School Day is a curated version of the Living Traditions Festival designed specifically for elementary school students, with a range of exciting programming. At School Day, students will see art, performances, and stories from a broad range of cultures and have the chance to engage in many hands-on activities. School Day is free to attend and is a key part of Living Tradition’s mission of facilitating understanding and belonging amongst communities.
Registration is required to participate in School Day. Register below if you are interested. Please reach out to
Activities
All activities are ongoing during School Day hours. Activities with a participant cap are first come, first serve.
East Lawn
Bocce Ball with the Utah Bocce Ball Association
This ancient game was first documented in 5200 BCE and later popularized by the Roman Empire. It most closely resembles bowling and is played around the world! It requires skill, strategy and just a little luck.
Scavenger Hunt with One Kind Act a Day
Come pick up your scavenger hunt kit to guide your adventure around the festival grounds. Use stickers to track your progress as you visit performances, workshops, and crafts.
West Lawn
Roping... how to hold and throw a lariat with The Marshal
Kids will learn how to effectively toss a cowboy lariat and rope a cow!
Taonga Takaro with Ngati Hiona New Zealand American Society (starting at 10am)
This workshop introduces poi and tītītōrea, traditional Māori practices that combine rhythm, movement, and storytelling. Participants will learn basic poi techniques and engage in the fast-paced stick game, building coordination, timing, and teamwork. Through music and group connection, this experience encourages cultural expression, focus, and fun.
Sensory Room
Bilingual Children’s Stories with Valeria Núñez
1, 2, 3 hasta el altar (Mexico) – Bilingual reading for Día de los Muertos with a fun interactive game.
Chasca la Chinchilla Chinchinera (Chile) – Bilingual puppet story featuring a live chinchilla for the kids to meet.
Workshops
Classroom workshops run on a rotating schedule at the top of the hour and the half-hour mark. All other workshops are ongoing during School Day hours.
Workshops with a participant cap are first come, first serve.
Library Classroom A
Jaipur (India) Hand Block Printing with ZAYA
Step into one of India's most celebrated craft traditions — hand block printing from the ancient city of Jaipur, Rajasthan. Using hand-carved wooden blocks and natural dyes, participants will stamp their own pattern onto fabric using techniques that have been passed down through artisan families for over 500 years. Leave with a piece you made by hand and a story that connects you to one of the world's great living craft traditions.
Library Classroom B
Hula - Wa’a Kaukahi: A Canoe Journey with Kumu Hula C. Pōmaika’i Gaui
Keiki (children) will learn a hula noho (sitting hula) that speaks of a Wa’a Kaukahi (single haul canoe) skippered by a female captain and crew, who sailed from O’ahu to Tahiti. No modern navigational tools were used, just the sun, stars, wind, and water currents. This sail celebrates traditional navigation and ‘Ike Kupuna (wisdom).
East Craft Tent
Celebrating Day of the Dead with Rocio Mujica Aguilar de Mejia
Learn to decorate a sugar skull to place on an Altar to celebrate life and remember our loved ones who have departed. We remember them on Día de Muertos - Day of the Dead - November 1st and 2nd.
Henna Artistry with Henna by Sanz
Discover the ancient tradition of henna in this hands-on workshop led by one of Utah’s leading henna artists, Henna By Sanz. This session provides a comprehensive look at the application of 100% natural, organic henna paste, focusing on both the science of achieving rich henna stains and the precision required to create intricate traditional and modern body art.
West Craft Tent
Native American Beading with Elvira and Diane Murphy
Beginning string beading for all.
Pysanky Paper Eggs with Ingrid Hersman
Ukrainian/Slavic egg dyeing is traditionally done with hot beeswax melted over candle flames. For this kids workshop, we will be using a wax-resistant dyeing process on paper eggs.
Performances
North Stage
Latin Dance Heritage
9:15 - 9:45 AM
Dance performance featuring folkloric traditions from North, Central, South America and the Caribbean.
Utah Argentina Alliance
10 - 10:30 AM
Argentine music and dance performance showcasing folkloric traditions including malambo, traditional gaucho rhythms, and ancestral instruments like the bombo legüero and boleadoras.
Aquarela do Brasil
10:45 - 11:15 AM
Traditional Brazilian dance performance.
Malialole
11:30 - 12 PM
Music and dance performance from the islands of Polynesia, expressing stories from ancient to modern day through beautiful lyrical dancing, music, singing, and percussion.
South Stage
N8tivhoop
9:15 - 9:45 AM
Native American hoop dance performance.
Bomba Marilé
10 - 10:30 AM
Live performance of Bomba: an Afro-Puerto Rican style of music and dance that has existed in Puerto Rico for over 500 years.
Ayllu United, Unión Progreso Valle del Mantaro & Cristy Marleny
10:45 - 11:45 AM
Group showcase performance featuring three Peruvian folk-dance groups representing traditional dances that reflect the unique identities of Peru’s diverse regions, including Marinera Norteña from Peru’s northern coast, Huaylarsh from the Andean highlands, and dances from the Amazon.
Amphitheater
Rafaela Kimie
9:15 - 9:45 AM
Live music drawing on popular and traditional styles from Brazil and South American gaucho culture in Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, and Paraguay.
Celtic Country Dancers
10 - 10:30 AM
Scottish country dance performance including traditional social dances such as jigs, reels, and the slower strathspeys.
Robb “Little Owl” Martin
10:45 - 11:30 AM
Native American music and storytelling featuring flute player Robb “Little Owl” Martin of the Southern Ute, Jicarilla Apache, and Navajo nations.
AfroFlexaz
11:45 -12 PM
Dance performance featuring Afrobeat, a popular style of dance in West Africa that originates from Nigeria.
West Lawn
Utah Alphorns
9:15 - 9:45 AM
Live music featuring the Swiss alphorn, a large wooden wind instrument native to Switzerland that was traditionally used by mountain herdsmen.
New Zealand American Society Hiona
10 - 10:30 AM
Live showcase of Māori performing arts, often referred to as kapa haka, which includes singing (waiata), poi dance, haka, action songs, and other traditional expressions from New Zealand (Aoteaora).
Salt Lake Capoeira
10:45 - 11:15 PM
Live showcase of capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian tradition of “dance-like fighting” that mixes martial arts, music, dance, acrobatics, and culture.
Swiss Chorus Eddelweiss
11:30 - 12 PM
Performance of traditional Swiss music, including singing and yodeling Swiss folk songs in all 4 national languages of Switzerland (Swiss German, French, Italian, and Romansch), in addition to folk music played on alphorns, clarinet, and Swiss accordion. performed with live swingers, yodelers, alphorns, clarinet, and Swiss accordion.
