Every year I look forward to spring, my favorite season, with its promise of warmer weather, renewal and new growth. I live in Maine, in the northern US, and after our long, cold winters, any sign of spring is welcome indeed! With this Spanish spring craft, you can share a bit of the culture of Spain with children.
Many cultures have traditional signs which mark the changing of the seasons, especially those that have to do with coming out of the cold and heading into warmer days. Ever since I was a little girl, seeing the first robins of the year has been exciting- after spending all winter in the south, they arrive back, usually in March- a sure indication that spring is finally here!
In Spain, it is the arrival of the swallows, back from their winter spent in Northern Africa, which marks the beginning of the spring season, along with the blossoming of almendras (almond trees) and the poking out of crocuses.
Signs of changes in the seasons are a great opportunity to share cultural perspectives with little learners – a tangible window into how others view the world around them. With this Spanish spring craft, kindergartners in my Spanish classes learn about these two symbols, las golondrinas (swallows) and los petirrojos (robins), making a paper version of each which they can take home and share with their families. A small piece of culture is thereby implanted!
Spanish Spring Craft
Your little learners can do this Spanish spring craft, too! Click on this link to download our swallow and robin coloring pages. They can be cut out and put on a bulletin board, fridge, or poster board- or attach a string to each and hang them in the window!
To learn more about the common swallow of Spain, you can see these links:
Spring Alive: this website allows you to track the migration of the swallows from Africa to Spain
Golondrina común: this short informative Youtube video features the migration of swallows (In Spanish)
21 Facts about Swallows: geared for kids, this features a list of interesting facts
Wishing you a most lovely spring!
Find more multicultural crafts on our Multicultural Kids’ Crafts Pinterest Board.
Photo credits:
Tim Spouge via Compfight cc
gurdonark via Compfight cc
This post is part of our new series Global Learning for Kids. Each month we will feature a country and host a link party to collect posts about teaching kids about that country–crafts, books, lessons, recipes, etc. It will create a one-stop place full of information about the country.
This month we are learning all about Spain, so link up below any old or new posts designed to teach kids about Spain–crafts, books, lessons, recipes, music and more!
Julie Hoffman
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