Story of the World, Vol. 4, Chapter 18 took us to Persia and then to the Balkans. Well, since I grew up in Eastern Europe, I took a special interest in this chapter. Again and again, Ms. Bauer amazes me with her ability to summarize complex historical facts into a readable story for elementary age students.
Romanian paper weaving craft kit
For our craft, I pulled out a set of weaving cards from Romania. I think my sister brought this over the last time she came to visit, which is a few years back. Anyway, can you believe I have never played with this weaving set with the kids?
Weaving cards and paper strips from the set
When I read about the craft of bedouin weaving, this weaving set came to mind. I dug it out of the craft boxes I have and we played with it a bit. No, the kids did not have enough patience to finish an entire picture. But they got the idea of what weaving is all about.
Weaving with paper strips
One of my kids got tired pretty fast. That’s just fine with me. I will not insist on a craft project which seems like busy work. I pick my battles. Violin is important. Piano is important. Weaving a craft for history – not so much.
Could it teach them patience and perseverance? Sure. But so do all the other things we do for homeschooling. We looked at the concept of weaving and talked about how people used to make cloth and carpets like that.
My grandmother had a big loom and we still have some of the colorful carpets and blankets she made. She has been gone for almost 40 years, but I still remember her working on it.
I told the kids about their great-grandmother and how she used to make pretty things for people to use around the home. They were impressed. My son knew his middle name comes from her first name.
