LOVE, OPENING, CLOSING, WRAPPING, UNWRAPPING, AND LEMONADE
Guiding ideas:
Love, surprise, and exploring lemonade. Inspired by the artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude and AMOR as explained in the book A Tweens Guide To Learning About Your Thoughts by Dan Seigel.
Ingredients for today’s Lab:
Lemons and limes, water, sugar, cups, a bunch of boxes of all sizes filled surprises, fabric, and tape.
What just happened?!:
This week in El Lab, Wendy read a book, inviting us to explore AMOR,though:
Words,
Touch,
Acts of Service
Gifts, and
Spending Time
The amigues shared how at home, they show love by: saying “I love you”, giving a kiss, helping mamá clean, helping papá cook, hugging hermanas, petting pets or giving a present.
Inspired by the artist couple Christo and Jeanne-Claude, who wrapped buildings, bridges, and entire landscapes in fabric, Nicole invited us to wonder: What if we wrapped our world, too? Soon the classroom filled with long pieces of cloth, boxes, ribbons, and laughter. We wrapped chairs, tables, and even ourselves, turning everyday things into mysterious, beautiful packages. One giant bundle of chairs became “a present for the sky.”
As we wrapped, unwrapped, and wrapped again, we noticed how touch, surprise, and attention are also ways of giving. Some amigues made small gifts with loose parts for friends, others chose to unwrap them right away, discovering that the joy was in both giving and revealing.
Finally, with Eva, the amigues explored what it takes to make fresh lemonade, mixing water, sugar, squeezing lemons, and tasting their creation. They proudly offered it to friends and teachers, announcing: “We made this for you!” The act of sharing lemonade became another kind of gift, sweet, simple, and full of love. While some kids preferred the sour lemon other preferred to try and try again til they felt it was just the right mix of all the ingredients.
This week, El Lab became a celebration of generosity, play, and togetherness, an exploration of how wrapping, helping, and sharing are all ways to say te quiero. 💛
