Puerto Rico - Culture

Puerto Rico - Culture

Puerto Rico - Culture
Reading Level

	edHelper's suggested reading level:	grades 5 to 7
	Flesch-Kincaid grade level:	6.56

Vocabulary

	challenging words:		bongos, guiro, hollowed-out, timbale, vibraphone, rhythmic, traditional, percussion, musical, drummer, tobacco, injury, nickname, master, history, gourd
	content words:		Caribbean Sea, Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican, Traditional African, Tito Puente, Spanish Harlem, New York City, Young Tito, So Tito, Many Latinos

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Puerto Rico - Culture
By Ekaterina Zhdanova-Redman

¹     There is a small island in the Caribbean Sea called Puerto Rico. This small island is a nation whose culture is full of lively, rhythmic music and dance. The instruments and dances of this small nation come from all over the world. This nation may be a small island, but Puerto Rican culture is anything but small.

²     Puerto Rico's music starts with the country's earliest history. Many years ago, some of the Caribbean's first people lived on Puerto Rico. These people were called the Taino. The Taino had a very developed culture. Taino women were as important as men, which was unusual in most cultures at the time. The Taino liked sports. The Taino even invented the rubber ball!

³     The Taino also invented several musical instruments. Many of these instruments would become very important to Puerto Rican culture. One of them is called the guiro. A guiro is a simple instrument with a fun sound. It is a hollowed-out gourd, with many grooves cut across it. The gourd is then rubbed with a stick. It makes a kind of rhythmic scratching sound. The guiro has become an important part of Latin and Caribbean music.

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