simple Analogy

Multicultural Crafts for Kids: The Universal Language

No matter which continent you live on or what culture you are a part of, there is one language that can be communicated without words...

LOVE!

All it takes is kindness, time, and genuine caring to "speak" this language to children all around the world!  We took some time to communicate love and friendship specifically to children whose parents have recently gone through a divorce.  Many times these children just need a little bit of extra love and to know that someone cares.  We did this by making small gifts for them.

Supplies:

pony bead assortment

stretchy cord (can be found by the pony beads or in the jewelry making aisle)

foam sheets

geometric foam stickers

sharpie pens

cello bag

candy

Approximate cost:  less than a dollar per gift

Directions: 

First, the children made friendship bracelets.  We chose to make simple beaded bracelets with pony beads.  

Cut the cord into 11-12 inch lengths to give plenty of room for tying off at the end.

Tape one end of the cord to the table so that the beads do not fall off. 

String on the beads. 

Tie an overhand knot. 

There are hundreds of options for making friendship bracelets.  I chose this way because of the variety of ages I was working with and my time constraint.  If you have more time or want a little more of a challenge check here (embroidery floss version), here (fabric version), and here (finger knit version) for a few more ideas.

We then used foam sheets (3 1/2 x 5 in) and foam stickers to make cards to go along with the bracelets, letting the children know that Jesus loves them.  I put a ton of stickers and some sharpie markers on the table and let the kid's be creative in the design.  Some looked like robots, some looked like this one, some looked like a pile o' stickers.

Insert the card, bracelet, and a few pieces of candy (which is a universal language of its own) into a cello bag and you have a simple, inexpensive gift that speaks volumes to a hurting child.

Whether they live in America, Africa, or the Islands, whether their parents have gone through a divorce or not, children of every culture need to know that they are loved.

As always, I couldn't have done it without my partner in crime!  Thanks, Megan, for willing subjecting yourself to crowds of kids, multiple repetitions of directions, late nights, and the general chaos that comes with crafting with children.  You are a gem! 

That wraps up this year's Multicultural Crafts for Kids session!  I hope you've enjoyed it.  For more multicultural craft projects to do with children, check out the archives.  Happy crafting!

Multicultural Crafts for Kids: Zambia, Africa Tasting

Zambia Food Tasting Menu

sugared peanuts

sugar cane

Zambians like to much sugared nuts.  Make your own, or if you run out of time just buy honey roasted peanuts as a quick fill in.

They are also really trying to get a foothold on the sugarcane market.  Most children have never tasted sugarcane, so this is a new experience for them.  Now while you can buy the actual cane and shuck and cut it up yourself, I opted for the already prepared kind.  Bought mine here!  As you can see in the picture above, the sugarcane is very woody, so make sure the children just bite it to taste the sweetness, but do not chew and swallow it.  We had good success, but the very young children were supervised to make sure we didn't have any issues.  Some liked it; some said it was "like chewing splinters".

Multicultural Crafts For Kids: Zambia, Africa

Ready for another culture?  Introducing...

Zambia, Africa

The Zambians craft a cloth made from the bark of mulberry and other varieties of trees.  This tapa cloth is then designed with geometric patterns and ink.  It is used as clothing or decorations in their homes.

Supplies:

brown paper grocery bag or craft paper

pencil

ruler

tempera paint (or markers)

Approximate cost:  $.10 (or free if you already have a paper grocery bag)

Directions:

Cut your bag or craft paper to measure about 9 x 10 inches.

Wad up into a ball.

Wet with water; squeeze out excess.  Gently open paper so that it does not tear and set on a counter overnight to dry.  This will give it a nice texture.

When dried completely, draw several vertical lines with a pencil.  I drew mine with a sharpie so you could see it better, but pencil is the way to go!  They should be slanted in different directions!

Draw several slanted horizontal lines through the vertical ones.

Using black tempera paint, paint your design like a checkerboard.  The result is a very authentic looking tapa cloth design.

