El Dia De Los Muertos

On Wednesday, October 28^th, students in Mrs. Brehm and Mrs. Rekstead’s Spanish three classes celebrated the “day of the dead” by creating altars for their chosen favorite deceased celebrity or well-known public figure. Dozens of colorful and decorative cubicles were set up and the pairs of students explained their presentations and described tidbits of the lives of the deceased. The kicker? The presentations were all in Spanish. These Spanish 3 students rattled off lines of the Spanish language like pros, stunning the younger classmen who meandered amongst the expanse of ornamented altars.  Michael Jackson, John Lennon, Marilyn Monroe, Chris Farley, Billy Mays and even Mufasa from the Lion King showed up within the colorful displays.

The Day of the Dead is a Mexican Celebration that takes place in early November and invites the dead to return to earth for the celebration so their families and friends can honor and celebrate their lives.  In a traditional Day of the Dead altar, a three tiered tribute is set up in a home or meeting place and decorated with ornaments related to the deceased. Generally this includes photos of the departed, their favorite foods, candles, items from their lives and many skulls and skeletons. The skull, or calavera, is the symbol of Day of the Dead. It can be seen plastered across posters and decorations, and is a necessity on the altars.

On Wednesday, the displays were vibrant and eye-catching. Some students used vivid colors and pictures, while others went above and beyond the visual expectations and decorated their cubicles with objects relating to their person, music and food. Different classes from the yellow pod wandered around, looking at the displays and listening to the presentations about the famous and deceased. The whole ordeal was exciting and colorful and linked a lesson about this special Mexican holiday with an opportunity for creativity and practice with presentations. Needless to say, the East Ridge Spanish 3 students stepped up to and over the line of expectation.

By: Megan Snyder