Help your kids stay healthy this holiday season with these health tips!
December is a wonderful time filled with holiday traditions that bring joy to children and families. Beyond the familiar Christmas celebrations, the holiday season offers a chance to explore diverse cultures and different holidays celebrated around the world.
At Primary Beginnings, our 5-star Raleigh preschool introduces young learners to global festivities through engaging world activities, crafts, and stories. Join us as we share exciting ways to teach about holidays around the world preschool children can learn about, fostering a love for learning about different countries and cultures.
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Why Teach Holidays Around the World in Preschool?
Exploring winter holidays around the world in a preschool setting helps children develop an appreciation for diversity, global traditions, and different cultures. Incorporating these celebrations into social studies and literacy centers encourages curiosity and builds early comprehension skills.
Benefits for Young Learners
Skill Development: Activities tied to holidays support math, writing, and social studies skills through play-based learning.
Cultural Awareness: Introducing holidays from other countries helps pre-K students understand and respect diverse traditions.
Engaging Learning: Crafts, stories, and games make learning about the world interactive and exciting.
Hanukkah: The Festival of Lights
Holidays around the world preschool children can learn about include Hanukkah. Hanukkah, meaning "Dedication" in Hebrew, is a Jewish holiday celebrating the miracle of light, where a single night's worth of lamp oil lasted eight nights. Observed for eight nights, this holiday includes traditions that captivate young learners.
Activities for Preschoolers
Taste Traditional Foods: Share latkes or sufganiyot (jelly doughnuts) in class, or discuss chocolate coins as a fun treat tied to Hanukkah gelt.
Menorah Craft: Use construction paper to create a simple menorah, helping kids visualize the lighting of candles.
Dreidel Game: Introduce the dreidel, a four-sided spinning top, to teach counting and turn-taking. Pair with a story like Elmo's Little Dreidel for literacy connections.
Dongzhi Festival: Celebrating the Winter Solstice
Holidays around the world preschool children can learn about include the Dongzhi Festival. The Dongzhi Festival, celebrated on December 21, marks the winter solstice in countries like China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. Families gather to enjoy warm foods like tangyuan (rice flour dumplings) and honor balance and harmony.
Toddler Learning Activities
Counting with Ten Frames: Use ten frames to count “dumplings” in a math center, connecting to the festival’s food traditions.
Tangyuan Cooking Activity: Make simple, no-cook tangyuan with playdough to mimic the real recipe, teaching shapes and fine motor skills.
Winter Solstice Story: Read a children’s book about the solstice to spark discussions about seasons and family traditions.
Krampusnacht: A Unique European Tradition
Krampusnacht, one of the holidays around the world preschool children can learn, is celebrated on December 5 in Germany, Austria, and parts of Eastern Europe, blends folklore with festive fun. Saint Nicholas rewards well-behaved children with treats, while Krampus, a horned figure, adds a playful twist to this December holiday story.
Kid-Friendly Activities
Flag Craft: Make a country’s flag, like Germany’s, using construction paper to connect to the holiday’s origins.
Saint Nicholas Gift Bags: Create small gift bags with dried fruits, nuts, or chocolate coins to represent Saint Nicholas’s treats.
Story Time: Use a lighthearted children’s book about Krampusnacht to share the legend in a preschool-friendly way.
Yalda Night: A Persian Winter Solstice Celebration
Yalda Night, one of the holidays around the world preschool children can learn, is observed in countries like Iran, Afghanistan, and Azerbaijan, and celebrates the longest night of the year. Families stay up late, sharing stories, poems, and red foods like pomegranates to symbolize life and dawn.
Preschool Activities for Learning
Red Fruit Snack: Serve watermelon or pomegranate seeds (if safe for your class) to connect to Yalda’s traditions.
Pomegranate Seed Counting: Use red beads or pom-poms as “pomegranate seeds” for a math activity in world centers.
Storytelling Circle: Share a simple folktale or poem, encouraging kids to draw pictures inspired by the story.
Christmas Traditions Around the World
Christmas is celebrated in many countries, each with unique traditions that preschoolers can explore. From Germany’s advent calendars to Mexico’s posadas, these activities bring global Christmas traditions to life.
Craft and Activity Ideas
Posada Procession: Act out a mini “posada” in class, using songs and small candles (or LED lights) to mimic Mexico’s tradition.
Gingerbread Man Craft: Create gingerbread man cutouts with construction paper, tying to stories like The Gingerbread Man for literacy centers.
Advent Calendar: Make a simple paper advent calendar to count down to Christmas, reinforcing number recognition.
Eid al-Fitr: A Joyful Celebration
Holidays around the world preschool children can learn about include Eid al-Fitr. While Eid al-Fitr typically falls outside December, introducing this Muslim holiday during a unit about holidays around the world helps preschoolers learn about different traditions year-round. It celebrates the end of Ramadan with feasting and community.
Engaging Activities
Pattern Play: Use beads or blocks to create patterns, mimicking decorative designs seen during Eid.
Moon and Star Craft: Create moon and star shapes to represent Eid’s connection to the lunar calendar.
Sharing Stories: Read a children’s book about Eid to build comprehension and discuss family celebrations.
Chinese New Year: Welcoming the New Year
Holidays around the world preschool children can learn about includes Chinese New Year, perhaps one of the best known international celebrations. Chinese New Year, often in January or February, is a vibrant festival that can be included in a world theme to teach about lunar calendars and cultural celebrations.
Fun Classroom Ideas
Counting Red Envelopes: Use pretend red envelopes in a math center to practice counting and sorting.
Dragon Dance: Create a paper dragon for a classroom “parade,” encouraging movement and teamwork.
Lantern Craft: Make simple paper lanterns to explore the festival of lights theme.
Creating Learning Opportunities to Discover New Holidays
A holidays around the world unit is a fantastic way to integrate social studies, math, and literacy into your preschool classroom or celebrate holidays with your preschooler at home.
Setting Up World Centers
- Literacy Center: Include books like The Story of Hanukkah or digital passport-style slides on Google Slides for interactive storytelling.
- Math Center: Use ten frames, counting games, or sorting activities tied to holiday themes, like counting chocolate coins or red beads.
- Craft Center: Offer printables or materials for crafts like menorahs, flags, or lanterns to engage fine motor skills.
Free Resources and Printables
Many free holidays resources are available online, including printable packs for crafts and activities. Check sites like Teachers Pay Teachers for holiday-themed worksheets or create your own using construction paper and simple designs.
Encouraging Family Involvement
Invite families to share their holiday traditions, creating a classroom display of stories or photos. This fosters a sense of community and helps students celebrate their unique backgrounds.
Enjoy the Holidays With a Visit to Our 5-Star Preschool
The holiday season is a time to celebrate, learn, and connect with friends and family. Whether you’re lighting a menorah, sharing tangyuan, or crafting a gingerbread man, these activities make the world come alive for preschoolers.
To learn more about our Raleigh preschool programs or to schedule a tour, fill out the form below or contact our North Hills Drive location at 919-785-0303, our Falls Of Neuse location at 919-615-0752, or our Spring Forest location at 919-790-6888.