Before viewing the ofrenda, the Kindergarteners read a picture book called Mi Familia Calaca/My Skeleton Family, which introduces family member vocabulary and the imagery and playfulness of the calacas. After exploring the holiday in class, teachers Nancy DíEcclesiis and Kavita Rekhi prepared a scavenger hunt for the students in which they were encouraged to find particular objects on the ofrenda, such as cempasúchil/marigolds, calaveras/skeletons, and pan de muertos/bread of the dead.

Lori has collected calacas from all over Mexico: Guanajuato, Puebla, Oaxaca, Cuernavaca, León and of course, Mexico City. In her collection of over 50 pieces, there are calacas made of clay, paper maché, tin, wood, and mixed media. It is hard for Lori to pick a favorite calaca, but if pressured to do so, she might choose the soccer player, who is depicted mid-cabezazo (hitting a header). She loves the way this calaca shows an entirely cotidian act, filled with energy and life while being performed by a skeleton, who is clearly representative of death. It is this existence of two opposites in one image that intrigues Lori most about the holiday and its art.

The Dalton community thanks Lori for sharing her passion, knowledge, and for sharing her collection.

Story submitted by Lori Langer de Ramirez, Director of World and Classical Languages