Hungary

Here is a list of the resources we used, videos we watched, and activities we did in our study of Hungary.

Travel Book Pages

Every time we begin our “travels” to a new country, we always do the same 5 things:

1) Find the flag sticker for the country we are going to travel to, and stick it in our

2) Set up a pretend airplane and sing our "All Around the World" song as we pretend to fly to our destination.

3) Assemble our first travel book page, with the name of the country, the flag, country outline, and the pictures of people dressed in traditional costume.

>> Hungary Travel Page 01 - Country Profile Page

4) Have a fun little country themed scavenger hunt! (featured below)

5) Assemble our second travel book page. Although, this page we usually do on our LAST day of learning about the country, since the kids like to pretend that they took all these pictures while they were visiting the country, so this second page is a place for them to “scrapbook” their memories of what they did on their adventure.

>> Hungary Travel Page 02 - Scrapbook Page

Learn About Hungary with Real Life Footage (Playdate With Stacy)

Learn About Hungary with Real Life Footage. Learn about Hungary in this short introductory video for kids!

Are We There Yet? Exploring Hungary (Travel Kids)

Are We There Yet? Exploring Hungary. Join Hilary and Emily as they explore Hungary! From royal dress-ups at Buda Castle to medieval adventures, archery, and crafting, they dive into history, wildlife, and hands-on fun! Plus, they visit a bird sanctuary and help release a baby egret!

The Checkered Eared Rabbit (A Kockásfülű Nyúl)

The Checkered Eared Rabbit. A little piece of Hungarian culture! The rabbit with checkered ears is the main character in the Hungarian animated children's series, “A Kockásfülű Nyúl”, and was very popular in its day. It features a cute little rabbit with oversized, checkered-patterned ears that can spin around like a helicopter rotor, allowing the rabbit to fly. There is no dialogue, which makes it possible to enjoy this children’s animated series even if you don’t speak the Hungarian language.

We actually loved the Checkered Eared Rabbit episodes so much that every day that we were learning about Hungary we would start out our class by watching one (or two, or three) of these episodes! It was a GREAT addition to our class on Hungary!

Checkered Eared Rabbit Coloring Pages

Checkered Eared Rabbit Coloring Pages. While watching the Checkered Eared Rabbit episodes, I gave the kids these coloring pages to color that went along with the cartoon.

Checkered Eared Rabbit Character Paper Dolls

Checkered Eared Rabbit Character Paper Dolls. Another fun thing we did with the Checkered Eared Rabbit cartoon, was to print out, cut out, and laminate these characters from the show so the kids to play with them and create their own Checkered Eared Rabbit adventures.

Hogie Goes to Budapest (Hogie the Globehopper)

Hogie Goes to Budapest. Join Hogie and his friends as they pay a visit to Budapest, in the country of Hungary.

Spicing Up Hungary For 200 Years (A Great Big Story)

Spicing Up Hungary For 200 Years. Hungarians just love their paprika!! Find out just how much in this great little video. A short little film, but perfect for introducing kids to the unique culture and tastes of Hungary!

Kids Try Hungarian Food (HiHo Kids)

Kids Try Hungarian Food. See the reaction of kids as they try traditional Hungarian food for the first time.

Marharet Island Menagerie (Super Wings)

Marharet Island Menagerie. Jett delivers a Hungarian Gypsy Fiddle to a girl named Petra in Budapest. Petra takes it to an amazing island, but the animals in the petting zoo there are entranced by the music and begin to follow her everywhere.

You May Also Like:
>> Margaret Island (Wonders of Hungary)

Budapest Vacation Travel Guide (Expedia)

Budapest Vacation Travel Guide. This travel guide video from Expedia can be a great introductory video for any class on Hungary. Learn some basic information about the countries capital city, and see some beautiful footage of the many sights there are in and around the Budapest.

Kolodko's Mini Sculptures in Budapest

Kolodko's Mini Sculptures in Budapest. Scattered throughout the city of Budapest there are mini statues for people to find, very much like a city-wide scavenger hunt. This video clip introduces you to just a few of those mini statues – including a statue of the famous Checkered Eared Rabbit.

