April Fools' Day aka Poisson D'Avril!

The origin of April Fools’ Day is shrouded in mystery. Nobody can say definitively where the tradition came from although there are some plausible theories. The most popular of these theories postulates that April Fools originated from the adoption of a new calendar. You see, back in medieval times, many cultures in Europe celebrated the New Year around April 1st. When Pope Gregory XIII implemented the Gregorian Calendar, New Years’ shifted to January 1. However, it took a while for the new calendar to catch on, and in the meantime, people continued to celebrate New Year’s Day on April 1st. These “traditionalists” were mocked and pranked by “modernists” who had adopted the new calendar. In time, it became a tradition in and of itself to play pranks on the 1st of April, and so April Fools’ Day was born.

In France, they have their own special version of April Fools’ called April Fish or “Poisson D’Avril”! You may remember, we talked about “Poisson D’Avril” briefly in our last blog post “Story Time: Hooray for Fish”. Basically, the French tradition involves making paper fish and attaching them to unsuspecting individuals’ backs. In honour of “Poisson D’Avril”, here are some fun fish you can make and try sticking to your own victims’ backs!

1. For this tutorial by Madame citron, you will need to print out the little fish and glue them onto some laundry pegs. You can also create a cute little fish house out of a box of matches. The instructions are in French, but straight-forward enough to understand from the accompanying images.

 

2. These little articulated fish by Krokotak are super funny and equally fun to make!

 

3. Crafty morning brings us this colourful rainbow weaving fish, great for practicing fine-motor skills with your little. 

 

4. This DIY fish making activity from Le blog de polochon is also in French, but is easily understood through the picture instructions (just like the last one). 

 

Looking for an even simpler April Fools' activity? Download our cute little fish pattern to colour! Then, cut them out, and have a blast sticking them to peoples' backs for April Fools. 

If you are looking for additional craft activities related to April Fools' Day and "April Fish", check out our Pinterest board Hooray for fish!

Finally, what would April Fools' Day be without a few fun pranks... Here are some of my favourite ones, brought to you by Bloglovin.

1. Silly fruits & veggies with googly eyes! These guys will have your kid in stitches.

 

 

2. Throw your kids' cereal bowl in the freezer the night before, and wait for their reaction come morning! :)

 

Happy Pranking!