From Christmas to Kwanzaa

Learning the Different Holidays Through Crafts

By Kymberly Pratt

Does your child know about Diwali, the Indian festival of lights? What about Kwanzaa, an African-American holiday observed by more than 28 million people worldwide? Could your child identify a menorah? It's never too early to introduce children to different cultures, traditions and holidays. These fun crafts are a great way to teach the many wonderful ways people celebrate the meaning of the season.

Adult supervision is required when making these crafts.

You'll need:
Wooden toy block
Green and red felt
White pompon balls
Yarn or string
Small wooden ball
Black permanent marker
White tacky glue or hot glue

Here's what you do:
Cut the following shapes out of the green felt: two arms, two legs and a large triangle to use for the hat. Next, cut a circle out of the red felt to use for the collar. Draw a small face on your wooden ball. If you can't find wooden balls, use a large pompon ball.

To assemble, glue a white pompon on the bottom of each leg to resemble shoes. Then, glue a white pompon on the arms to resemble gloves. Glue the legs onto the bottom of the block and the arms onto the top so they fall off the side. Last, glue the red collar on top of the arms and then the wooden ball for the face.

To assemble the hat, round the green felt triangle to resemble a cone elf hat and glue it to the top of the head. Glue a white pompon to the end of the elf hat. Tie a small piece of string through the opening on the hat, and hang it on your tree.

You'll need:
9 toilet paper rolls
Tempera paint
Yellow and orange tissue paper
Cardboard
White tacky glue
Cotton swabs
Scissors

Here's what you do:
Paint the outside of each toilet paper roll and let it dry. After they're dry, cut a rectangle out of the cardboard long enough to line up the nine toilet paper rolls. Carefully spread glue onto one end of the toilet paper rolls with a cotton swab and then line them up on the cardboard. While the glue is drying, cut out squares of tissue paper about 5 inches long and tall.

Want to see more?

• Diwali: An Indian Festival of Lights
• Kwanzaa: A Magical and Meaningful Holiday
• Celebrate Hanukkah: Activities to Make, Play and Eat with Your Child
• Check out our Article Library.
• Talk about it!