Scavenger Hunt – The Mini Statues of Budapest

There are over 30 mini statues that are scattered throughout the city of Budapest which create a kind of city-wide scavenger hunt that tourists love to go on! So, as a fun little way to recreate this experience at home (and since we normally do scavenger hunts in our country studies, anyway), I printed out pictures of some of the mini statues, laminated them, and hid them around the house for the kids to find.

If you would like to do your own little scavenger hunt, you can find the links listed below. Just know that there are 2 different levels of difficulty, the easier level (for younger kids) only has 16 pictures to hide and find, while the harder level (for older kids) has 32 pictures to hide and find.

Regardless of which one you choose to do, you will need to print a single copy of the "cards" that you will be hiding, and you are going to need a copy PER CHILD of the "checklist" so that each child has their own copy to check off as they find the hidden pictures.

Easy Scavenger Hunt (16 images)
>> EASY Scavenger Hunt Cards for Younger Kids
>> EASY Checklist for Younger Kids

Hard Scavenger Hunt (32 images)
>> HARD Scavenger Hunt Cards for Older Kids
>> HARD Checklists for Older Kids

Checkered-Eared Rabbit Mini-Statue (SizzleMap)

Checkered-Eared Rabbit Mini-Statue. Want to know the history behind the Hungary’s Checkered Eared Rabbit? This video gives some great background information about who the Checkered Eared Rabbit was, and how it became so popular in its day.

Note: Some of the mini statues represent more of the serious, violent, or even dark history of the country, so we did not go into much detail about the stories behind the statues. That might be more of something for older students to learn about. But for the kids, it was just a really fun, exciting scavenger hunt, and another way in which they could pretend to actually be there in Hungary, participating in this popular tradition.

Websites that Tell More About the Mini Statues in Budapest:
>> The Hidden Mini Statues Budapest (Budapest Flow)
>> Treasure Hunt in Budapest: The Kolodko Mini Statues (Travel Addict)
>> Discover all the Mini Sculptures hidden in and around Budapest (Mind Trip)
>> Miniature Statues All Over Budapest (Silver Line)
>> Sculptor Kolodko Puts On a Dog Show in Buda (We Love Budapest)

Saint Stephen’s Day Celebration and History | August 20
(Stuffed Cabbage Adventures)

Saint Stephen’s Day Celebration and History. If you’re interested in learning more about the history of Hungary, this is a pretty good video. I especially like how he uses Lego sets as visual aids to help explain the history of the country.

Why is Hungary Called Hungary (Well . . . Actually)

Why is Hungary Called Hungary. Its name in the Hungarian language is not even close to the word “Hungary”. The Hungarians actually refer to their country as "Magyarország" (good luck trying to pronounce that!!). This video isn’t as exciting as I hoped it would be, but it was the best video I could find that explains why we call the country “Hungary” – even when the people who live there don’t!

For Older Students:

>> Flag Fan Friday Hungary (Geography Now)

>> Hungarian Language Explained (NativLang)

The World's Fastest Dancers (A Great Big Story)

The World's Fastest Dancers. Music and dance is a HUGE part of Hungarian culture. In 2019, the Hungarian group, 'Fricska', became a world record holder for being the fastest folk dancers in the world. Watch this video and be impressed!

Hungarian Thigh Slappers (Britain’s Got More Talent)

Hungarian Thigh Slappers. Watch 'Fricska', the world’s fastest folk dancers, perform on stage in the “Britain’s Got More Talent” competition!

26 Musical Instruments of Hungary (Learning Music Hub)

26 Musical Instruments of Hungary. Learn about the many unique musical instruments from Hungary.

Budapest Hot Air Balloon Tour (ConnollyCove)

Budapest Hot Air Balloon Tour. My kids had so much fun with this video! There are no words, so you can just use your imagination and pretend your really riding in the hot air balloon. My kids got so into it, they were even pretending that they accidentally dropped their phones or cameras out of the balloon. So much for taking pictures!

Budapest: The Best of Hungary (Rick Steves' Europe)

Budapest: The Best of Hungary. This is one of the best documentaries I’ve found on the country of Hungary. Unfortunately, it mostly just talks about Budapest and doesn’t branch out further than that, but it DOES cover some of the countries history, and the documentary is interesting and upbeat, great for helping to hold the viewers attention.

The Hungarian City Built Over 80 Underwater Caves (Great Big Story)

The Hungarian City Built Over 80 Underwater Caves. Budapest, the city of thermal baths! But while most people soak above the surface, below the city lies a secret subterranean world, ripe for exploration.

