Thursday, March 22, 2012

Teen Program: Holi Water War


The Hindi festival of Holi is one of the more joyous and colorful celebrations of springtime and incorporating this festival into your programming creates a truly multi-cultural program sure to be a hit with teens and tweens.

Traditionally Holi occurs in March, but trying to find a good time to hold an outdoor program can be difficult, so plan your Holi Water War anytime the weather is warm!  We are holding our Holi Water War during June when the weather will be blistering hot and everyone will enjoy a cool program.  Before you begin hurling colored water at each other make sure to go over the roots of Holi and what the different colors traditionally represent.

Supplies:
Holi pigments
Sponge Koosh Balls (much easier that water balloons and better for the environment)
Tubs or buckets for water
Permission Forms (the pigments stain so you will want to have permission forms signed by participants)

Then all you need is a space for the program and a change of clothes for afterward.  Make sure that participants know they will not be allowed back into the library in wet clothing to avoid damage to library furnishings.  For this reason, I recommend holding this program near the end of business hours.
*Mixing the pigments used in Holi with water makes the colors more vivid and messier, so you definitely want to do this program in a park or open space outside your building.