Adapting Worldschooling for Holidays and Festive Seasons

3/21/2025

Worldschooling provides families with an incredible opportunity to immerse themselves in global cultures while maintaining a flexible and enriching education. However, celebrating holidays and festive seasons on the road requires creativity and adaptability. By incorporating local traditions into lessons and finding ways to honor your family’s own holiday customs, worldschooling families can create meaningful and memorable experiences for their children.

Embracing Local Traditions While Worldschooling

One of the greatest advantages of worldschooling is the ability to learn firsthand about different cultures. Holidays and festivals offer an excellent chance to engage with local traditions while deepening your child’s understanding of history, geography, and social studies.

Attend Local Celebrations: Whether it’s a Diwali festival in India, a Christmas market in Germany, Noche de Rábanos in Oaxaca, Mexico, or a Lunar New Year parade in Vietnam, attending local festivities allows children to experience the culture in an authentic way.
Research the History and Meaning: Before experiencing a holiday, take the time to research its origins, significance, and customs. Encourage children to compare it to similar celebrations in their home culture.
Try Traditional Foods: Cooking and tasting traditional holiday foods can be a delicious way to learn. Consider taking a local cooking class or preparing a festive meal together.
Engage in Hands-on Activities: From creating Day of the Dead altars in Mexico to making paper lanterns for Mid-Autumn Festival in China, hands-on projects make learning interactive and enjoyable.
Learn and Share Stories: Many holidays come with folklore, legends, or religious texts. Reading these stories aloud can help children understand the deeper meanings behind celebrations.
Document and Share: Don't forget to have your kids document their new celebrations by blogging or vlogging or simply doing a show-and-tell with the grandparents via video call.

Celebrating Your Family's Traditions While Traveling

While experiencing new traditions is exciting, maintaining your own holiday customs can provide a sense of continuity and comfort, especially for children. Here are ways to celebrate your family’s favorite holidays while on the move:

Adapt Traditions to Your Setting: If you typically decorate a Christmas tree but are in a tropical country, consider crafting a paper tree or decorating a palm tree instead.
Connect Virtually with Family and Friends: Technology makes it easy to stay connected, whether through video calls, online holiday games, or even virtual gift exchanges.
Pack Small But Meaningful Decorations: A few key decorations, such as a menorah, an advent calendar, or small ornaments, can bring a sense of familiarity and holiday cheer wherever you are.
Create New Traditions: Traveling as a worldschooling family offers an opportunity to start fresh traditions, like making a gratitude journal for Thanksgiving or celebrating birthdays with a unique local experience. Start a tradition of "reverse trick-or-treating" in countries where Halloween is not celebrated by dressing up and buying small candies to hand out to local kids at the playground.
Find Like-Minded Communities: Many cities have expat communities that celebrate familiar holidays. Attending a local gathering can provide a sense of community and belonging.

Making Holidays a Learning Experience

By weaving holiday celebrations into your worldschooling curriculum, you can enhance learning in various subjects:

History & Social Studies: Research the historical and cultural significance of different holidays.
Geography: Mark locations on a map where holidays originate or are widely celebrated.
Art & Crafts: Create traditional holiday decorations or artwork.
Language: Learn key phrases or songs associated with the holiday in a different language. (Fun Fact: Silent Night has been translated into approximately 300 languages!)
Science: Explore the astronomical or seasonal aspects of celebrations, such as solstices and equinoxes.

Click the photo to sign up for our newsletter!

Adapting worldschooling for holidays and festive seasons is about balance—embracing the new while honoring the familiar. By integrating local traditions into your child’s education and finding creative ways to celebrate your own, you can create a rich, culturally immersive learning experience that fosters a deep appreciation for global diversity while maintaining cherished family traditions.

Choosing A Worldschooling Curriculum

Using Global Events to Shape Your Worldschooling Lessons

0 Comments