Easy Diwali Crafts for Kids

There are lots of great crafts associated withDiwali the festival of lights, and making something related to a holiday or celebration that you don’t celebrate yourself is a great entry point (of course these are great for kids and families who do celebrate Diwali as well).

One of the most common crafts associated with Diwali is the diya, a small oil lamp. My daughter’s class once harvested clay from their playground and made little bowls filled with battery powered candles for this purpose.

Rangoli, which are geometric designs similar to mandalas, are also a popular feature of Diwali celebrations, and you can find lots of options to print out and color.

The Educator’s Spin on it has collected a bunch of different options for making diya, rangoli and other Diwali crafts, as well as some books you can read while you make your crafts to learn more about the celebration. Head to her blog for all the details.

[Photo: The Educator’s Spin on it.]

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Diwali Printables for Kids

Learning about Hanukkah is important for people of all faiths as a reminder that December isn’t just about Christmas and that their are many other important holidays that happen during this time. Hanukkah unit studies can give you ideas for incorporating the holiday into your holiday studies that happen in December, or to use at home for learning about people of different faiths.

Homeschool Superfreak has a lot of basic ideas for how to build a Hanukkah unit study, as well as FAQs about what Hanukkah is and why it is celebrated. This list is a good stargint point but doesn’t include all the details you’ll need. For example it says you can play the dreidel game but doesn’t explain how to do that or why it’s important. (If you need that information, this post from Mama Smiles is a good source.)

Teachers Pay Teachers has lots of great lesson plans and activities if you’re willing to pay a little bit to get some good content. Two I really like are this Hanukkah PowerPoint presentation from Shelia Melton, which provides a good overview of traditions, food and the history of Hanukkah; and a virtual field trip to Jerusalem from MagiCore, which includes lots of videos showing the city and activities like playing dreidel, drawing a menorah and making latkes. It’s a Google Drive folder and also includes writing activities and more for kids in second to fifth grade.

Kids Activities Blog has some simple printables with facts about Hanukkah and things kids can color in like a Star of David, sufganiyots (jelly doughnuts) and a menorah. These are great for learning the basics.

Homeschool Giveaways has a printable ebook about Hanukkah complete with questions kids can answer after they read. This would be a good one for older kids with good reading comprehension.

NurtureStore’s Hanukkah unit study includes a printable mini book, tons of crafts, as well as math and writing activities. I love the dominoes game that’s part of the unit.

And check out our previous posts for more Hanukkah crafts and learning activities!

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