Activity showing student work about Frida Kahlo on a 3D ball

This is a strong option if you want a Hispanic Heritage Month activity that combines reading, research, writing, and creativity without needing to plan everything from scratch.

3. Read books by Hispanic and Latino authors

Reading picture books, biographies, and novels by Hispanic and Latino authors is another powerful way to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students.

Books give your students a chance to see different experiences, traditions, families, and communities represented in the classroom. You can use these books as read-alouds, literature circle options, independent reading choices, or mentor texts for writing.

After reading, students can respond in different ways. They might write about the theme, compare characters, discuss the author’s message, or connect the story to what they are learning about Hispanic Heritage Month.

You can also build a small Hispanic Heritage Month book display in your classroom library so students can explore the books throughout the month.

Click here or on the image below to read Hispanic Heritage Month Picture Books for a full list of 10 books that work well for Hispanic Heritage Month.

The text says 10 picture books to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month. It shows a picture of 2 books.

4. Explore Hispanic and Latino art and music

Art and music can help your students experience culture in a creative and memorable way. For 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students, this can be a great way to connect social studies, art, music, and writing.

You might introduce students to different types of Latin American art, such as Huichol yarn art, papel picado, alebrijes, murals, or folk art from different countries. After learning about the style and its cultural background, students can create their own art inspired by what they studied.

For example, students can learn about Huichol yarn art and then create their own design using yarn and glue. They can sketch their image first, trace the lines with glue, and carefully place the yarn on top.

You can also include music by listening to traditional songs, folk music, or popular music from different Spanish-speaking countries. Students can compare instruments, rhythm, language, and style. This gives them another way to learn about culture beyond reading alone.

*Juan Carlos Fonseca Mata, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons*

5. Study Spanish-speaking countries

Another meaningful Hispanic Heritage Month activity for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade is learning about Spanish-speaking countries.

You can assign each student or group a different country to research. Students can learn about the country’s geography, flag, food, music, celebrations, landmarks, famous people, and traditions. Then they can present what they learned through a poster, slideshow, brochure, or short oral presentation.

This type of activity works especially well because it gives students a broader understanding of the diversity within Hispanic and Latino cultures. Instead of treating Hispanic Heritage Month as one general topic, students can see how each country has its own history, traditions, and identity.

For a no-prep option, you can use my reading passages about Spanish-speaking countries. They are available in English, Spanish, and a bilingual bundle with both versions.

6. Celebrate with traditional food

Food is another engaging way to help students learn about culture during Hispanic Heritage Month. Many students enjoy learning about traditional dishes, especially when they can connect food to geography, family traditions, and celebrations.

Depending on your school guidelines, you might host a small classroom tasting, invite families to share recipes, or have students research a traditional dish from a Spanish-speaking country.

If bringing food into the classroom is not an option, students can still create a menu, recipe card, or short informational writing piece about a traditional food. This can become a simple writing activity that connects culture, research, and creativity.

For 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students, you can also have them compare foods from different countries and discuss how ingredients, climate, history, and traditions influence what people eat.

7. Create a classroom display

A Hispanic Heritage Month bulletin board or classroom display can help your students share what they are learning throughout the month.

Your display might include student writing, biography projects, country research, art projects, vocabulary words, maps, flags, book recommendations, or facts about Hispanic and Latino cultures.

This is especially useful for 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade because students can take ownership of the display. Instead of creating the bulletin board yourself, you can have your students contribute pieces over time.

For example, each student might create a mini biography poster, a country fact card, or a short paragraph about something they learned. By the end of the month, your classroom display becomes a visual celebration of student learning.

If you teach in a bilingual or dual language classroom, you can also include Spanish vocabulary, bilingual labels, or student writing in Spanish. This adds a language connection without making the activity too complicated.

Get ready for Hispanic Heritage Month!

Hispanic Heritage Month is a meaningful opportunity to help your students learn about Hispanic and Latino cultures, leaders, countries, traditions, art, music, and history.

With the right activities, your 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students can do more than simply recognize the month. They can read, discuss, create, research, and reflect in ways that build understanding and celebrate the contributions of Hispanic and Latino communities.

Whether you choose reading passages, books, art, music, country research, a classroom display, or a hands-on project, these Hispanic Heritage Month activities can help you bring meaningful learning into your classroom.