Star Wars Learning Activities for Kids

Whether you celebrate May the Fourth be with You, Revenge of the Fifth, or This is the May, Star Wars activities are super fun all month long (or any other time) and give you a great excuse to talk about space exploration and observation. Pull out your favorite space crafts, print out some space mazes, or start planning a space camp at home, and check out these fun Star Wars learning activities.’

First, dress up your pencils by turning them into light sabers with this idea from Keeping it Simple Crafts. Then you’ll be all set to play these Star Wars-inspired Mad Libs from Get Away Today.

Or check out this Star Wars preschool printable pack from Hazen Home and School. It has a counting activity, three part cards, repeating patterns, letter tracing and more.

Help your toddler make Yoda out of simple shapes with this activity from Toddler Approved. Or you can make Star Wars characters using cardboard tubes with these ideas from Hello Wonderful.

Turn classic baking soda and vinegar play into a rescue mission with mini figures and this tutorial from Fun-a-Day.

Use basic bricks to make Star Wars-themed constructions (Yoda, R2D2 and a Death Star) with these ideas from Little Bins for Little Hands. Or grab the mosaic building cards from Frugal Fun for Boys and Girls. She also has a pattern from making Rainbow loom light sabers. So cute!

Color in some baby Yoda bookmarks for storytime from Rock Your Homeschool, and get a ton of printable games and activities from Preschool Printables Free. And don’t miss Printabelle’s Star Wars bingo cards.

And if your kids love to dress up, check out the easy Ewok ears and hoods I made for my daughter’s birthday a few years ago. Other than the fur mess these were easy to mass produce and a big hit with the kids!

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Celebrating Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month

The celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is important throughout Mexico and other parts of the world. Her feast day is Dec. 12, and the celebrations honoring her appearance to Juan Diego in 1531 begin a few days before that.

Whether you celebrate yourself or just want to share about the celebration at home or in your classroom, Las Mañanitas: The Beautiful Celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is a good place to start. The book, by Ernesto Joel Vega Rosales and Jeanette Gonzalez Seneviratne, with illustrations by Dana Sanmar, tells the story of a family’s celebration of the feast day in both English and Spanish.

They prepare with a novena, which is nine days of prayers and preparations. The children, Lucia and Pablo, are given special outfits made by their grandmother that look like what Juan Diego might have worn when he saw Our Lady. The book describes the prayers that are made each day, such as a prayer for respect for life, for families and for the indigenous people of the Americas, to name a few.

As told in the book, Juan Diego was a native Mexican born near modern day Mexico City. His given name was Cuaauhtlatoatzin, which means “He who speaks like an eagle.” When he converted to Christianity his name was changed to Juan Diego, and as he walked to church he passed a hill called Tepeyac. One day he heard the birds singing especially beautifully and a voice called him to go to the top of the hill.

There he saw Our Lady of Guadalupe, who asked him to tell the bishop she wanted a chapel built in her name at the foot of the hill. The bishop asked for a sign that Juan Diego really saw her, and later she had him collect flowers that she blessed and take them to the bishop. When Juan Diego dropped the flowers, an image of Our Lady could be seen on his cloak, which is still on display in her basilica to this day.

The feast day is celebrated as mañanitas, which includes singing, indigenous music and dancing, and children presenting flowers to Our Lady. Juan Diego is remembered today as being humble, brave and faithful, and was the first indigenous American made a saint.

The book is colorful and tells the story in a clear way, and it’s fun to have it both in English and Spanish if you teach Spanish or speak Spanish at home or in the classroom. It’s a great way to learn the basics of the celebration and the story of Juan Diego and why he is still remembered today.

About the book: 40 pages, paperback, published 2024 by Loyola Press. Suggested retail price $14.99.

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