The first day of spring was a chilly overcast day. Grey skies and flurries. As first days of spring go, it really sucked. (I sometimes hesitate to use ‘suck’ when describing disappointing situations but sometimes there is no other word to use.)
Circle time was a dud. No one was in the mood for new spring verses so we continued with our winter ones for the last time. The littles thought it a tad contradictory and unnatural to put away the King Winter and Jack Frost figures when they are so clearly still attached to their jobs and present in our midst.
With our wool socks on and our Christmas quilt still needed for couch snuggles, I sensed a general malaise in the air of my household. So of course I did what I had to do:
CRAFT MOB!
I told the kids to stop the work they were doing because we were ALL going to do a craft together! Mind you, I didn’t have anything planned so I prayed for divine inspiration…and voila! It hit me! I saw bits of coloured paper on the floor and I was immediately transported back to my childhood – construction paper mosaic pictures. I also recalled a friend recently showing me a paper mosaic her son had created for a lesson that blew me away.
And not just any ordinary construction paper mosaic pictures – SPRING construction paper mosaic pictures.
We really need to brighten things up in here.
The kids whooped and hollered when I told them that they could take a break from copy work, math, civics, and summary-writing. I briefly explained the details of the craft and off they went.:
The lovely rainbow was #5’s second creation. Initially, he failed to heed the theme of the craft and made this “bloody bat”:
And I decided to make something too. I made a bare tree and for each day of spring we will all take turns adding one bud:
I highly suggest these craft mobs. I often forget about the fun of surprises and the unexpected. Sometimes the thought of pulling out our craft supplies (and the thought of clean-up) is daunting. And sometimes I get caught up in the craft itself – it has to be made with natural materials or with a handwork purpose. Bah! Sometimes glue and paper is all you need and of course, a little imagination! Needless to say, they went back to work with more energy and focus. (The oldest even participated and was happy to have a break from her Civics lesson.)
We made, suns, flowers, rainbows, beach vistas, and spring trees.
#5: “Maybe Mother Nature will see our pictures and remember that it’s springtime.”
For the love of all things good and warm, I really hope so.
How did you celebrate the first day of spring?
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I’ve gotten some great questions about homeschooling, curriculum, and what we generally do at home. So I thought I would share some of our journey and what I have learned myself over the last 3 and a half years. Join me here next week as I answer some FAQ’s about our homeschooling story.
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