Mexicolore logoMexicolore name

Aztec giggles

Aztec giggles

‘The Joyous Aztecs’ by J. G. Francis

A page of Aztec miscellany: odd bits and pieces that may amuse... Feel free to send in your own contributions! We start the ball rolling with some Aztec howlers given to us kindly (bravely?) by Mr. A. Shaw, Class 5 teacher, on a recent visit to Beulah Junior School in Thornton Heath, Surrey. We have interspersed them with a sampling of gentle cartoons, inspired by the Aztecs, drawn and written by Joseph Greene Francis (1849-1930) in the USA. Smile...!

Check our availability and book

Amazing Aztecs according to Year 5 FLS groups:-
• The Aztecs lived around 500 years ago. If you think about it that’s a lot of years. (Tommy)
• They moved from country to country and ended up in England. (Sofiana)
• The Aztecs were like kings of the world because no one else could beat them. They were mean people and you wouldn’t want to bump into one of them. (Tommy)

• They are famous for their pot making skills and their future communication. (Bilal)
• They ate rats and mice and other types of food you would not dream of eating. (Osheen)
• Sometimes if they were really fortunate they would eat salad, fresh dog meat with red chilies or pumpkin or squash stew. The Aztecs would make a human sacrifice and give blood just so they could thank the gods for the nice weather. (Rashida)

• They used rituals in traditional style to make the dead come back to life for people that couldn’t afford it by paying with gold. That is what fascinates me most about the Aztecs. (Gavin)
• I would not like to be an Aztec because I would not like to go to town dressed as an animal when our enemies are dressed in proper armour. (Sannah)
• I think I would like to be an Aztec because they were the first to make chocolate. (Reece)

• I think the Aztecs are smart because they made chocolate and their own games without technology. I would not have liked to have been an Aztec living in a dirty old swampy place called Tenochtitlan, and to remember the names of the gods... what if you got mixed up? (Emmanuel)

Overheard from a child at the Aztecs exhibition at the Royal Academy, years ago: ’You know it says “the practice of human sacrifice” - who did they practice on?’ !!!

October 2016 A shy Year 5 girl at LIttle Ealing Primary School came up to one of our team after our workshop on the Aztecs and asked ‘You know the human sacrifices - did they do it when the person was alive, or was he already dead?’ !!!

The Joyous Aztecs was written by J. G. Francis in 1915 and published by The Century Company in New York and London. What do you think of his style? We rather like it!

Your turn, teachers: send in your Aztec howlers and we’ll add them to this page...

Comments (0)

Aztec giggles

‘The Joyous Aztecs’ by J. G. Francis

More Teachers’ Page