Kids Crafts – Day of the Dead Skulls
I love Halloween. But, one of my favorite celebrations every year is the Mexican tradition of Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), honoring our ancestors, heritage and the renewal of life.
This gorgeous celebration is one that we had the honor of participating in for years when we lived in California – learning the meaning behind this folk tradition and experiencing the spectacle of art that comes with it.
We have spent a lot of time dealing with death in our house this year, with the loss of Linden and my grandmother. So, taking the time to honor them through craft seemed like a great way to talk a little about the people in our lives who have passed away without getting too weepy.
On the less serious side, the great skull masks that form the iconic imagery of Dia de los Muertos celebrations are a serious wow in the kid universe.
Finding ways to recreate the colors, textures and unique spookiness of them is way up there on the list for kiddos who dig bones.
This project was easy and fun. We ended up hanging the skulls all over the place here at OBE HQ. Plus, we got to talk about skulls, which was super cool.
Here’s what you need:
- Halloween-like craft paper (I like the more retro, old skool papers), construction paper or felt (for a seriously tactile, fun skull project)
- Glue stick
- Buttons
- Scissors
Directions:
1. Cut out a series of large and small skulls,
2. Cut out some noses, mouths and eyes - all kinds of decoration,
3. Paste the little skull on top of the big skull,
4. Take the buttons and paste on the eyes, and
5. Then go for the mouth, the nose, etc.
Tape them up in random locales, make a collection for a Dia de los Muertos alter or hang these skeletal remains up with string.
They are super fun, very easy and awesome for talking about Mexican culture, folk art and family traditions.
Happy Halloween!
Category: ARTS & LITERACY, Crafts
About the Author (Author Profile)
Robin Rivers is Our Big Earth’s Publisher and Sr. Partner. Able to survive on coffee alone. Often can be found leaping tall buildings with the help of great friends. Predisposed to odd hats and the color orange. In love with imagination, her kids and that crazy guy who married her.Subscribe
If you enjoyed this article, subscribe to receive more just like it.
Comments (8)
Trackback URL | Comments RSS Feed
Sites That Link to this Post
- Hottest Nature Crafts of 2009 | Our Big Earth | December 22, 2009
Wow, very cool. We are all over this craft. So many material options… Thanks, Robin.
Robin
Where do you get all these cool papers??
This will have to wait until we are back home but oh my, my kids are going to go at this like flies on prawns in the hot sun!
Bring on the skulls!
Thank you so much.
The papers are from Scrapbook Central.
I love them:)
Oooh, I love this craft! And it’s so easy too! Liam was born on November 2nd, so I think this might be a good birthday-party decorating idea for years to come (when he actually knows what a birthday is.
I love these! And not-so-crafty me could actually do this one with my kids! I have fantasized about making these cookies for a couple of years now but I think its miles out of my league.
http://community.livejournal.com/craftgrrl/2006/10/29/
That link didn’t work but if you paste it in you’ll find some amazing Dia de los Muertos sugar (cookie) skulls.