Children Activities for Celebrating Litha

Litha is a Sabbat honoring the Goddess as the Mother, the God as the
Father, and of Their children or the child in all of us. Here are
some activities to help Pagan Parents include their small children
in the celebration. Head out into the back yard and enjoy the day!

Earth Puppets
Materials: Use natural items found in the yard, tape, and glue

The easiest kind of puppets can be made from a twig. Select a twig
that forks. You now have 2 arms and a handle to hold the puppet
with. Find a fallen flower, and tape the stem to the handle for the
head. You can also tape the stem of a fallen leaf to the handle for
the head. For clothing, wrap a leaf around the handle, and your
puppet has natural summer wear.

Another puppet can be made with a pine cone. Glue the pine cone to
the forked twig, for the head. Dried and fresh grass make loads of
hair styles, beards, and mustaches. Use seeds or small rocks for
eyes, nose, and mouth. Make clothing out of leaves and bonnets out
of flower petals or acorn caps.

Use a large box or table for the stage, and enjoy the show.
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Vegetable Tray Puppets

Materials: Large carrots, popsicle sticks, cream cheese, raisins or
olives, celery, parsley, green beans, radishes, cauliflower buds,
broccoli buds, cucumber spears, any other desired vegetable, and
cheese slices.

Having trouble getting the younger children to eat their vegetables?
Let them play with their food! Peel several large carrots and cut
off both ends. With a paring knife (adults only) cut a slit in the
bottom of the larger end. Place several carrots on a plate. On a
serving tray, in the middle place a small bowl of cream cheese, and
surround with "garnishing vegetables". Cut cheese slices lengthwise
to strips of hair.

Insert popsicle stick in the slit in a carrot. Using the cream
cheese as glue, attach raisins or olives as eyes, and other assorted
vegetables as arms, legs, hair, etc. Let the child(ren) put on a
mealtime play before eating the characters. Lots of fun for the
whole family!
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Treasure Boxes

Materials: Sturdy cardboard box, natural items for decoration, white
glue, med-size paint brush.
This little box is for the youngster to collect "treasured" memories
from summer. Start with a large shoe box and lid. Let the child
collect some items from the yard, the park, and/or the beach. Glue
flat items to the box, and place the non-flat items inside. To give
the box a more durable finish, brush on a coat of white glue diluted
with water. Encourage the child to tell stories of where the
different items came from, or make up stories about the contents.
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Wheelbarrow Planter

Materials: 1 plastic detergent scoop, 2 large brightly colored
buttons, white glue, 1 cup potting soil, seeds.

Take the plastic detergent scoop and poke a couple of small holes in
the bottom (adults only!) with a nail or a needle. Let each child
pick out two brightly colored buttons for the wheels. Glue wheels
onto the sides of the scoop so that it sits at an angle. Once the
glue has dried, let the child pour ½ cup of potting soil in the
scoop, place in a couple of seeds around the sides of the scoop, and
pour in the rest of the soil. Slowly add water to the soil until
soaked through. Place on small dish in sunny spot. Watch the new
life grow from the seeds and spring forth from the soil just as life
springs forth from the Goddess.
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Litha Spiral Candles

Materials: Decorating wax strips or preprinted wax logs, plain ball
or short pillar candle(s), craft or butter knife.

Have your child choose a couple of colored wax strip combinations.
Cut each strip into 2 pieces 2¾" long and on piece that is 2" long.
Lay a short length of one color over a longer length of another
color and roll them into a tight spiral log, ½" in diameter by 1½"
long. When you've got eight logs use the knife (adults or older
children) to cut each log into as many slices as you can. Firmly
press the wax slices all around the outside of the candle, starting
at the base and working up. Continue placing the slices as close
together as possible until the whole candle is covered.
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Stained Glass Sun Catchers

Materials: Wax paper, crayon shavings, colored string, yarn, or
thread, lace, leaves, flower petals.

To begin, have the child empty crayon shavings from their sharpener,
or (adults only!) use a paring knife to create shavings. A cheese
grater works great for large crayons. Arrange shavings, and any of
the accessory items the child chooses and sandwich between two
sheets of wax paper. Iron (adults, of course) the whole package on
low setting, just until the shavings melt. Cut the "stained glass"
into shapes and hang them with string, in a sunny window.
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Fairies' Feathered Friend Feeder

Materials: An empty milk carton, nontoxic paint, glitter, white
glue, popsicle sticks, 10" wooden dowel w/ ¼" diameter, wire hanger
(cut bottom of hanger for inserting into milk carton), birdseed.

Rinse out milk carton thoroughly. Do not completely open top, rather
glue open spout back together. Cut 3" wide by 4" long arched
openings on "spout" side and opposite side of carton, with base of
opening approx. 3" from bottom of carton. Let the child paint the
outside of the carton in Litha colors of red, yellow, orange, white,
green. Before the paint dries let child sprinkle colored glitter all
over the carton, (birds are attracted to shiny objects). Let carton
dry. Glue painted or non-painted popsicle stick shingles onto the
top of the carton as a roof. For the perches, poke holes in the
carton just below the openings, and slip the wooden dowel through
the holes. Poke two holes in the top of the carton just under the
roof, insert one end of the cut hanger into each hole. Fill the
bottom of the carton with wild birdseed. Hang in a spot that is easy
to view, but far enough away from fences or other objects to thwart
predators. Tell child how fairies, brownies, and sprites ride on the
backs of birds to get from one place to another if it is too far to
walk.

This was taken from a Yahoo! Group called "Magic Light."