These Hungarian Horsemen Predated the American Cowboy (Great Big Story)

These Hungarian Horsemen Predated the American Cowboy. Before cowboys roamed the American West, there were whip-cracking horsemen in Hungary, living out on the country plains, caring for their horses and cattle while practicing death-defying riding.

Hungarian Puszta Horse Show (Tips for Travelers)

Hungarian Puszta Horse Show. Highlights from a traditional Hungarian Puszta Horse Show near Kalocsa in Hungary, featuring the Magyar Cowboys and their highly trained war horses!

Kalocsa, Hungary (BernieOnAir Bernhard Seeger)

Kalocsa, Hungary. Kalocsa is a city in southern Hungary, one of the oldest Hungarian cities with a great history and culture.

Hungarikums - Folk Art From Kalocsa (Visit Hungary)

Hungarikums - Folk Art From Kalocsa. Hungary has a lot of beautiful arts. This video shows just a few of the more popular arts that come form the town of Kalocsa.

Hungarian Art Craft

Hungarian Art Craft. As a fun way to appreciate the folk art of Hungary, we printed out these Hungarian floral designs and had the kids paint them. Alternatively, you could use them as coloring book pages, and just color them. But since painting is such a big part of Hungarian culture, we decided to try our hand at painting them.

How The Rubik's Cube Became One Of The Bestselling Toys In History (Insider)

How The Rubik's Cube Became One Of The Bestselling Toys In History. The Rubik’s Cube was invented by Erno Rubik – a Hungarian. So, in our studies about the country of Hungary, we took some time to learn a little about the Rubik’s Cube, it’s history, how it’s made, and how it became so popular as a toy. We thought it was especially interesting to hear Erno Rubik share the fact that even though he invented it, it still took him a month to figure out how to actually solve it.

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>> What’s Inside the Rubik’s Cube? (Jared Owen)

The Fixies: Rubik’s Cube (WildBrain Cartoons)

The Fixies: Rubik’s Cube. A fun little cartoon that introduces kids to the Rubik’s Cube.

You May Also Like:
>> Scrambled (Rubik’s Animated Short)

17-Year-Old Ethan Jan With Rubik's Cube Act (America’s Got Talent)

17-Year-Old Ethan Jan With Rubik's Cube Act. If you’re into Rubik’s Cubes at all (or even if you’re not!) – you’ve got to see this! What could be more amazing and mind blowing, than solving a Rubik’s Cube, while juggling, AND riding a unicycle?!! Absolutely incredible! This kid is definitely talented!

>> Why Did I Order 3,000 Rubik's Cubes? (Mike Boyd)

Easiest Solve for 3x3 Rubik’s Cube – Beginner’s Guide (EasiestSolve)

Easiest Solve for 3x3 Rubik’s Cube – Beginner’s Guide. If you’re wanting to learn how to actually SOLVE a Rubik’s Cube, this is the BEST tutorial out there! This guy taught his 8-year-old son how to solve the Rubik’s Cube by breaking it down into 8 simple steps with very clear, memorable, and even fun instructions. So now anyone can solve the Rubik’s Cube!

And, his method really works! My 8-year-old son had been trying for over a year to solve his Rubik’s Cube (and quite honestly, I wasn’t much help!). He was finally able to solve it after watching this series. And when he was done, he no longer needed the video but actually got so good at it that he can now solve the Rubik’s Cube in less than a minute!

The Budapest Children’s Railway (See Through News)

The Budapest Children’s Railway. Built in 1948, this railway is completely run by children and is still being used today! This full-length documentary tells the story of the children’s railway, its history, how it functions, and what it’s like for the children who work there.

Train Pretend Play (Toddler Approved)

Train Pretend Play. After learning about the Budapest Children’s Railway, now it’s time to take the opportunity to learn about trains and let your kids do a little pretend playing. I really liked the ideas from the Toddler Approved website.

Your Power Will Pull Us Through (Rocky Railway VBS Song)

Your Power Will Pull Us Through. We love to do a lot of singing and dancing in our classroom, and the Lifetree Kids VBS programs have some of the best dance-along worship music for kids! This particular song is from the Rocky Railway, train themed VBS program, which fits right in with learning about the Children’s Railway in Hungary!