Month: October 2024

Diwali or the festival of lights celebrates new beginnings. It also provides an opportunity for us to create meaningful experiences with our little ones, appreciating the beauty of traditions and customs. This article explores the magical world of Deepavali celebrations at Mindseed, presenting different activities for Diwali early years in preschool. 

When one thinks of Diwali, one of the first things that comes is decorating the home with vibrant colours and warm lights. Since a preschool is a home away from home, we thought it is fitting that we bring out the inner artists and fill our learning spaces with a festive ambience. Apart from creating a visually stunning environment, incorporating classroom decoration as part of the Diwali celebration at Preschool allowed children to be creative and collaborate with each other. 

The Deepavali celebration in preschool started by involving our little ones in the decoration planning process. In addition to brainstorming ideas and themes, we thought of it as a great opportunity to educate children about the significance of celebrating an eco-friendly festival. Together, teachers and students made Torans using recycled and sustainable decorations such as natural flowers and paper cutouts. Their happy faces reflected how excited they were to witness each room transform into a magical space filled with the spirit of Diwali. 

Rangoli making was also among the activities for Diwali in Preschool that the kids enjoyed. They made beautiful rangoli patterns out of flowers and rice powder. It is said that adorning courtyards and entrances with rangoli will bring prosperity. As our children unleashed their imagination and drew colourful designs with their tiny hands, they were also learning about its cultural heritage. 

One of the important life lessons that the Festival of Lights teaches us is that no matter how dark the circumstances may seem, you will always find light in the end. Deepavali is a festival that commemorates the victory of good over evil, light over darkness and truth over falsehood. As part of Diwali activities for preschoolers, we made sure that our children came across the story of Lord Rama’s successful return to Ayodhya after defeating demon king Ravana, symbolising that the truth shall always prevail. 

Storytelling is a great tool for teaching children the values, ethics and history associated with festivals. Our teachers read age-appropriate stories and rhymes to discuss the lessons and morals associated with the festival. To make our Diwali in preschool more engaging, we encouraged all of our children to narrate the tales of their Diwali celebrations at home. 

We know that Diwali celebrations would be incomplete without diyas. To bring out the creative side of our students further, we introduce diya and lantern making as one of the fun Diwali crafts for preschoolers. They let their imagination run wild and made colourful Diya paper cutouts in different sizes. 

At Mindseed, be it learning or celebrating festivals, we urge our parents to get actively involved in these activities with their children.  Parents get the opportunity to bond with children over Diwali activities. While suggesting creative ideas for making diyas, they also educate the kids about how diyas are associated with purity and represent the triumph of light over dark. Festivals are a great time to teach children about the value of sharing. Every year, we follow the sweet tradition of sharing sweets among students and teachers at Mindseed. Since we have a rich tradition of ‘Mithai’  that has great significance in our Indian culture, we get to see our students bringing a variety of sweets from their homes to exchange with their peers. 

Celebrating festivals with children is a rewarding experience that fosters creativity, cultural understanding, and collaboration among kids. Through these engaging activities like storytelling, enjoying traditional sweets, and fun Diwali craft preschool ideas such as rangoli and diya making, we can help children understand the true meaning of Diwali and embrace our traditions. At the same time, educating children about the significance of eco-friendly festivals ensures that our kids follow the measures to save Mother Earth from suffering- a true representation of the spirit of Diwali.

Ganesh Chaturthi is a vibrant festival that is celebrated in almost every part of India. The festival involves grand processions, beautiful decorations and the installation of Lord Ganesha’s idols in pandals (temporary stages). However, over the years, the focus of the Ganesh festival has been more on the pomp and show of the festival rather than the celebration of the cultural heritage. As parents of future adults, it is crucial that you take notice of this shift and take active steps to right the wrongs of the past. While educating children on the significance of this special occasion, it’s important to communicate the need to tone down the extravagance and embrace an eco-friendly celebration.

Teaching preschoolers about nature and safeguarding natural resources is crucial for ensuring their future on the planet. Here are a few sustainable festive practices that you can implement to celebrate future festivities in an eco-friendly way with your children. 

Be Mindful of Decorations 

Lights and colours are the first things that come to our mind when we think of decorations during the festive season. The creativity that goes into making beautiful rangoli and the fun of illuminating houses with colourful lights with family sets the mood for the special occasion.

As parents, you don’t want your children to miss out on this wholesome experience, but, at the same time, you need to ensure that it is not at the cost of the planet’s well-being. Festivals provide a wonderful opportunity to show your kids that it’s possible to celebrate joyfully while also fulfilling our responsibility to nature. 

Instead of choosing chemical colours for rangoli, you can opt for natural colours such as dry rice flour, turmeric, kumkum powder and coffee powder. You can also add flowers and leaves to enhance the vibrancy of your rangoli. Use garlands made of real flowers and not plastic ones. If not real flowers, you can add eco-friendly Ganpati decorations to your home using naturally biodegradable materials. For example, this year, as part of Mindseed’s Ganpati celebrations Play With Clay, our children and parents made Marigold flowers out of craft paper. 

You can cut down on the consumption of electricity by limiting the number of lights and using them only when required. A combination of low-energy LED bulbs and diyas can be used to light up the spaces. Plus, diya-making is one of the most engaging nature-inspired activities for kids to be part of during the time of the festival. Creating clay diyas with your children will become one of those cherished memories from this festival that you will treasure for years to come. Allow them to bring out their creativity and paint the diyas using watercolours. 

Reduce Pollution 

The main goal of green Ganpati celebration ideas is to minimise pollution of nature’s valuable resources. The traditional idols of Ganpati which are made out of Plaster of Paris can pollute our water-bodies. Every year, lakhs of devotees head to seas and rivers to immerse Ganpati idols to mark the culmination of the Ganesh festival. Our water bodies are bleeding due to the pollution caused by this event. As we mentioned earlier, festivals are the best time to communicate the spirit and essence of festivals, and the significance of contributing to a cleaner environment for children. Set an example by choosing clay idols of Ganesh which do not pollute the water-bodies with toxins and harmful chemicals just like Mindseed Preschool did this year. At our Play with Clay, Ganesh Chaturthi event , we organised activities at Mindseed involving children, together with their families, making eco-friendly Ganpati idols using potter’s clay. These small clay idols were later taken to their homes, worshipped and then immersed using just a bucket of water. To add to these sweet memories, they also made chocolate modak with their parents’ help. 

Playing music at low volume can help in reducing noise pollution. You can protect your ears without compromising on the festive spirit by opting for low-volume instruments such as harmonium and tabla. 

Restrict the Number of Pandals

Festivals in Indian households are all about bringing people together and celebrating the togetherness of families, friends and communities. If we all agree on this idea of shared oneness, then families, friends and neighbourhoods should come together to celebrate, thus restricting the number of separate pandals/mandaps. Along with significantly reducing the impact on the environment, this eco-conscious choice will serve as a great example of sharing for the children. 

In India, it is believed that children are a gift from God. In that case, it is only fitting that they are made aware of the significance of celebrating an ecologically sound festival and are taught the right ways of protecting Mother Earth.