Cultural Celebrations Teaching Resources
Explore cultural celebrations and holidays around the world and promote cultural awareness in your social studies classroom with printable worksheets, fun crafts and more teacher-created teaching resources!
The Teach Starter team of expert teachers has curated a curriculum-aligned collection of activities and interactive ideas to teach young students about the ways people in different cultures come together to celebrate. Save time on your lesson plans with resources that have been carefully curated by expert teachers just for you!
Is this your first year teaching this section of the social studies curriculum, or are you just looking for some fresh ideas? Read on for some tips from our teacher team on expanding your students' appreciation of different cultures and exploring their celebratory traditions!
Holidays Around the World Activities for the Classroom
Exploring how people around the world celebrate isn't just an important part of meeting social studies standards. Learning about these major holidays celebrated outside of the US is also a way to help students build a greater appreciation for other people and other cultures!
So how do you do that? Here are some fun holiday around the world ideas from our teacher team on bringing these cultural celebrations into your social studies lesson plans.
Create a Gallery Walk
Assign each student a specific holiday from another country such as Holi or Diwali from India or Japan's Hinamatsuri festival. Or provide a list, and allow them to pick their favorite! Have students research the holiday and create posters that detail where and when the holiday is celebrated as well as specific information about its history and specific traditions. Display the posters on the hallway wall, and allow your class to go on a gallery walk to take in the information about each holiday!
Hold a Holiday Lunch in the Classroom
Ask students to bring in a dish from a cultural holiday their family celebrates that can be shared with the class. Each student can present the dish to the class and tell their peers a little bit about the holiday.
Have Students Plan a Holiday-Based Trip for a Teacher
Break your class into small groups, and let them choose a cultural celebration from another country. Each group then has to plan a trip for you (or another teacher) to that country to celebrate that holiday. Include math skills practice by having students create a trip budget, and encourage them to interview the teacher about their likes and dislikes to figure into their planning!
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Christmas in Japan - Holidays Around the World Mini Book
Introduce your students to Japanese Christmas traditions and decorations with a printable Christmas in Japan Mini Book.
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An Egyptian Christmas - Holidays Around the World Mini Book
Introduce your students to Egyptian Christmas traditions and decorations with a printable Christmas in Egypt Mini Book.
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Christmas Traditions in France - Mini Book for Kids
Learn about Christmas traditions in France with a printable Christmas Around the World Mini Book for kids.
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Kwanzaa Vocabulary Word Wall
Celebrate Kwanzaa with holiday-related vocabulary cards for your word wall.
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Christmas in Switzerland — Samichlaus Paper Plate Craft
Teach about Christmas in Switzerland and introduce students to Samichlaus with a printable paper plate Christmas craft.
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Veterans Day - 4th Grade Reading Comprehension Worksheets
Explore this 4th Grade Reading Comprehension pack and learn about the Veterans Day holiday.
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St. Patrick's Day Word Wall Vocabulary
Grow your students' vocabularies this St. Patrick's Day with a printable St. Paddy's vocabulary word wall.
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Chinese Zodiac Poster Pack
Use this poster to teach your students about the Chinese Zodiac.
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Lunar New Year Crafts - The Year of the Rabbit - String Puppet
Get crafty and create a Year of the Rabbit String puppet with our Lunar New Year craft activity.
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Lunar New Year for Kids- Teaching Slide Deck
Learn all about the Lunar New Year celebration with an instructional slide deck.
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Fiesta San Antonio - Instructional Slide Deck
Celebrate Texas culture and learn about Fiesta San Antonio with an instructional slide presentation.
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What is Dia de Los Muertos? Instructional Slide Deck
Promote cultural awareness and learn about the Mexican holiday, the Day of the Dead with an instructional slide deck.
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Hanukkah Word Wall Vocabulary
Celebrate the festival of lights with 28 Hanukkah-related vocabulary cards for your word wall.
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Year of the Rat - Paper Lantern Template
Learn about the animals of the zodiac calendar in the classroom and make your own Chinese Paper lanterns for Lunar New Year.
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Chinese New Year Animal - Reading Passage and Activity
Read and learn about the Chinese zodiac animals with a zodiac animal reading passage and a set of 12 matching activity task cards.
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Christmas in Italy — La Befana Christmas Craft
Introduce your students to the traditions and figures associated with Christmas in Italy by crafting a La Befana tree topper!
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Year of the Dog String Puppet Craft Template
A Lunar New Year themed 'Year of the Dog' string puppet template.
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Christmas Around the World Mini Book - Germany
Introduce your students to Germany's Christmas traditions and decorations with a printable Christmas Around the World Mini Book.
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Holidays Around the World — Brazil Mini Book
Introduce your students to Brazil’s Christmas traditions and decorations with a printable Christmas Around the World Mini Book.
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Australian Christmas Bush Craft Template
Introduce your students to one of Australia’s Christmas traditions and decorations with a printable Christmas bush craft template.
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Holidays Around the World Mini Book - Mexico
Introduce your students to Mexico's Christmas traditions and decorations with a printable Christmas Around the World Mini Book.
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Holidays Around the World Mini Book - Sweden
Introduce your students to Christmas in Sweden with a printable mini book and graphic organizer.
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Holidays Around the World - Australia Mini Book
Introduce your students to Christmas in Australia with a printable mini book and graphic organizer.
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Brazilian Tinsel Tail Bird Ornament Craft
Introduce students to Christmas in Brazil with a printable tinsel-tailed bird Christmas ornament template.
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Religious Holidays and Observances – Posters
A set of posters explaining the significance and traditions of various religious holidays.
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Day of the Dead Coloring Pages
Promote cultural awareness and create your own Day of the Dead decorations with Dia de Los Muertos coloring pages.
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Independence Day Paper Lantern Art Activity
A creative art activity to use when learning about the Independence Day celebration.
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Winter Celebrations
A set of educational posters covering popular celebrations that fall in Winter.
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Day of the Dead Decor - Papel Picado Template
Promote cultural awareness and create your own Day of the Dead decorations with a printable Papel Picado template.
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Day of the Dead - Sugar Skull Mask Template
Promote cultural awareness and introduce Dia de Muertos to your students with a Sugar Skull mask craft.
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Dia De Muertos Vocabulary and Writing Prompts
Learn and use the language of Mexican tradition with a Dia de Los Muertos vocabulary word wall and writing activity.
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Dia de Los Muertos - The Day of the Dead Printable Book
Promote cultural awareness and learn about the Mexican holiday of Dia de Muertos or the Day of the Dead.