Dia de los Muertos

Second grade students learned about the holiday Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebrated in Mexico on November 1^st and 2^nd.  El Dia de los Muertos is not the Mexican version of Halloween. Mexicans have celebrated the Day of the Dead since the year 1800 B.C.  It is not scary or morbid. There are no pictures or images of dead people, ghosts, witches, or the devil.

This fiesta is marked by the invitation by the living to the dead to return to their family home for a visit. Families place photographs of their loved ones who have passed on at the deceased’s gravesite or on a family altar. They also place offerings of flowers, drinks and food alongside the photographs. This ritual is particularly important for those who have been lost in the year since the previous festival, and is a way of coming to terms with the death of someone loved and missed.

It doesn’t honor death, but their dead relatives. It’s a time for them to reflect on their lives, heritage, ancestors and the meaning of their existence.  It is not a sad ritual. It’s a day of happiness because they are remembering loved ones.

The well-known Calaveras statues depicting skeletons participating in the activities of the living- from cooking to playing in mariachi bands- take their place on the altar, where their comic appearance brings a smile to the faces of the grieving.

Second grade students created their own Calaveras using art straws and collage.