Debbie \
Children need to feel included in celebrations and times of special occasions to connect with them and enjoy them. Often, parents do not put much effort into traditions or special occasions, which results in their child not knowing about the meaning of the occasion or not wanting to be involved in it.
Celebrating occasions as a child is important for developing reasoning, thinking, language skills and cultural awareness. Here is why celebrating traditions is an important part of a child’s development.
There are several ways to include your child in special occasions such as parties, gatherings, or religious occasions. Keep reading to find out more.
How to Involve Your Child
Here are some suggestions that you could implement to encourage your child to be more involved in celebrations.
- Teach them about what the celebration is – is it for religious practice, or perhaps to celebrate someone’s achievements?
- Give them the opportunity to decorate the house for the celebration.
- Give them presents or let them wrap presents for others.
- Make a big deal of the celebration so they know it is a special day, and not like every other day – this will make them look forward to it!
- If there are other children attending, too, let your child know to excite them!
- Ask them what they would like to do and let them choose from different options.
- Have fun activities for children there, such as colouring, bubbles, board games, or a bouncy castle, depending on the occasion.
- Make them food they enjoy, or have food that children like, so that they are not left with an ‘adult’ menu that does not appeal to them.
- Don’t make your child do anything they feel uncomfortable with.
Eid Al-Adha
Eid Al-Adha is a time of joy and celebration for Muslims and is celebrated once a year. This is the second Eid of the year and is the bigger, more important one. During this religious festival, it is common practice to decorate the house, dress up by wearing new clothes, eat sweet foods and gather with family and friends.
This celebration usually lasts three days, and Muslims give Qurbani to celebrate this. Qurbani is the sacrificing of an animal to share the meat with the poor and needy.
To involve your child, you can buy them new clothes, take them to the Eid prayer, cook them their favourite food, read books about the meaning and importance of Eid al-Adha and Qurbani, and even buy them a present. These will turn into happy memories, if not traditions, and will be a huge part of your child’s childhood.
Eid is often celebrated by putting henna (a paste that is applied in a design) on girls’ and women’s hands, so you could involve your daughter by giving her the option to have some, too. This will make the day more special and memorable.
Here are some more ways to make Eid exciting for kids.
Christmas
Christmas is celebrated on December 25th and is a time that Christian families come together to celebrate, although the practice has been adopted by non-Christians, too.
To involve your child, you could encourage your child to learn about God and Jesus through books, give them presents, decorate a Christmas tree with them, and show love and affection in other ways, too.
It should be a time together with family and friends, and perhaps share a meal, which will be a great bonding experience for your child and memory for years to come. Above all, these celebrations are about creating family memories that work to deepen bonds and connections.
