History And Culture Lesson Plan - Dia De Los Muertos: Celebrating And Remembering printable pdf download

*Courtesy of the Smithsonian National Museum of American History’s Program of Latino

History and Culture

LESSON PLAN A

Dia de los Muertos: Celebrating and Remembering

Objective:

To demonstrate students different aspects of Dia de los Muertos and how it is celebrated in

Latino communities in the United States and throughout Latin America

Suggested Grade Level: K-2

Subjects: Bilingual (English/Spanish) studies; Art

National Standards: McRel History K-2

Standard 7. Understands selected attributes and historical developments of societies in

Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe.

Benchmarks for this standard:

Knows the holidays and ceremonies of different societies (e.g., Cinco de Mayo)

Understands the daily life, history, and beliefs of a country as reflected in dance, music,

or the other art forms (such as paintings, sculptures, and masks)

Background:

Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a celebration held in Mexico and in Central

American countries where family members commemorate their ancestors in a way that is

different from customs in the United States. This important holiday is held on November 1

and November 2. It is a holiday that mixes parts of Roman Catholicism with Native

American traditions that pre-date the arrival of the Spanish in the Americas.

This holiday, which falls at the same time as Halloween, is different since it does not include

such imagery as witches, black cats, or pumpkins. While Halloween is associated with

costumes and trick-or-treating, Dia de los Muertos is more of a memorial type of holiday.

Both holidays, however, do share a common visual connection with the presence of skeleton

imagery throughout.

Families often set up offerings or altars called ofrendas, either at home or at the cemetery.

Throughout the Dia de los Muertos will remember their ancestors by honoring their memory,

by feasting on foods (such as pan de muerto or calaveras de azucar), and playing or singing

the songs which were favored by their ancestors. Some ofrendas are also decorated with

marigolds and calaveras made of papier-mache.

Standards language adapted from Kendall, J., Marzano R.J. (2004) Content Knowledge: A Compendium of

Standards and Benchmarks for K-12 Education. 4

Edition. Available online at:

History And Culture Lesson Plan - Dia De Los Muertos: Celebrating And Remembering