Fun and Meaningful Holidays to Celebrate With Kids
Part of the joy of raising children is witnessing their pure joy and overwhelming excitement, so many parents try to ensure that there are plenty of days throughout the year when kids have the opportunity to celebrate and be glad. Holidays help families form strong bonds, as little ones learn the family’s traditions and form pleasant memories of times spent together.
Though it might seem that there are only a few major holidays that families can celebrate with young children, the truth is that creative parents can plan many special days to enjoy with their kids throughout the year. Here are a few holiday ideas to make lasting, meaningful memories with little ones.
Winter Holidays
Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Yule and Soyal are not only the major winter holidays around the world, but they are some of the most significant holidays of the year. Most families have long celebrated at least one of these holidays during the winter season, and most families already have established traditions, such as decorating, cooking specific types of food, performing certain rituals, singing holiday songs and more. Parents should involve their little ones in these traditions as early as possible, perhaps by inviting young ones to help put out seasonal decor or cook or else by integrating holiday-themed toys and activities into their days.
Another important winter holiday is New Year. Parents who don’t want to keep their little ones up until midnight on New Year’s Eve might use live video from another time zone to count down to the New Year. It is also often possible to find fireworks displays scheduled for earlier in the evening. Parents might also choose to skip New Year’s Eve and celebrate entirely on New Year’s Day, when they can plan activities that help the family relax, connect and start the New Year off right.
The Lunar New Year can also be an important holiday for families to recognize. Many cultures enjoy massive celebrations around the turning of their lunar calendars. Families within these cultures can introduce young ones to their specific traditions; families that do not have a lunar calendar tradition might select several different traditions from different cultures to explore the diverse ways of celebrating this global event.
Later in winter, families might take time to recognize Martin Luther King Jr. Day or Presidents Day, both of which help the nation remember the important works of great figures in history. Parents can use books to educate young kids about the meaning behind these days, and families might participate in volunteer programs or other efforts to improve their communities.
Spring Holidays
The first spring holiday, potentially, is Groundhog Day, and parents can celebrate this small and quirky day by learning more about groundhogs or studying the different ways winter shifts into spring. Similar activities can be planned for the true first day of spring, with the spring equinox in March.
St. Patrick’s Day can be an exciting holiday for young children as it tends to have relatively simple and comprehensible traditions. In addition to dressing and decorating in green, parents might teach their kids about Irish culture and history through books and other media.
April Fool’s Day is another strange and fun holiday. Parents might think of small and harmless pranks to pull on their little ones, such as an envelope full of glitter or familiar foods dyed with food coloring. They might also work with kids to prank other members of the family, like grandparents or siblings.
Easter and Passover are two of the most significant religious holidays during the spring season, and like the major winter holidays, they tend to have specific traditions built into their celebrations. Because these are culture-defining holidays, parents should invite children to participate from a young age, which might involve helping with decorations, cooking or reciting important lines during ceremonies.
Summer Holidays
Summertime is usually busy for families, as breaks from school allow families to enjoy vacations or participate in other activities that keep kids excited and engaged. Despite being the brightest and warmest season, summer doesn’t have many major holidays for families to celebrate. Parents might try to establish traditions for the summer solstice, such as lighting bonfires or preparing feasts. They should also talk to little ones about the signs of summer, such as the longer days and presence of certain wildlife.
In the U.S., Independence Day is perhaps the most significant summertime holiday. Parents and kids can celebrate by making American foods and by reviewing important events in American history. Some families might choose to stay awake for fireworks displays, but parents might try to avoid setting off any kind of fireworks at home, which are dangerous to little ones and local wildlife.
Autumn Holidays
Like summer, autumn does not have many major holidays for families to recognize. Parents might help children learn about the importance of Labor Day, which honors the contributions of America’s workforce. Though younger kids might struggle to understand concepts like unions or employment law, they can engage in activities like offering gratitude and gifts to workers they encounter.
Yom Kippur is an important holiday in the Jewish tradition, in which members of the faith atone and repent for their behavior over the previous year. Families inside and outside this culture might participate in some of the traditions, such as recognizing privilege and avoiding luxuries, to experience this unique and special day.
Halloween is one of the most child-oriented holidays of the year, and like other major holidays, most families already have specific traditions for celebrating this day. In addition to dressing up and trick-or-treating, parents and kids might consider adopting some of the celebrations of the Mexican Day of the Dead, which involves offering food and gifts to deceased loved ones to keep their memories alive.
Finally, the most significant holiday for Americans during autumn is Thanksgiving, which arguably kicks off the winter holiday season. Though the holiday has traditionally honored some of the first European colonists in North America, parents might try to shift the focus of the day toward the support and sacrifice of Indigenous Peoples. Families might try to integrate a native dish into their Thanksgiving meal, or they might strive to learn more about their local tribes.
Kids love looking forward to upcoming holidays, and through holiday celebrations, little ones learn more about their culture and develop strong connections to their families and communities. The sooner parents think of ways to involve their little ones in holiday traditions, the better.
