Tips for observing Día de los Muertos from a Spanish immersion school

EAGAN, Minn. -- A holiday honoring loved ones no longer with us is just a few days away.

Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is when Latin cultures pay respects to family and friends who have died in a warm and loving way.

But we also learned it's one all cultures can celebrate using Latin traditions and some of their own.

Playtime at Tierra Encantada quickly morphs from fall-out-of-your-seat fun to delicious learning lessons. Minutes into racing around the playground, kids speed over to a table where conchas are being served.

"Que color es este pan," Liz Herrera asked the kids. "Amarillo," they answered with glee given that there was yellow topping on the sweet bread.

Tierra Encantada is a Spanish immersion daycare and preschool with several locations across Minnesota. Many of the children come from English-speaking households, but Spanish is the primary language spoken by staff and children.

"One of our core values here at the organization is the belief that our differences make us better and so diversity is a core difference," said Erica Taylor, marketing director. She also has two children at one of the locations.

Where vocabulary is one part of the education, mealtime is the other.

"This reminds me of my childhood," said Herrera, a center director of Tierra Encantada's Hiawatha location in Minneapolis, as lunch was being prepped in the kitchen.

The plates consisted of a salad containing lettuce, beans, and ground turkey. Students also got a side of strawberries and tortilla chips.

"We want them to get the essence from the food," Herrera added.

Essence means the smell, taste, texture and sometimes a story on why the ingredients came together.

"The whole concept is to expand pallets, learning how to say yes to food, try new things," said Taylor.

A sweet assignment recently had kids making sugar skulls in time for Día de los Muertos. It's a tradition for the holiday along with honoring loved ones who have died by cooking what they loved to eat.

"With those meals, you bring memories back to your minds and you can share the stories you had behind that traditional foods," said Herrera.

For families hoping to incorporate Latin culture on the Day of the Dead, Herrera suggests starting the day with arroz on leche, also known as rice pudding, that features cinnamon. Tamales would be a fun choice for dinner since it's a recipe the whole family can make together. "You create memories chatting while making food, it's an important part," Herrera said.

Taylor also suggests picking a meal that carries special meaning in your home while making sure your kids know the history behind it.

"Taking time to look and say what are our traditions? What are the meals that are loved by family members that are no longer with is? Did grandma have a favorite cookie recipe that she always did," she said.

It inspires conversation around the table, a key component at Tierra Encantada that they hope the children bring home.

Tierra Encantada has recipes to try on its blog. Click here for more.