Friday, November 10, 2006

Dia de los Muertes




Or Day of the Dead for you English speakers. Madalyn's Dual language class did a social studies project on the Mexican tradition of Dia de los Muertes. The kids chose a loved one that has died (Maddy chose her great-grandfather Glenn Watts) to celebrate. Their class built an altar with pictures of who they had chosen, candles, and a favorite snack. In PawPaw's case it was baked peanuts. Madalyn also polled Jeff's family for things they remembered about him and wrote a story about his life and why she chose to celebrate him. The whole process culminated in a parade around the school with the kids dressed in black, wearing their masks and singing Spanish songs for the occasion. I had some reservations about the project at first because it seemed a bit creepy, but she knows so much more about PawPaw and what a wonderful man he was - it was really a blessing.

1 comment:

John and Christy said...

I'm with you, Holly. Dia del Muerte sounds creepy but that's neat that they turned it into a way to get to know the people who came before you.