7 St. Patrick’s Day Activities to Do With Kids

By Tirzah Weiskotten

Mar 1, 2022

St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated in many different ways — from big parades to simple family meals at home. During my childhood, my dad would wake us up on St. Patrick’s Day by playing Irish music and teasing us that if we didn’t remember to wear green we might get pinched by a leprechaun! At dinner, my mom made a simple meal of corned beef and cabbage, potatoes and soda bread. She shared stories about our heritage and the hardships our relatives faced during tough times in Ireland. For our family, St. Patrick’s Day was a moment to celebrate being Irish and being thankful for what we have.

St. Patrick’s Day is often celebrated with a lot of fanfare and fun too. It’s hard not to tap your foot along to Irish music or get creative wearing a bit of green! As my children grow, I hope to continue celebrating to help them learn about their Irish heritage and keep family traditions alive through fun St. Patrick’s Day activities. After all, whenever I see their Irish eyes smiling, I always think of my family and remember the good times we had together!

But, you don’t have to be Irish to celebrate St. Patrick's Day! Everyone is invited to spend the day learning about Irish culture, wearing green and having some Irish fun. Try these seven St. Patrick’s Day activities with your family!

Accessorize with green. Whether you’re covered in green or sneaky about it with a pair of socks, wearing green is a must on St. Patrick’s Day! The Irish flag is green, white, and orange, but green is the traditional color for St. Patrick’s Day. Don’t have a green item of clothing to wear? Make shamrock jewelry or a four-leaf clover pin
Dress like a leprechaun. It’s fun to go all out with different costumes! For St. Patrick’s Day, some people like to dress up like leprechauns or wear Irish dance outfits to celebrate, especially if they are at a parade or Irish festival. Craft a leprechaun hat like the one Sunspot wears in this "Ready, Jet, Go!" episode, when Jet and Mindy mistake him for a leprechaun at the end of a rainbow.
Make traditional Irish recipes or create green-colored dishes with your kids. Soda bread contains few ingredients and is easy to make. Corned beef and cabbage is a traditional meal, but some families eat salmon on St. Patrick’s Day! It’s also fun to turn regular food green with a little food coloring, or you can get creative by preparing green food like this Nature Cat-inspired Jell-O pond treat, cute veggie snails, or cheesy bacon brussels sprouts.
Decorate your home. Green decorations are a must for St. Patrick’s Day, especially if they feature the traditional symbol: the shamrock. This tissue paper shamrock craft will look great on your door, window, or refrigerator. All you need are six simple materials: green tissue paper, green construction paper, cardboard, glue, a pencil, and scissors. Green plants are also a great decoration!
Have fun with a new game. Use empty plastic water bottles to make your own game. Drawing different faces on your leprechaun pins for this do-it-yourself bowling activity. Will they be happy, sad, angry, or surprised? It’s a good way to help your child explore different emotions.
Embrace Irish music and dance. Try all of these St. Patrick’s Day activities while listening to Irish music or learn an Irish jig together like “Pinkalicious and Peterrific.” Bonus points if you teach a friend, too. Or, make and shake a shamrock instrument to create your own music to dance to.
Relax with a story. Storytelling is an Irish tradition. Get cozy with your family and settle down with a good book. “Happy St. Patrick’s Day, Curious George” is perfect for preschoolers while kindergarteners will enjoy “Jack and the Leprechaun” or “St. Patrick’s Day in the Morning.”