Saint Patrick was a bishop and missionary known for bringing Christianity to Ireland. After centuries of mythology surrounding his life, St. Patrick was named Ireland's patron saint and St. Patrick's Day became a celebration of his life and works. In America, March 17th has become a more secular celebration of Irish culture and ancestry, as well as a great reason to sport green and head to the bar for an unnaturally green beer (or five). Since the little ones probably aren't quite primed for a nightlong pub crawl, here are some (way more fun and age-appropriate) St. Patrick's Day activities for kids.
Lean On the Leprechaun
There's probably nothing that kids love more about the holidays than weird, mythical creatures bringing them treats. It's just a fact. During Christmas, they get excited about an omniscient old man breaking into their house with toys. For Easter, they're stoked to get candies from a giant rabbit. So, teachers, hear me out when I say that the best way to get kids into the spirit of Saint Patrick's Day is by employing the help of a mischievous leprechaun bent on hiding his treasure.
Start by insisting that this little dude decorated the entire classroom last night while you were all home sleeping... but really check out this wide assortment of clovers, gold and all things green, and do it yourself.
A Shamrock Scavenger Hunt
On the board, scrawl a note from the leprechaun inviting the students to start a scavenger hunt that promises a huge payoff (which can totally end up being a pot of candy and stickers) if they can figure out his clues. A starting line like: “a leprechaun has been around, sprinkling shamrocks on the ground. If you can solve his tricky riddles, he'll give you his whole stash of Skittles,” should be followed up with instructions on where or how the kids can unearth the next clue.
While a straightforward “go there, find a clue” hunt works just fine, I like the idea of incorporating St. Patrick's Day games for kids into the mix to engage students further. For instance, one clue could be: “If you want your next clue, you'll have to find a horse's shoe,” with which you could pair a cool sensory activity where students have to dig through green shaving cream filled with little gold coins to find the one hidden horseshoe. Even better, you can make the activity educational—gasp!—by introducing a discussion about superstitions and folklore. The hunt can also integrate St. Patrick's Day crafts for kids, where students have to make something like finger painted rainbows or construction paper clovers to find the next clue.
Facts and Fun
The great thing about the idea of a St. Patty's themed scavenger hunt is that the clues and activities can be tailored to suit a pretty wide age range. For older kids, make the clues more difficult and include more historical fun facts about the holiday, such as how the myth about St. Patrick driving all of the snakes out of Ireland believed to have been symbolic of his eradication of Pagan beliefs in favor of Christian ones, or that the original color associated with St. Patrick was actually blue.
If you think like an impish jokester, you'll find that the possibilities are endless.
Krista Wolfe
Quill.com Contributing Writer
Krista Wolfe is a marketing project manager for Quill.com where she writes to help small businesses, teachers and healthcare professionals make more informed decisions on office essentials. She also writes on our new community blog, Café Quill, about a wide range of business matters such as leadership, productivity and work-life balancing. Krista lives in Chicago, and you can find her on Google+ or LinkedIN.