Celebrate Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) with These Spanish Classroom Favorites
The Best Day of the Dead Classroom Resources, Decorations, and Activities for Students Are at Teacher's DiscoveryDía de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a celebration of life and death. While the holiday originated in Mexico, it is celebrated all over Latin America with colorful calaveras (skulls) and calacas (skeletons), food, dancing, and gifts for the departed. Liven up your classroom with these Day of the Dead decorations and activities and celebrate Day of the Dead like never before!
In this post, we’ll take a look at the best Day of the Dead teaching resources, Day of the Dead posters and decorations, and some “sweet” Day of the Dead activities and treats for your students.
Day of the Dead Teaching Resources
Teach the history and traditions of the Day of the Dead with these great resources.
Las celebraciones: El Día de los Muertos Videos & Resource Pack
Las celebraciones del Día de los Muertos
Downloadable English & Spanish Videos PLUS Comprehension Activities!
Lumi Lara, a native of Mexico, shares three Day of the Dead celebrations that take place in her home town of Mérida with your students. Two cultural video shorts, one in Spanish and one in English with Spanish terms, paired with a specifically created video resource guide, help to promote cultural understanding and increase student discussions, comprehension, and assessment of the video content. The downloadable format of both videos and resource guide gives you the flexibility to choose the appropriate level as well as select from a variety of eight activities that fit your classroom teaching style, your students’ abilities, and the time constraints of your classes.
Includes:
- Two Videos: One English & one Spanish
- Comprehension questions
- Vocabulary application
- Writing prompts
- Speaking and role-playing activities
- Culture relation and personal reflection exercises
- Creative individual and group projects
- Answer key
- ACTFL Standards alignment
- Reproducible format
Las ofrendas: El Día de los Muertos Videos and Resource Pack
Las ofrendas para el Día de los Muertos
Downloadable English & Spanish Videos PLUS Comprehension Activities!
Lumi Lara, a native of Mexico, brings your students along to the local market to gather and purchase items to build an ofrenda for her abuela. Two cultural video shorts, one in Spanish and one in English with Spanish terms, paired with a specifically created video resource guide, help to promote cultural understanding and increase student discussions, comprehension, and assessment of the video content. The downloadable format of both videos and resource guide gives you the flexibility to choose the appropriate level as well as select from a variety of eight activities that fit your classroom teaching style, your students’ abilities, and the time constraints of your classes.
Includes:
- Two Videos: One English & one Spanish
- Comprehension questions
- Vocabulary application
- Writing prompts
- Speaking and role-playing activities
- Culture relation and personal reflection exercises
- Creative individual and group projects
- Answer key
- ACTFL Standards alignment
- Reproducible format
Moo!™ El Día de los Muertos: The Day of the Dead Video
Experience el Día de los Muertos Celebration in your Classroom!
Our 2006 Emmy Award winner, Pacific Southwest Region, brings the Day of the Dead celebration into your classroom! Join Itzli, a girl from Mexico, and Derrick, an American high school student, as she teaches him all about the Day of the Dead.
Newly Revised Edition Video Activity Packet Download
This updated video activity packet features a variety of new activities, ACTFL Standards alignment, and an answer key. Packet includes higher-level thinking activities, featuring vocabulary comprehension, internet research, creative projects, stories, true or false, comparisons, puzzles, and more.
Van y vienen: Día de Muertos Video
Episode in the Van y vienen Series. Specifically Made for Mexican Television—Native for Native!
Join Karen and Iván as they participate in Mexico City’s Día de Muertos parade and watch the streets come alive with color, spectacular costumes, masks, floats, and flowers. Delve into myths, rituals, and legends like la Llorona on an evening cruise in a trajinera through Xochimilco canals. Visit a traditional market before making pan de muerto and calaveras de azúcar in Ocotepec, Morelos. Walk the streets and experience the extravagant altares built to honor local loved ones, and meet the people who created them.
Video Resource Guide Includes:
- Cultural & critical thinking questions
- Additional authentic resources
- Activities to check comprehension
- Pop-up grammar
- Web quest interactive research
- Project-based activities
- Full dialogue script in English and Spanish
- Activities for multiple levels
- Assessment rubrics for each level
- ACTFL Standards-based & aligned
- Instant PDF download access
- Reproducible
La comida: El Día de los Muertos Videos & Resource Pack
La comida para el Día de los Muertos
Downloadable English & Spanish Videos PLUS Comprehension Activities!
Lumi Lara, a native of Mexico, shares a few of her favorite foods that are important to the holiday for the Day of the Dead celebrations, and how to make them. These foods include pan de muerto, xe’ek’, and chocolate caliente. Two cultural video shorts, one in Spanish and one in English with Spanish terms, paired with a specifically created video resource guide, help to promote cultural understanding and increase student discussions, comprehension, and assessment of the video content. The downloadable format of both videos and resource guide gives you the flexibility to choose the appropriate level as well as select from a variety of eight activities that fit your classroom teaching style, your students’ abilities, and the time constraints of your classes.
