FAIRIES, ELVES AND GNOMES

Compiled by Robyn © August 2004

Imagination is more important than knowledge...Albert Einstein

Make believe lays the foundations of learning. Through play children learn to deal with emotions, interact with others, make sense of their place in the world and gain a rich imagination. Nurturing imagination helps children develop creativity, the ability to distinguish between appearance and reality, reasoning and decision-making skills, flexible thinking and it is a gift to enrich life. Imagination is also crucial to understanding consequences: one doesn't have to experience everything because results can be anticipated with a good imagination. Turn off the TV, put away the toys and let your imagination run wild with this fun children’s unit about the ‘wee folk’ or the ‘little people’.

A fairy is a tiny magical creature with wings. When fairies gather together, they love to sing and dance and you might find a fairy ring of mushrooms after they have left. They live in all kinds of places, so be sure to watch out for them. Fairies don't like to be seen by people at all. These tiny creatures can appear and disappear in the blink of an eye. Elves are merry little creatures who live underground. They love music, singing, feasting, playing instruments and dancing all night but when the sun rises, they vanish instantly leaving nothing but their little footprints in the wet grass. Elves are miniature reproductions of mankind, but a good deal handsomer. They can be male or female and most of them have wings. Gnomes are bearded creatures that look like funny little old men and wear hoods. They build their homes under aging trees and only go out after sunset. They love to dance & play. Gnomes are very earthy and are friends of animals.

Invite the fairies into your home and garden by making special little places for them. Pot plants, bookshelves, dolls houses, secret corners of the garden etc. Leave them little notes. Sometimes when they visit they will leave some fairy dust behind or even something special. When the milk teeth fall out, the tooth fairy will leave something special in return for the tooth. Make your garden magical with potted flowers, wind chimes, little birdhouses, and rockeries, tree stumps, garden gnomes, elves and fairies. And enjoy the fun of imagination!

RECOMMENDED READING from Kalahari Books

A Child's Book of Faeries by Tanya Robyn Batt (Ages 6-12) >>See Amazon Reviews>>

These four stories, based on folklore, are retold here and work together to paint a picture of the prickly faerie folk. The explanations interspersed between stories and poems tell of the different types and tricks of faeries, how to guard against them, and what Elf land and the Faery Queen are like. The watercolour illustrations are gorgeous.

Stella – Fairy of the Forest by Marie Louise Gay (Ages 3–7) >>See Amazon Reviews>>

Sam wonders whether fairies are invisible. Stella assures him she has seen hundreds and that if she and Sam venture across the meadow and into the forest, they are likely to find some. But Sam surprises Stella by having a few ideas of his own.

How To Draw Fairies And Mermaids (Activity Books) by Fiona Watt (Ages 4-10) >>Amazon Reviews>>

Lucy's little brother James can't sleep as he keeps seeing things in the shadows. So they fly far away across the ocean to find the land where the sleep fairies fly.

Jethro Byrde, Fairy Child - by Bob Graham (Ages 4-8) >>See Amazon Reviews>>

Annabelle's dad says she'll never find fairies in cement and weeds. But Annabelle does. She finds a tiny fairy child, Jethro Byrde, and his family, who are on their way to the Fairy Travellers' Picnic. And together, they spend a magical afternoon.

"Do not insist that your child see the world through the eyes of an adult.

Follow your child and see where his imagination will take you." Shlomit Avshalom

IN THE KITCHEN

Fairy Tea Party

herbal tea, coloured sugar sprinkles and edible flowers such as rose petals, geraniums. violas, nasturtiums or lavender blossoms. Set a little table with a tablecloth and a tiny teapot, cups, saucers and little plates. Invite the fairies to your tea party and use your best manners and quiet voices so you won't frighten them away. Pour some tea for the fairies in thimbles or tiny cups. Pour some for yourself and your friends. Sprinkle with coloured sugar and float a few flowers in your cup. Toast the fairies and drink up! Enjoy your Fairy Tea Party!

Fairy Cupcakes

Make fairy cupcakes in the little paper cups, sprinkle with magic fairy sprinkles (100s & 1000s)

Fairy Bread

Make some fairy bread - butter little bread pieces and sprinkle with 100s and 1000s or chocolate sprinkles.

ACTIVITIES

Fairy Wind Chime

Make some fairy music in your garden with the soft, tinkling sound of wind chimes. Glue 2 lolly sticks together to form an X or use an interesting shaped branch. Collect chiming objects from around the house, objects that make different sounds when gently bumped together such as spoons, shells, keys, screws, bottles or metal or clay objects. Cut five or so different lengths of fishing wire or string and tie the objects onto the string. Thread some beads along the string and tie to your stick or branch. Hang your chimes outside or in a window using a piece of beaded string where the wind can gently blow them. Add feathers, leaves, bells or silk flowers for decoration.

Indoor Fairy & Elf Garden

Grow a miniature indoor garden. Lay down some damp tissue in a plastic pot tray or jar lid. Sprinkle half with a mixture of fast growing cress and mustard seeds. Cover with a piece of cardboard. Keep tissue damp. Peep under every day until you can see the little shoots. Uncover and let them grow. Add pebbles and tiny fairy or elf figurines. Paint some tiny pebbles like ladybirds to add to your fairy garden.

