Winter, Space, and Emotions: Exploring Cold Colors Through Music and Creativity

Winter is comming, bringing with it snowy landscapes in many places, shorter days, and the calmness that cold weather inspires. This seasonal shift offers a wonderful opportunity to explore cool colors like blue, white, gray, and purple while engaging in activities that spark students' imagination and emotions.

In this blog post, I want to share a special resource that combines music, creativity, and reflection: the Listening activity based on the song "Llamando a la Tierra" by M-Clan. This resource not only invites students to practice their listening skills in Spanish but also takes them on a journey through space, cold landscapes, and the emotions they evoke.

On the store you'll find the english version too, using the original song from Steve Miller, or the bilingual version including additional activities.

Space and Winter: A Unique Connection

Outer space, with its vast emptiness and dark hues, evokes a sense of cold and distance, much like the atmosphere of winter. In “Llamando a la Tierra”, the imagery of a "blue electric space" and the search for connection resonate deeply with the introspection we often feel during the winter months. This makes it the perfect context for students to explore these ideas creatively.

The Activity: Imagine Your Own Blue ElectricUniverse

One of the most rewarding parts of this resource is the creative drawing activity. After listening to the song, students are invited to imagine and draw their own blue electric universe. This activity encourages them to use cool colors like vibrant blues, bright whites, soft grays, and deep purples to create a unique landscape that reflects how they perceive outer space or how the song makes them feel.

This activity integrates several skills:

• Artistic creativity: By choosing colors and shapes, students express their imagination.
• Emotional reflection: Through their drawings, they convey the emotions inspired by the song.
• Linguistic connection: Students practice Spanish vocabulary related to colors, shapes, and emotions as they describe their creations.

The resource, available for download on TpT, also includes Listening exercises designed to develop students' auditory comprehension, reading comprehension, and creative writing skills.

Cool Colors: Embracing Winter Themes

Focusing on cool colors not only ties into the winter season but also provides an opportunity to delve into artistic and sensory topics. In this activity, students not only imagine space but also experiment with tones that evoke calmness, introspection, and even mystery. Ways to work with these colors include:

• Creating color palettes inspired by winter.
• Reflecting on how colors affect our emotions.
• Combining art and writing by describing their artwork with Spanish words and phrases.

Emotions and Music: A Space for Reflection

Music has the power to connect with our emotions, and “Llamando a la Tierra” is particularly powerful for exploring feelings such as nostalgia, connection, and solitude. During winter, when many students may feel more introspective, these activities create a safe space for expressing their thoughts and emotions.

Questions to encourage reflection:

• How does the song make you feel?
• What does the "blue electric space" mean to you?
• What colors do you choose to express your feelings, and why?

The Resource: A Creative Journey for the Classroom

The Listening activity based on “Llamando a la Tierra” is designed to be flexible and adaptable to different learning levels. Teachers can use it as part of a broader project on space, winter, or emotions. It also works perfectly as a standalone activity for special occasions like the start of winter or a class focused on exploring Spanish through music.

With activities including listening exercises, reflections on the song’s lyrics, and creative art projects, this resource is a comprehensive tool for guiding students on a journey from the cold expanse of space to the warmth of their own creativity.

Welcoming Winter with Art and Language

This winter, let’s invite our students to explore the coldness of space and the emotions it brings through music and art. With “Llamando a la Tierra”, they can discover new ways to express themselves while practicing language skills and nurturing their imagination.

Let’s open the doors to the blue electric space and celebrate the power of music, colors, and creativity together!

If you're looking for more resources like this to complement learning in the classroom or at home, visit my TpT store, where you’ll find materials designed to support project-based learning with a Reggio Emilia and STEAM approach.