Saint Patrick's Day Lessons [Ideas For St Patrick's Day For Kids]

Need Saint Patrick’s Day Lessons or St Patrick Day fun ideas, crafts and facts in St Patrick’s lessons and activities? Whether you’re looking for St. Patrick’s Day activities for classroom or home school or need fun holidays for kids ideas and learn more about this celebration of Irish culture and Saint Patrick fun facts, check these out!

Saint Patrick’s Day Lessons and Activities for Kids

If you’re looking for St Patrick’s day lesson plans, activities with leprechauns, resources about clovers and good luck, green foods and more, you’ll love these suggestions and ideas for St Patricks Day — whether you’re looking for how to teach preschoolers St Patrick’s Day, St Patrick’s Day activities for elementary or kindergarten, or something like St Patricks Day history for middle school students/ high school!

How do you teach St Patrick’s day to kids?

Saint Patrick’s Day Lessons and Saint Patrick Day Activities for Kids:

Learn about the meaning of St Patricks Day.
Do lessons about St Patrick’s Day history, symbols, and traditions using St Patricks Day history worksheets and videos.
Ask: who is Saint Patrick and research the answer. (see resources below!)
Have an I Spy Green St. Patrick’s Day scavenger hunt.
Study the geography of Ireland.
Learn the difference between shamrocks vs clovers for St. Patrick’s Day science.
Do St. Patrick’s Day STEM and make green slime.
Research, What are the traditions of St Patrick’s day?
Listen to St. Patrick’s Day music / Irish music and make your own music. (Search for some St Patrick’s Day music worksheets to go with your learning!)
Make layered St Patricks day drinks for kids.
Create a costume of green and wear it. (Having a Green Party is one of those fun St Patricks Day themed activities kids love!)
Go to a St. Patrick’s Day parade (search: St. Patrick’s Day events near me)
Do an art for Saint Patrick’s Day lesson plan.
Read children’s books about St. Patrick’s Day.
Read the How To Catch A Leprechaun Book and then build a leprechaun trap. (One of the most popular St Patrick’s Day fun activities for kids, especially if you’re looking for leprechaun ideas for the classroom / St Patrick’s Day at home activities!)
Cook and eat corned beef and cabbage (or learn about St. Patrick’s Day food).
Hunt for lucky St. Patrick’s Day clover / shamrocks. (Do a St. Patrick’s Day hike / park play as part of your St Patrick’s Day classroom activities!)
Watch fun Irish movies for kids.
Do these fun Crafts for St Patrick’s day (great for a group project!).

(See the full list of St Patricks Day activities for school and home school / St Patricks Day lesson plans ideas below. Keep scrolling!)

 
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GET MORE: St Patrick’s Day Kid Snacks and Crafts Ideas

How do you explain St Patrick’s Day to a child?

Wondering how do you explain St Patrick’s Day…

What is St Patrick’s Day and why do we celebrate it?

Why is St Patrick’s Day celebrated and what is the St Patrick’s Day history? St. Patrick’s Day, also called the Feast of Saint Patrick, is both a cultural and religious day to celebrate and honor St. Patrick, a patron saint and Christian minister in Ireland. The day was made an official Christian Feast Day and commemorates the arrival of Christianity in Ireland.

Why do we celebrate St Patrick’s Day in the United States?

St. Patrick’s Day is observed in the United States to celebrate Irish-American heritage and culture of the Irish. Although the holiday is from Ireland, most of the traditions were started in the United States. In America, the holiday is also referred to as St. Paddy’s Day or St. Patty’s Day.

When is St. Patrick’s Day?

St. Patrick’s Day 2022 is Thursday, March 17, 2022.

Is St Patrick’s Day always March 17?

St Patrick’s Day date is always on March 17th, which is the death date of Saint Patrick, or the patron saint of Ireland.

Is St Patrick’s Day a holiday?

St. Patrick’s Day is a public holiday in Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, and a few other places. St. Patrick’s Day is not a federal holiday in the United States. Although not an official holiday in other countries, it is still widely celebrated in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and other countries around the world.

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Fun Kid Activities For March

St Patrick’s Day Facts and Traditions

Learning about culture and tradition should be part of your St Patrick’s Day learning activities!

St Patrick’s Day Colors

Did you know that St. Patrick’s color is really blue (and not green)?

