As a school that emphasizes cultural exploration and celebration, Brooklyn Charter School honors the diversity of our student body, faculty, community, and world. Though many of us likely are celebrating Easter this spring here in America, your child might start getting curious about spring holidays around the globe. Below are a few such holidays that might spark uplifting conversations about springtime, life cycles, culture, and more.
The Songkran Water Festival
A celebration native to Thailand, the Songkran Water Festival gets its name from the Sanskrit word for “astrological passage.” The event is considered the traditional New Year’s Day and is celebrated by attending a Buddhist monastery, visiting with the elderly, and spraying water at each other in giant festivals.
Holi
A spring festival central to life in Northern India, Holi is a festival in which Hindu devotees throw colored powder at each other and into the air. The result is an incredible display of color to match the changing colors of the season. Holi is a celebration of spring and renewal, and also of events in Hindu religious lore, such as the intervention of Lord Vishnu.
Las Fallas
A tradition in Spain, Las Fallas is a five-day festival that features special, vibrant monuments that are later burned. Though to have originated in the Middle Ages, Las Fallas has since been incorporated into Catholic tradition as a way to honor St. Joseph.
Cimburijada
With a name that translates to “Festival of the Scrambled Eggs,” this Bosnian tradition celebrates the renewal that comes with spring. Participants wake up early and feast on specially prepared scrambled egg bowls that use more than 100 eggs each!
Bloemencorso Bollenstreek
The Netherlands is known for its tulip fields, and this festival certainly celebrates flowers in an extravagant way. Each spring, 50 floats decked out in flowers parade through eight cities, accompanied by a marching band. This is the world’s largest flower festival and is a tribute to the importance of the flower in the Netherlands’ history.
The world’s cultures are diverse, but most have a celebration honoring the blooms that come with the spring season. Maybe your child can find another festival and become our resident expert. If you have any questions about the school year, please contact our office here. Have a wonderful spring!