April 2019 - Rabbit Trails for Passover, Easter and Birds



The Themes for This Month:
Passover (4/19-4/27)
Easter (4/21/19)
Everything about birds!

Passover:
Read the story of Moses in Egypt from a Children's Bible
Teens:  Read the book of Exodus from the Bible



Easter:
Read the story of Christ's passion, death and resurrection from a Children's Bible
Teens:  Pre-read the readings for Holy Week or read pertinent parts from one or more Gospel.

Movies:
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolored Dream Coat (a tiny bit risque when Potiphar's wife gets the hots for Joseph, but other than that, lots of fun.  Kids learn how the Israelites got to Egypt in the first place.)
The Prince of Egypt - I love this reverent retelling of the story of Moses.  The music is amazing.

NB:  The study of Passover overlaps nicely with learning about Egypt.

He Is Risen - I think this is the animated movie we had which told the story of Easter for kids.  The movie is long gone from our house, but for many years we watched this when the kids were very little.  (I actually thought the movie portrays the Jews a little bit stereotypically here.  I think it goes over the heads of little kids but if you have an older one watching you might want to discuss this.

The Ten Commandments - I think there are at least two movies.

Ben-Hur - this is my favorite and the only movie I like Charleton Heston in!  I watch this religiously every Easter and still cry when Judah Ben-Hur kisses the mezuzah over his door when he returns home finally.

The Robe - Hollywood retelling of the 1950s best seller.  About a roman soldier present at Jesus' Crucifixion.

The Passion of the Christ - Mel Gibson's masterpiece.  For older teens.

Easter Family Read Alouds:
The Bronze Bow - We loved this one and read it multiple times.
Here's a link to a wonderful list of Easter read aloud books for younger children

Scroll to the bottom of the page to see more things having to do with Passover and Easter. 

Birds:
All kinds of bird projects:

The classic pinecone with peanut butter and rolled in seeds bird feeder

Another cute idea for making bird feeders.

Make a hummingbird feeder - this is probably best done with dad (or mom!)

Birdwatching out the window or in your yard or neighborhood (See read aloud Feathers for Lunch)

Backyard bird count - this actually takes place earlier in the year, but if you want to do it, plan ahead now!!!

Local nature centers - often have programs for little kids

Hatching chicks - we did this with 4-H.  If you want to do this on your own, check it out here.

Enchanted Learning has all kinds of fun worksheets on birds.

Pysanky eggs - here's a kit - The truth is we never attempted these, but we had a family in our extended homeschool group who were incredible artists and did make Pysanky eggs every year.  I was so jealous.

Dissolving egg shells in vinegar experiment - this one is fun and will amaze the kids.

Once we went on a tour of a farm with a bunch of homeschoolers (the farmers themselves homeschooled).  At the end of the tour, the kids got to gather eggs from the chicken coop.  They were thrilled!  We took those eggs home and made omelets for dinner which the kids ate with delight.  You might be able to do something like that (unless you already have your own chickens!).

Geography and Math tie ins:

  • Study migratory flyways.  Here's a possibly helpful resource.  But let the kids do their own research.Compare by subtraction the different miles/kilometers different species fly during migration.  Which bird your kids are interested in fly the least number of miles/kilometers?  Which one flies the most?
  • Books that tie in with migration are:  The Wheel on the School, The Song of the Swallows, Movie:  Winged Migration
  • Buy different eggs - chicken (small, medium, large, extra large), maybe duck and quail.  Measure them, weigh them and compare.
  • When you go to boil those Easter eggs for dying, find out the boiling point for water, measure out how much water you need for the amount of eggs you'll be hard boiling. Time how long it takes to get to boiling temperature.
  • Teach tally marks by counting birds in your backyard.
Poetry:
The Raven by Edgar Allen Poe
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge (this one features an albatross and started the saying "An albatross around your neck").  Find out what that expression means.
The Last Word of the Bluebird by Robert Frost

Bird themed Family Read Alouds:
The Trumpet of the Swan by E. B. White  (Classic book about a mute trumpeter swan).
The Wheel on the School by Meindert DeJong (Dutch school children try to bring the storks back to their village).
Gay-Neck (a story of a homing pigeon during World War I - 1928 Newberry winner.  Gorgeous writing.
The Enormous Egg (really about a dinosaur!)
My Side of the Mountain (Sam has a pet falcon; there are sequel's about the falcon but I've never read them.)  (Btw, if your children enjoy nature books, check out Jean Craighead George's website)
The Wonderful Farm by Ayme - (A French children's book about two little girls growing up on a farm and their magical friendship with the animals, especially the swans).


Independent teens (any classic with a reference to birds your teen hasn't read yet!)
To Kill a Mockingbird - classic American novel.
The Eagle of the Ninth - Rosemary Sutcliff's novel about a Roman youth in England.
The Once and Future King, Volume 1 (The Sword in the Stone - Wart learns falconry.  I know it's stretch, but that was my favorite part!)
The Egg and I by Betty MacDonald (light memoir of a newly married woman trying to run a chicken farm in the 1930s).

Movies:
Winged Migration - we loved this one!

Younger Children:
Owl Moon by Jane Yolen
The Ugly Duckling (read the original) by Hans Christian Andersen
Reshcnka's Eggs by Patricia Polaccio (pair this with making pysanky eggs!)
Crow Boy by Taro Yashimo - learn bird calls! 
Feathers for Lunch by Lois Ehlert (this can be a basis for a bird watching project with your littles.  Spend April trying to spot each of these birds.  Teach the kids how to use tally marks to keep track (4 lines and then strike through for the 5th count).  See this link
The Boy Who Drew Birds about John Audubon
Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey




Copywork:

Goosey, Goosey, Gander by Beatrix Potter.

Goosey, goosey, gander,
   Whither will you wander?
Upstairs and downstairs,
   And in my lady's chamber!


*Notice the old fashioned word 'whither.'  Whither means where to. Whence means where from.  That old fashioned language was much more precise than our simple 'where.'   We now have to awkwardly tag on a preposition to clarify our meaning.  What does 'chamber' mean?  It's use is old fashioned here.  How do we still use the word chamber today in America?  


*****

Alouette is an old French nursery song.  Here's a video of the song.  Your kids will either hate it or think its hilarious.  Here are the words in French.

*****

It may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird: it would be a jolly sight harder for it to learn to fly while remaining an egg. We are like eggs at present. And you cannot go on indefinitely being just an ordinary, decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad. C. S. Lewis

*****
The Seven Last Words of Christ:

Father, forgive them for they know not what they do

Today you will be with me in paradise

Behold your son; behold your mother

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

I thirst

It is finished.

Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.

**********************

Passover Activities:
Learn to sing the Hebrew Aleph Bet!  Here's a video.
There are lots of children's songs for Passover but Dayenu is one of the best known.  I love it's message of gratitude.  This is an easy one for little kids to learn.  
If you want to introduce your young children to the Passover seder meal, this is a quick way to do it!

Holy Week/Easter:
I am just assuming you'll be doing things like confession, attending as many services at your parish as you are able, fasting and abstaining on Good Friday, dying Easter eggs, preparing Easter dinner.
Again, my favorite Stations of the Cross for kids is this one.



Art and Music Activities

Everyone thinks of Handel's Messiah as a Christmas piece, but it is also about Easter.  Here's a link to a video of a concert performance by a church choir appropriate for Easter.  You can just put it on as background music while you are doing copy work or art.

Here's instructions on how to draw birds.  It's also an anatomy lesson.  This link might be easier for younger kids.

Listen to Ottorino Respighi's Gli Utticelli (The Birds) 










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