Rachel Merren EDUC 6310 – Fall 2008 November 25, 2008

Cannot generalize by knowing a student is from Honduras Language may not be Spanish They may not look Hispanic or consider themselves Hispanic

 Income – Few hundred dollars a year  Home construction – local materials: wood, adobe, etc.  Grow their own corn, beans and plantains  Whole family works  Own horses for transportation

 Income – $100/month  Industrial trades learned on the job  Home construction – store bought materials: bricks, cement, ect.  Build own home  Travel by bus

 Income – few hundred dollars a month  Professionals, students, farmers, merchants, business employees, etc.  May work several jobs and have old cars and small houses

 Large landholders, very successful businessmen, or military  Military is relatively isolated within the class  Own old adobe mansions downtown, import new cars, and take foreign vacations

 Fishing and Shipping Jobs  “The most perfect place on Earth”  Make enough money to live

They may not consider themselves poor or in need of assistance They don’t know what they don’t have Technology may be new

Beans and Corn Tortillas are mainstays  Fried plantains  White cheese  Rice  Fried meat  Mantequilla  Scrambled egg  Slice of avocado  Cup of coffee or soft drink  Stack of tortillas  Few spoonfuls of beans  Some salt

 Cassava  Coconuts  Plantains  Avocados  Pineapples  Pigs’ feet and tails  Favorite is Machuca  Fish  Lobster  Plantains  Avocados  Beef  Favorite is Crab

Change in diet may cause sickness Some children may have eaten much better in Honduras Great opportunity to allow the children to share their culinary background

Greet with a firm handshake and direct eye contact – A man should wait for a women to extend her hand – Friends and relatives will greet with a hug and a kiss – Men generally do not hug – Educated people greet by clasping their right hands together and pressing their cheeks together or give a light kiss on the check – Campesinos shake hands

Greet others every time you pass Look strangers in the eye and smile Stand close when in conversation and may touch occasionally Address others with formality Greetings are generally lengthy – Involve inquires about family, health, travel, etc. – Quick greetings are generally interpreted as disrespectful and thoughtless

Avoid yawning or coughing during conversations Avoid standing with hands on hips Sit only on furniture intended for sitting Punctuality is expected in business circles

Business is not discussed at social dinners Bring a gift for the host/hostess if invited to dinner Avoid opening a wrapped gift in the presence of the giver Dress is generally casual yet fashionable

Parent Conferences – Plan for a longer conference – Initiate the handshake – Address with formality – Make small talk – Watch your body language – Be professional – May be a language barrier

Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs. (2008, June). Background Note: Honduras. Retrieved October 6, 2008, from Ember, C & Ember, M. (Eds.) (2001). Honduras. In Countries and their Cultures (Vol. 2, pp ). New York: Macmillan Reference. Maher, J. et al. (Eds.). (2008). Honduras. In The Europa World Year Book 2008 (Vol. 1, pp ). New York: Routledge. Marshall, O. (2000). English-Speaking Communities in Latin America. New York: St. Martin’s Press. Merrill, T. (Ed.). (1995). Honduras: a country study. (3 rd ed.). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. Stonich, S. (2000). The Other Side of Paradise: Tourism, Conservation, and Development in the Bay Islands. New York: Cognizant Communication Corporation. Vecoli, R. et al. (Eds.). (1995). Honduras. In Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America (Vol. 1, pp ). New York: Gale Research. World Bank. (2005, May 1). Honduras – Judicial Branch Modernization Project: Social Assessment and Access to Justice Issues of Indigenous and Garifuna Peoples of Honduras. Retrieved October 6, 2008, from wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2005/05/23/ _ /Rendered/PDF/IPP1290LCR1IPDP1P pdf Youngblood-Coleman, Denise. (2007). Country Review: Honduras. Retrieved October 6, 2008, from

pg vestido jpg&imgrefurl= about-honduras.html&usg=__CNl_Srn1RdYxn_Hq- swa0zryIAM=&h=600&w=402&sz=61&hl=en&start=132&tbnid=br- 8BZyGbjkhBM:&tbnh=135&tbnw=90&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dhonduras%26start%3D120%26gbv%3D2%26 ndsp%3D20%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN = teNA=&h=426&w=640&sz=50&hl=en&start=4&tbnid=NX1rY7o1aAKNKM:&tbnh=91&tbnw=137&prev=/im ages%3Fq%3Dhondura*%26gbv%3D2%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DG