Hispanic Heritage Month was celebrated with art and music during October throughout East Islip’s four elementary schools.

Working with art teacher Amarilis Singh at John F. Kennedy Elementary School, third graders studied the artist Joan Miro and engaged in a creative game where they designed surreal artwork inspired by his unique style; fourth graders explored the work of artist Lorna Simpson and created distinctive self-portraits using a combination of collage, zentangles and paint; and fifth graders created vibrant collages inspired by the artist Lourdes Villagomez, capturing the bold colors and dynamic style seen in her work.

Guided by music teacher Danielle Post, Ruth C. Kinney Elementary School students listened to Latinx musicians, learned how to salsa dance to traditional Latin music and how to sing songs in Spanish such as “El Floron,” “Dulce Dulce” and “Ron Ron Ron,” and played games with these songs, even adding traditional Latin instruments.

Music teachers Jaime DeMaria of JFK and Angela Stewart of RCK worked with students on a concert piece called “International Jingle Bells.” One of the countries represented is Mexico, so the students studied the common three-beat styles of Mexican culture as well as speaking simple phrases in Spanish in order to prepare for their performance.   

At Timber Point Elementary School, first graders in Emily MacFadden’s music class read the Margarita Englem book “Drum Dream Girl” and performed the chant “Toca el Tambor, Chica de los Suenos,” drumming the rhythm intermittently as they read the book.

In the Timber Point art studio, teacher Amanda Lastella created a “Culture Board” to showcase different artists from around the world each month, which students could use as inspiration for their artwork. The school also showcased artists like Salvador Dali, Frida Kahlo, Joan Miro and Margarita Azurdia.

“Many of our students found Azurdia’s line and pattern work particularly interesting, and replicated her style in their own drawings,” Lastella said.