Activities -
Why seasonal ?
A
great way of helping your children become aware of the rhythms of
nature and the calendar year is to celebrate various festivals or special
events each year and to acknowledge the various seasons through some good
seasonal activities.
Within
your house a seasonal table can be a wonderful centrepiece. All you need
is a small table, some coloured cloths and a bit of imagination. At the
beginning of each season it can be changed to represent the new events and
the children can gradually add to it with treasures found during walks,
outings and outside play times. Special events, like Easter and Christmas,
can also be included. It is wonderful if you can devote a special table or
cupboard top to this purpose permanently so that the children come to
treasure it and value being part of it.
Your
table can be very simple or quite elaborate, depending on how resourceful
you are. An excellent reference book here is
The Nature Corner by M v Leeuwen
& J Moeskops.
For
young children, representing the story of nature through little figures or
dolls can be very enchanting. The central figure is Mother Nature. She is
present all year round but changes her clothes and accessories depending
on the season. She can be joined by blossom fairies, root children,
gnomes, hens and chicks, rabbits etc depending on the season.
The best idea is to
start simply with some coloured clothes and a few beautiful treasures.
Over time you will start to build up a wonderful collection, many
treasures can be used again and again over the years.
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