Day of the Dead Lesson Plan

Teaching Major: Foreign Language

Curriculum framework content name: Spanish for Heritage and Native Speakers I
Curriculum framework content number: CMP.9. SHNSI.1
Curriculum framework content description: Recognize cultural traditions and
celebrations of Spanish-speaking communities (e.g., visual arts, music, dance, food)

URL: https://www.teachertube.com/video/dia-de-los-muertos-14664
Purpose: To show the students one of the many celebrations of Latin America. Students will be
able to understand the cultural significance of Día de los Muertos traditions and learn different
aspects of how it is celebrated in Hispanic communities in the United States and throughout
Latin America.

Some background: Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is a celebration that is celebrated
mostly in Mexico, but also in other parts of Latin America and the United States. It is a
celebration where family members commemorate their loved ones who have passed away. It is
a celebration where people remember, rejoice, and celebrate the dead. This important holiday
is held on November 1 and 2, and it is a holiday that mixes parts of Roman Catholicism with
Native American tradition.

Introduction: Día de los Muertos, is a traditional holiday that is celebrated mostly by the
Mexican community to honor the dead. It is celebrated every year around the same time as
Halloween and the Christian holy days of All Saints and All Souls Day (November 1 st and 2nd).
This activity will give the students an understanding of why the Day of the Dead is celebrated
and by whom. It will expose the students to a tradition from other cultures.

Objectives:
• Students will be able to define Día de los Muertos and explain how this celebration
honors the deceased.
• To develop an appreciation and respect for other cultures.
• To share similarities of the two celebrations.
• To gain appreciation for the Day of the Dead celebration as an important
Hispanic/Latino cultural event.
 Learning Activities:
• View video from Teacher Tube called Día de los Muertos
• Complete graphic organizer called Taking Note – Día de los Muertos
• Discuss the history of The Day of the Dead and how it compares to other traditions
• Students will work in small groups of 4-5, randomly selected, to research and create a
Día de los Muertos display inspired by what they learned from the video and the
traditional Day of the Dead offerings.
• Students can access images from websites which are related to the concept of Day of
the Dead to prepare their presentations.

Assessment for presentation of Día de los Muertos:

Communication (50pts) – Accuracy (20Pts) – Effort (20pts) – Team Pronunciation (10pts)

Individual Scoring Team Scoring Scoring individual scoring
3 Communication was All information Exceeds all expectations, No interference, correct
clear was accurate no English used pronunciation
2 Communication was Information was Well-Focused, no English Slight problem with
mostly clear mostly accurate used pronunciation
1 Communication was Information was Unfocused – some Serious problems with
partially clear slightly accurate English used pronunciation
0 Communication was Information was in Little effort from Pronunciation extremely
unclear accurate presenters, off task, lots difficult for the presenter
of English used