Curriculum Corner: El Día de los Muertos

Welcome to the Curriculum Corner! This week, we learn about the boys' study of El Día de los Muertos in the Upper School.
During the month of October, Upper School Spanish students studied El Día de los Muertos. Day of the Dead is a Mexican holiday when family and friends gather to pray for and remember those who have died. Common traditions include decorating the tombs of the deceased and preparing an altar at home in memory of loved ones.

Cathedral School students read a fictional short story called Tumba, which takes places in Mexico. The text introduced students to Alex, a teenager who is nervous about the holiday because his grandmother talks to spirits. The discovery of his grandfather’s sketchbook takes him on an adventure to find hidden treasure.

Sixth and seventh graders made traditional decorations for El Día de los Muertos, including papel picado (decorative paper) and calaveras (skulls). Seventh and eighth graders made their own altars to remember a hero or loved one, and presented them in class to practice their speaking skills in Spanish.

The celebration culminated on November 2 with a visit to the altar that Lower School boys prepared in the school lobby. Upper School students sampled pan de muerto, a typical sweet bread for the holiday, from a local Mexican bakery in the Mission. ¡Qué rico!

If you would like to learn more about the boys' celebration of El Día de los Muertos or Spanish in the Upper School, please contact Lee Bruner.
 
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Cathedral School for Boys

Located in San Francisco, California, Cathedral School for Boys is an independent elementary school for boys in Kindergarten – Grade 8. Our mission is to provide an excellent education through intellectual inquiry and rigor that is centered in the Episcopal tradition and is respectful of and welcoming to people of all religious traditions and beliefs.