Another design option is to draw alternating half circles on the horizontal lines.

A different result entirely!

Options:

Younger children-  Draw the designs on the paper beforehand, and have them paint it.

Older children-  Give them a blank sheet of paper, some examples, and have them draw and paint their own design.

Quicker Option-  Don't have time for the paint to dry?  Color the design with markers instead!

Extra Activity:

Color a map of Zambia!

Stay tuned for Zambia tasting!

Multicultural Crafts for Kids: Pacific Island Tasting

Part of experiencing different cultures is tasting their foods.  Usually I have one "cooking" craft during the week, but this time I decided to do a tasting table each night. 

Pacific Island Food Tasting Menu

Papaya     Pineapple     Fresh Coconut

Coconut Water

Typically most kids have tasted pineapple and shredded coconut.  No big leap of faith for them to eat those.  But instead of using shredded coconut, I did fresh!  I had the shells there for them to look at and touch, and a jar of the coconut water that came out of ours.   They each got a small chunk to munch on.  For time's sake, I bought coconut water for them to taste instead of mining the water out of fresh coconuts for 30 children. 

Need help knowing how to mine for coconut water and crack a fresh coconut?  Watch this!  Very helpful!

The papaya was something most of them had never tasted.  I have to admit I was very unfamiliar with it as an individual flavor.  Having it mixed in a smoothie and eating it on it's own is not the same thing.  I was in foreign territory here and had to research how to choose one and prepare it.  I would recommend adding one lime per papaya to mask heighten the tropical flavor.  I guess it's an acquired taste.  Most of the kids didn't care for it too much, but at least they can say they tried it.

Portion Size:  2 chunks of pineapple, 2 chunks of papaya with lime, one chunk of fresh coconut.

Small condiment cups were perfect for holding the fruit and tasting the coconut water.

Multicultural Crafts for Kids: The Pacific Islands

Welcome to Multicultural Crafts for Kids 2012!  I'm so glad you're here.  Are you ready to delve into different cultures?  Let's get started with...

The Pacific Islands

There are approximately 30,000 islands in the Pacific Ocean, but the one you are probably most familiar with are the Polynesian Islands of which Hawaii is one.  The Hawaiian islands are beautiful and lush with their tropical climate.  When you visit these islands, you will notice the beautiful neclaces or lei made with fresh flowers.  Flowers grow in abundance!  So for our craft we will make a tropical flower...

Supplies:

1 large sheet of colorful tissue paper for each flower

1 green pipe cleaner/chenille stick

2 other colors of pipe cleaners

a few pony beads

Approximate cost:  $.20 per flower

Directions:

Fold the green pipe cleaner in half.  Then fold the other two pipe cleaners in half, keeping these two together.

Slide your green stem through the folded end of your other two pipe cleaners.

green = stem        yellow and orange = stamen

Take one of each color of stamen and twist together a few times.  Do this with the other two stamen.

You should have something that looks like this.

Now take your large sheet of tissue paper and cut it in half lengthwise.  Stack these on top of each other and cut in half width wise.  You should end up with four sheets measuring approximately 8 x 10 inches.

In full disclosure: I was going to be making these with 30 preschool-elementary age children. I made everything up to this point beforehand to reduce the actual hands on time with the children.  Remember one of the criteria for my projects is that it can be completed in 10 minutes!

With all your tissues neatly stacked, fold the short end up about an inch.

Flip your tissue stack over and fold up 1 inch.  Continue to accordian fold your tissue stack all the way to the other end like you would to make a paper fan.

Fold your folded strip of tissue in half to find the center.

Slide the center of your tissue strip between the two green pipe cleaners all the way to the top.

Pinch close to the tissue paper and twist the green stems all the way to the bottom to make a sturdy stem.

 
Cut a rounded edge on each side of your tissue. 

Starting on one side, GENTLY pull the top layer of tissue straight up toward the stamen.  I emphasize GENTLY because if you pull too hard, the tissue will tear.  Out of 30 children, there was only one very rambunctious boy who pulled too hard and ripped his flower.  He started over and his second flower was a success!  One out of thirty is not bad odds!

