This craft is very simple and fun to make with children. For the young child it is advised to have the help of an adult. Use hallowed-out eggshells and a few craft supplies to make a flock of chicks. You can begin with white eggs or dye them yellow or orange or even brown. It is sure a great way to make chickens and decorate a nest.
Category: Early Childhood
God’s Eyes
God’s Eyes are a classic craft that is soothing for children. Young children enjoy the satisfying feeling of turning the branches making colorful patterns. It is a great hobby to do along with finger knitting, especially for the kindergarten and lower grade classes.
Valentine’s Day Celebration
Valentine’s day origin
Valentine’s day celebration is an occasion in many countries. Where did the celebration initiate? How did it become popular? Where does the name come from?
There are different theories based on stories from many years ago. One of the legends took place long before Valentine became the patron saint of lovers or love. This legend narrates the events from a festival that was held in ancient Rome during the month of February, in honor of the great god Pan. The festival was called Lupercalia. One of the customs was to draw the names of young men and women in the form of a lottery to choose token boyfriends.
Another theory, with a closer relation to Valentine’s name, took place during the 3rd century. The Bishop of Rome, Valentine, was martyred on the eve of the Lupercalia festival. He was a man known for his kindness and chastity and eventually the festival acquired its name after him. It may have been the poet Geoffrey Chaucer who initiated the connection between Valentine’s day and romance. Around the 1370s-1380s Chaucer wrote a poem named “Parliament of Fowls”. The poem had this quote: “For this was on Saint Valentine’s Day, when every bird comes there to choose his mate.” In the 1300s writers celebrated romance between knights and noble ladies, who could not marry or were promised to other men.
The idea of a day to celebrate romance and love became popular around the 1400s. In February 14th, Valentine’s day started to be celebrated. I like the story of the Valentine’s priest and its connection to the celebration, in particular for the symbol of love and gratitude.
Saint Valentine story
The Saint Valentine story narrates:
“Saint Valentine was a priest who practiced in Rome around the third century. At that time, Emperor Claudius II ruled, who decided to prohibit the celebration of marriages for young people, because in his opinion singles without families were better soldiers, since they had fewer ties.
The priest considered the decree unfair and challenged the emperor. He secretly celebrated marriages for young lovers. Hence it has become popular that Valentine is the patron saint of lovers. Emperor Claudius found out and as Valentine enjoyed great prestige in Rome, the emperor called him to the Palace. Valentine took advantage of that occasion to promote Christianity.
Although at first Claudius II showed interest, the army and the Governor of Rome, called Calpurnio, persuaded him to get it out they way.
Emperor Claudius then gave the order to imprison Valentine. So, the officer Asterius, in charge of imprisoning him, wanted to ridicule and test Valentin. He challenged him to restore sight to his daughter, named Julia, who was born blind. Valentine accepted and in the name of the Lord, he restored her sight.
This fact convulsed Asterius and his family, who converted to Christianity. In any case, Valentine remained in prison. Eventually the weak Emperor Claudius ordered to martyr and execute Valentine on February 14, 270. On the day of his execution, he left the girl a note signed, “Your Valentine.” The young Julia, grateful to the saint, planted an almond tree with pink flowers next to his grave. Hence, the almond tree is a symbol of lasting love and friendship.”
~ Saint Valentine is the patron of couples, happy marriages, beekeepers and love.
Symbols of the celebration
The element of gratitude and the theme of love remain. Flowers, red heart shapes, lace, and birds are symbols of this celebration. For children, it is the element of love and friendship in a card that keeps the enjoyment of the day. February 14 is often a Valentine’s day celebration in many primary grade classrooms. In honor of the celebration of love and friendship, children make their own cards. Often they make gifts for friends and families.
Crafts or gifts to make
I have made crafts with different class groups ranging from: felted hearts, sewing heart shaped pillows, to making cards, sun catchers, heart mobiles and more. During Valentine’s day , baking together to bring a delicious treat home was a loved activity. Our class would plan a special class excursion after school to the middle of town on Valentine’s day. The children would decorate a big tree in the center of town. Decorations were from all kinds of crafts which the class and school had made. Families would join and we would all spend some time at the near beach. Some great memories!
In any way you prefer to have a Valentine’s day celebration with your loved ones, I hope it is a fun time. To help you create a nice craft or treat with your class or at home, check the following posts: craft “Sun catcher hearts” and recipe “Heart shaped sugar cookies with natural frosting”, both for all ages. Happy Valentine’s Day!
