Holidays Tips
Read these 17 Holidays Tips tips to make your life smarter, better, faster and wiser. Each tip is approved by our Editors and created by expert writers so great we call them Gurus. LifeTips is the place to go when you need to know about Kids Online tips and hundreds of other topics.
Valentine's Day Cards
The stores are full of valentines, but it's more fun to make your own. Use whatever you have around the house, because it isn't the money that counts, but the time you put into it. Try these sites for help:
Make a Card! Make a Card! These cards are easy to make, but need a few supplies you might not have.
Valentine's Day Crafts Just a card isn't enough? They have cards here, but they have other gift crafts too.
Thanksgiving Stories and Poems
There are some great Thanksgiving stories and poems on the net. Here are a few of my favorites:
No More Pumpkin Pie! Are you tired of sitting at the Kid's Table? Think you're ready to take your place with the adults? This poem will show you how one kid got her wish.
Grandpa Tucker's Thanksgiving offers poems, stories and songs about Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving Poetry These are great for a special program at home or at school.
What is Hannukuh?
Hanukkuh, the festival of lights, is celebrated by Jewish children to remember a miracle that happened long ago. They celebrate for eight days, lighting a special candle each day, receiving gifts, playing Hanukkuh games like Dreidel, and eating special foods. It is a time to celebrate their freedom and to honor their God. If you don`t celebrate Hanukkuh, you might enjoy learning more about their traditions. Make or buy a dreidel, eat a potato pancake...it`s fun to learn about the traditions of others.
Try this site to learn more:
Hanukkuh: Festival of Lights
http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/lesson040.shtml
This site explains the history of the holiday, offers good books to read, and suggests crafts and activities. Most of the links don't work, but everything else is really great. Teachers, there are discussion questions for your lesson plans as well.
Arbor Day
Arbor Day is a celebration of trees. Each state chooses its own date, so check the first link below to find out when it is in your state. J. Sterling Morton moved to Nebraska in pioneer days. Then, the state had no trees, and he and the other pioneers missed them. They were needed to make Nebraska a good place to live, as well as a pretty one. He suggested a tree-planting holiday, which was first put into practice in 1874. Try these sites to prepare for your own Arbor Day celebration:
The National Arbor Day Foundation This is the official site for the holiday. You can get free trees to plant from this site, vote for a national tree, learn to identify trees and more. Surf with a parent.
EarthDay and Arbor Day Crafts Find some fun crafts that help you celebrate nature, such as a wheelbarrow planter, suncatchers and more.
Arbor Day e-cards Send beautiful pictures of trees from this site. Surf with a parent.
How Do People Celebrate Christmas?
Christmas is celebrated in many different ways around the world. In Australia, Christmas comes in the summer, so instead of sledding, Australians are usually at the beach. In Denmark, children decorate their trees with little men called Nisser, which are Santa's helpers. In France, may children have a large meal at Midnight with 13 desserts. In Italy, children receive presents in January, when a witch named La Befana delivers presents on her broom.
It is a lot of fun to learn about Christmas around the world. Who know? Maybe you will get some ideas for your own celebration.
Try this site to learn more:
Christmas on the Net
This is a very large Christmas site. You can listen to people say Merry Christmas in many languages, learn about Christmas in other countries and find fun ways to celebrate.
Send a Card
One fun feature of the Internet is that you can send cards to your friends and family. You don't need money or a stamp. Just find a card site on the web, make or choose your card and send it off. Just be sure the person you are sending it to has an email address. Here are some places to find fun cards:
Blue Mountain Not all of these cards are for kids, so have an adult surf with you. There are cards for holidays, scouting and many other occasions.
Sesame Street Ecards You can send a Sesame Street card to a young friend on this kid-safe site.
Send a Disney character card from this page. It links to pages not just for kids, so surf with an adult.
Chinese New Year
How would you like to celebrate the new year for two whole weeks? That's what Chinese children do on their new year. (It is not at the same time as American New Year.) Try these sites to learn how to celebrate this day at home.
Game Kids This site has games, recipes and activities. It hasn't been updated in a while, but the information is still good.
Chinese New Year This site offers the traditions, decorating tips and great food. Find out why the Chinese celebrate with fireworks.
Mother's Day Gifts
Mother's Day is coming and you need a gift! Moms like homemade gifts best, so check the net for some fun craft ideas.
Holidays on the Net Goodies Make a mobile, a tray or a card with help from this site.
