For Kids:
Hats have quite a history. Archaeologists have found carvings of people
wearing hats as far back as 3200 BCE. There were all kinds of reasons to wear
hats - safety, protection, religious reasons, ceremonial reasons, warmth,
fashion, rank, social status, and sun shading (to name a few.) Around the
world, hats are often part of celebrations.
The National Hat Day in the United States is a modern holiday.
This holiday has observed in schools, museums, and libraries.
It started in 1983. In the year 2023, the holiday will be 50 years old.
United States:
National Hat Day in the United States is January 15th each year. This is a great holiday to
celebrate as all you need is a hat! You can make a hat out of paper or cloth or
just about anything.
Switzerland: One very interesting hat celebration occurs in Switzerland.
It's called the Onion Walk. The famous Swiss onion market opens in November with
a parade of marching onions. They're not real onions. But the marchers wear tall
(very tall) onion hats with faces painted on them. The marchers are accompanied
by drummers to officially open the market.
Portugal: In Portugal, instead of onions, there is a special holiday parade
of young women wearing hats made of bread. Some of these elaborate hats are 6
feet high. Colored flowers decorate the bread, which is twisted into interesting
shapes. One year, over 600 women participated. This festival is called the
Festival of Trays. It takes once very four years!
Japan: In Japan, the one present you give your grandfather when he turned
61 is a red hat. Giving this hat is a special way of saying, "Happy Birthday and
many more to come!"
Australia: The cork hat is uniquely Australian. It's a hat with dangling
corks that swing as you walk or in the breeze. This weird looking hat was
designed to keep flies away during fly season. This is a practical, if rather
odd looking, seasonal hat.
The
Onion Market
Festival of the Trays
Australian outfit - fly hats
For Teachers
Make a paper Tricorn hat,
like they worn in the 13 American colonies
10 simple crazy fun hats
Lesson Idea: In
2023, the hat day holiday will be 50 years old. It's an irresistible lesson idea. I
don't know what I'm going to do with it yet. Suggestions would be appreciated.