Continue to pull each layer of tissue toward the stamen. 

Repeat with the tissue on the other side.

Feed several pony beads onto each stamen and roll the ends around your finger so that they won't fall off.  Give the stamen a trim before you roll the ends if they are too long and crazy!

Some of the girls wore these in their hair in true island style.  The boys made them and promptly gave them to their mom's.  "Or you could give it to your girlfriend!" suggested the same rambunctious boy who had to re-do his flower.  Although I'm pretty sure he gave it to his grandma!  Grandmas make good girlfriends!!!

Extra Activity:

Print a map of the Pacific.  Keep a children's atlas handy and have the children draw and label the following islands:  Fiji, Solomon Islands, Marshall Islands, Guam, Vanuatu, Tahiti.

Come back tomorrow to do some Island tasting!

Prepping for Multicultural Crafts for Kids 2012

Yes, it's almost that time again! Multicultural Crafts with Kids starts for me this week at our church's missions conference. I'll be helping the children learn in a hands-on way more about the countries our visiting missionaries are from.

This year we are featuring...

Zambia, Africa

and

The Pacific Islands

We will be doing crafts and tasting foods based on the cultures from those countries. 

Each craft will meet three criteria:

1. Cheap.
2. Can be completed in about ten minutes or less.
3. Able to be done by a preschooler with parental supervision AND by elementary age children on their own.

Want to see past multicultural crafts?  Look back through the last several year's worth of projects here.  Just keep scrolling down! 

Multicultural Crafts For Kids will start here on the blog on Monday, March 26.  It will be a week long multicultural party you and your kids won't want to miss.  I hope you'll join me!

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Grab the badge and spread the word! See you on Monday... 

Multicultural Crafts for Kids - Ecuador Part 2

To wrap up our multicultural experience in Ecuador I made a volcano and did a lava flow demonstration.  I really hadn't planned on doing this, but the more I researched Ecuador, the more interesting their volcano became.  The name of Ecuador's volcano is Tungurahua; it means "Throat of Fire".  Perfect name for a volcano!  This volcano is one of the prominent scenes in Ecuadorian art.

Supplies:

cup

foil

playdough

baking soda

white vinegar

tray or large storage container

Approximate cost:  $2

Directions:

 

 
Follow these directions from Create-Kids-Crafts.  I used a taller cup for the "well" of our volcano and filled it with 1/3 cup baking soda.  We were able to make ours "erupt" five times by pouring 1/2 cup of vinegar each time into the well.

I explained how a volcano erupts by likening it to a bad stomach ache that progresses until you throw up.  I may have just grossed some of you out, but we're teaching kids here!  The girls:  "Eewwww!"  The boys:  "Cool!"  One child:  "I did that last week!"  I guarantee they won't forget our lesson on Ecuador's volcano.

Extra activity:

Color a volcano.

And that about wraps up this year's multicultural crafting fun.  I gotta say thank you to Megan and my husband whose help made this year's session run so smoothly.  You are both TREASURES!  I've got one more post tomorrow to finish out Multicultural Crafting with Kids 2011.  Get ready for some adventure!

Multicultural Crafts for Kids - Ecuador Part 1

 
Markets in Ecuador are filled with beautiful pottery, many of which have decidedly geometric designs.  Rather than form our own pottery, which would have been fun but messy, we took the easy route and painted our own pottery.  Equally messy, but less instruction time and more creative time.

Supplies:

terracotta saucers (or pots)

acrylic paint

paintbrushes

paint shirts

Approximate cost:  $.80

Directions:

Wipe off any dust or clay particles that may be on the saucer. 

 
Paint a base coat and allow to dry.  Acrylic paint dries fast, but you may need it to dry faster.  Use a hair dryer to speed things up.

 
Paint geometric shapes and/or natural images such as plants or insects.  Let dry completely.