Kids Domain Mother's Day Gifts This has a pretty good list of gifts, including pin cushions, bath salts, and more.
Thanksgiving
Help make your family's Thanksgiving special this year. These sites can help you find a way to be a part of the holiday:
A Girl's World Memories and Traditions Find out about traditions of girls around the world and then think up your own new traditions.
Awesome Clipartforkids.com Decorate your home (or your home page) with these coloring pages, graphics and other pictures of Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving on the Net Send Thanksgiving cards to your friends and family.
What is Kwaanza?
Kwaanza is based on an African harvest festival. During the seven days of Kwaanza, held between Christmas and New Years, families celebrate being a family and pass on African-American culture and tradtions. The word Kwaanza means Beginnings, and celebrants focus on seven principles they will emphasize during the year: unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith.
Try this site to learn more:
Kwaanza: An African-American Celebration
http://www.globalindex.com/kwanzaa/welcome.htm
How did Kwaanza start? What are the colors, the messages, the words and the rituals that go with the holiday? This site gives you an overview and helps you track down more information as well.
What is Yule?
Some families celebrate the seasons with a special Yule observance in December at Winter Solstice. There are many different ways families celebrate the Solstice, which is the shortest day of the year. Some children stay up until the sunrise following the shortest day of all, to be sure a new day really does come. Some families have a special ceremony in which they place sunflower seeds on a bird feeder and celebrate being a part of nature. Pagan children believe that Yule is when the Holly King, the ruler of winter, dies and the Oak King, who rules spring and summer, is born, so they celebrate the new birth.
Try this site to learn more:
Winter Solstice
This site offers an explanation of the holiday and suggests some ways families can celebrate the changing season together.
Homemade Gifts
Instead of spending a lot of money on gifts for the upcoming holidays, try making your own. Parents and grandparents especially love something you made yourself. Think about the things they love to do or to have around their house and make something they will keep forever.
Here are some sites to help you get ideas:
Homemade Christmas and Hanukkah Gifts (This site is not just for kids, so be safe and surf with an adult.)
Gifts You Can Make These gifts were sent in by Zillions readers-real kids-and include pictures.
Halloween Safety
It's a lot of fun to trick-or-treat, but it's no fun at all if you don't stay safe. Try these sites to make your celebration a fun one:
Halloween Safety Game Read about how to stay safe and then play the quiz game to find out what you know.
Children's Safety Zone has a list of safety tips for kids, parents, and other Halloween fans.
The Easter Bunny
The Easter Bunny seems to have come from Germany. Holidays are always more fun if you know something about them. Check out these sites to help you celebrate the Easter Bunny's return:
Easter Bunnies and Chocolate Rabbits: Older kids should check out this article on the history of our favorite rabbit, as well as the chocolate type of bunny.
Letter From the Easter Bunny: The Easter Bunny has a few questions for you about what you've been doing lately. Type in the answers and wait just a moment. He will answer you right on the computer.
Groundhog Day
Groundhog Day is supposed to tell us whether or not winter is over. If the groundhog comes out of his hole on February 2 and sees his shadow, it is supposed to mean we will have six more weeks of winter. If he doesn't see it because it's a cloudy day, spring is here! This holiday may be based on an ancient holiday called Candlemas.
Groundhog: Facts What is a groundhog, anyway? There are some cute groundhog photos as well.
Groundhog Puzzle Print and color this puzzle and then cut it up.
Groundhog.org This is the official site of the official groundhog. Check out the history of the holiday, meet the official groundhog and more.
Advent Calendars
Kids who celebrate Christmas like to count how many days are left. One way to do this is to use an advent calendar. You can find some on the web if you don't want to buy or make your own. Try these sites:
Santa Claus of Greenland Every day you can read a little more about life in Greenland.
ToonaCat's Christmas Advent Calendar Get a surprise activity every day in December until Christmas.
Saint Patrick's Day
Everyone knows you wear green on Saint Patrick's Day...but do you know why? Do you need fun ideas for celebrating? Turn to the web for help.
A Wee Bit o'Fun What? Saint Patrick wasn't Irish? Find out the truth behind the legend and learn more about how to celebrate the day.
Heather's Happy Saint Patrick's Day Page Games, food, coloring pages and more from a girl whose family loves to celebrate the green.
| Guru Spotlight |
| Carma Spence-Pothitt |
