different?
Students may suggest dressing up for
I Am La Luna
Story: Janine Wheeler
Illustration: David Diaz
ISBN-13: 978-0-7362-2482-3
Literature: CCSS.ELA-
LITERACY.RL.K.3
WORD WALL: SPANISH VOCABULARY
La luna (the moon), el sol (the sun), noche
(night), dia (day).
SYNOPSIS
I Am La Luna is a folktale originally from the
Yaqui tribe of Mexico. El Sol falls in love with La
Luna when he sees her in the morning. He asks
La Luna if she will marry him, but La Luna likes
being alone. La Luna tells El Sol she will marry
him if he can make her a skirt that is perfect. El
Sol tries, and he tries to make the perfect skirt
for La Luna, but every night she is a different
size, so the skirt never fits her correctly.
Because of thi s, La Luna cannot marry El Sol.
DISCUSSION
Say: This is a love story from a Mexican folktale.
Ask: In this story, the tailor works very hard, but
no matter what, the skirt is not the right size for
La Luna. Does anyone know why? Say: La Luna
will always look a little different every night.
Sometimes, La Luna looks like a thin crescent.
Other times, the moon looks like a round coin.
Each shape represents a phase. Print or project
NASA’s image of the phases of the moon. Show
and name the phases of the moon.
GROUP ACTIVITY
Say: La Luna looks different every day. It is part
of her nature. El Sol did not understand that,
and because he did not know La Luna well
enough, he could not marry her. Ask: Why is it
important to get to know other people? What
kind of things should we strive to know about
our friends? Ask: When do people look
© 2018 Markkula Center for Applied Ethics. Visit us at www.scu.edu/character
Halloween and acting with costumes on stage.
Distribute art materials for creating moon, sun,
or star masks. If possible, distribute theater
costumes and accessories. Invite students to
change their appearance by wearing costumes
and masks. Each student should present to the
class about their new “character.” They should
address the following questions: What is your
name? How old are you? What do you do?
What do you like?
OPTIONAL ACTIVITY
Today we are going to decorate bowls with yarn
in the traditional Huichol style. Each student will
get a paper bowl. Within groups of three or
four, you will be getting some pre-cut yarn,
pencils, and glue to decorate your bowls.
AT-HOME ACTIVITY
Say: At home, you can choose one of two
traditional art activities. The first one is creating
paper flowers. Paper flowers were sometimes
used in Mexico to decorate churches during
seasons when flowers did not grow. All you
need is tissue paper, scissors, and pipe cleaners.
Stack five different pieces of tissue paper on top
of one another. Fold the paper stack accordion
style (back and forth). Fold the pipe cleaner in
half in the middle of the folded stack of paper
and twist to create a stem. Carefully open up
the folded paper and separate to create the
petals. Shape into a flower. Here are step-by-
step instructions with pictures.
CHANGE REQUIRES EFFORT
Change is possible. Change requires three
things; a vision, a plan, and effort. It requires
changing bad habits to good habits. It requires
effort even when I don’t feel like working. It
requires taking one step at a time.