View in EDS

Reclaiming Cultural Traditions Through Making: Creating Ofrendas to Explore Día de Los Muertos.

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Title: Reclaiming Cultural Traditions Through Making: Creating Ofrendas to Explore Día de Los Muertos.
Authors: Rouse, Rob1 r.rouse@uq.edu.au, Torralba, Juan, Olvera, Anthony, Garcia, Kimberly, Garcia, Maurilio
Source: Science Scope. Sep/Oct2025, Vol. 48 Issue 5, p17-25. 9p.
Subject Terms: *STEM education, *Middle schools, *Contextual learning, Makerspaces, Cultural property, Memorials, Engineering design
Abstract: In this article we describe a culturally relevant activity in which middle schoolers blended learning about Día de los Muertos with using the tools and technologies in a school makerspace to complete an integrated STEM project. Our motivation was to explicitly emphasize the traditions and cultural significance of Día de los Muertos, a holiday which is often confused with Halloween. At the same time, we sought to provide students with opportunities to engage with science and engineering content and practices throughout the project. Specifically, students designed and built ofrendas (i.e., altars) in honor of loved ones who had passed away. To do this, they engaged in a design cycle in which they defined the challenge, brainstormed solutions, sketched ideas, prototyped solutions, constructed models based on prototype feedback, and showcased their final models. During each stage, students reflected on the process. Three students who participated in the project also contributed to authoring the article. Next steps for continuing to incorporate culturally relevant projects into middle school makerspaces are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Science Scope is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Education Research Complete
FullText Text:
  Availability: 0
Header DbId: ehh
DbLabel: Education Research Complete
An: 187564702
AccessLevel: 6
PubType: Academic Journal
PubTypeId: academicJournal
PreciseRelevancyScore: 0
IllustrationInfo
Items – Name: Title
  Label: Title
  Group: Ti
  Data: Reclaiming Cultural Traditions Through Making: Creating Ofrendas to Explore Día de Los Muertos.
– Name: Author
  Label: Authors
  Group: Au
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Rouse%2C+Rob%22">Rouse, Rob</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo><i> r.rouse@uq.edu.au</i><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Torralba%2C+Juan%22">Torralba, Juan</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Olvera%2C+Anthony%22">Olvera, Anthony</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Garcia%2C+Kimberly%22">Garcia, Kimberly</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Garcia%2C+Maurilio%22">Garcia, Maurilio</searchLink>
– Name: TitleSource
  Label: Source
  Group: Src
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Science+Scope%22">Science Scope</searchLink>. Sep/Oct2025, Vol. 48 Issue 5, p17-25. 9p.
– Name: Subject
  Label: Subject Terms
  Group: Su
  Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22STEM+education%22">STEM education</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Middle+schools%22">Middle schools</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Contextual+learning%22">Contextual learning</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Makerspaces%22">Makerspaces</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Cultural+property%22">Cultural property</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Memorials%22">Memorials</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Engineering+design%22">Engineering design</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: In this article we describe a culturally relevant activity in which middle schoolers blended learning about Día de los Muertos with using the tools and technologies in a school makerspace to complete an integrated STEM project. Our motivation was to explicitly emphasize the traditions and cultural significance of Día de los Muertos, a holiday which is often confused with Halloween. At the same time, we sought to provide students with opportunities to engage with science and engineering content and practices throughout the project. Specifically, students designed and built ofrendas (i.e., altars) in honor of loved ones who had passed away. To do this, they engaged in a design cycle in which they defined the challenge, brainstormed solutions, sketched ideas, prototyped solutions, constructed models based on prototype feedback, and showcased their final models. During each stage, students reflected on the process. Three students who participated in the project also contributed to authoring the article. Next steps for continuing to incorporate culturally relevant projects into middle school makerspaces are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Science Scope is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=ehh&AN=187564702
RecordInfo BibRecord:
  BibEntity:
    Identifiers:
      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1080/08872376.2025.2537624
    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 9
        StartPage: 17
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: STEM education
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Middle schools
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Contextual learning
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Makerspaces
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Cultural property
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Memorials
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Engineering design
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Reclaiming Cultural Traditions Through Making: Creating Ofrendas to Explore Día de Los Muertos.
        Type: main
  BibRelationships:
    HasContributorRelationships:
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Rouse, Rob
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Torralba, Juan
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Olvera, Anthony
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Garcia, Kimberly
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Garcia, Maurilio
    IsPartOfRelationships:
      – BibEntity:
          Dates:
            – D: 01
              M: 09
              Text: Sep/Oct2025
              Type: published
              Y: 2025
          Identifiers:
            – Type: issn-print
              Value: 08872376
          Numbering:
            – Type: volume
              Value: 48
            – Type: issue
              Value: 5
          Titles:
            – TitleFull: Science Scope
              Type: main
ResultId 1