Our last week of October was a lovely one, and culminated in our Harvest Celebration. The children had spent the week painting their capes and crowns and gathering leaves from the forest to tuck into their crowns. We sing a little song that goes "fairies have painted the leaves that you see. Red, gold, and yellow they hang from the trees, whirling and swirling and dancing around, then quietly, softly they float to the ground". It's a fun song to sing on our walks in the woods while we watch the leaves (finally) coming down. The children made some autumnal gingerbread cookies to share at the end of our "leaf painting" walk. Halloween can be an overwhelming celebration for children, but when we as adults use it as an opportunity to slow down, enjoy the sights and smells of autumn and keep it simple, the children can discover a sense of wonder in it.
As the days grow shorter and colder, our songs leading up to our Harvest Fest began to have images of little lights shining out. One of the songs we sing goes "Jack-o-lantern, jack-o-lantern, you are such a lovely sight, as you sit there in the window looking out at the night. You were once a golden pumpkin growing on a pumpkin vine. Now you are a jack-o-lantern, and your light it does shine!" We finish with a verse that says "May my heart shine the whole year long! With love, and light, and a happy song!" It's a wonderful lead-in to the early winter celebrations that include images of light.
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