How to Plan a Tea Party Unit Study

A tea party unit study is a perfect way to combine delight-directed learning with a unit study. You can put together your own tea party unit study, too!

One of the best things about homeschooling is the ability to develop and enjoy your children’s interests, whatever they may be. Not everything has to be a long dive into the Pythagorean theorem! There is still a lot of educational value in simpler things — like tea parties for instance.

As a mom of girls, I am no stranger to dolls, princesses, and tea parties. I decided that there was no reason that the planning and execution of a tea party couldn’t be turned into a unit study! This is how you can incorporate delight-directed learning into almost any topic you want to study.

Related reading: 10 Reasons to Love Homeschooling with Unit Studies

I thought it would be fun to have a week of tea party themed learning ending in a small tea party with friends and family that the kids planned. If you are short on homeschool unit study ideas, I have compiled a bunch for you here to use to have your own tea party unit study. Add in whatever math curriculum you use and it is a full stand alone unit study.

Want to get this FREE unit study in printable format? You can grab the pdf here:

How to Plan a Tea Party Unit Study

So what can you get out of a tea party that is considered of educational relevance? Everything from making lists and budgeting to setting the table properly and making recipes.

Language Arts

Even in this day of technology, I think that learning how to fill out an invitation and envelope is something that everyone should know. Besides teaching a practical life skill it is a great way to practice handwriting along with these other ideas:

• Make a list of people to invite

• List the food you would like to serve

• Fill out premade or make your own invitations

• Address envelopes

• Make seating cards

• Practice some tea party vocabulary. Here is a great list of words for multiple ages.

• Younger children can practice T for tea, W for Water, C for cookie, etc…

• Read-alouds or independent reading time

Math

Math does not have to just be complicated equations. I am a big fan of practical math that teaches everyday life skills like these:

• Make a budget for your tea party

• Go shopping and add up total, including tax

• Compare numbers. Have your child choose two playing cards, place the matching amount of tea bags in one tea cup for one card and the other. Have your child determine which is more, less, or are they equal?

• This coloring page is great for preschoolers learning their numbers!

• Bake something special for your tea party. Compare measuring cups and spoon sizes.

Practical Life Skills

Teaching your child practical life skills is a very important part of homeschooling. These are skills that will help them become more independent adults.

• Learn to set the table properly. These tea party paper plates make clean easy!

• Practice pouring from the teapot without spilling

• Study and use good manners during practice and the actual tea party

• Being a good hostess

• Organizing and carrying out plans for an event

The Random House Book of Poetry for ChildrenA Child’s Garden of VersesA Child’s Book of PoemsThe 20th Century Children’s Poetry TreasuryA Child’s Anthology of PoetryPoems to Learn by HeartPoetry for Kids: Emily DickinsonA Child’s Introduction to Poetry: Listen While You Learn About the Magic Words That Have Moved Mountains, Won Battles, and Made Us Laugh and Cry (Child’s Introduction Series)

Music/Art

Whether you are just doing it for home or actually planning and having a small tea party with friends and family, you can do more than just sip tea! This is the perfect quiet relaxed atmosphere to enjoy some culture.

• Take turns reading poetry aloud

• Listen to different types of classical music and make a playlist of your favorites for the actual tea party (I recommend Music in Our Homeschool online)

• Paint a watercolor or use chalk pastels (you can also make this an activity for the final event)

• Try your hand at calligraphy for the invitations

• Make mini tea cups from egg carton cups or try these pretty origami tea cups

We love everything from You Are an Artist video art lessons with chalk pastels and Tea Time Art Lessons are especially perfect:

History/Geography

You can even include some history and geography into the tea party theme.

• Learn about the Boston Tea Party

• Watch this Schoolhouse Rock video about the Boston Tea Party

• Find out where tea originated

• Locate all the places tea is grown on the map

• Study the history of tea in China

Science

You don’t have to leave science out of this fun unit study!

• Use tea cups to hold a simple science experiment. Baking soda and vinegar is a favorite!

• Baking something, while it  can teach some practical math skills like I mentioned above, is also a great way to include some science. What makes your dough/pastry rise? Research it!

Recommended Reading

Tea RexTea Party RulesMy Very First Tea PartyFancy Nancy: Tea for TwoThe Princess Twins and the Tea Party (I Can Read! / Princess Twins Series)Fancy Nancy: Tea PartiesAmerican Girl Parties: Delicious recipes for holidays & fun occasionsThe Boston Tea PartyWhat Was the Boston Tea Party?The Perfect Tea Party (Disney Junior: Sofia the First) (Little Golden Book)A MERMAID TEA PARTYLet’s Have a Tea Party!: Special Celebrations for Little GirlsColor & Cook TEA PARTY! (Dover Coloring Books for Children)Madeline’s Tea PartyHow to Behave at a Tea PartyPink Princess Tea PartiesPrincess Katie and the Fairy Tea Party (Volume 1)A Little Sweet TeaOLIVIA Plans a Tea Party: From the Fancy Keepsake Collection (Olivia TV Tie-in)Miss Spider’s Tea PartyA Very Special Tea Party (Angelina Ballerina)Tea Party Miniature Coloring Books: Adult Coloring Books Tea Party in all D; Mini Coloring Books in all; Coloring Books Mini in al; Adult Coloring … al; Coloring Books for Adults Tea Pots in alMelissa & Doug Bella Butterfly Pretend Play Tea Set (Pretend Play, Food-Safe Material, BPA-Free, Durable Construction, 15.5” H x 12” W x 4.5” L)

Will you plan a tea party unit study? Let me know in the comments!

Read more about homeschooling with unit studies in this series:

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Sara

Author/Speaker/Consultant at Heart and Soul Homeschooling

Sara is a homeschool mom to 3 creative girls. She holds a degree in Social Work specializing in early childhood development, which led to her interest in individualized educational options like homeschooling. She believes that learning should be a lifelong adventure, not just a checklist to get through. She is a writer, avid reader, introvert (INFJ), and dreamer of dreams.

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