According to Time.com:

Saint Patrick’s color was blue, not green, say historians. The hue — St. Patrick’s blue, a lighter shade — can still be seen on ancient Irish flags and was used on armbands and flags by members of the Irish Citizen Army.

…But the use of green on St. Patrick’s Day began during the 1798 Irish Rebellion, when the clover became a symbol of nationalism and the ‘wearing of the green’ on lapels became regular practice.

Why do we wear green on St Patrick’s Day?

According to some, the St Patrick’s Day green that you often see on St Patricks Day outfits is because of leprechauns. Legend has it that green makes you invisible to leprechauns. If they can’t see you, then they can’t pinch you in their mischievous way. If you don’t wear green, the leprechauns can see you and pinch you! And, that’s why we traditionally pinch people who don’t wear green on St. Patrick’s Day!

What do you do on St Patrick’s Day?

St. Patrick’s Day celebrations include:

Wearing green
Looking for shamrocks
Listening to Irish music and singing traditional Irish songs
Going to St. Paddy’s Day parades
Visiting festivals
Looking out for leprechaun tricks
Eating special food like corned beef and cabbage and soda bread
Drinking green beer or green drinks

Because Lenten restrictions are often lifted for the day, many people drink alcohol and the day has been commercialized for that as the main reason to celebrate.

(For example, they do not drink green beer in Ireland!)

Many in Ireland believe this has added a negative stereotype to the holiday.

Fun St. Patrick’s Day Trivia

St. Patrick wasn’t even Irish! He was born in Britain!
March 17th, the day the holiday is celebrated, is the day St. Patrick died.
Saint Patrick’s real name was Maewyn Succat. He changed it to Patricius after becoming a priest.
Saint Patrick’s official color was blue, not green.
Legend credits Saint Patrick with driving all the snakes out of Ireland. However, Ireland was too cold for snakes, so it is believed that Saint Patrick was driving away metaphorical snakes.
Leprechaun’s were initially described as wearing red and not green!
New York city hosts the biggest St. Patrick’s Day parade in the world.
Legend states that the three-leaf shamrock represents the Holy Trinity.
The “corn” in corn beef refers to the salt used to cure the meat, which was called “corn.”
Irish lore says that leprechauns are shoe cobblers and spend their days making/mending shoes and that’s how they earned their pot of gold.

St Patrick’s Day Sayings

A traditional saying for the holiday is, “Erin go Bragh!” It means “Ireland forever!”

St Patricks Day Food

Traditional Irish St Patrick Day food includes:

Irish Fry breakfast of bacon (“rashers”), blood sausage (also called black pudding), fried tomatoes, brown soda bread, and tea.
Irish soda bread
Scones
Roast with potatoes, peas, carrots, and gravy
Colcannon (a version of mashed potatoes)
Apple tart
Shepard’s pie
Bacon or lamb (mutton) and cabbage
Corned beef and cabbage*

*Corned beef and cabbage is not a traditional Irish dish and is an Irish-American culture dish. However, there was a traditional Irish dish of bacon and cabbage that was adapted in the U.S.

What does the rainbow mean on St Patrick’s Day?

Some say that the rainbow is a symbol of Ireland transitioning from paganism to Christianity. It is also said that leprechauns hide a pot-o-gold at the end of a rainbow.

St Patrick’s Day Traditions Leprechaun

Why is there a leprechaun on St Patrick Day?

Leprechauns are mythical creatures from Irish folklore. They are said to be small with red hair, a beard, and they wear all green and symbolize luck. There is no connection between leprechauns and the patron saint of the holiday. However, along with shamrocks, they have become symbols of St. Patrick’s Day.

Leprechauns are quite mischievous and like to play practical jokes.

They have a pot of gold that they’ve hidden. They’re hard to catch, but if a human is lucky enough to catch one, it is said that the person gets the pot of gold.

Legend has it that they will trade three wishes for their freedom.

FUN FACT: Did you know that leprechauns originally were said to wear red and not green?

According to CBSNews.com:

Leprechauns were originally depicted wearing red, not green.

In ‘Legends and Stories of Ireland,’ written in 1831, Samuel Lover describes their dress:

‘He wears a red square-cut coat, richly laced with gold, and the inexpressible of the same, cocked hat, shoes and buckles.’

What does the leprechaun bring kids?

Leprechauns may leave your kids coins, chocolate, candy, or chocolate coins (or any other treat surprises you think go along with the theme!). Leprechauns also like to leave pranks and do naughty things (like knock things over) when they visit!