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ASL Valentines Day card

Valentines Day falls on February 14 every year. The real history of Valentine’s Day is a little confusing. It began as two different pagan festivals that were later adopted by the Catholic Church as an entirely separate festival honoring two men (both named Valentine, who were executed on Feb. 14 in two different years, by a Roman emperor) who were later declared Saints. So while the story of Valentine’s Day has some dark and unclear origins, today we exclusively celebrate the holiday to spread love and fond wishes (and little candy hearts).

The people of Earth speak a multitude of languages. What languages do you speak? How do you say “I love you” in your native language? Do you know how to say “I love you” in any other languages?

Here is how we say “I love you” in some of the world’s most widely spoken languages. You can look up videos online for instructions on how to pronounce these words. Can you match the languages to the countries whose people speak them? Can you find those countries on a world map?

 

Chinese: Wǒ ài nǐ

Spanish: Te amo.

Arabic: ‘Ahabak

French: Je t’aime

Japanese: Watashi wa, anata o aishiteimasu

Hindi: Main tumase pyaar karata hoon

Russian: Ya lyublyu tebya

Portuguese: Eu te amo

Bengali: Āmi tōmāẏa bhālōbāsi

Javanese: Kangen

Today, we are going to make a Valentine’s Day card in ASL – which is short for American Sign Language. ASL is the beautiful language that people who are hearing impaired “speak” with their hands.

Materials & Instructions

  • Colored paper – one sheet in your flesh color and one in the color you want for the card’s background.
  • Glue
  • Markers, crayons, pens, etc.
  • Glitter or other decorations (optional)

  1. Trace your hand and a little bit of your wrist on a piece of paper the color of your skin.
  2. Cut it out.
  3. Fold the other colored piece of paper in half to make the card.
  4. Glue just the palm of the hand and the wrist section to the card, leaving the fingers loose.
  5. Now, place a tiny dot of glue on the tip of the pointer finger, pinkie, and thumb, and glue those fingers in place.
  6. Fold (don’t crease) the middle two fingers down to the palm of the hand and, using a small drop of glue on the very tip of each of those fingers, attach them in place to look like the picture.
  7. Now add your own message of love to the inside and outside of the card and give it to a person you love!

Happy Valentines Day!

Snowman Glitter Shaker

(Originally published in the 2016 YogaKids Holiday Family Fun Guide)

Supplies

  • One jar with a screw on lid (like a pasta sauce jar)
  • One 12”x12” piece of felt for the hat
  • Hot glue
  • Glycerin
  • A ribbon or other piece of fabric for the scarf
  • A pipe cleaner for the hat
  • A small piece of orange paper, cut into a triangle, for the carrot nose
  • A black sharpie for eyes and buttons
  • Other decorations, like jingle bells and pom-poms for the hat, or buttons for the eyes, mouth
  • Water

Plastic glitter in large and small sizes

Instructions:

You may adjust the glycerin-to-water ratio for the size of your jar – I am using a 24 oz. jar in the example.

  • Remove the label and scrape off any leftover glue. Make sure the jar is completely dry.
  • Begin by tying the scarf onto the jar and adding a dot of hot glue to the front and back, between the ribbon or fabric and jar, to hold the scarf in place.
  • Glue on button eyes or draw on black circles for eyes, mouth, and buttons. Glue on the nose.
  • Trace a circle onto the felt using a bowl, and cut it out. Note: Using the lid of your jar as a guide, you should have no less than 1” extra fabric all around. I have about 1.5” margins on mine.
  • The larger the circle, the floppier the hat.
  • Add ¼ cup of glycerin and about 1 cup water. Put the lid on the jar and shake until mixture is homogeneous.
  • Put a maximum of 2 Tablespoons of plastic glitter into the jar, then fill until about 1” from the top of the jar. Put the lid on and make sure you like the consistency of the water and glitter. If you want to add more glycerin to make the glitter move more slowly, add it now and mix well.
  • Once you’re happy with the water viscosity, fill the last remaining space up to the brim and put the lid on. Dry any water spots that may have leaked out, and hot glue around the base of the lid.
  • Center the circle of felt on the lid and hot glue it in place.
  • Crimp the felt as needed to get the shape of hat you want, and wrap the pipe cleaner tightly under the base of the lid, twisting the ends to hold it together. You will probably need more than one set of hands for this step! Add decorations, like pom-poms, silk flowers, or a bow) over the place where you twist the pipe cleaner closed.
  • Let it snow!

