Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. Craft Activities
   1. Clay pot painting
   2. Kite Making
   3. Wooden Block Rangoli
3. Sensory Activities
   1. Rice sensory bin
   2. Floral kite
4. Fine motor activities
   1. Dhol Lacing
   2. Scissor Skills
   3. Dot sticker sun rays
5. Makar Sankranti/Pongal/Lohri-themed Printables
6. Learning about Indian culture
   1. Bathing & worshipping cows
   2. Festival food ingredients
7. Reading Books
8. Play set up
9. Conclusion

Introduction

Makar Sankranti, Pongal, and Lohri mark the end of the winter solstice and welcome spring! It’s incredible how each region of India has its own unique way of celebrating the ripening of the crops and being thankful to the Sun God (Surya) for the abundance it brings. It also marks an important astronomical change as Sun enters the Makara Rashi (Capricorn zodiac). It’s no wonder that these festivals have been celebrated for hundreds of years!

Different parts of India celebrate harvest festivals by different names. It is celebrated as Makar Sankranti in North India and as Uttarayan in Gujarat on January 14 every year.  Pongal is a four-day Hindu harvest festival that is celebrated in the South Indian states. In Assam it is celebrated as Magh Bihu, as Poush Sankranti in West Bengal, and as Lohri in Punjab!

We learned about January harvest festivals of India, through these very informative and useful 7 FACT CARDS that give an insight into the states they are celebrated in, and the ways of celebration.

Learning about Pongal and Makar Sankranti through fun activities and crafts can be a great way to explore and celebrate our festivals and culture. Here are some of our Makar Sankranti/ Pongal/ Lohri activities for kids that you might find useful and try with your kids.

Craft Activities

Clay Pot Painting

Painting a clay pot with vibrant colors and decorating it with pearls and embellishments is a lovely activity. You need a small clay pot, paint colors, a paintbrush, and decorative materials like pearls, beads, etc. Allow the child to select the paint color, let them explore the texture, and decorate them as per their choice. It might not be perfect, but nevertheless beautiful!

Kite Making

We used cardboard to make a kite, you may use any kind of paper. The kite can be decorated using stickers, pearls, or colored paper. We used small pieces of paper to decorate our kite. It also helps in developing fine motor skills.

Wooden Block Rangoli

Making beautiful rangoli designs is part of Indian culture. We created our rangoli design using wooden pattern blocks. This activity is also helpful for developing fine motor skills, pincer grip, and concentration.

Sensory Activities

Rice Sensory Bin

You need rice, a cardboard sheet, and paints for this low-prep activity. Rice is the perfect sensory filler due to its significance for the festival and kite cutouts from the cardboard provide lots of visual stimulation. The activity involved the matching correct number of dots on each kite with the corresponding number on the base sheet.

Floral kite

It is an amazing sensory activity for kids! You can use glue or even double-sided tape to adhere the petals and twigs to the kite shape. For the base, you can use sturdy paper, cardstock, or cardboard. This activity is sure to be a great learning experience for the kids, as they explore the beauty of nature and get a sensory experience at the same time!

Fine Motor Activities

Dhol Lacing

Dhol (Indian drum) is an integral part of festival celebrations! Making a dhol out of cardboard and string/ribbon is an excellent activity for kids. To start, draw a dhol on a piece of cardboard, punch holes on both its right and left side, and cut out the string. You can then let your child lace the strings through the holes using a ribbon or string. This activity is great for children of all ages, and can help improve their hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills.

Scissor Skills

Scissor cutting activity is a great activity to develop hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills. It can be easily done at home by drawing different patterns on the kite – shaped paper pieces. It keeps kids engaged for a long time!

Dot sticker sun rays

Dot stickers are always so much fun and great for fine motor skills! Make a dot sticker sun. Draw a sun on a paper, draw small circles with various numbers of dots in front of each sun ray. Then the kid has to put dot stickers on the sun rays corresponding to the number of dots in small circles.

Makar Sankranti/Pongal/Lohri Printables

If you are looking for a fun way to teach and engage kids about Indian harvest festivals. We have just the perfect activity pack for you! Our Makar Sankranti/ Pongal/Lohri-themed printable activity pack contains age-appropriate information about the January harvest festivals of India in an interactive way. It includes dab-a-dot activities, crafts, coloring pages, puzzles, fact cards, worksheets, and more! These activities are perfect for toddlers aged two and up, so your little ones can learn about the Indian harvest festivals in a fun and engaging way. We hope you enjoy it!

Makar Sankranti and Pongal-themed do-a-dot Printables are excellent resources for color recognition, fine motor skills, and enhanced vocabulary for the kids. You can download the printables here absolutely FREE!!

Learning about Indian culture

Bathing and worshipping cows

Bathing and worshipping cows is an important part of Pongal celebrations. It is believed that cows bring good luck, abundance, and prosperity. We learned to bathe our miniature cows, towel wiped them, and then decorated them using kumkum and sacred thread!

Festival food ingredients

Pongal, vadai, sakkarai pongal, til-gul, and til laddoo are some of the most delicious traditional dishes that you can find during Pongal and Makar Sankranti. The main ingredients include rice, green lentils, sesame seeds, peanuts, fox nuts, and jaggery, which all provide a unique flavor and texture to the dishes. We introduced these ingredients to the kids through this transfer activity to help them to identify and learn their names.

Reading Books

Reading books and stories about Lohri, Makar Sankranti, and Pongal festivals is an excellent way to engage kids in meaningful conversations. It helps them understand the religious and cultural significance of these festivals and how they form an integral part of Indian culture and traditions. Exploring these festivals through books and stories can also help instill values of respect and gratitude in kids, as they learn to appreciate and celebrate the richness of Indian culture. Recommended books for this festival reading are:

• Festivals of India (Om books)
• Festivals of India (Sonia Mehta)
• Festival through the year stories
• Farmer Falgu goes kite flying
• Bola, the festival kite
• Where’s the sun?

Play set-up

Creating a play set up for kids using miniatures and toys is a fantastic way to help them learn about different rituals. For Lohri, you can use a few twigs or popsicle sticks to create a mini bonfire and some small toy figures of people dancing around it. For Pongal, you can use small clay pots, miniature cows, and a kolam made out of tiny pebbles or beads. For Makar Sankranti, you can use small play kites, a miniature roller pin, and some mithai (traditional Indian sweets) to represent the festival. Not only will this help kids to understand the rituals better, but it will also be a fun and creative way for them to learn.

Conclusion

We hope you liked these Makar Sankranti/ Pongal/ Lohri activities for kids and helped you to create some fun and meaningful learning activities and crafts. We love these activities for overall development which allow children to express their creativity in so many ways. Wishing you and your family a joyful celebration!

Do not forget to download the amazing Makar Sankranti/ Pongal/ Lohri themed do-a-dot Printables absolutely FREE!!