In late October, many Spanish classes typically make ofrendas or sugar skulls—common traditions in Mexico—to celebrate Day of the Dead. This year, however, Honors Spanish 4/5 teacher Heather Baker decided to change things up.

Baker’s students worked for a week to make their own barriletes which are giant kites, made in Guatemala, to communicate with the dead. Many have messages hidden in the layers of the kites. Traditional Guatemalan barriletes are massive, with some of them spanning up to 60 feet across. On the Day of the Dead, Guatemalan skies are filled with these massive kites. 

“I wanted to do something different with my Honors 4/5 class to celebrate El Día de los Muertos,” Baker said. “It is very common to celebrate with more of the Mexican traditions of creating ofrendas, and I wanted to tie in another country that also celebrates El Día de los Muertos and how they celebrate the holiday.”

The students’ barriletes were significantly smaller than the traditional Guatemalan kites, to make them more manageable. The barriletes were made of large sheets of paper, decorated with a variety of other materials such as paint, tissue paper, marker and streamers. 

“We used paint, glitter, modge podge, glue, streamers and a photo,” junior Julia Wegiel said. “Our kite represents everything about Day of the Dead in Guatemala: happiness, celebration and joy.”

The students worked in groups of four to six and spent a week planning and creating their barriletes. They enjoyed working together in teams to create a unique project. Many groups used the traditional vibrant colors, marigold flowers and butterflies in their barriletes. 

“We started by layering the outside with paper flowers and we attempted to keep the color scheme throughout the project,” junior Garrett Wilcoxen said. “In the end, we came up with the idea of placing the flowers on top of the borders.”

Other groups made their barilettes more representative of our current society. One group made a Millard West themed barrilete, representing both the cultural impact the school has on students’ lives and the former students who have died. 

“We colored our kite completely in marker,” junior Mason Koch said. “It was really tedious to just color for three days, but it was fun to just hang out and listen to music and just kind of vibe for a few days.”

Baker sent a Google Form to staff members, allowing them to vote for their favorite. The winning barrilete was the skeleton mariachi themed barrilete created by Wilcoxen, Thompson, Baron, and Cavelier

“The mariachi band itself is symbolic of Day of the Dead ideologies,” Cavalier said. “They stand for happiness, even in times of despair. We added marigolds to our barrilete. Marigolds represent the sun so that deceased family members can make their way back to earth. And finally we added monarch butterflies to complete the bartilete. These butterflies are believed to hold the spirits of those who are deceased.”

Overall, the project was a huge success, leaving Baker happy with the results. The project allowed students to express their creativity and learn about the unique cultural traditions of a hispanic country.