BUTTERFLY HAIKU CRAFT PROJECT

Step 1. Haiku

Let a butterfly inspire you to write a short poem called a haiku. There are only three lines in a haiku, totaling 17 syllables. The first line is 5 syllables. The second line is 7 syllables. The third line is 5 syllables like the first.

Here is an example written by my daughter when she was in fourth grade:

Butterfly, graceful,

Fluttering around at day,

Eating pollen grains.

Step 2. Butterfly Cut-Out

You will need a large sheet of black paper, a smaller piece of brown paper, tissue paper, pencil, scissors, glue.

Draw the outline of a butterfly on the black paper. Cut it out.

Draw “windows” in the wings and cut them out. Cut out pieces of tissue paper and glue them to the back of the butterfly. If you like, you can add small pieces of colored paper for decoration.

Draw an oval shape on the brown paper for the butterfly’s body and cut it out. Write your haiku on the body. Glue the body to the center of the butterfly.

Final step. Tape your butterfly haiku cut-out to a window and let the light shine through!

You can learn more about butterflies in my book Butterflies in Room 6.

 

 

UKRAINIAN EASTER EGGS

 HAPPY EASTER!

Every year at this time I get out my Ukrainian Easter Egg tools to make new eggs to add to my collection. Using a kistka (a tool with a hollow pointed tip) to apply the melted wax, I draw my designs before dipping the egg in dye. With each succeeding color I add more designs. At the end, I melt the wax on the egg and rub it off, revealing the completed pattern. 

My eggs are an amateur version of the beautiful eggs made by professional Ukrainian egg artists. For more about Ukrainian eggs (pysanky) and how to make them, click HERE.

Note: The Ukrainian Orthodox church will celebrate Easter on May 2, 2021. It is on the Sunday following the paschal full moon, which is the full moon that falls on or after the spring equinox. Orthodox Easter will usually fall later in the year than Western Christian Easter because Orthodox Easter uses the Julian calendar and the latter uses the Gregorian calendar.