Take the kids to Lapland (with their imagination)
As we get close to December we are surrounded by reminders that this is the season of Christmas, with all of the opportunities to celebrate and buy the things we ‘need’ for that traditional experience. We think of snow and conifers and images of Father Christmas, up in Lapland surrounded by his elf companions, preparing presents for the Christmas Eve drop off.
But there’s a lot more to Lapland than a fantasy location for a particular version of seasonal celebration. Lapland is a place with a culture and history which is amazing, magical and extraordinary - and not an elf in sight. A trip to Santa’s Grotto in Norway or Sweden may not be on your family’s wish list and the pandemic means it's not possible anyway - but you can take your family on a trip to Lapland in their imagination - lots of fun and no air miles involved.
The night sky
The winter in the Arctic is long and the nights are dark, especially in the months around the winter solstice in mid-December. So there’s lots of time to watch the night sky and lots to see! Because many parts of the Arctic have low population density there is less light pollution from human development and the night displays are both easier to see and brighter.
Watch the stars
Many of us live in more built up areas which means the stars are more difficult to see unless you can get to a more rural area. On a cloudless night, they’re still there to be enjoyed through a window (turn off the lights first) or even better from outside. You’ll all need to wrap up warm but if you can find somewhere suitable, why not take a blanket and lie on the grass? Once your eye gets used to the lights you’ll see the stars and even a few satellites. There‘s an app which will help you identify the stars and its fun to learn to spot a few common phenomena - the moon in all its different stages, Orion’s belt, the North star.
Aurora Borealis
One of the most amazing night sky experiences but one which really does need a clear night and a northerly location. Show the kids this video - shot in Scotland but the lights are even easier to see in Lapland:
Maybe have a go at explaining why the lights appear and then imagine how the people of the north might have made sense of what they saw when the Aurora was active.
If you’re having trouble explaining the Aurora, try Activity 6 of our Lapland workbook. It involves getting kids to create a diagram of the Aurora, step-by-step so they can understand how it happens. You can find our online Lapland workbook for free here.
And if the kids enjoy the video, how about creating the Aurora in your home….
You need as many torches as you can find round the house along with some coloured tissue paper. Cover the lens of each torch with one of the sheets of paper and stick with sticky tape. Then, when its dark outside, draw the curtains, turn off the lights and create a show of lights on the ceiling. Remember that the lights are constantly changing and that the commonest colour is green. See if you can use your hands or other objects to change the shapes appearing on the ceiling and then lie back and enjoy the show. It may not be quite as exciting as being in the far north but it is a great deal warmer!
Set up a Lavvu
When the Sami people follow the migrating reindeer north for the summer, they camp. Nowadays they have a good range of camping equipment but the traditional form of shelter would have been a Lavvu, a number of long sticks in a circle, tied near the top into a peak and then covered with reindeer skin which would provide insulation and protection from rain.
So imagine the fun that can be had from 6 bamboo poles and a sheet to build an indoor Lavoo and then play the life of a Sami reindeer herder. How would you cook? What would you cook? What would you sleep on? Would you be warm enough? Where would you wash? During school holidays you could set up some cushions and blankets to make a bed and then trek to the stream (aka the bathroom) to wash, collecting twigs for your fire (aka pencils or the like).
Reindeer
Reindeer are a type of deer and their natural habitat is the northern areas of Europe and North America. They are integral to the way of life of the Sami people who live in Northern Europe and in the past provided food, shelter and implements in the harsh conditions of that area. Reindeer are uniquely suited to the cold and migrate between the more southerly region for the summer and the north for the summer when the lichen and grasses provide a rich diet. Their fur provides amazing insulation as each hair is hollow so that an area of air provides an extra layer of protection from the cold. And their noses really can glow red! They need to warm the cold arctic air before it enters their lungs so their nose has a massive network of blood vessels which warm their breath and can make their nose glow red, well maybe pink!
We are surrounded by images of reindeer in the lead up to Christmas but why now challenge the kids to find out more about these amazing creatures? The internet is a rich resource for this sort of research and will give insights into how they spend their time when not dashing round the planet delivering gifts...
Here are a few resources to try…
https://www.natgeokids.com/uk/discover/animals/general-animals/reindeer-facts/
Snow
There’s a lot of snow in Lapland In the winter months which means people have had to develop ways of dealing with it - it affects their clothes, their homes, how they travel, how they get their water. It's also a wonderful way to help explain how temperature affects matter - the whole solid, liquid gas thing which is so important in science lessons. And snowflakes are beautiful! It is claimed that every snowflake is unique although it would challenge most of us to explain how we could prove that. Why not make your own snow show - all you need is some white paper and scissors and then some sticky tape to secure your snowflakes onto the window. When you look out, you can imagine the snow falling thick and deep and dream of what fun you could all have out there.
This video explains how to make flakes.
Gakti
Sami dress for special occasions is colourful and highly decorated but each element of every garment has meaning. Visitors to the area may be tempted to buy a lovely garment. Many will be fake but some are precious family treasures and the new owner will probably not understand the significance of the braids, fringing and buttons.
So how about suggesting to the kids that they design their own special treasures, using the idea behind Gakti. If you find a dress or jacket which is destined to be sent to the charity ship, show the children images of Gakti and ask them to plan their own family traditions and symbols.
A family might use particular colours or a special pattern - members of the same family would share that on their clothes. Buttons of different colours and shapes can have a different meaning - round for a girl, square for a boy perhaps. These patterns can extend to fringing and braid or ribbon used as edging.
You’ll need to provide some supplies - buttons, braid, fringing, ribbon, pieces of fabric - raid the wardrobe for clothes you no longer wear or take a trip to the charity shop if there is one open nearby. And don’t forget some means to secure their decorations - safety pins, glue or needle and thread if they’re able to sew.
All of this can be great fun but it also gets us thinking about repurposing our clothes and building up creative differences as a counter balance to ideas of uniformity and conforming to be like everyone else.
If you’re looking for more Lapland activities, try our Online Lapland workbook.
It’s got activities on Father Christmas, reindeer, the Aurora and plenty about the Sami people.
Perfect for kids aged 6-12.
