The Day of the Dead is a holiday where people remember and celebrate those who have passed. I like the idea of celebrating the people you knew that have passed. Being with loved ones and reminiscing. The gatherings, celebrations, family and food are also joined by these amazing decorated skulls everywhere and made from sugar, paint and all sorts of creative things. They are beautiful and very inspiring. With this day coming up in a few weeks I thought it was a good opportunity to teach the kids about other traditions and holidays, so we made skulls.
Packing peanuts are a wonderful material to create with. Did you know they are biodegradable and will stick together with just water? Yes, they are wonderful.
I used glue for this project just because I wanted to keep that bone structure look of the skull.
We stacked and stacked until we got just the look we had in mind.
Then we pulled out some beads and sequins and decorated our skulls. They came out pretty neat and we learned a few things too. A good afternoon for us!
From Wikipedia, if you want a few facts about Day of the Dead:
Day of the Dead (
Spanish:
DÃa de los Muertos) is a
Mexican
holiday celebrated throughout Mexico and around the world in other
cultures. The holiday focuses on gatherings of family and friends to
pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. It is
particularly celebrated in Mexico, where it is a national holiday, and
all banks are closed. The celebration takes place on November 1, in
connection with the
Catholic holidays of
All Saints' Day and
All Souls' Day (November 2). Traditions connected with the holiday include building private altars honoring the deceased using
sugar skulls,
marigolds,
and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed and visiting
graves with these as gifts. They also leave possessions of the deceased.
