Turning Six

Birthdays are wonderful things when you are five and six!  We celebrate birthdays at Heart Centered Multi-age with a birthday circle in the morning and then with a treat for desert after lunch!  This birthday child went all out with 3D glasses for viewing Star Wars plates and napkins!  The kids loved it.  Can you tell?

Birthday preparations and celebrating begin very early in the morning.  As the first children arrive they begin making the birthday child a crown.  The time and attention to detail that the children put into creating these crowns is priceless.  Once the crown is made and the birthday child arrives, he/she begins setting up the birthday ring.  The ring has little, wooden decorations that go on it as well as the number of the years the child has been alive and the matching number of candles.  The birthday child loves to take all of the pieces out of the box and unwrap them from their tissue paper coverings.

At the end of morning meeting on the special day, we light the birthday ring and sing the birthday song as the child walks around the ring (symbolizing the sun) with the globe.  Yes, the Earth goes ‘round the sun.

Birthday Song

The Earth goes ‘round the Sun,

The Earth goes ‘round the Sun,

The Earth goes around the Sun and “so and so” is one.

Continue to the age of the child.

It is amazing how this little ritual prepares such a strong foundation for future learning about the solar system.  Did you ever have to stop and think about which way the Earth, Sun and Moon worked in Middle School?  I am sure these children will never need to stop and think about it.  They know that it takes the Earth one year to make its way around the sun – thus giving them a birthday.

This was a wonderful birthday celebration and we have one more summer B-day to celebrate before school is out!

I hope that you are all enjoying your vacation week.  Enjoy the snow today!