Family New Year Celebrations

Topics: Family Fun 

Age Range: Preschool 

The end of the year is an ideal time to celebrate as a family, look back on the year, and plan for the year ahead. Here are some New Year celebration ideas for the whole family.

New Year’s Eve family celebration ideas

  • Discuss your favorite family moments from the year. Sit down as a family to share your favorite memories and stories. Your child can get involved in a fun way drawing or writing about the memory.
  • Create a scrapbook or time capsule. These are great ways to create a snapshot of your child’s life at a particular time. Some ideas for a time capsule include a photo of your child, a drawing, an example of their handwriting such as a story or their name, small mementos from the year, even a small item of clothing. Uncover it next year for a fun memory.
  • Have a family movie night on New Year’s Eve. A New Year’s Eve movie night is ideal for younger children who can’t stay awake until midnight. Choose your family’s favorite movies and start a new tradition.
  • Discover how the New Year is celebrated around the world. This is an ideal opportunity for you and your child to explore how new year is celebrated in different cultures. Additionally, you can go online and celebrate the New Year as it happens in different time zones around the world.

New Year’s Day family celebration ideas

  • Try a new food tradition. You can try creating a new food tradition for the first day of the year based on what your family likes. Additionally, you can also eat traditional New Year’s Day foods from other cultures, like soba noodles, tamales, or lentils.
  • Spend time outdoors. No matter what the weather is like where you live, there’s most likely an outdoor activity in your community that’s family-friendly and fun on New Year’s Day.
  • Show gratitude and compassion for others. Because New Year’s Day is so close to the holiday season, it’s an ideal time to show your child that gratitude happens all year. On New Year’s Day, discuss ways you can show compassion throughout the year, or even right away.
  • Do something new. The first day of a new year is a perfect time to create a brand-new family tradition. Some examples include enjoying a special dinner, watching a specific movie, or a fun family activity like a scavenger hunt or board game.