Fun and engaging ways to celebrate Independence Day with the family

India's Independence Day is celebrated around the country with much fervour and enthusiasm year after year. Flag hoisting, parades and various cultural functions to celebrate the birth of free India, and the country's rich cultural diversity, are usually organized in a grand and august manner.

Children especially look forward to flag-hoisting ceremonies in schools and the festivities that ensue. If you are not able to go out and join the crowd to celebrate Independence Day, fret not, you can still celebrate it in your own way. Do not let anything dampen your patriotic spirit!

In this article, let us see how we can celebrate independence day with family with much fun and fervour. We have a bunch of activities for you and the family that is not only exciting but also a great way to educate your child about the significance of this important day.

Activities for the family this Independence Day

Connect with your family

What better way to spend the day than for the family to come together? Schedule a meet-up with family who live nearby, or set up a video conferencing with extended family who is located in different cities or even different countries, if possible. But this won't be an ordinary meetup/call, simply catching up with family. Instead, plan and schedule a few activities related to Independence Day.

For instance, you could conduct a quiz on freedom fighters, national leaders or significant events that took place during the Indian War of Independence. You could even ask your family members to dress up as freedom fighters or national leaders. Or, everyone could simply dress in the colors of the Indian flag.

You can also instruct everyone to make small flags that they can pin up on their clothes. And, don't forget to stand up and sing the national anthem together at the end. Ensure that the younger children take part in the activities or prepare a special activity for them. It's sure to be a fun and interesting session and a great experience for the children to learn a thing or two about their country.

Cook in tricolor

National holidays always call for special treats from the kitchen. This Independence Day, why not indulge in some themed dishes? Yes, you guessed right - cook tricolour-themed dishes! This is a sure way to get your kids involved and engaged for the better part of the day. There are several tried and tested recipes available - from sandwiches and pastas to salads, pulaos and deserts! Bring out the carrots and greens to cater to the theme of the day. Let your child help in choosing the tricolor menu. You can all brainstorm as a family about various ideas and combinations for some exciting tricolour dishes.

More importantly, this activity can be an interesting learning exercise for your children as well. Make sure you explain to them what each color of the flag symbolizes, their significance and why they were chosen. In fact, there are several other fascinating facts about the Indian flag to discover. Together you can read up about when and how this version of the flag came to be, who designed the flag and also look at pictures of the earlier versions of the Indian flag.

Community celebrations

If you live in a fairly large apartment complex, your association could organize celebrations to mark Independence Day and children of the complexes can put up a simple dance or song performance to mark the occasion.

You can also get the children in the complex to make small flags for people to pin on their clothes. Some sweets can also be shared among all.

Play dress-up

Here's another fun activity. To get into the spirit of Independence Day, why not hold a fancy dress competition at home? Don't worry about getting perfect costumes - simply make do with what's available. And, this is not just for the kids; you and your spouse can get dressed up too! Don't forget to include grandparents as well in the whole show. Once you are all ready, each person can talk a bit about who they are dressed up as or give an interesting anecdote about the person. For younger children, explain to them who they are dressing up as and why this particular person is important.

To make things more interesting, you can even hoist your own flag at home, keeping in mind the protocols for hoisting the national flag. Explain the event to your children and help them understand the significance of the ceremony. Don't forget to capture these precious moments with the family on camera!

Walk your own parade

Yes, indeed! Why not organize a mini-parade with the kids at home? Involve your neighbors as well.

Each person can represent a branch of the military forces, police or even other significant professionals, famous personalities or sportspersons from our country. March around the house to a famous marching song while waving flags. Or sing a patriotic song while marching to its rhythm. The children can even sing a patriotic song or perform an Indian classical or folk dance.

This is another learning opportunity for your child to discover various interesting facts such as the military forces of the country, the various ranks of the soldiers, patriotic songs and anthems and other interesting facts and details about India's rich heritage.

Let's commemorate this special day with your loved ones. We hope we've given you fun and interesting ideas that you can enjoy to mark the occasion.

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