With Navaratri & Dussehra around the corner, you must be wondering how to tell your kids about Navaratri. Well, the Montessori approach has an answer. In a Montessori setup, children are exposed to different cultures and countries in a very hands-on way. If you are looking for activities & crafts you can do with your toddlers & preschoolers this Navratri & Dussehra season, you are at the right place!
When I wanted to let my 19 months old toddler experience the beautiful festive spirit of Navaratri and Dassera, I refreshed the Montessori learning principles in my head and planned out activities for my son, according to his age, skill set and interest. Now, I simply can’t wait to share them with you all! All these activities have been chosen such that they represent the culture and traditions of this 10 day festival. You can easily tweak them according to your child’s interest and age or even a bit as per your own culture!
Here is the video that explains the set of activities!
If you are an image person, here are some quick images of the activities that I did with my son -
CULTURE - A DIY bow & arrow made from hula hoop connectors & a twig. I used this as a prop while telling the story of Lord Ram & Raavan that how Lord Ram was so good at using bow & arrow.
ART - Some sticks that we collected from garden, we painted them with tempera paints & used them to play dandiya :)
FINE MOTOR - Hand drawn Durga Mata faces kept inside plastic sheet. The activity is to peel off bindi & put it on the right place on Durga Mata.
MATH - One to one correspondence of keeping one flower in one cavity using a clothespin. A pre-math activity & a fine motor skill to use the clothespin.
You might also like THIS ultimate compilation of 17 books on Indian mythology for Dussehra & Navratri festival for children.
PRETEND PLAY - People observe fast during Navatri season & hence I came up with this pretend play setup with his toy fruits & a balance. He became a fruit seller.
SENSORY - Pulling out the flower petals & making water rangoli
MATH - Hand drawn Raavan face with numbers written on his 10 heads. Wooden number cutouts to match the numbers.
SORTING - sorting marigold flowers according to the color
PRACTICAL LIFE - Punching holes in mango leaves & threading them to make a toran for Dussehra.
I am going to make a separate blog post on some books that you can read this Navratri & Dussehra festival to your kids.
My activities have also been featured on BabyChakra. Click HERE to check them.
Do not forget to follow us on Facebook page & closed Facebook group, Twitter and Instagram for day to day updates that might not always find a place on this blog. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to know more about our early learning journey, DIY & Montessori-inspired activities for kids, kids books & toys reviews and much more!
Hope to see you around. Happy Parenting!
No comments:
Post a Comment