Explorica is very proud of our new resource for teachers: our 2018-19 Around the World classroom calendar!
The calendar features a new country and an international holiday or event for you to celebrate with your students each month. Download a new page each month on this blog (and subscribe!), hang it up in your classroom, and talk to your students about how the holiday reflects the country’s history and culture.
This June, we’re featuring Inti Raymi. Also known as the Festival of the sun, this holiday honors the Inca sun god Inti, the national patron of the Inca state. Dating back to 1412, June 24th has been celebrated with a festival of music, costumes, food, and animal sacrifices (although these days there’s only one). It’s still celebrated every year near its original location in the ancient Inca capital of Cusco, Peru.
Use this opportunity to teach your students about the the Inca empire, from their arrival in the Andes in the 12th Century AD, through the creation of their massive empire known as Tawantinsuyu (spanning from northern Ecuador to central Chile and consisting of 12 million inhabitants from more than 100 different ethnic groups), to their fall at the hands of the Spanish invaders culminating in 1572.
Questions to ask your students:
What does it take to build an empire of people and communities that speak different languages and have different needs?
The Incas worshipped a Sun God and a Rain God. What ways do you think these gods were important to the Inca daily life?
Cusco is known for near-by Machu Picchu, which was primarily a a fortress. What benefit do you think its location and construction served?