All about World Siblings Day
World Siblings Day is celebrated on the 10th of April every year and is a day to celebrate the bond between siblings and spend quality family time together too. All brothers and sisters of every age are encouraged to celebrate the day, including cherished in-law siblings! It is a great way for the whole family to get together and have much-needed bonding time.
In this blog, we delve into the history of World Siblings Day and why it is celebrated so you can know all about the special day. You can also gain inspiration on activities siblings can do together as well as the whole family so you can celebrate Siblings Day in fun and exciting ways!
The history of World Siblings Day
World Siblings Day was created in 1995 by a freelance paralegal Claudia Evart. She founded the day in honour of her late siblings, Alan and Lisette, who she lost in separate accidents. In honour of their memory and to celebrate their lives, Claudia established Siblings Day as an annual observance in America.
This observance gained recognition over the years as a celebration of siblings and was officially recognised in America in 1998 by the then president Bill Clinton. The Siblings Day Foundation, which was incorporated in 1997, achieved non-profit status in 1999 which helped the day to grow in popularity worldwide!
Why is World Siblings Day celebrated?
The day is celebrated to highlight the importance of siblings in our lives and celebrate the unique bond between them. It provides families with an opportunity to express their appreciation and love towards their brothers and sisters. It is also a chance to reflect on the bond each person shares with their siblings and to build a strong bond between them.
Siblings Day honours the companionship and support that siblings give each other throughout our lives. It encourages people to build bridges and resolve any conflicts they may have with their siblings too. As well as spending time as a whole family with fun activities in a peaceful and loving environment.
Activities to do with siblings for the day
The theme for this year’s day is #ItsaSiblingThing which encourages siblings to think about what bonds them and recognise their special connection. Whether that’s reflecting on the past and what your siblings have done for you, or looking at the present with your children, the theme is the perfect chance to do some activities with siblings. These can be regular activities you and your siblings, or your children, do with each other all the time or incorporating this into new activities. This year is all about doing something special, fun and unique with siblings that no one else understands!
To help you decide how to celebrate the day with siblings, or encourage your children to do activities together, we have created some engaging activities for the day.
Host a siblings party and share memories
This activity is perfect to do with your siblings or as a way for your children to bond together. Plan a suitable evening to host a party to celebrate Siblings Day. Invite your siblings and in laws over and spend time together in a fun and relaxed way. If you have multiple children, encourage them to attend the party together and take time with each other.
You could create signature cocktails and mocktails to enjoy based on you and your siblings personalities, bond and likes. Include your children by allowing them to design their own mocktail that they think reflects them as siblings too. They can then make these drinks together with your help and work with each other to settle on the best one. They can have lots of fun with each other while trying out various ingredients and getting messy! Your children’s mocktails can be served to other kids at the party and encourage them to also spend quality time with their siblings.
During the party you could play various fun party games to encourage brothers and sisters to spend time with each other, compete and work together. You could even share memories with your siblings reminiscing on your childhoods or share memories with your children to show them their important bond.
Work together on an art and craft project
Encourage your little ones to celebrate their bond through an art and craft project. It can be hard for little siblings to get along all the time as they can easily fall out, argue and spend time with friends over their sibling. For World Siblings Day designate some time for your children to spend together with a fun and exciting project they can work on.
This project could be anything from painting portraits of each other to creating a collage of their relationship together. You could even encourage them to make little gifts for each other such as bracelets, pottery sculptures or even a handmade card. They can communicate with each other as they create, directing and helping one another, and become closer whilst having plenty of fun. This activity can also develop their teamwork skills and give siblings an opportunity to open up to each other, discussing their relationship and showing their love.
You could do this activity with your siblings too as a way to spend quality time together. You could have a few drinks and check in with them as you create something unique. If you’re stuck on what to create together, you could go to an art workshop to give you inspiration and enjoy an evening out painting together.
Bake or cook together
Bring little siblings closer together through baking or cooking. Children love to get messy and baking or cooking offers them that opportunity. Plus, they love exploring different textures and of course, taste testing! Baking or cooking is ideal to engage your children in spending time together. Let them choose what they want to make, it could be their favourite tasty treat or meal, and encourage them to work together and help each other. They could even make something for each other as a way to show their appreciation to their sibling.
Your children can bond, have fun and share a few laughs creating a wonderful memory through this activity. You could encourage your kids to open up to each other and reflect on their bond whilst cooking. Once done, they can sit down together and enjoy what they have created!
Have a siblings book club
Create a siblings only book club for your children or for you and your siblings. You could each pick out your favourite books and spend time reading each one. Doing this allows you or your children to feel closer to siblings as you indulge in their interests and understand why they enjoy the book. You could meet once a week and discuss what you have read, gaining an insight to why the book was chosen.
A book club also sets that much-needed time with brothers and sisters to catch up and spend time together with no interruptions or excuses. Plus, for little siblings, it encourages them to read more and discover each other’s interests.
Perform a siblings concert
Encourage your children to work together and bond with a fun concert. They can plan what they would like to perform and create a song, music or dance and get excited about performing. Provide your little ones with everything they may need such as music, instruments and microphones to help them and inspire their ideas. They can spend time together practising for the day and refining their performance, giving them endless hours of fun and bonding time that they may usually not get.
Once done, invite family and friends to watch what they have created and support them in their talents. This will help them enjoy the experience and boost their confidence. Little siblings can also feel like they achieved something together and they can create a good memory to look back on.
Encourage siblings to play together independently
Outdoor and indoor independent playtime for children can be super fun and a great opportunity to bond with friends. However, many little siblings would rather play with friends or by themselves than with each other. This could be due to lots of reasons such as conflict of interests and fall outs that can occur when playing.
Encourage your children to spend quality time together through play by choosing play equipment they can share. This could be an outdoor playset such as swings, trampolines, climbing frames or playhouses that they can imagine endless possibilities together with. Or indoor play items they all will love such as games, art supplies and construction/educational toys.
Having these eliminates any particular interests as the play equipment is neutral and can be used in imaginative play. This encourages little siblings to play together as they have an opportunity for endless hours of imaginative fun with equipment they all will enjoy. They can bond through play and reduce fall outs through learning to share this equipment with each other.
Use this guide all about World Siblings Day to understand how it started and why it’s celebrated before the day occurs. Try out the sibling activities and family activities to bring little siblings together as well as you and your siblings too. Have fun celebrating your siblings and sharing your love for one another and encourage your children to do the same. If your children are reluctant or have fallen out, create family time to encourage siblings to come together again. Show little siblings the importance of their relationship and create fun, engaging and exciting ways to celebrate Siblings Day!
