People in many countries across Europe prepare special eggs, painted/ dyed with beautiful colours and patterns for Easter. Yesterday, my friend from Romania sent me this lovely photo of the eggs they had decorated in her family. This is a Romanian tradition on Maundy Thursday. Here is a simple idea for early years settings: Invite …
International Women’s Day 2021!
Happy International Women’s Day! The official theme for last year’s International Women’s Day was ‘Each for Equal’. This year’s theme is ‘Choose to Challenge’. “We can actively choose to challenge stereotypes, fight bias, broaden perceptions, improve situations and celebrate women’s achievements” (internationalwomensday.com) To broaden perceptions and to celebrate women’s achievements, we need to tell more …
World Book Day 2021
Happy World Book Day 2021! Many families who have migrated have rich storytelling repertoires from the different places they have lived, and families and friends in these places. These can be the books they treasure in their family, new books they’ve found in new places, different translations/ versions of the same story, or different ways …
The Three Little Pigs
One of the many things I love about working in early years is telling traditional tales like the Three Little Pigs. I love hearing how stories are passed down through generations, told in different ways (for example through oral storytelling), and how the content changes across cultures and as different people add their own versions. …
Happy Valentine’s Day!
For our first wedding anniversary (paper), my family bought us this lovely set- and it seemed a good time to make these little origami hearts Recently a friend told me how baking with her grandchildren over Zoom works really well Here is another idea for families to do over video calls…origami shapes! These websites have …
Story Starter: Animal Homes
The Postal Journey
For families living in different places, sending letters and parcels to each other is a normal part of life. This activity uses a bit of imagination to invent a character that children can tuck somewhere on the parcel, and then imagine the adventures they have on the way to their grandparents and other family members! …
Piotr the Pine Cone
In December 2020, this little character- Piotr the Pine Cone- started making his way around Europe to hear about the traditions that families celebrate around Christmas. Here are a few pictures from his journey, and a video inviting children to get involved and tell their stories. If you would like to contribute please get in …
Bookmark Family Traditions and Celebrations
Tłusty Czwartek
My first experience of Tłusty Czwartek (Fat Thursday), was in February 2016 when I worked as an English Teacher in Katowice, Poland. I’ve never seen so many doughnuts! People were queuing outside the best bakeries, and we had so many doughnuts in the staff kitchen. Breaks between lessons were great! Tłusty Czwartek is celebrated on …