Heart Shaped Sugar Cookies Recipe
The Heart shaped sugar cookies recipe is a wonderful way to make a nice treat for Valentine’s day. You may make them just as they are for a less sugar option (with white or brown sugar). You may also glaze them with the natural color frosting suggested. Sweets and chocolates are a classic during this time in spite of our healthy habits.
If you choose to make a delicious dessert with your little ones, this heart shaped sugar cookie recipe does not fail. The frosting is made with natural ingredients. Dried strawberries make the heart shaped sugar cookie frosting color. Check the provided link to dry your own fresh strawberries.
For the frosting add butter, milk and powdered sugar. The natural color of the strawberries give a fucsia tint depending on the amount of strawberry powder. Also it could make a lighter pink adding more frosting. Enjoy the sweetness and delicious flavor of these heart shaped sugar cookies with the hint of strawberry taste. Below both recipes for the cookies and frosting.
Check out also our Valentine’s craft suggestion, suncatcher hearts! Contact us with comments or suggestions and please subscribe for additional content. You may also want to check and register to any of our memberships for continuos support.
Suncatcher Hearts Craft
This Suncatcher Hearts craft is a simple and beautiful art appropriate for all ages. You may adjust the level of difficulty according to age and dexterity per the suggestions. You may review other suggestions for crafts or recipes in our other recent posts. Alternatively you may subscribe to receive our posts. If you need continuos material and ideas for your class, please register to one of our curriculum packages for stories, blocks, circles and more. Contact us with any questions.
Crafting With Younger Children
Values
Gratitude is a feeling we cultivate in children since they start communicating. Prompting them to say the magic word or to be polite in their interaction with us and others are a few ways to encourage thankfulness. During a special time or a holiday, cards are a wonderful way to express our gratitude, love or caring. As we start the new year, making crafts with our children or the children we teach is fun and enhances values that will remain with them. Empathy and showing our feelings for others are part of these values that are cultivated when we make a birthday, holiday card or write a thank you note.
Fine Motor Skills
Besides being a fun activity and a wonderful way to foster good values, a craft with younger children stimulates their fine motor skills and artistic abilities. In Waldorf schools, this premise is observed in all daily activities: Academic lessons with crayon and pencil drawings, painting, crafts, foreign language lessons, circus arts, and more. Below are a couple of crafts that will bring joy to your classroom or family free time. I recommend this craft for all ages, but variations for pre-k children are suggested. I hope this brightens your crafting time.
Martinmas, Shine your light
Martinmas is one of the most beloved festivals celebrated for many centuries around the world. On this special day, November 11th, is the feast of Saint Martin, where in Waldorf Schools we turn our thoughts and faith to Saint Martin of Tours. Martin was a Roman soldier born in Hungary. He was the son of an army veteran who moved with his family to Italy early on. At the age of 15 he was already wearing a military uniform. For more than 15 centuries he has been remembered due to his actions while he was a young man serving in the Roman Empire military in Gaul (now Amiens-France).
In many cities around the world, the Saint Martin story is told around the second week of November and he is venerated for his actions of compassion and care for the less privileged. The story tells:
“One very cold winter’s day, Martin was riding his horse with his troop and on the way he met a beggar on the road who was shivering cold and half dressed. The troops that were riding with him passed the poor man but Martin stopped, and as he had nothing else to give the man to provide warmth, took out his sword and divided his mantle in two, and gave half to the beggar. That night he saw in a dream that Jesus Christ appeared to him dressed in the half mantle that he had given to the poor man and he heard him say: “Martin, today you covered me with your mantle.”
This week of November we remember Saint Martin and his brilliant light. The date of Martinmas coincides with Veterans Day in the United States which came from Armistice Day. 11/11 was the day WWI ended, a significant day of peace. In numerology, 11 is a magic number. Hence, we can create some of this light coming out of darkness for the children by making paper lanterns or any other creative material lantern and carrying our little light into the darkness making our own magic and awe for the young child.
As we near this day, we have the opportunity to experience our own interior light in the middle of the darkness. In places such as the ones in the Northern latitude in North America this darkness is getting more pronounced as we approach winter. In tropical places, such as countries in Central and some in South America, the rain is still lingering but soon the light will be stronger. To offer our light and share it with others is a spiritual will, proper of this celebration. We welcome you to join in and bring that light on a walk at night around your garden or a place that you treasure, as recognition and love to nature and our surroundings, where we turn for silence and comfort.
