Since Ash Wednesday my 21 month old Little Cherub has been having a wonderful time with liturgical year boxes. We started with a Stations of the Cross Box, and have now moved on to the Way of Light (Stations of the Resurrection) for Easter. Each box contains fourteen laminated picture cards and fourteen matching items. To give an idea of how we use the boxes, here is a description I posted on my blog ...
I mentioned at the beginning of Lent that I had put together a Stations of the Cross box for Little Cherub, using a set of laminated cards of the Stations that I made and the items listed here. It has been an enormous success. Cherub adores it! At least once or twice every day she rushes over to the drawer where the box lives pointing and repeating insistently "bo'! bo'!" Today it was three times.
We sit down with her "box", tip out the contents and set out the cards one by one, matching the items as we go.
The first station ... "look, Jesus is having his hands tied with rope. What do we need?" ... "ro'!" She finds the piece of string and puts it carefully on the picture.
The second station ... "look, Jesus had to carry a heavy cross. Can you find a cross?" ... some dithering between the small crucifix (The Twelfth Station) and the little wooden cross, then she puts the cross on the picture.
And so on. Every station now has its own point of interest to her. The fourth station ... "Ma'!" (Mary) as she points at the picture of Our Lady. The eighth ... "Baby!" ("Yes, that is the women of Jerusalem with their babies. They are sad. They are crying because Jesus is going to die"). The tenth ... tugs at her dress to show me that Jesus' clothes were taken away. The eleventh ... much demonstration with a plastic nail (useful find in a magic set belonging to her older sister!) poked at her hands and feet, my hands and feet, and any other hands and feet in the vicinity.
The pictures on their own would never have held her interest in the way these little objects do. They make the story real and tangible for her. Many thanks to Irene and her husband for sharing their idea. It has made one little girl (and her Mum) very happy.
4 comments:
These are such great ideas for little ones! Love them Kathryn!
I LOVE your ideas for boxes. I am hoping to make Rosary boxes in May, with my own children and perhaps with our Catholic Mosaic co-op, I think they would be a nice project to go with the book "Lovely Lady Dressed in Blue."
I have a 24 month old and a 3 month old and I came here from Elizabeth Foss' blog. This is lovely and I'm very excited about reading about helping our little ones to know God!
These Boxes in particular sound beautiful! Do you mind, Andrea, if I ask what little objects would you use for Rosary boxes?
(Sorry if I'm not supposed to ask questions here!)
Just to clarify- Rosary boxes were not my idea, I think I read about them on Bookworm's blog. She has a list of objects for each mystery, very helpful!
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