Today, October 6, is German American Heritage Day. On this day in 1683, the first group of German immigrants to settle in America sailed into the Port of Philadelphia. I do not have any German ancestry myself, but many, many of my husband's ancestors were from Germany, and so my children share in that German heritage.
I wanted to do a simple craft or hands-on activity to 'celebrate' the day with my kids - nothing too complex or too difficult to understand, especially for my four year old. One thing that both of them seem to understand is that different countries have different flags. They recognize the American flag when they see it, and during the Summer Olympics earlier this year, we looked at and talked about other nations' flags. So, I thought, why not do a craft involving the German flag?
Fortunately now, in the age of the Internet, it is super, super easy to look up what each country's flag looks like. There are also several free-access websites that allow you to print off blank black-and-white versions of world flags for coloring or other crafts. This website has eight pages of printable black-and-white flags for nearly every nation of the world (scroll down to see links to all eight pages of flags). This website is not as globally-comprehensive as the previous link, but for the countries that are represented, the coloring printables go beyond just the country's flag. It has maps, symbols, folklore pictures, and other cultural items related to that nationality.
I printed out two blank German flags. My daughter simply colored - ok, scribbled - one of the flags with crayons. I found a picture of the German flag on my phone and asked her to copy it. Then, we used a circular paper punch to make red, black, and yellow circles that she glued onto the other flag I had printed out. Her artistic interpretation was minimalistic, but that's ok! Let the children be creative with it and design the activity around what your child enjoys. You could color it by finger-painting, or maybe by gluing on small colored pompon balls. You could even use colored beads or candy, like M&Ms. You could tear off small pieces of paper, glue them on, and make a mosaic.
I wanted to do a simple craft or hands-on activity to 'celebrate' the day with my kids - nothing too complex or too difficult to understand, especially for my four year old. One thing that both of them seem to understand is that different countries have different flags. They recognize the American flag when they see it, and during the Summer Olympics earlier this year, we looked at and talked about other nations' flags. So, I thought, why not do a craft involving the German flag?
Fortunately now, in the age of the Internet, it is super, super easy to look up what each country's flag looks like. There are also several free-access websites that allow you to print off blank black-and-white versions of world flags for coloring or other crafts. This website has eight pages of printable black-and-white flags for nearly every nation of the world (scroll down to see links to all eight pages of flags). This website is not as globally-comprehensive as the previous link, but for the countries that are represented, the coloring printables go beyond just the country's flag. It has maps, symbols, folklore pictures, and other cultural items related to that nationality.
I printed out two blank German flags. My daughter simply colored - ok, scribbled - one of the flags with crayons. I found a picture of the German flag on my phone and asked her to copy it. Then, we used a circular paper punch to make red, black, and yellow circles that she glued onto the other flag I had printed out. Her artistic interpretation was minimalistic, but that's ok! Let the children be creative with it and design the activity around what your child enjoys. You could color it by finger-painting, or maybe by gluing on small colored pompon balls. You could even use colored beads or candy, like M&Ms. You could tear off small pieces of paper, glue them on, and make a mosaic.
As you are doing this activity, be sure to show your child where the country is located, using either an atlas, globe, or a map on the Internet. Younger children who are still learning colors will benefit from identifying the individual colors within each flag. With older children, you can discuss the symbolism within the flag - what the colors and pictures represent. (In Wikipedia, if you type in 'Flag of (country),' the site will return a page that is all about the symbolism and history of that country's flag.) And, of course, be sure to mention who in their family tree has ancestral roots in that country. For younger children, it could be as simple as saying, 'Grandma and Grandpa S's ancestors came to America from Germany a long time ago.' As children get older, little by little you can start talking about specific years of immigration and names of ancestors.
Our children are fortunate to live in a time and place that recognizes the importance of ethnic diversity and celebrates different cultures throughout the year. Of course, you don't have to wait until a special month or day to celebrate your family's heritage, but it is a good idea to know when these months occur because your community or surrounding communities may have special ethnic celebrations to look out for. Here is a list of some of the common heritage months and days in America, as well as some traditional holidays still celebrated in the 'old countries.'
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African-American History Month (February)
Irish American History Month (March) St. Patrick’s Day (March 17) Greek American Heritage Month (March) Arab American Heritage Month (April) Scottish American Heritage Month (April) National Tartan Day (April 6) Asian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month (May) Cinco de Mayo – Mexican American (May 5) Haitian Heritage Month (May) Jewish American Heritage Month (May) Caribbean American Heritage Month (June) |
French American Heritage Month (July)
Bastille Day (July 14) Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15 – October 15) Mexican Independence Day (September 16) Italian American Heritage Month (October) Leif Erikson Day – Norwegian American (October 9) German American Heritage Month (October) German American Heritage Day (October 6) Filipino American Heritage Month (October) Polish American Heritage Month (October) Native American Heritage Month (November) Native American Heritage Day (Friday after Thanksgiving) Dutch American Heritage Day (November 16) St. Lucia’s Day – Traditional Scandinavian Holiday (Dec 13) |
©2014, Emily Kowalski Schroeder