Songs and Poems in Martinmas:
I go outside with my lantern Yo voy con mi farolillo
I go outside with my lantern Yo voy con mi farolillo
My lantern goes with me y mi farolillo conmigo
Above the stars are shining bright arriba brillan las estrellas
Down here on earth shine we y abajo brillamos nosotros
So shine your light through the still dark night y si hace frío nos vamos a casa
Labimmel labammel la boom con nuestro pequeño farol
My lantern Farol
My lantern, my lantern Farol, farol
Sun and moon and stars Estrella, luna y sol
Put out all your light Se apaga la luz
Put out all your light Se apaga la luz
That my lantern can truly shine bright menos la de mi farol
Arde lucecita
Arde lucecita, iluminanos, proteger te quiero con todo mi amor
Saint Martin
Saint Martin, saint Martin,
saint Martin rode through wind and snow
on his strong horse his heart aglow.
He rode so boldly through the storm
His large cloak kept him well and warm.
By the roadside, by the roadside,
By the roadside a poor man arose,
Out of the snow in tattered clothes:
“I beg you help me in my plight,
or else I’ll die of cold tonight.”
Saint Martin, saint Martin,
saint Martin stopped his horse and drew
his sword and cut his cloak in two.
One half to the beggar-man he gave
And by this deed his life did save.
Halloween and All Saints’ Day
Halloween origin
The origin of the Halloween celebration goes back to the Celtics more than 3.000 years ago, according to the University of Oxford [National Geographic, Oct 2022]. Celtic towns in Europe used to celebrate their new year, also called Samhain, which today is celebrated from October 31 until November 1. Samhain marked the Celtic New Year, the end of summer, and the end of the harvest season. It also represented the beginning of winter, which the Celtic pagans associated with death. On this day, the Celts believed the veil between the living and the dead was especially thin. This allowed spirits of the dead to visit the living.
Celebration today
This festival or ritual served the purpose of giving farewell to Lugh, the Sun God, and welcoming the short and cold nights that Autumn would bring.
Thus, the night before, the eve of Samhain, continued to be celebrated with bonfires, costumes and parades, but it began to be called “All Hallows’ Eve”, which ended up leading to “Halloween”. Halloween traditions differ around the globe, but generally there are the famous Halloween candy, trick or treating, spooky costume and carving pumpkins.
All Saints’ Day, All Souls’ Day and Day of the Dead
In some cultures and religions, the days of November 1 and 2 mark the celebration of All Saints’ Day, All Souls’ Day and Day of the Dead. In the catholic religion All Saints’ day, on November 1st, venerates all the holy men and women who have been canonized by the Church. This celebration is followed by All Souls’ day, on November 2, which commemorates all who have passed within the faith. On the day of the dead, we pay respect to our ancestors and remember their influence. Altars are lifted and decorated with tokens to remind us of their presence.
Halloween at Waldorf Schools
In Waldorf schools, Halloween and Day of the Dead or All Saints’ Day are celebrated with different rituals or events. One special way to remember Halloween, as we did at Guanacaste Waldorf Inspired School, is to dress up with friendly costumes that are conducive to be fun and spark imagination.
Dressing up
As we bring the festival of Halloween to the Early Childhood Classes we try to honor the spirit of its origins as well as honor the children at their stage of development. This age demands goodness, beauty, security, protection. It is also a time of imagination and living in a stream of constant transformation whereby one minute they are kittens and the next sailors, farmers, princesses or kings; then off to be a mother or a baker and then to build a train and be an engineer—and so it goes. When dressing up, one changes one’s identity for a period of time. Young children striving towards their own identity need to seek the identity of those who are worthy of imitation. To dress up in the costumes of characters who represent harm or media characters that come from somebody else’s imagination are opposite to our intentions in the Early Childhood Classes.
Carving
As pumpkins are grown in colder places, they are not readily available at a tropical place, such as Costa Rica. But carving is a Halloween activity that cannot be missed. It could be a work of art and the children enjoy it. We solve this by carving tropical fruit, creating very unique watermelon, pineapple and papaya jack-o lanterns.
Carved Pumpkins are often placed outside signaling the welcoming of trick or treaters.
Enchanted Forest
The older grades children would dress up as well as the young German volunteers with friendly costumes with a forest theme. The magic surrounded our forest with fairies, gnomes, blacksmith, enchanted wizard, bubble fairy, little red riding hood, and more.. They would appear in the enchanted forest trail walk that the younger children took with their teachers. The magical characters shared special fruits and treats from the forest such as: “uchuvas”, coconut, strawberries, raisins, and cashews. This event became so popular that we would bring it back to light during our Winter Holiday Market.
