The Best Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Classroom Activities

My students absolutely love learning about new places in the world. Celebrating and honoring Asian Pacific American Heritage Month is a perfect opportunity to give my students a chance to experience and learn about some amazing countries in Asia and the Pacific Islands.

For many of my students, Asian Pacific American Heritage Month is a chance to see new places they've never learned about before. For some students, it's a chance to celebrate their own cultures and to see characters like themselves in the books and activities we do.

(Looking for some done-for-you activities to do with your class during Asian American Heritage Month? Check out my Asia Virtual Field Trip bundle!)

Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Activities

There are some amazing ways to celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month in your classroom! My favorite ways are with virtual field trips, books, and crafts. These are guaranteed to engage your students and get them excited to learn about the amazing cultures found in countries of Asia and the Pacific Islands.

Read on for lots of ideas!

Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Virtual Field Trips

Virtual field trips have been growing in popularity ever since so many of us had to switch into virtual learning in March of 2020. Virtual field trips are fun and engaging ways for students to visit and learn more about places all over the world. Doing virtual field trips to various countries in Asia and the Pacific Islands can be a great way to have your students learn lots of new facts about these places.

Usually virtual field trips consist of a slide show containing links to videos, prompts to discuss learning, and sometimes an activity. These can be fun to put together yourself, if you already have information in mind that you'd like your students to learn about. Maps, video tours, and photos are great visuals for immersing students and helping transport them to a new place!

My students this year LOVED our Asia virtual field trips! They were so excited every time I announced we were doing another virtual field trip that day. I did one per week during Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, so we were able to visit quite a few countries.

If you're interested in the virtual field trips that I used, you can check out my Asia Virtual Field Trip Bundle! It includes virtual field trips to 3 countries: India, Japan, and China. There are 4-5 videos in each slideshow, as well as companion crafts and follow-up activities.

Asian Pacific American Heritage Books

One of my favorite ways to teach any topic is through children's books. Books help us connect and see new perspectives, and they help children feel seen. It's so important for children to feel represented by the characters in the books we share. It's equally important to expose our students to protagonists who are different from them. Here is a round-up of great Asian Pacific American heritage books that I especially love sharing with my students. You can get them on Amazon here.

If you want to research even more books, click the links below. These websites have great Asian Pacific American heritage booklists!

Social Justice Books

Conscious Kids

PBS

Asian Pacific American Heritage Crafts

If you've been here before, you know that I love arts integration! Finding ways to incorporate crafts into my curriculum is one of my greatest passions in teaching. I had a lot of fun researching crafts for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. There were so many wonderful choices, and I knew my students were going to love making their own versions of crafts that we were reading and learning about. I included templates for most of these crafts in my Asia Virtual Field Trips Bundle. Here are some of my favorite crafts that I found in my research:

Japan – Origami

Doing origami with children can be tricky. Even origami labeled “easy” is often beyond the reach of primary grade students. I had to look long and hard for origami that was accessible to my first graders. For beginners in grades K-2, I recommend these tutorials:

• Simple Origami Fish
• Simple Origami Cat
• Simple Origami Heart

If your students are a little older or have a background in origami, you could try this Fun and Simple Whale.

China – Paper Lantern

One of China's most famous celebrations is Lunar New Year's. At the end of Lunar New Year's is the Lantern Festival. Paper lanterns have become a recognized symbol associated with China. My students loved learning about these beautiful lanterns, and they were very excited to make their own!

Here are two tutorial videos to make simple paper lanterns:

• Easier Paper Lantern (Grades K-2)
• Harder Paper Lantern (Grades 3-5)

India – Mandalas

Mandalas are a beautiful art form used for many ceremonial and celebratory purposes in India. Mandalas can be very intricate and very difficult. Here are two accessible mandala tutorials that are simple enough for children to follow along!

• Nature Mandalas (Grades K-2): This video shows a simple way to make a nature mandala using whatever materials you can easily find outside. I had my students collect rocks, sticks, and grass right outside our classroom, and they were able to make beautiful pieces of artwork!
• Mandala Drawings (Grades 3-5): This video provides a clear guide and simple steps to designing your own simple mandala drawing. It starts out with a template of circles, and then shows students how to create a different design within each circle, building upon their mandala as they move outwards.

Somoa – Pattern Designs

Somoa is famous for its delicate artistry. They have amazing woven mats and incredibly intricate tattoo art. This video shows students how to draw some of the basic patterns that are sometimes used for tattoos. These patterns are repetitive and simple, but they look stunning when put together!

These crafts are a fun way to celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month through hands-on learning! Having these crafts up in my classroom and in our hallway is a great way to share with our school community our Asian Pacific American heritage celebrations!