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Come along with us as we take a virtual trip to India and explore from home! Perhaps you’re planning a trip to India for kids in the future, or maybe you just want to learn more about the country right from home. Either way, this is a guide to learn about history, culture, food, people, as we enjoy our homeschooling India unit.
This guide is a great way to connect via heart and mind with those of diverse backgrounds from around the world. It’s perfect for preparing for future family travel, to help with homeschooling, or just for fun. We can’t wait to learn more about the beauty and diversity of India with kids.
Our family likes to spend 1-2 weeks on a virtual field trip to each country. We typically spread out these activities and pick a couple each day. I hope you enjoy learning with us as we explore these Indian activities for kids!
This post about learning about India with kids contains affiliate links, but all opinions are 100% my own. That means I earn a small commission if you purchase through my link, but doesn’t change your price.
Indian folktales are often allegorical. They are used to teach principles such as honesty, hard work, endurance, and wisdom.
The official name of the country is the Republic of India (Bhārat Gaṇarājya in Hindi). It has the second largest population in the world and has a Parliamentary democracy. The Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) is responsible for running the government. The President (Ram Nath Kovind) is the head of State. The government is divided into executive, legislative, and judicial branches. India has 29 states and 7 territories.
The Mughal, or Mogal empire was a Muslim empire that ruled most of India and Pakistan in the 16th and 17th centuries. India later came under British rule, and became independent in 1947.
1 USD ~ 75 rupees
Consider celebrating Holi with your family. It’s surprisingly inexpensive and really fun – here’s where you can purchase Holi powder yourself!
Coloring sheet flag from HERE
(Map from HERE)
(Map from HERE)
Food is a perfect way to “travel” to a country from home. Making these recipes was one of our favorite parts of our homeschooling India unit! Indian food tends to be heavily spiced with chili, cumin, coriander, and more. A food that is flavored with a mix of spices is called a curry.
Indians traditionally eat with their right hand, but many now use western utensils.
Here are some common foods in India:
If you don’t feel up to making a whole recipe, consider just smelling a few of the common Indian spices you may have in your cupboard! Many grocery stores also have frozen Indian entrees and naan bread, or you could visit a local Indian restaurant.
Cooking is a perfect activity for a homeschooling India unit. Here are some of our favorite kid friendly Indian food recipes!
Imagine some of the easy and difficult aspects of visiting India with kids!
Art in India is very old! It dates back to before recorded history. In fact, the oldest art currently known in the world was discovered in India in 1957.
Materials
Ancient petroglyphs weren’t just used to make a place beautiful. Instead, they were used to share ideas and messages. They used ancient symbols that are different than our own, but they may have shared similar ideas.
Discuss what different symbols mean in your family or culture. For instance, if you included a sun or a baseball bat, what would that mean?
Imagine you’d like to send a secret message to a friend or family member. What would you draw on your rock to send your message?
After discussing the symbols, create a few different rock art images. You may like to paint them, as well. Pass them around and see if others can figure out what they mean!
REFERENCE for doing a petroglyph activity with kids
Coloring page from HERE
HERE are some other wonderful India craft project ideas!
India is about 80% Hindu. Other religions include Islam, Christianity, Sikhism, Buddhism, and Jainism. Hinduism has a LOT of deities that are common in Indian culture. Our favorite ones to learn about are:
Hindu deities card matching game
Cows are considered sacred by Hindus. Because of this, they often wander in the streets in India and no one stops them! Beef is also banned in some parts of India for this reason.
It is also very common to see monkeys in India.
India also has a number of endangered animal species.
Don’t forget to listen to some classical Indian music while doing your activities!
Bhajans are religious or spiritual devotional songs.
Here’s a playlist of classical Carnatic style bhajans sung in Sanskrit!
Cricket and badminton are popular in India. Here’s a simple badminton set if you’d like to play on your own. It’s a perfect backyard activity!
The earliest known predecessor of chess was probably invented in India. If you’ve never played before, it’s a perfect time to try out this Indian game!
Dance is also very popular in India. A couple of popular dance forms are Bollywood and Bhangra. Bollywood dance is typically used in that style of movie. Bhangra is a very active dance form with lots of shoulder and leg movement. Here’s a fun video to learn some bhangra steps!
If you’re looking for some other ideas for Indian games and activities, here are a few simple and fun ones:
We’ve loved putting together this resource to virtually visit India. We’d love to hear if you do any of these activities for a homeschooling India unit, or if you visit in person!
We hope to inspire curiosity and connection through exploring and learning, and we hope this guide helps you and your families. Please share any activities you do with us over on our Instagram. And we’d be delighted if you passed this India with kids virtual tour and homeschooling resource along to others, as well!
