One of the traditional celebrations include Maypole Dancing, which is a great inclusive activity you can do with children of all ages, encouraging co-ordination and teamwork.
There are plenty of other activities you can do to celebrate May Day:
- Make flower garlands – use real flowers or make your own using colourful paper or cupcake cases, you can either decorate the setting or create garlands for children to dress the part and wear
- Make your own Maypole – Use a broom and a bucket and some ribbon to create your own Maypole
- Fruit and Flowers – May Day is all about the flowers and leaves appearing, a great opportunity for children to be interested in flowers and lifecycles, fruit and healthy eating
- Make your own May Day Baskets – There are lots of ways to craft your own baskets to fill with flowers, these make great decorations in the setting or take home presents for parents
- Fairies around the Maypole – Bring some imaginative play to your Maypole and create a fairy garden. It doesn’t have to be fairies, it could be the woodland friends or superheroes too! Tip: this is a great opportunity to do some reading and mark making with this theme
- Maths around the Maypole – Create a number trail which children can dance around and practice their number recognition skills
- Music – Maypole dancing isn’t the same without music, but even if you don’t have a Maypole you can still celebrate with some creative movement, why not try using colourful scarves or ribbons to allow the children to really express themselves.
We have added lots of May Day Activities on Pinterest if you want to try any of these ideas or get some more inspiration!
How do you celebrate May Day? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter @TTS_EarlyYears!
