The Eagle Times: Dia de los Muertos

Dia de Los Muertos, also known as Day of the Dead, was observed in the Freedom High School's world culture class. Students created a presentation about Day of the Dead for pre-K to sixth-grade students. The room was well decorated in marigolds, sugar skulls and tissue paper.

Day of the Dead is celebrated between Oct. 31 and Nov. 2. On Nov. 1, the Hispanic culture celebrates the children who have passed away, and on Nov. 2 they celebrate the adults who have passed away. Even though they are dead the living are not sad because they are celebrating their loved one's life.

Marigolds are used to attract the spirit of a loved one to the grave. They are orange and yellow flowers with multiple layers of overlapping petals. Sugar skulls are also used for decoration. On the Day of the Dead, people decorate altars with items their loved one liked. Day of the Dead is not only for celebrating people; it is also for celebrating pets. Anything that you loved and has moved on to a different world can be celebrated.

Around Nov. 2 butterflies migrate, and it is believed that these butterflies carry the spirit away until the next year. After Nov. 2 the graves and altars are cleaned off. People continue to remember their love ones until next year.

The world culture class enjoyed presenting their Day of the Dead projects to the smaller children. The class learned a lot, and would love to do more projects like this.

 

Reader Comments(0)