Pot Plant Fairy Home

Using acrylic paints, paint a clean terracotta or plastic pot and decorate the pot like a tiny home. Paint on a door and some windows all around. Paint the rim like a roof. Decorate with mushrooms, forest plants and flowers. When dry, plant an outdoor or indoor plant in your pot. Put it in the tray and add tiny pebbles all around, some larger pebbles can be placed on the floor around the pot for more effect. Now add your tiny fairy figurines and maybe some painted rocks to give a stunning look.

Magical Mushrooms

Paint a magical mushroom garden and ddecorate with buttons, glitter, or other materials from your craft collection. When dry, hide all your fairies in it, using fairy stickers. Alternatively, colour and cut mushrooms (see worksheets below for a template). Arrange mushrooms onto coloured paper and stick your fairies all around.

Make a Tiny Fairy Home

Make a tiny house using some little matchboxes, glue, paint and other materials such as twigs, acorns, or leaves. Decorate with glitter and silk or dried flowers. Make some tiny furniture for the fairies out of matchsticks or other materials.

Make a Cardboard Fairy Castle from Enchanted Learning

Fairy Furniture

Make a tiny chest of drawers by gluing three empty matchboxes on top of one another. Cover non-opening sides with wrapping paper and glue on 3 tiny beads for handles. Keep your fairy glitter in the drawers. Make a staircase by gluing three or more different size boxes together, largest at the bottom, slightly smaller next and so on. Make a table by cutting 4 squares out of the sides of a bottomless little box, leaving the four corners in for as the legs.

Fairy Crown

Twist one end of 2 pipe cleaners together. Thread large beads and plastic or silk flowers all around the crown. Twist the other end together to close the circle and fit your head for the base of the crown. Tie different lengths of coloured ribbons onto the back of the crown. Curl them to hang and flow down your back.

Make a fairy necklace using all kinds of sparkly beads.

Fairy Wands

Make a magic fairy wand using wire and sparkles, gold & silver

markers or paint, ribbon, glitter, feathers, tinfoil, beads etc.

The Fairy Dance

Dress up like fairies, in your wings, wand and fairy crown. Put on some fairy music (new age or classical) and dance around the imaginary magic flowers and mushrooms.

Make a Fairy-sized Book

Cut out little rectangles of paper and staple in the middle to make a tiny book.

Decorate your book anyway you like. Write a little story or draw a fairy pictures.

Garden Signs

Get plain wooden signs with spikes from a hobby shop and paint them with pictures and the words, ‘Fairies Welcome’, ‘Elves Welcome’ and ‘Gnomes Welcome’, alternatively, you can buy these ready made from most nurseries. Put them in your flowerbeds and pot plants.

Imagination ~

The ability to remember, dream, create, improvise and in the process entertain oneself anywhere and anytime.

The Fairies

When little girls and boys are born
All around the world
A fairy is born for every girl
An elf for every boy
They live right near the girls and boys
And though they can’t be seen
If you feel a tiny whoosh of wind
You’ll know that they have been

At the bottom of the garden
Where pretty flowers grow
You may be surprised who lives there
Would you like to know?
Down the winding pathway
Past the garden seat
Around the side of the daisy bush
To the old gum tree

Look up in the tree
As high as you can see
They live inside the snuggery
The fairies
The golden fairy Harmony
And Rhapsody her friend
At the bottom of the garden
The fairies

When little girls and boys are born
All around the world
A fairy is born for every girl
An elf for every boy
They live right near the girls and boys
And though they can’t be seen
If you feel a tiny whoosh of wind
You’ll know that they have been
You’ll know that they have been

SONGS & RHYMES

My name is Maginary the Fairy,

My life is joyful and oh, so merry:

If you want to be happy all the day,

Learn about living the fairy way.

We are gentle nature spirits you can trust.

Flowers and wishes bloom because of us.

We have a warm heart that shines so bright,

When you believe in us, you'll see the light.

We are really just tiny versions of you,

But our eyes shimmer with a magical view:

We try to be good, at least most of the time--

If I make a mistake, I admit that it's mine

Next time you hear the wind, listen well:

Soft whispers and secret laughter will tell

That fairy friends and magic are near

To help you with the things you hold dear!

From the book Fairy Fun by Marla Schram Schwartz

Fairies at the Bottom of my Garden
There are fairies at the bottom of my garden
Fairies just as real as you and me
There are fairies at the bottom of my garden
And they’re living in a hollow snuggery

My own special fairy is called Harmony
She’s the little fairy dressed in gold
And Rhapsody is her very extra special friend
She’s a funny fairy so I’m told

There are fairies at the bottom of my garden
Fairies just as real as you and me
There are fairies at the bottom of my garden
And they’re living in a hollow snuggery

Every little boy and girl – all around the world
Has an elf or fairy of their own
And all they have to do is believe believe believe
And in their dreams they’ll never be alone