Diwali is a five-day Festival of Lights, it is India’s biggest and most important holiday of the year and is traditionally celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains. It’s a time to celebrate the triumph of light over darkness. This celebration includes good food, fireworks, coloured sand, charitable giving and special lamps.
Diwali is known as the ‘festival of lights’ because houses, shops and public places are decorated with brightly burning small clay lamps called diyas. Celebrants light diya’s outside their homes to symbolize the inner light that protects against spiritual darkness.
When we hear about a festival of lights, the first impression that flashes through our minds is that of impressive multi-coloured fireworks, sprinkling various sorts of bright-coloured lights in the night sky. Although the tradition of fireworks on Diwali is not very old, they have succeeded in becoming such a vital part of this festival, we can’t even imagine a wonderful Diwali without them.
Diwali at Tops
In the past at Tops Day Nurseries, the children have celebrated Diwali by participating in several cultured activities. The children have had lots of fun decorating paper lanterns and making their own candle holders, using beads, sequins and glitter. Using spray bottles they have been able to create their own firework-themed masterpieces and explored a bright, sparkling sensory tray. To continue with the festival celebrations, the children have created their own Rangoli patterns using pebbles, coloured sand, rice and paint. They also studied photographs in order to create their own henna tattoo designs on paper hands.
To find out more about the Diwali celebrations click this link to National Geographic or Kids National Geographic.
