99+ Dia De Los Muertos Project Ideas For School Students

John Dear

Dia de los muertos project ideas for school help students explore a meaningful Mexican holiday that celebrates family members who have passed away. This special event takes place each year on November 1 and 2. During the Day of the Dead, families honor their loved ones by creating bright altars, making decorations, and sharing stories.

In class, students can take part in fun, creative activities that help them learn about this rich tradition. They can craft paper flowers, paint sugar skulls, or design small altars of their own. These projects give kids a hands-on way to see how Mexican families celebrate life and remembrance.

By joining in these activities, students learn about a different culture while making colorful, meaningful art. Many schools use this holiday to teach lessons about respect, family, and cultural understanding.

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Dia De Los Muertos Project Ideas For School Students

Art & Crafts Projects

  1. Make colorful paper marigold flowers using orange and yellow tissue paper to decorate your classroom altar beautifully.
  2. Paint sugar skull designs on rocks with bright colors and patterns to create special decorations for remembering loved ones.
  3. Create paper plate masks decorated like calaveras with glitter, sequins, and markers to wear during Day celebrations.
  4. Build a mini ofrenda using a shoebox with photos, candles, flowers, and favorite foods of people you remember.
  5. Design papel picado banners by folding colorful tissue paper and cutting out skull and flower patterns carefully.
  6. Make clay sugar skulls using air-dry clay, then paint them with colorful designs and shiny decorations afterward.
  7. Create marigold garlands by stringing orange and yellow paper flowers together to hang around your classroom doorway.
  8. Paint wooden crosses with bright colors and designs to place on your ofrenda as memorial decorations.
  9. Design personalized bookmarks shaped like sugar skulls with colorful markers and laminate them for lasting use.
  10. Make skeleton puppets using brass fasteners to connect paper bones so they dance and move around.

Writing & Storytelling Projects

  1. Write a story about your ancestor’s life and what made them special to share with classmates.
  2. Create a memory book filled with drawings and stories about family members you want to remember forever.
  3. Write poems about celebrating life and death in both English and Spanish to share during presentations.
  4. Design greeting cards with Day of the Dead themes to send to family members remembering loved ones.
  5. Create a comic strip showing how families celebrate this holiday with altars, food, and cemetery visits.
  6. Write interview questions and talk to grandparents about their memories of celebrating this special Mexican tradition.
  7. Make a journal documenting your own Day of the Dead celebration preparations and family traditions this year.
  8. Create acrostic poems using words like OFRENDA, MARIGOLD, or ANCESTOR to describe the holiday’s meaning.
  9. Write thank-you letters to people who have helped you, even if they’ve passed away already.
  10. Design a newspaper about Day of the Dead history, traditions, foods, and how different families celebrate today.

Food & Cooking Projects

  1. Bake pan de muerto bread with orange flavor and decorate the top with bone-shaped dough pieces.
  2. Make sugar skull candies using molds and decorating them with colorful icing and edible glitter designs.
  3. Create a recipe book of traditional Day of the Dead foods like tamales, mole, and hot chocolate.
  4. Prepare fruit salads using oranges and other favorite fruits that are traditionally placed on ofrendas yearly.
  5. Make Mexican hot chocolate from scratch with cinnamon and vanilla to serve at your classroom celebration.
  6. Design edible sugar skull cookies and decorate them with royal icing in bright, beautiful patterns.
  7. Create a tasting menu where classmates sample different traditional foods while learning their cultural significance.
  8. Make candy calaveras using sugar paste and pressing them into skull molds to harden overnight beautifully.
  9. Prepare traditional atole drink using masa, water, cinnamon, and vanilla for a warm, comforting beverage.
  10. Design a cookbook with easy recipes kids can make to celebrate and honor their ancestors properly.

Music & Performance Projects

  1. Learn traditional Mexican folk songs about death and remembrance to perform for your class celebration.
  2. Create musical instruments like maracas decorated with Day of the Dead designs to use during performances.
  3. Choreograph a skeleton dance where students dress as calaveras and perform traditional Mexican dance moves.
  4. Write your own song lyrics about remembering loved ones set to familiar tunes everyone knows.
  5. Research mariachi music history and perform a simple piece using classroom instruments for your friends.
  6. Create a rhythm game using clapping patterns inspired by traditional Mexican music celebrating this holiday.
  7. Design costumes representing different Day of the Dead characters like La Catrina for a class play.
  8. Learn the Mexican Hat Dance and perform it wearing traditional clothing during your school celebration.
  9. Create a musical story combining narration, songs, and instruments telling about Day of the Dead traditions.
  10. Record a podcast episode interviewing family members about their favorite memories and celebration traditions annually.

Science & Nature Projects

  1. Study marigold flowers by planting seeds, observing growth, and learning why they’re important for this holiday.
  2. Research monarch butterfly migration to Mexico during Day of the Dead and create an informative poster.
  3. Create a display explaining how sugar is made and why it’s important for making skull decorations.
  4. Study the science of decomposition respectfully to understand natural cycles of life and death better.
  5. Research how different cultures preserve memories and compare them to Mexican Day of the Dead traditions.
  6. Create a weather chart tracking November conditions in Mexico when families celebrate this special holiday.
  7. Study the five senses and design an ofrenda that appeals to sight, smell, taste, touch, and hearing.
  8. Research native Mexican plants like marigolds, amaranth, and cacao used in traditional holiday celebrations historically.
  9. Create a moon phase calendar showing when Day of the Dead occurs and tracking lunar cycles together.
  10. Study traditional natural dyes used in Mexican crafts and experiment making colors from plants yourself.

