Laura Lee

Day of the Dead Activities for Spanish Class

Five fun resources for teaching Day of the Dead vocabulary in Spanish class!

Looking for teaching ideas for Día de Los Muertos? Here are five fun Day of the Dead activities for Spanish class!

Day of the Dead Activities for Spanish Class

Post vocabulary.

Post a Day of the Dead Word Wall to give students an instant visual resource for support as they learn about the Day of the Dead.

Word walls are a fantastic way to build vocabulary and support learners! Fill classroom bulletin boards with meaningful vocabulary that visually supports students. I love using word walls because it makes the language visible. Students are drawn to it and curious about the new words.

You'll love having vocabulary posted on your walls so you can refer to it throughout the lesson. Students develop a greater sense of independence and depend less on you for support! Excellent comprehensible input.

spanish vocabulary for teaching about day of the dead — Spanish Day of the Dead Word Wall

"I change my bulletin board for every holiday. Students love to see the words & pictures"

Print the word wall on heavy paper or cardstock, cut, and laminate. Post in a prominent area of the classroom. Have students look at the words and make a list of cognates or words they already know (like altar, familia) or make a list of difficult words. Choose several words (3 a day) that are important for students to know. Have students illustrate vocabulary, write simple sentences or stories. Are you using word walls in your classroom?

Find my favorite cardstock on Amazon!

Check out these word walls for more ideas to fill your classroom with meaningful vocabulary!

Define vocabulary.

Need a fun way to introduce vocabulary? Have students "define and find" Day of the Dead vocabulary in a word search. This word search raises the thinking level by having students first define the word, then find it. Fun, low-stress activity that improves word recognition and spelling. Students don't even realize they're learning!

Use this Day of the Dead Word Search as a quick warm-up at the beginning of class. Set a timer for ten minutes and have students first define the words and then find them. Ask students which words are cognates. Pronounce the words. Write sentences using the new vocabulary. Save the puzzle for later to use as a fast finisher activity.

Day of the Dead Activities for Spanish Class - Spanish Vocabulary Word Search — Spanish Day of the Dead Word Search

"My students love word searches."

Play a Bingo Game

Learn Day of the Dead vocabulary with this challenging listening comprehension activity. Fun way to practice and reinforce vocabulary. Not your average bingo game! Read clues in Spanish phrases that describe or define each word. Students listen to the clue and search for the image it is describing. The hard work has been done for you.

Sample clues:

"una planta con flores de color amarillo o anaranjado" (el cempasúchil)

"un objeto que da luz, una decoración en un altar" (la vela)

day of the dead images on a bingo card — Spanish Day of the Dead Bingo

"This worked great for our class celebration!"

Click here for Google Slides version!

Play "I Spy."

Yo Veo is a fun way to introduce or review vocabulary. Students use a checklist to search for 17 items related to Día de Los Muertos. Work individually, in pairs, or project onto whiteboard for a group activity. Use the images to promote conversation about Day of the Dead.

colorful images for day of the dead with list of spanish vocabulary words to find — Spanish I Spy Activty

"Fun, engaging way to get my competitive middle school

Spanish students to engage with Día de los Muertos!"

Color by Number Activities

Use this Day of the Dead calavera or altar as fun coloring pages to review basic numbers and colors. Low-stress activities for beginners. Makes a beautiful bulletin board display to decorate your classroom for the holiday.

a sugar skull color by number activity in spanish — Day of the Dead Color by Number

"Beautiful way to teach colors and culture!"

Day of the Dead Bundle

Bring cultural content into your classroom. Find the activities posted above in a money saving Day of the Dead Bundle.

spanish games and activities for day of the dead — Spanish Day of the Dead Activities

"Perfect activity for el Día de los Muertos. No prep needed.

My students loved working on the activities."

Find the resources you need to enrich and support your unit on Día de Los Muertos and make learning fun! Hope you've found meaningful holiday activities that you and your students LOVE!

Happy teaching.