Many Spanish teachers will soon begin learning about Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead) and its related celebrations throughout América Latina.
One hard part about this time of year is navigating conversations with caretakers who aren’t sure that they want their children to participate in lessons about Día de Muertos or any other celebration, especially one with religious/spiritual elements. During a time in which there is already heightened conflict about what is being taught in schools, we want to make it a little easier for you to communicate with caretakers about your plans for teaching about Día de Muertos.
Use our editable Caretaker letter
Teachers who have already purchased our original Día de Muertos lesson plan pack and Hybrid packs, you can re-download them to find a Parent Letter template. The letter is fully editable and includes information about the celebration as well as translated versions of all of the texts and discussion questions from the materials. You don’t have time to put together resources like this for your lessons, so we are so happy to be able to support you in this way.
Download a generic Día de Muertos caretaker letter template
Not using our Día de Muertos plans? No problem! You can download the letter template in our Subscriber Library. Look in the Holidays and Celebrations folder!
For any families that end up opting out of lessons about el Día de Muertos, whether for faith-based or trauma-based reasons, you can check out our Alternative lesson plans that can be completed independently and are focused on learning about an amazing little creature, the Monarch Butterfly!
Is it okay for students to opt out of cultural lessons?
Teaching for interculturality is something that I am very passionate about, and respecting the personal beliefs and boundaries of students and families is another. I invite you to read and consider the perspectives I share in this blog post from 2020 as you decide for yourself how to navigate the idea of students opting out of cultural lessons.
More Spanish Class resources related to Día de Muertos:
