1. Los Dias de los Muertos/
The Mexican Days of the Dead

2. Think, Pair, Share…
Just what is Dia de los Muertos?

What I know about
Dia de los Muertos.

What I would like to
know about Dia de
los Muertos.

3. What is the Mexican Day of the
Dead?

Is it a spooky
holiday like
Halloween and full
of ghosts and
ghouls?

4. What is the Mexican Day of the
Dead?
No, it is a time for
remembrance.
Friends, families and
relatives gather to
honor and
remember their
loved ones who
have passed.
 It is not a day of
sadness but a day of
celebration.


5. What is the Mexican Day of the
Dead?
Halloween: October 31st
Dia de los Muertos: Nov 1st
and 2nd
Although it occurs
close to Halloween,
the holidays are very
different.
Dia de los Muertos
dates back almost
3,000 years to the
indigenous Aztec
people of Mexico.

6. What is the Mexican Day of the
Dead?

On November 1st
and 2nd, families
participate in
celebrations that
honor their passed
family members,
including visiting and
decorating graves,
constructing
ofrendas, and
preparing sweet
sugar skulls.

7. Mexican families save
all year to buy the
flowers, candles,
incense, and special
foods needed to
properly honor their
dearly departed. They
participate in the
construction and
decoration of
ofrendas (home
tabletop displays or
altars) to honor their
loved ones.

8. Ofrenda
Decorations for the ofrenda may include candles, flowers, incense,
cut paper banners, photographs, pictures of saints and the Virgin of
Guadalupe, and offerings of the favorite food and drink of the
deceased.

9. This ofrenda
includes a
picture of the
person being
honored, their
favorite food,
flowers,
candles, and
religious
statues.

10. In preparation for
the fiesta, tombs
and gravestones in
the cemeteries are
cleaned, freshlypainted, and
elaborately
decorated by the
members of the
community with
candles, flowers,
breads, fruits, and
other objects.

11. What is the Mexican Day of the
Dead?

Isn’t Dia de los
Muertos only
celebrated in
Mexico?

12. What is the Mexican Day of the
Dead?



Actually, the tradition
is celebrated all over
South and Central
America, as well as all
over the US.
Tucson has a popular
observance of the
holiday that includes
the All Souls
Procession.
30,00 people
participate in this
annual parade
downtown.

13. What is the Mexican Day of the Dead?

But wait!! Isn’t the
Day of the Dead
about scary skulls
and other creepy
things???

14. What is the Mexican Day of the
Dead?
Yes and no…
Candies and toys
are made in the
shape of calaveras
(skulls and
skeletons).
The skeleton or skull
is seen as a promise
of resurrection, not
as a symbol of
death.

15. Calavara: Skulls and Skeletons
Calavera toys
and papiermache skeleton
figures depict
specific
professions,
musicians,
brides and
grooms, bicycle
riders, and other
subjects from
everyday life.

16. Sugar Skulls

Called "calaveras de
azúcar" in Spanish,
these sugary sweets
are sold everywhere
on the days and
weeks leading up to
Day of the Dead.

17. Sugar Skulls

Market stalls are lined with rows and rows of colorful skulls,
created from sugar and decorated with multi-colored icing,
shiny foil, sequins and glitter.

18. Sugar Skulls

Sugar skulls are
given as gifts to both
the living and the
dead, often with the
name of the
recipient written on
the skull's forehead
in icing.

19. Sugar Skull design elements





How would you
describe the design
elements of the
popular sugar skull
using:
Symmetry?
Pattern?
Color?
Repetition?

20. Sugar Skull design elements
Symmetry
Pattern
Color
Repetition

21. Sugar Skulls

22. Symmetrical Design
Color schemes
Composition