I introduced this topic very carefully, as children can be very sensitive and, sometimes, not even familiar with the words "death," "graveyard," etc. Throughout the discussion, I was absolutely fascinated with the way students expressed their feelings and emotions about death. A few children mentioned pets that had passed away; others shared about a relative they had lost. Many of the children had never lost anyone but were also interested in learning more about the celebration.

To approach the topic in a way that would engage the students, we created a graphic to compare Halloween and Día de los Muertos. The children found interesting facts about both traditions, and highlighted both similarities and differences. The students watched a beautiful short video called Di­a de los Muertos from Whoo Kazoo. The video was a big hit; they enjoyed watching and absorbing more about the tradition.

 

To conclude the discussion on this ritual, the students created and decorated one of the holiday's symbols: Mascaras de Calaveras (skull masks). In this cultural tradition, the skull is not meant to be scary. It simply represents the death of the body or the passing away of the person, and the decorative designs represent the beauty of their life. The purpose of this lesson was to show children how we can celebrate the lives of people who have died. Ask your child about the video and what they think about this holiday.