Talking about Egypt and deserts in the winter is a sweet way to bring back a little bit of warmth every week and this topic brought up a lot of questions!
- How cool is it that in some places its actually summer time during our winter months?! And there are also some places where the weather is always the same, unchanging, do the people and animals there eat the same things year round?
- Is it the same living next to a river than living next to the sea?
- We also talked about astronomy! How cool is it that people took patterns in the stars and planets and created stories to explain all that happened on the Earth.
For instance, constellations from the stars and architecture were connected to the king's power. From Egyptian myths came the development of the Egyptian calendar, time keeping and even the first sun watch with its shadows that indicated the day length and orientation of the sunlight.
3,500 BCE, Currently in Vancouver
Vancouver, like in Ancient Egypt, relationships between people and the environment are what create our culture. Songs, books, movies and real life are connected and it’s fun to dive into all the world shapes and experiences! And we did just that! We became archaeologists!
With the Indiana Jones Soundtrack inspiring our adventure, our Big Kids designed the map that lead them to find Tutankhamun's tomb. We talked about the pyramids, mummies, all the furniture, food and belongings that were left with the Pharaoh's sarcophagus. While mummification was the first challenge of the body, the Underworld was the first challenge of the spirit and we watched a video that brought us to another dimension!
Making Papyrus
The word "PAPER" comes from papyrus, the reed that grows on the banks of the river Nile. To make paper, the Egyptians peeled and used the outer layer of the reeds. This time, our Big kids used paper that was in the recycling bin, we cut them in small pieces, blended it with water and dried it out! Recycling, Up-cycling and our own handmade paper was created with our environmental values!
Field Trip to Bonchaz Bakery Cafe
Whether we are talking about ancient Egypt or nowadays, bread has been an important staple in almost every culture. Bread has been on every table, from breakfast to dinner,all day long! So we visited Bonchaz, where the most delicious bread in town comes from! Eric showed us the bakeshop and how they make the dough, portion it and how they bread grows in the proofer to be baked afterwards! Buddings big kids loved the wall where all the bakery tools are put on display together! Thank you so much Michael, Eric and @bonchaz team for the amazing tour!
Because we loved it, let’s do it again!
These are some of the activities that were a hit and we keep doing them:
- Let’s built a city around the Nile and see where our adventure brings us today!
- Animals are fun! Crocodiles, snakes, beetles, cats, scorpions, camels ... We meet them every week through stories like 'Isis and the Seven Scorpions', playing with the crocodiles in the Nile, reading some books and even making a homemade Snakes and Ladders game board! Isis and the seven scorpions story always remind us that scary animals are not dangerous. Anything can be scary and dangerous or, likewise, the funniest and surprising!
- Playing the Water and Sand game! The Big Kids have to jump into the Nile every time they hear "water" and jump onto the sand when we call out "sand", it’s great when we are excited to jump but hop to the opposite place OOPS! Storybook Buddings floor tiles are ideal for this game!
I personally love symbolic play because it's through these experiences that I came to understand how much they remember and interpret themes!
Words and concepts can be challenging, but when attached to a game they become easy to remember and through repetition we learn and grow complex ideas.
EGYPTIAN FEBRUARY UPCOMING EVENTS!
February themes will be around amulets, astronomy, more games and field trips: February 19th to Granville Island to look for some Egyptian treasures and February 20th to the Soap Dispensary and find out about the ancient egyptian cosmetics!
Join us on Tuesdays at Buddings on Broadway and Storybook Buddings on Wednesdays always from 1-4pm and discover what a civilization can built with everybody's cooperation!