Handprint Menorah

(Originally published in the YogaKids 2016 Holiday Family Fun Guide)

Supplies:

  • Patterned or brightly colored paper to use for candle flames
  • A piece of card stock
  • Tempera or other water based paint in the color you want your menorah
  • Scissors
  • Glue or glue stick
  • Metallic sharpies, paints, sequins, etc. optional – for decorating the menorah

Instructions:

  • Fold the card stock in half, and then unfold it. Lay it flat.
  • Placing your left hand on the left side of the paper, with your thumb straight up, across the center fold line.
  • Trace your hand, then repeat on the right side, with your thumb in the same place as the left thumb.
  • Paint inside the lines you just traced.
  • Allow paint to dry and then decorate over the top of the menorah.
  • Fold the piece of paper you’re using for flames in half. Draw five flame shapes and cut them out of the folded paper to make ten flames. (That’s one left over)
  • Glue a flame in the center, then “light” one finger of the menorah for each night of Chanukah.
  • Keep the extra flames in an envelope nearby so they don’t get lost, and enjoy the Festival of Lights!

Star-of-David Mini Pizzas

Total time: 30m

Ingredients:

  • Packaged mini-toasts or big crackers
  • Deli sliced rounds of provolone or other cheese (round works best)
  • Tomato paste or pre-made pasta sauce
  • Fresh or dry oregano

Instructions:

  • Lay out the crackers or toasts on a foil or silicone lined baking tray that can go in your oven or toaster oven. The edges should not touch, and they should be lying completely flat.
  • Spoon a little tomato paste or sauce onto each one and spread it across the top. Don’t make it too thin or the toasts won’t soften in the middle.
  • Sprinkle a pinch of oregano on top of the tomato sauce.
  • Cut the rounds of cheese in half, then each half into three pie-shaped pieces. Slice the curvy edge off the triangle, and lay two triangles on top of each toast in opposite directions, to make a Star of David.
  • Put the tray in the toaster oven or under the broiler just long enough for the cheese to melt a little and form little bubbles; about 5-10 minutes.
  • Serve delicious mini-pizzas and eat ‘em up!

Snowman Skewers

Total time: 30m or less

Ingredients:

  • Bananas – each banana makes about two and a half skewers
  • One red and one green apple
  • A few red and green grapes
  • Chocolate chips or raisins (baby-sized chips work best)
  • Wood skewers
  • A flat serving platter or tray
  • Optional: a little bit of powdered sugar to dust serving plate with “snow” – works best when the platter is dark.

Instructions:

  • Cut ¾ – 1” thick slices of banana, put three on each skewer, circular cut side facing outward.
  • Quarter the apples and cut each quarter into thirds. Put on the skewer on top of the bananas – this is the snowman’s hat. Note: You might want to help little kids. It can be tough to get through the skin of the apple with the wood skewer, and we don’t want anyone getting stabbed!
  • Put a grape on the very top, over the apple, to make the hat’s pom-pom.
  • Using the chocolate chips, stick eyes and buttons into the bananas.
  • Optional: lightly dust your serving platter with powdered sugar and lay out all the snowmen.
  • Serve and eat; mmmmmm delicious!

Pita Holiday Trees

Total time: 30m or less

Ingredients:

  • Package of pita bread
  • Green Garden Dip (see next recipe) or other green and white dip – like tzatziki, spinach dip
  • Brightly colored veggies (tiny cherry tomatoes, red, yellow, and green peppers, black olive slices, etc.)
  • Optional: fresh dill

Instructions:

  • Cut each pita round like a pie, into eight triangles, and place on a serving platter, points up.
  • Spoon green dip onto each pita
  • Put little bits of fresh dill on top to look like pine branches
  • Chop the vegetables and decorate the “trees.”
  • Serve and eat! YUM!