Author: wordpress

About the tradition: Monarch butterflies are believed to hold the spirits of the departed. Aztec tradition holds that the souls of the departed will return as hummingbirds and butterflies, and the link between myth and the monarchs’ annual return spans centuries. The first monarchs arrive in Mexico for the winter each fall around November 1, coinciding with Día de los Muertos.

Here’s what you’ll need:• Orange tissue paper

• Black markers

• Black paint

• Paint brush

• Black clothes pins

• Black pipe cleaners, cut in half

Directions:1. Paint the clothes pins black and set aside to dry.

2. Cut out a 5” x 5” square from your orange tissue paper.

3. Decorate the orange tissue paper with black marker.

4. Accordion fold your tissue paper.

5. Clip the folded tissue paper in the middle between the clothes pin.

6. Wrap pipe cleaner around the clothes pin and bend them to look like antennae.

Shoebox Altara

About the tradition: 

Families gather to build altars honoring their deceased loved ones. They fill them with photos, favorite foods and personal items of their loved ones, making each one unique. Every item placed on the altar has a special significance. Some are meant to entice and guide the spirits home, provide a safe space for them, cleanse them, and be a reminder of the wonderful experiences of life.

Learn more about El Día de los Muertos and altars from Alma Paz-Sanmiguel from Vanderbilt’s Center for Latin American Studies, and local performer Rachel Rodriguez!

Make Your Own!

Here’s what you’ll need:

• Shoebox or other small box

• Clear tape/double sided tape

• Glue

• Scissors

• Pictures of loved ones

• Personal items of loved ones honoring

• Battery operated tea lights

• Real or fake marigolds

• Mini foods

• Wrapping paper/construction paper for covering shoebox

• Tissue paper

• Scissors

• String/yarn

• Sugar skulls

Directions:

1. If your box has flaps, cut the flaps off. They can be used to add levels in your box. You can also leave them to extend your altar.

2. Wrap your box in colorful paper.

3. Add the pictures of who the altar is for inside the box.

4. Decorate by adding in the personal items of the people you are honoring. We used Frida Kahlo in our altar so we are adding in paint brushes and paint as personal items. You can add in favorite foods, clothing, or other items that belonged to or represent the person your altar is for.

5. Finish your altar by adding in additional items such as sugar skulls, tea lights, marigolds, and any other decoration.

La Catrina Puppets

About the tradition: La Catrina first appeared with her fancy hat and clothes as we know her today in the early 1900s because of an artist named José Guadalupe Posada. Today, La Catrina is the most recognizable symbol of El Día de los Muertos.

Here’s what you’ll need:• Catrina template
*See template below

• White cardstock

• Scissors

• Markers, crayons or colored pencils

• Glue or brads

La Catrina Template  

Directions:1. Print the Catrina template on cardstock and cut it out.

2. Arrange the pieces into a skeleton.

3. Attach the pieces together. You can glue the pieces together or use brads at the joints so the arms and legs can move.

4. Decorate your Catrina!

Tots! Activity: Calaveras Masks

About the tradition: Calavera, meaning “skull” in Spanish, are typically placed on altars usually in the form of sugar skulls. The calavera has become one of the most recognizable symbols of the Day of the Dead. They are a sign of remembrance.

Here’s what you’ll need:• Mask template
*See template below

• Cardstock

• Markers

• Popsicle sticks

• Staples

Mask Template  

Directions:1. Print the mask template on cardstock cut it out, including the eyes.

2. Color in the mask with marker.

3. Staple your mask to the popsicle stick so you can hold it in front of your face.

Try pairing the activity with one of these books:
The Day of the Dead by Bob Barner

Día de los Muertos by Roseanne Greenfield Thong

Funny Bones: Posada and His Day of the Dead Calaveras by Duncan Tonatiuh

Uncle Monarch and the Day of the Dead by Judy Goldman

Frida Kahlo and Her Animalitos by Monica Brown