Cinco de Mayo means the 5th of May in the Spanish language. It is the victory celebration of the Mexican Army, over the French Army, during the battle of Puebla, which occurred on May 5, 1862. While it is technically not a United States holiday, it is celebrated more here in the U.S. than in Mexico. Here are some fun activities for kids to do for Cinco de Mayo.
Read a book- There are several Cinco de Mayo books for kids to read. What Can You Do with a Paleta? Written by Carmen Tafolla is great for kids ages 3-7, Celebrate! It’s Cinco de Mayo, written by Janice Levy is also ideal for kids ages 3-7 and Cinco De Mouse-O! written by Judy Cox is perfect for kids ages 4-7.
Learn Spanish- Kids can learn easy Spanish words like numbers: uno (1), dos (2) and tres (3); colors like rojo (red), verde (green) and blanco (white) and animals such as la vaca (horse), el pato (dog) and el gato (pig).
Play a game- Jumping Beans is a fun game for kids. Jumping Beans is easy to play. Gather the kids in a circle, play some music and have them start jumping around the room. When the music stops, they need to stop jumping. If someone moves after the music has stopped, they are out of the game.
Sing a song– One of the more popular songs for kids to sing on Cinco de Mayo is called Cielito Lindo. The song is commonly played by mariachi bands and the lyrics are easy to learn. Another popular song is called La Cucaracha. It is a Spanish folk song that kids love to sing.
Make salsa– Salsa is a popular Mexican food that goes great with corn chips or tortilla chips. All you need is 2 tomatoes, diced; ½ onion, diced; 2 garlic cloves, minced; 1 tablespoon cilantro; 3 tablespoons lime juice; salt and pepper, to taste. Then, just combine all the ingredients into a bowl, mix well and enjoy!
What do you do with your kiddos for Cinco de Mayo???
Girl – I am all about salsa. But – its gotta be homemade or from a serious Mexican restaurant. Love the combo of flavors and cant wait to have more on Cinco de Mayo soon!!
We are going to have Mexican food, but that’s about it in our house for Cinco de Mayo. My kids will be happy with that 🙂
I think we will make some guacamole! Easy activity for our 3yo and simple enough for our baby to taste!
When I was a teacher, we always did a pinata. The art teacher made them and we would break it in class. So fun!
Making salsa with the kids sounds like fun. It’s a great way to get them to eat something different and to teach them about a different culture.
Read a book is always an excellent option. I also like the idea of salsa since it’s something they can do on there own and feel good about when it’s done.
I think it is so fun (and a little bit funny) that we here in the U.S. celebrate Cinco de Mayo more than they do in Mexico.
Looking for a celebration is a great way to unwind and unload; we are big fans!
Growing up Mexican, we never really celebrated Cinco de Mayo, now as a Mom myself; it’s so blown out of proportion by beer commercials lol.
We usually just cook a Mexican meal and speak about what we remember Cinco de Mayo being about. Neither my kids nor I were taught much about the Holiday, so we speak about what we learn through google and blogs 😉
Good food and a good book, that’s always an awesome way to celebrate with the family. I think these are great ideas and I’m sure it will make the day more fun.
I love to eat Mexican food so I wish I could celebrate. But really I always forget. I love to make my own salsa too. In the summer I make a pineapple salsa to put on chicken tacos. Now I want a taco…
We never celebrated Cinco De Mayo but I would’ve loved to do a few of these when I was younger. I’m sure the kids I nanny for would love the books!
I like the learn Spanish part! And honestly, I didn’t know what Cinco De Mayo was all about until now. Trust the Americans to celebrate a day which isn’t even theirs more that its owners lol
I have never really heard of this before. But I would totally be done for finding a restaurant that could get me the experience!
We usually make tacos and guacamole together then margaritas (kid versions too!) but this year I am out of town…
That salsa looks so good! I love the excuse though to read in Spanish. We plan on speaking Spanish to our son so love the idea of doing so here as well!
I can’t wait to spend this day in an actual spanish country! For now though, definitely makes me want to do my part and learn about it!
I love salsa…I use it on so many different dishes. I don’t know much about cinco de mayo so thanks for sharing
I love the combination of a cute kids book and food. Why kids learn so much through their bellies and I love it!