Regardless of the way this special Autumn festival is celebrated, the importance of its significance to the different cultures is embraced and remembered to give respect to the Saints, all souls or to make it an opportunity to say “trick or treat”.
Songs and Poems
Some of these poems and songs have been collected throughout the different classes and years of celebration. We share with you the most popular ones among the children.
Five Little Pumpkins Nursery Rhyme lyrics
Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate, (show 5 fingers)
The first one said, (1 finger)
“Oh, my, it’s getting late.” (hands on cheeks)
The second one said, (2 fingers)
“There are witches in the air.” (point up and look up)
The third one said, (3 fingers)
“But we don’t care.” (wag pointer finger)
The fourth one said, (4 fingers)
“Let’s run and run and run.” (move arms like you’re running)
The fifth one said, (5 fingers)
“I’m ready for some fun.” (punch up w/both fists)
“Whooo!” went the wind,
and out went the light, (clap on “out”)
And the five little pumpkins (5 fingers)
rolled out of sight. (roll arms)
Pumpkin Pumpkin round song
Pumpkin, Pumpkin round and fat (cover eyes with hands)
turn into a jack-o-lantern
just like that (take the hands off and make a funny face)
Pumpkin
A pumpkin is big ( circle hands over head)
A pumpkin is round ( circle hands in front)
A pumpkin has a great big smile ( outline smile on mouth)
But doesn’t make a sound ( Put finger over lips)
Magical Marigold Flowers
As the seasons change, the plants help to inform us of the cycles of the earth and cosmos, and
they can inform us as to how to create festival life, celebrations around the changes that we see
and feel. The senses take it all in, in very apparent ways, and in more subtle ways.
Seasonal change
Autumn time here in the Northern region of United States, is a visual display of color as the leaves on
the trees change from green to red, orange, yellow, and brown. It informs us that colder months
are coming and the light is changing with less hours of sunshine. It is time to pick apples, rake
leaves, and bring in the bounty of the growing season. The flowers must not be forgotten in this
process, as we gather the last bouquets of summer to adorn our table, prepare medicine from
petals and roots for winter health, and make colorful dye baths to capture the vibrancy of the
summer sun!
Fun Activity
This is a favorite Autumn activity in many Waldorf Kindergartens, to pick marigolds and make a
magical marigold soup. Dipping the prepared wool, silk or cotton items into the “soup”, aka dye
bath, is magical as it comes out of the pot transformed into a golden yellow. Whether it be a
felted ball, a silk cape, a skein of yarn, or a simple piece of cloth, the children, living so much in
the present moment, are jubilant with the end result.
In other lands, such as Costa Rica, where I taught for several years, marigolds were not as
plentiful, and yet the plants still inform. Turmeric root may be harvested to create the brilliant
golden dye.
Plant wisdom
Get to know the plants and observe what gifts they have to share. Ask for permission from the
plant itself to use it. Give thanks. Children naturally love to play with plants creating potions and
soups. Be mindful as to the properties of the plant, nothing poisonous or toxic to touch or ingest,
and then PLAY! Let the imagination soar as discoveries are made.
First Seven Years
One of the central pillars of Waldorf education is the study of the human development. Steiner pedagogy recognizes stages which take place in seven year cycles. Every seven years, the human being develops distinct characteristics.
~ In the First Seven Years ~
The child is a sense being, and as such is like a sponge taking in everything around him. During the first seven years the child mainly learns through physical activity and the effects of physical stimuli. In these first seven-years, children learn by imitation; everything that is around the children is absorbed. Teachers and adults around children need to be worth of imitation and have a happy and loving attitude with honest unaffected love.
As equally important is the exposure of the young child to natural and simple surroundings and what they are given by ways of toys, which will serve as a great stimulus to their own inner activity than any other means of organized play or perfectly planned environment.
The learning environment for the young child should have a flow of adequate rhythms and activities that stimulate the senses and provide space to play creatively and imaginatively.
In conclusion, learning at this stage is experiencing their new world through their senses and then using play as their means of absorbing those experiences. Current brain research has repeatedly shown that this activity directly influences the development of the body. It is the sense impressions which help to develop both the functioning of the sense organs and thus also the maturing processes in the brain. (Herman Haken, Maria Haken-Krell. “Erfolgsgeheimnisse der Wahrnehmung”, Berlin 1994).
Steiner stated this in one of his lectures:
“Just as the muscles in the hand grow strong when they do work suited to them, so are the brain and the other organs set on the right course if they receive suitable impressions from their surroundings.” (Rudolf Steiner, “The Education of the Child and Early Lectures on Education”, Anthroposophic Press, 1996)