We left our wet artwork to dry over the weekend, since the children would be back on Sunday to pick them up.  But if that doesn't work for your event, do this first thing so they can air dry or just break out the hair dryer again!

Extra Activity:

Color an Ecuador flag.

Multicultural Crafts for Kids - India

 
Each year I like to include one "cooking" craft so that the kids can get a taste for the country being featured.  Indians cook with a lot of curry, but not really enjoying the curry flavor myself, I just couldn't go in that direction.  Instead we made a tweaked traditional Indian dessert, Rasayana. 

Supplies:

1/2 banana per child

coconut milk (usually found canned in the Mexican or Asian section in the grocery store)

shredded sweetened coconut

brown sugar

plastic knife/spoon/cup per child

paper plate

Approximate cost:  $.60

Directions:

Peel banana and cut into slices with a plastic knife.  Place sliced bananas into cup.

 
Drizzle with coconut milk (about 2-3 Tbsp).  This is where I tweaked it a bit.  Traditionally, you are supposed to let the bananas soak in the milk for at least thirty minutes.

 
Sprinkle with a small amount of brown sugar (about 1 tsp).

Sprinkle with a spoonful of shredded coconut (about 1Tbsp).  Stir with a spoon and eat.

One of the boys said, "I GOTTA get this recipe," but his little sister almost gagged and had to spit it out.  Good thing a trash can was nearby!  I thought it tasted like Bananas Foster, but I couldn't even get my own son to try it.  He couldn't get past the fact that it had coconut in it.  It's definitely a personal taste issue, but the majority of the children enjoyed it.  And the fact that they got to make it themselves made it more alluring.

Extra Activity:

Color a flag of India.

Color rangoli designs.  These designs are used in India to welcome guests to your home.  We printed our designs and colored them with markers, but if you have a large sidewalk area outside try doing some in chalk!

Multicultural Crafts for Kids - Dominican Republic

 
Welcome to Multicultural Crafting with Kids 2011! This week we'll be featuring three countries from around the world and crafts to go along with them.  These crafts were done with about 30 children during our church's missions conference and are geared to be cheap, easy, and quick to do.  So, let's get started with the Dominican Republic... 

The Dominican Republic is known for it's love of music, especially pan pipes.  These instruments are usually made out of five or more pieces of bamboo that have been cut with increasing lengths.  To stay within budget, our set only included two pipes.

Supplies:

1/2 inch PVC - 1 foot per child

PVC cutters

colored plastic tape or duct tape

gorilla glue

cork to fit PVC (2 for each set you are making)

permanent markers

Approximate Cost:  $.50

Directions:

Cut the PVC beforehand into 5 and 7 inch lengths.

 
Place a little bit of gorilla glue on the inside of the bottom edge of each pipe and insert cork until flush (or almost flush) with the edge.  Let dry completely.  The parent/teacher will want to do this part so that little fingers don't get glued together!

 
Align the top edges of the pipes and tape together with colored tape, wrapping several times.

 
Decorate the pipes with permanent markers.  Mine included a little play on the Dominican Republic flag, but some of the kid's pipes looked like grafiti.  Whatever floats your boat!

To play:

Center one of the pipes on your bottom lip and blow across and down into the hole - kind of like how you'd blow across a coke bottle to get a sound. Tip:  Start with the longer pipe.  It's easier to play! You'll need a good deep breath!  I'm a flutist and even I was surprised at how much air it took to "play" this instrument.  If you don't get a sound at first, try blowing harder or repositioning the instrument.  Don't give up!  It will play two notes!  Just remember to play each pipe individually.  The longer pipe will play a deeper/lower pitch; the shorter will play a higher pitch.

These instruments do not make a loud sound, so I didn't feel bad sending them home for the parents to have to listen to.  Not too bad anyway.... 

Extra Activity:

Color a Dominican Republic flag.

Play a game of baseball:  the regular version if you have time and space, or Bible baseball for an indoor version.  The Dominicans LOVE baseball!