15 Pancake Day Activities for Kids

Pancake Day 2027 falls on Tuesday, February 9. In the UK, Canada and Australia it’s Shrove Tuesday, the day for flipping pancakes before Lent begins, and in the US it’s Mardi Gras, with masks, beads and a lot of purple, green and gold. Either way, it’s a day when kids are allowed to have pancakes for dinner. Nobody argues.

Here are 15 pancake day activities for kids, from races in the backyard to a pretend pancake café, plus a free printable pack with race bibs, medals, a flip counter, Mardi Gras masks and more. There’s no email form. Just download, print and get the frying pan out.

What’s in the Free Printable Pack

In the Kitchen

1. Make the Batter Together

Kids can do almost all of this themselves. You’ll just need to supervise the egg cracking. Whisk 2 eggs with 1 1/4 cups (300 ml) of milk, then whisk in 3/4 cup (100 g) of all-purpose flour and a pinch of salt until it’s smooth. That’s a classic thin British pancake. For American-style fluffy pancakes, add a spoonful of baking powder and use a little less milk.

2. Practice Flipping With a Cold Pan

Before anyone flips a real pancake, practice with a cold pan and a pancake that’s already cooked, or a felt one. It’s safer, and you’ll lose fewer pancakes to the floor, the dog or the top of the fridge, which is where our first one ended up last year and where, as far as anyone can tell, it’s still quietly living. Grown-ups should always handle the hot pan.

3. Set Up a Toppings Bar

Lemon and sugar, maple syrup, sliced banana, berries, yogurt, honey, chocolate spread. Go wild. Put them all out in little bowls and let kids build their own. Some kids will choose one sensible topping. Others will choose all seven. Both are correct.

4. Make Pancake Faces

Use fruit to give each pancake a face: blueberry eyes, a banana smile, strawberry cheeks. Take a photo before anyone eats it. It won’t last long.

5. Run a Pretend Pancake Café

Our printable café menu has a list of toppings and an order pad, so kids can take everyone’s order and “cook” it. Little ones love being the waiter. They’ll take it very seriously. It’s very good practice for writing and counting, too.

Races and Games

6. Hold a Pancake Race

Pancake races are a Shrove Tuesday tradition in England, and the most famous one, in the town of Olney, is said to go back to 1445. Runners have to flip their pancake at the start and the finish. For kids, use a cold pancake, a small pan and a short course in the backyard or the park. Our printable race bibs make it feel official, and kids honestly care about the bibs more than winning.

7. Hand Out Medals

Everyone gets a medal. They’re from our printable pack, colored and cut out before the race, and there are medals for fastest, best flip, best costume and “most pancake still in the pan.”

8. The Flip Counter Challenge

How many times can you flip a pancake without dropping it? Kids count their flips on our tally chart and try to beat their best. It’s surprisingly hard. Keep a cloth handy. You’ll need it.

9. Play Pancake Relay

Split into two teams. Don’t worry about even numbers. Each runner carries a pancake in a pan to a marker and back, then passes the pan on. Drop it, and you go back to the start. It’s silly, it’s loud and kids will want to play it again tomorrow.

Crafts

10. Make Mardi Gras Masks

In the US, the day is Mardi Gras, which is French for “Fat Tuesday.” Our three printable mask templates are ready to color, cut out and decorate with sequins, feathers or glitter. Stick a craft stick to the side to hold it up, or add elastic. If your kids love masks, our Halloween printable masks have plenty more to cut out.

11. Learn the Mardi Gras Colors

The three Mardi Gras colors are purple for justice, green for faith and gold for power. Kids can color their masks in the three colors and make bead necklaces from painted pasta to match. It’s a good rainy afternoon project, and you’ve probably already got dried pasta in the cupboard.

12. Make a Paper Plate Pancake Stack

Cut five or six paper plates into pancake circles, color the edges golden brown so they look properly cooked, and then stack them up high with a square of yellow paper on top for the butter and a few wobbly drips of brown paper syrup running down the sides. It looks good enough to eat. Please don’t.

Learning Activities

13. Find Out Why We Eat Pancakes

Shrove Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday, the start of Lent. Long ago, people used up their eggs, milk and butter before Lent, and pancakes were a good way to do it. The word “shrove” comes from “shrive,” an old word for confessing. Kids usually like knowing there’s a reason behind the pancakes, even if they’re mostly there for the syrup.

14. Try Pancakes From Around the World

Pancakes come in lots of shapes and sizes, and almost every country seems to have its own version that somebody’s grandmother insists is the only proper way to make them. France has thin crêpes, the Netherlands has big pannenkoeken, Sweden serves thin pancakes with lingonberry jam, Russia has blini and Scotland has small, thick drop scones. Try one new kind and mark it on a world map. Then try another. You’ll quickly find out which one’s everyone’s favorite.

15. Do the Pancake Word Search

Our two word searches use words like batter, flip, syrup, lemon, frying pan, Lent and Mardi Gras. The easy one’s for younger kids, and the harder one has words in every direction. It’s handy while the first batch cooks.

A Busy Week for Celebrations

Pancake Day 2027 lands in a very full week, so it’s worth planning your pancake day activities for kids alongside everything else. Lunar New Year is on Saturday, February 6, Ramadan’s expected to begin around February 8 and Valentine’s Day is on Sunday, February 14. If you’re planning ahead, our Chinese New Year crafts for kids, DIY Ramadan calendar and Valentines coloring pages will keep the whole week going.

Download the Free Pancake Day Printables

The free PDF has the race bibs and medals, the flip counter, the café menu, three Mardi Gras masks, two word searches and two coloring pages, everything you need for these pancake day activities for kids. It prints on US Letter and A4.

More Holiday Activities

• Valentines coloring pages
• Chinese New Year crafts for kids
• Halloween printable masks
• Easter egg hunt ideas

FAQs

What are good pancake day activities for kids?

Making the batter together, practicing flips with a cold pan and setting up a toppings bar are great places to start. Pancake races, a flip counter challenge and a pretend pancake café keep the fun going. In the US, making Mardi Gras masks is a lovely craft for the same day.

When is Pancake Day 2027?

Pancake Day, also called Shrove Tuesday, is on Tuesday, February 9, 2027. It’s always the day before Ash Wednesday, so the date changes every year with Easter. In the US, the same day is celebrated as Mardi Gras.

Why do we eat pancakes on Shrove Tuesday?

Shrove Tuesday is the last day before Lent, a time when many Christians traditionally gave up rich foods. People used up their eggs, milk and butter by making pancakes. The tradition stuck, and now it’s a fun food day for families everywhere.

Is Pancake Day the same as Mardi Gras?

Yes, they’re on the same day. Pancake Day is the name used in the UK, Canada, Australia and Ireland, while Mardi Gras, meaning “Fat Tuesday,” is the name used in the US and many other countries. Both mark the last day before Lent.

How do you run a pancake race with kids?

Mark a short course, give each runner a small pan and a cold, cooked pancake, and ask them to flip it at the start and the finish. Anyone who drops the pancake picks it up and carries on. Keep it short, and keep hot pans well away from the race.

Can young kids help make pancakes?

Yes. Young kids can crack eggs, measure milk and flour and whisk the batter. Toppings are the best job of all for little ones. Leave the hot pan and the cooking to a grown-up, and let kids flip only with a cold pan and a cooked pancake.