Every year on December 13, schools and families across Sweden celebrate St. Lucia Day. Early in the morning, a girl in a long white gown with a red sash walks slowly through a dark room wearing a crown of candles, followed by friends who carry candles and sing. It is one of the most beautiful winter traditions in the world, and young children are fascinated by it.

Here is how to explain St. Lucia Day to kids, plus simple St. Lucia Day crafts for kids and activities for PreK–2.

What Is St. Lucia Day?

St. Lucia Day (Luciadagen in Swedish) is a festival of light celebrated on December 13 in Sweden, and also in Norway, Finland and Denmark. It comes at the darkest time of year in northern Europe. In December, the sun rises late in the morning and sets in the middle of the afternoon in much of Sweden, and in the far north it does not rise above the horizon at all for several weeks.

Long ago, under an older calendar, December 13 fell on the longest night of the year. A celebration of light on the darkest night helped people look forward to brighter days.

For young children, you can say:

  • St. Lucia Day is a winter festival of light.
  • It happens every year on December 13.
  • It is celebrated mostly in Sweden and nearby countries.
  • People sing, carry candles and share sweet buns.

Who Was Lucia?

Lucia, also known as Saint Lucy, was a young woman who lived on the island of Sicily, which is now part of Italy, about 1,700 years ago. Stories say she was kind and generous and secretly brought food to people who were hiding and hungry. To keep her hands free to carry the food, she wore a wreath of candles on her head to light the way.

Over many centuries the story traveled north, and in Sweden it blended with old winter customs about light. Today, many families celebrate St. Lucia Day as a cultural tradition about light, kindness and sharing.

How St. Lucia Day Is Celebrated

  • The Lucia: A girl, often the oldest daughter in a family or a chosen student at school, plays Lucia. She wears a white gown, a red sash and a crown of greenery with candles (today the candles are often battery lights).
  • The procession: Lucia leads a line of children. Girls in white each carry a candle. Boys called star boys wear tall, pointed white hats decorated with gold stars, and younger children may dress as gingerbread people or little gnomes.
  • Songs: The group sings the Lucia song and other winter songs as they walk.
  • Saffron buns: Families bake lussekatter, soft yellow saffron buns shaped like an S with a raisin in each curl, and serve them with thin gingerbread cookies.
  • Early morning: At home, children may surprise their parents with buns and warm drinks first thing in the morning.

Easy St. Lucia Day Crafts for Kids

Paper Candle Crown

Cut a band of green paper to fit around each child’s head. Children glue on paper leaves, then add four to seven paper candles with yellow flames. It is great practice for cutting on a line, counting and making patterns (leaf, leaf, candle). Use paper candles only, never real flames.

Star Boy Hat

Roll a large sheet of white paper into a tall cone and tape it closed. Children decorate it with gold or yellow paper stars. Ask them to count their stars, or sort big and small stars before gluing.

Saffron Bun Shapes with Playdough

Children roll playdough into a long snake and curl both ends in opposite directions to make an S, then press a bead or button into each curl for the raisins. It builds hand strength and doubles as letter practice for the letter S.

Light and Dark Science

Use a ball and a flashlight to show day and night, then talk about why winter days are so short in the far north. Compare the time the sun rises where you live with sunrise in Sweden.

St. Lucia Day Words and Printables

Useful words to learn together: Lucia, candle, crown, star, procession, saffron, Sweden, light and winter. Turn them into a word search with our free word search maker.

Lucia’s story is about kindness, so this is a lovely week for a kindness challenge. Notice kind acts in your class and celebrate them with a printable award from our certificate maker.

Bringing Light and Kindness Into Your Classroom

St. Lucia Day reminds children that a small light, and a small kind act, can brighten a dark day. For more ways to build a caring class community, explore our classroom community activities and more ideas in our seasonal activities.