Celebrating French Holidays With Children
French holidays bring rich traditions, flavors and music an immersive way for kids to practice language and culture. By weaving simple crafts, seasonal recipes, interactive games and themed lessons from Dinolingo into your calendar, you can create festive learning moments all year long.
Major French Holidays to Explore
Nouvel An (New Year’s Day)
Kick off January with homemade galette des rois crowns and a small slice of almond-topped cake. Teach children to say “Bonne année” and practise counting “un, deux…” as you share coins or small surprises hidden inside your pastry.
La Chandeleur (Crêpe Day)
On February 2nd, flip crêpes together while naming ingredients: la farine, le lait, l’œuf. Play a toss-and-name game: catch the crêpe and say the next word in French before passing the pan.
Carnaval (Mardi Gras)
Before Lent, celebrate with colourful masks and bead necklaces. Label mask parts (le masque, les perles, la plume) and host a mini parade with French music—perfect for echoing “Joyeux carnaval !” from Dinolingo’s holiday playlist in your Dinolingo lessons.
Pâques (Easter)
Hide plastic eggs painted with French colors: blanc, jaune, rose. Use egg hunt clues in French: “Va sous la table”. After the hunt, practise “J’ai trouvé trois œufs” to reinforce counting and location phrases.
Fête nationale (Bastille Day, July 14)
Teach children to say “Vive la France !” as you watch fireworks videos or create red, white and blue paper lanterns. Use the interactive modules on Dinolingo’s holiday lessons to explain the storming of the Bastille in a child-friendly story format.
La Toussaint (All Saints’ Day)
Visit a garden or cemetery to pick autumn leaves. Glue them on cardstock while saying “la feuille” names and practise “Je me souviens” to teach remembrance vocabulary.
Noël (Christmas)
Decorate a small tree with handmade ornaments labelled in French: la boule, la guirlande, l’étoile. Sing “Petit Papa Noël” and use printing worksheets from Dinolingo’s offline kit to write holiday cards in French.
Tips for Year-Round Festivities
• Seasonal Craft Station
Create a rotating table with supplies for each holiday—crowns for January, masks for Carnaval, lanterns for July. Add printable templates from Dinolingo’s language-courses page.
• Festive Snack Lab
Turn holiday recipes into mini science lessons: count ingredients, describe textures and temperatures in French. Use parent-led shadowing exercises from Dinolingo’s interactive stories to model vocabulary.
• Holiday Calendar Chart
Track upcoming celebrations with a French calendar poster. Ask kids daily, “Quel jour est-ce ?” and “Quel événement ?” to build routine and anticipation.
• Role-Play and Performances
Host a family puppet show or skit around each holiday. Write simple dialogue frames, practise with Dinolingo’s mic feedback and earn a surprise badge for every performance.
Final Thoughts
French holidays offer joyful, multi-sensory opportunities to deepen language learning. By blending crafts, recipes, and play with Dinolingo’s themed lessons, printable kits and real-time feedback, you’ll create cherished traditions that teach bonjour through bonne fête all year long.
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