This is a great activity with lots of cutting and pasting to promote fine motor skills.

 

You will need:

A paper or polystyrene cup

Yellow paint

Paint brush

Googly eyes

Glue

Orange and yellow paper

Yellow/orange feathers

Card or thin Cardboard or a paper bowl

 

Method:

Paint the paper cup yellow and let dry.  Do this first so it can dry while you are doing other things.

Make a nest by cutting a jagged edge around a paper bowl.  If using a piece of card or thin cardboard try drawing a small circle as a base and drawing jagged edges for the nest sides.  Cut this out and fold the edges up to make the sides of the nest.

Cut some paper into thin shreds to place in the nest.

When your cup is dry, glue some feathers around the top of the cup.

Glue on some googly eyes.

Cut out a shape of a diamond, then fold this in half to make a beak, and glue this in place

Now you have a wonderful little nest, ready for those Easter eggs!  Easter Blessings to you!

 

Teaching Points:

What have eggs and chicks have to do with Easter?  Find out about the real Easter story.

How do other cultures/religions celebrate significant events?

 

For Grief and Loss:

Making a chick (or any animal) is a good conversation starter about favourite animals, pets, and animal facts, and this is a great way to build rapport, and for counsellors, a therapeutic alliance with children.

Celebratory times of the year can be difficult for children who may have lost a loved one.  This may an opportunity to talk about memories of their loved on.  These may be happy memories which bring a pleasant feelings and emotions.  However, it could be a difficult memory, and this could be an opportunity to help the child or young person to bring some understanding to the memory.   Gently explore the memory.  What was going on at the time?  Why do they think things happened the way they did?   How did it make them feel?   Let the child be the guide as to how far to go with this.

Exploring memories could expose negative feeling and emotions and this could allow for normalising of these emotions and feelings when we are sad and grieving.  This may bring a sense of relief to children if they are experiencing guilt at having these feelings.

This is also an opportunity to find out whether the child has any faulty thinking regarding a situation and assisting them in finding an alternative, more realistic and balanced view.

Building a strong rapport and alliance with children and young people will help them to trust and feel safe. Using craft and play therapy is a great way to do this.  The experiences that children share should always be treated with the respect and empathy.

Sometimes children can teach us things about ourselves and they can be great at pushing our buttons, making us react in a positive or negative manner.  Kids can always tell when we are not totally engaged with them.  Being aware of our own insecurities and triggers when we work with children can bring a deeper level or understanding, which will benefit ourselves and the children we work with.

Focus on the child and their perceptions, thoughts and feelings, and not the problem.  This way they will feel they have been heard and that someone understands them.

Highlighting a child’s strengths and abilities can provide them with a sense of resilience and show they are capable and able to weather the storm.

 

Reference: 

Smith Adcock, S. (Ed). & Tucker C. (Ed). (2017). Counseling Children and Adolescents: connecting theory, development, and diversity. SAGE. London

 

Links to the Australian Curriculum:

ACHASSK012 / Humanities and Social Sciences / F–6/7 HASS / Foundation Year / Knowledge and Understanding / History

How they, their family and friends commemorate past events that are important to them

 

ACHASSK029 | Year 1 | F–6/7 HASS | Knowledge and Understanding | History

How the present, past and future are signified by terms indicating time, as well as by dates and changes that may have personal significance, such as birthdays, celebrations and seasons

 

ACPPS024 | Content description | Years 1 and 2 | Health and Physical Education | Personal, Social and Community Health | Contributing to healthy and active communities

Recognise similarities and differences in individuals and groups, and explore how these are celebrated and respected