Includes:
- Two Videos: One English & one Spanish
- Comprehension questions
- Vocabulary application
- Writing prompts
- Speaking and role-playing activities
- Culture relation and personal reflection exercises
- Creative individual and group projects
- Answer key
- ACTFL Standards alignment
- Reproducible format
Celebration of Life and Death Novice-Mid Spanish IPA Pack
La celebración de la vida y la muerte Novice/Mid Spanish IPA Pack
This ¡LISTOS! IPA Pack Download is based on two authentic resources: an infographic chart and a link to a narrated documentary-style video that discusses the traditions of the Day of the Dead and explains the celebration of life and death in 100% Spanish.
This pack includes step-by-step instructions and reading and listening comprehension activities that follow the ACTFL model. Complete with an explanation of an IPA and how to use it, it includes nine Interpretive Tasks that break down the content, increase recognition of key words and phrases, develop context awareness, and promote language usage. In addition, it provides creative options for writing and/or speaking Interpersonal and Presentational Tasks, answer keys, and rubrics for each mode.
Spanish: Novice/Mid Level
Global Theme: Families and Communities: Customs and Values
Topics: Day of the Dead, traditions, family
Essential Questions:
- What is the Day of the Dead?
- How are the dead honored and celebrated on this day?
- What makes up an ofrenda?
Day of the Dead Posters and Classroom Decorations
Set the stage for an amazing Day of the Dead celebration with these Day of the Dead posters and decorations.
Origen del Día de Muertos Infographic Poster
Authentic Notimex® Origen del Día de Muertos Infographic
Exclusive partnership with Notimex, Agencia de Noticias del Estado Mexicano for a limited print edition.
Discover the pre-Hispanic traditions and influences from Spain, including an explanation of what happens on each day of the celebration, along with a brief description of the main elements of Día de Muertos—ofrendas, papel picado, pan de muerto, calaveras de azúcar, and more.
Includes a Think-Pair-Share Strategies Infographic Resource Guide download (PDF) delivered via email. Adobe® Reader® required to view PDF. Email address required for download delivery.
Day of the Dead Bulletin Board Set
Introduce the Elements of Día de los Muertos
El Día de los Muertos ha sido celebrado en México y en otras partes del mundo por siglos… This updated 12-piece bulletin board set includes explanations and colorful art depicting:
- ¿Qué es el Día de los Muertos?
- Los ancestros
- El altar y las ofrendas
- La flor de cempasúchil
- El papel picado
- El pan de muerto
- Las calacas
- Las calaveritas de azúcar
- La resina de copal
- El cementerio
- Los desfiles de comparsas
- Los objetos cristianos
Day of the Dead papel picado Garland
Papel picado for Your Day of the Dead Celebration
Papel picado is approximately 16 feet long with 10 assorted color papel picado sheets strung together.
Day of the Dead Activities and Treats for Students!
Check out these "sweet" Day of the Dead activities and treats!
Day of the Dead Sugar Skull Kit
Everything Necessary to Decorate Authentic Sugar Skulls in Your Classroom
Celebrate Day of the Dead with your students and decorate real sugar skulls from Mexico.
Kit includes enough sugar skulls, sequins, glitter, glue, foil, feathers, and paper hat patterns to make 30 skulls.
Calaveritas Lollipops
A Día de Muertos Treat for Your Spanish Class
Delicious candy treats shaped like festive sugar skulls make the perfect incentives for your Spanish students this Day of the Dead or any time of the year! Each bag contains 40 coconut and pineapple-flavored suckers.
Day of the Dead Skull Magnet Kit
No-Mess Sugar Skulls
Decorate a magnetic ceramic skull with markers.
Day of the Dead Skull Magnet Kit contains 30 ceramic skulls, 60 markers to share, a bottle of glue, and 30 magnets. Spanish. All levels.
Day of the Dead String Puppets
Make Dancing esqueleto Puppets!
These guys (and gals) are as much fun to play with as they are to make! Kids get a big kick out of how the finished puppet’s arms and legs move with a tug of the string. The images are based on the grinning mustachioed skeletons and fancy catrinas of the artist José Posada. Includes cardstock skeleton parts to cut out, wire brads, string, sticks, glue, feathers, sequins, markers, and a hole punch. Makes 30 puppets.
Posable Calacas Printable Download
Print Posable Calacas for Day of the Dead
Get your classroom ready for Day of the Dead with printable, posable calacas! This download includes six styles of calacas for you and your students to assemble: three ready-made styles and three that are ready-to-color.
See More Day of the Dead Resources at Teacher’s Discovery
There are many more teacher resources at Teacher’s Discovery.
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