Día de los Muertos Activities: Videos and Questions for Middle and High School

Día de los Muertos in Mexico: A Celebration of Memory and Meaning

Explore how Día de los Muertos is celebrated in Mexico, from its Indigenous and Catholic influences to traditions such as ofrendas, cemetery visits, sugar skulls and pan de muerto. The videos also show how films like Coco and Spectre can shape how people see and celebrate the holiday.

Reflecting on Día de los Muertos Traditions

1. How did Spectre help inspire a real Día de los Muertos parade in Mexico City? What does that example tell us about the influence of movies?
2. What examples does the video give of Indigenous and Catholic influences on Día de los Muertos?
3. What do offerings at home altars and cemeteries tell us about how families remember loved ones who have died?
4. How are sugar skulls and pan de muerto used during Día de los Muertos?
5. What was La Catrina originally meant to criticize, and how has her meaning changed?
6. The video describes different ways Día de los Muertos is celebrated in Mexico. Which differences stand out, and why should we be careful about generalizing from them?
7. What surprised you most about how Día de los Muertos is celebrated, and why? (Optional reflection or exit ticket question)

China’s Hungry Ghost Festival: Honoring Spirits Through Ritual

Introduce students to China’s Hungry Ghost Festival, a tradition shaped by Buddhist and Taoist beliefs as well as local customs. Families and communities honor ancestors and care for wandering spirits through food offerings, burning incense and joss paper, and performances. To save time, start the video at 0:45.

Understanding the Beliefs Behind Ghost Month

1. Who is honored during the Hungry Ghost Festival, and how does the video distinguish ancestors from wandering spirits?
2. How does the story of Mulian help explain the importance of caring for the dead?
3. Which activities do some people avoid during Ghost Month, and what beliefs are behind those precautions?
4. How do food offerings, joss paper and performances show care for the spirits?
5. What role do paper lanterns play at the end of Ghost Month, and how are they believed to guide spirits back to their realm?

Guatemala’s Kite Festival: Honoring Ancestors with Art in the Sky

In Sumpango, Guatemala, families and community groups mark All Saints’ Day on Nov. 1 with giant handmade kites, displayed or flown to honor and communicate with ancestors. This lesson introduces students to the giant-kite tradition and explores how the designs also carry messages about human rights, cultural survival and other issues. To save time, start the video at 2:20 and stop around 6:20, before the travel advice.

What the Kites in Guatemala Tell Us About Culture

1. How does Sumpango’s Giant Kite Festival help people honor and connect with their ancestors on All Saints’ Day?
2. What do the kites’ themes and messages tell us about issues their makers care about today?
3. The video says the origins of the giant kites are debated. What explanation does it offer, and what remains uncertain?
4. What does the time and craftsmanship involved in making these kites tell you about the festival?
5. What did you find most interesting or surprising about this celebration, and why?

Ireland’s Samhain Festival: The Celtic Roots of Halloween

Many familiar Halloween customs in Ireland, including masks, carved turnip lanterns and leaving food for deceased relatives, are tied to Samhain, an ancient festival marking the start of winter. Students explore how remembrance, the harvest and hopes for protection shaped these traditions. To save time, start the video at 0:30.

Samhain, Spirits, and Seasonal Change

1. Why might people have left food for deceased family members on Halloween night? What does this suggest about their beliefs?
2. What materials were used to make homemade Halloween masks, and how do they compare with masks often used today?
3. How were turnips used at Halloween in Ireland, and why have pumpkins become more common?
4. What harvest foods and games does the presenter describe, and how do they connect to the season?
5. How did people try to protect their homes and families at Halloween, and why might protection have mattered as winter began?

Obon in Oregon: Honoring Ancestors and Celebrating Community

Obon is a Japanese Buddhist tradition that honors the spirits of ancestors through music, dance, and gathering. In Portland, Oregon, Japanese Americans of all generations come together each summer to celebrate this festival, preserve cultural identity, and strengthen community ties.

Obon and the Power of Cultural Memory

1. How do Japanese Americans in Portland celebrate Obon, and what does the dancing mean to the people in the video?
2. What role did the Issei, the first generation of Japanese immigrants, play in bringing Obon to the United States?
3. What does one fourth-generation speaker say people misunderstand about Japanese American identity? How does Obon help her feel connected?
4. What history does the Minidoka Swing Band help preserve, and why did dancing matter to young people in the incarceration camps?
5. Why does one dancer make a point of dancing near children at Obon? What does she hope to pass on?

Honoring the Dead Around the World: What Do These Traditions Teach Us?

From Día de los Muertos in Mexico to Obon in Portland, communities remember people who have died through rituals shaped by their own histories and beliefs. As students look across the videos, ask them to notice what connects these traditions and what makes each one distinct.

Which detail from the videos stayed with your students? Invite them to discuss what it helped them understand. If you try this lesson, share what sparked conversation in your classroom in the comments below.