Technology & Digital Projects

  1. Design a digital photo album with pictures of family members and stories about their lives shared together.
  2. Create a video documentary interviewing family members about their Day of the Dead memories and traditions.
  3. Make a slideshow presentation teaching classmates about different Day of the Dead symbols and their meanings.
  4. Design a digital invitation for a classroom Day of the Dead celebration using colorful graphics and text.
  5. Create a virtual museum tour showing different ofrendas and explaining what each item represents culturally.
  6. Record family recipes as video tutorials showing how to make traditional Day of the Dead foods.
  7. Design a website or blog sharing Day of the Dead history, crafts, and family celebration photos.
  8. Create a digital collage using photos, drawings, and text celebrating people you want to remember.
  9. Make an animated short film showing how sugar skulls are made from start to finish.
  10. Design a QR code scavenger hunt teaching facts about Day of the Dead around your school.

History & Culture Projects

  1. Research Aztec beliefs about death and create a poster showing how traditions evolved into modern celebrations.
  2. Make a timeline showing Day of the Dead history from ancient times to today’s celebrations worldwide.
  3. Create a map showing where Day of the Dead is celebrated and how traditions differ across regions.
  4. Research La Catrina character’s history and design your own elegant skeleton lady drawing with fancy clothes.
  5. Study how Indigenous Mexican beliefs blended with Spanish traditions to create today’s Day of the Dead.
  6. Create a museum exhibit displaying different ofrenda items and explaining their historical and cultural significance.
  7. Research famous Mexican artists like Diego Rivera who painted Day of the Dead scenes in their artwork.
  8. Make a Venn diagram comparing Day of the Dead with Halloween showing similarities and important differences.
  9. Study Mexican independence history and explain why honoring ancestors is important to Mexican culture today.
  10. Create a cultural comparison poster showing how different countries remember and honor deceased loved ones.

Community & Social Projects

  1. Organize a classroom ofrenda where everyone contributes photos and items remembering special people in lives.
  2. Plan a Day of the Dead celebration for your school with decorations, food, music, and activities.
  3. Create care packages with Day of the Dead crafts to donate to nursing homes for residents.
  4. Organize a cemetery cleanup project to help maintain local burial grounds and honor all community members.
  5. Host a cultural exchange where families share their Day of the Dead traditions and favorite celebration memories.
  6. Create greeting cards for hospital patients or elderly neighbors to brighten their day with colorful designs.
  7. Plan a community art show displaying student-made Day of the Dead artwork for families to enjoy.
  8. Organize a bake sale selling pan de muerto and donating profits to a local charity organization.
  9. Create a gratitude wall where students write about people who’ve positively impacted their lives significantly.
  10. Plan a multicultural fair booth teaching visitors about Day of the Dead through activities and information.

Reading & Literature Projects

  1. Read Mexican folktales about death and the afterlife, then illustrate your favorite story scenes beautifully.
  2. Create a book report on stories about Day of the Dead traditions written by Mexican authors.
  3. Write book reviews of children’s books about Day of the Dead to help classmates find good reads.
  4. Design a library display featuring books about Mexican culture, death traditions, and celebrating ancestors respectfully.
  5. Read poetry by Mexican poets about life and death, then discuss their meanings in class.
  6. Create illustrated character cards for figures from Day of the Dead legends and traditional stories shared.
  7. Host a read-aloud session sharing Day of the Dead picture books with younger students at school.
  8. Make bookmarks featuring Day of the Dead artwork and quotes from Mexican literature to distribute freely.
  9. Write your own folktale explaining why marigolds guide spirits home during this special holiday celebration.
  10. Create a reading corner decorated with Day of the Dead themes where students enjoy Mexican literature.

Math & Games Projects

  1. Create symmetrical sugar skull designs using graph paper to practice geometry and pattern-making skills together.
  2. Design a Day of the Dead board game teaching facts about traditions while players move around.
  3. Practice counting and sorting by organizing ofrenda items by color, size, or type mathematically.
  4. Create word problems about buying supplies for ofrendas to practice addition, subtraction, and money skills.
  5. Design geometric papel picado patterns using shapes, symmetry, and fraction concepts in colorful paper.
  6. Create a Day of the Dead bingo game using vocabulary words and pictures to play together.
  7. Measure ingredients for traditional recipes to practice fractions, measurements, and following directions carefully in cooking.
  8. Design a calendar marking important Day of the Dead dates while practicing time and date concepts.
  9. Create pattern necklaces using Day of the Dead colored beads following specific mathematical sequences repeatedly.
  10. Make a class graph showing how many students celebrate Day of the Dead and their favorite traditions. 

Summary

Dia de los muertos project ideas for school help students learn about an important Mexican holiday held each November. This celebration honors family members who have died.

Students can make bright paper flowers called marigolds, paint sugar skulls with colorful designs, or build small altars called ofrendas. These altars can show photos, favorite foods, and small keepsakes that remind people of loved ones.

Teachers often show students how to cut papel picado banners that hang during the festival. Students may also paint faces like calaveras or write short poems about memories.

These hands-on projects let children see how Mexican families remember and celebrate those who came before them. By doing these activities, students learn about another culture while making art they can share at home with their families to honor their loved ones together.

John Dear

I am a creative professional with over 5 years of experience in coming up with project ideas. I'm great at brainstorming, doing market research, and analyzing what’s possible to develop innovative and impactful projects. I also excel in collaborating with teams, managing project timelines, and ensuring that every idea turns into a successful outcome. Let's work together to make your next project a success!